Star Player on the Atlantic Archipelago Nation's Battle Team, Niko Vandes wants to quit his job. Problem is, the board games he plays are the 22nd Century's solution to war. Winning a match means winning a battle, and losing costs more than chips-it costs lives. With the fate of his country on his shoulders every time he makes a move, the government will keep Niko playing until it's his turn to die by losing . . . unless he escapes.

Across the ocean, Imani Tenzing barely escaped alive from an isolated cult as a young teen. She's all-too familiar with the violent consequences of human conflict left unchecked. Now, she serves as one of the Custodians responsible for cleaning up the deaths left behind by each Battle Game. When the disappearance of Niko upheaves the societal status quo she's grown dependent on, she vows to find and turn him in to authorities.

With a world war on the verge of breaking out, Imani and Niko's paths collide, and they must decide when the price of peace has become too high-or if it can ever be too high.