As humanity progresses through the stars, in some ways, it has regressed.
The Solar League, under the control of its aristocracy, has conquered many races it has encountered, placing such aliens on the bottom rung of a social order with class and marriage being all important.
As the Emperor's daughter, Mercedes becomes the first woman to join the Solar Leagues elite military training center, the High Ground. She has everything she could dream of ... except a say in her life.
However, Mercedes, along with Tracy, the common born son of a tailor, will see the specter of civil and interstellar war, political intrigue, and their own desires test them in ways they never thought possible.