Captain Rylee Crockett, a member of the Galactic Force, is well-respected among her peers, and damn good at her job. Despite the hurdles of being a female captain, she has a loyal crew who see her as strict but fair, and with the newest additions, her crew makes her the best ship in the fleet.

She’s especially curious about the newest expert on board. Dr. Beck Graham, a xenobiologist who specializes in alien species, specifically the Purej, who the Galactic Forces have been fighting for some time now. When Rylee’s ship is ordered to provide backup for a warship in the middle of a battle with their alien enemy, a mistranslated communique is intercepted, and Beck helps her decipher its true meaning. She fears they’re being set up for an ambush, along with everyone else ordered to assist.

What was thought to be proposed peace talks with the Purej is not at all the situation they find themselves involved in. Rylee’s ship is overtaken, and she awakens alone on an unrecognizable planet, and is soon taken to an arena where it is kill or be killed. Every confrontation becomes a fight to the death, gladiator style—against alien creatures, or other Galactic Force members—purely for their enemies’ entertainment.

If Rylee lives through this, she vows to get her revenge for the devastating number of crewmen she’s lost. And for the man who had given her a glimmer of hope when it came to being loved.