In the near future, humans have colonized Mars, joined pirates in space, and divided Earth into two vastly different nations: The United Empires and Liansa. When a mission to Mars goes awry, Ailee Chambers---a Sergeant in Earth's Interstellar Force---is left for dead in a spaceship with no life support, and an alien contraption wrapped around her neck. She is rescued, but there's no cause for celebration, because her saviors are pirates, disgusting monsters who kill Martians and Earthers for sport. Yet, when the Captain of the pirates' ship, Felix Oringo, enlists her help to unravel the plans of Boss---the leader of all pirates---Ailee begins sympathizing with her snarky captor. Boss claims he will liberate Liansans from their dictatorship, but Ailee remains unconvinced. After all, what do men in power want? More power. However, in her quest to unveil the leader's plans, the irresistible Boss falls for her, complicating her relationship with Felix, her loyalty to the United Empires, and matters of the heart. For the first time in history, Mars and Earth combine forces to eliminate Boss and retrieve Ailee---why is she so important?---and it's a toss up as to who makes it out alive. * * * Ranking: #5 in femmefatale

It's the year 398 of the Ninth Era, an age dominated by the Federation's authoritarian control and by the insidious influence of megacorps like Mercator Group. Human-piloted, mass-produced machines known as Frames define the battlefield, surveillance programs monitor your every move, and no one alive remembers what it was like before it got this way. It's in this tightly-wound, bloody ecosystem that four lives collide. The Knife, a mob enforcer with the ability to bend matter, ends up a courier for a piece of tech she's been trained not to ask questions about. Angela, a Frame Pilot Specialist with the Ministry of State Affairs, fights for justice only to find deafening silence. Grey, her teammate, just wants to keep the squad sane. Major Falwin, their superior, investigates a crime scene and finds a Knife-shaped ghost. Nobody has all the pieces to the puzzle-not until Frames drop, guns are pointed, and the nature of reality becomes a question mark. In this new, unrelenting conflict, there won't be any winners, only more devastation.