The Alliance has prophesied complete development of the known universe by the turn of the millennium. Huge, powerful mega-corporations run it all from behind the scenes. The Twelve Races of the Alliance work as caretakers, testing the horizon of knowledge, extending to touch the farthest reaches of space. Frontier Colonies populate neighboring bodies: Andromeda, Fornax, Spirax (M33), and the Magellanic Clouds. Posts dot the cluster galaxy of M32 in Ursa Major, some 100,000 light years from Terra. The continuing battle rages onward to drive out the Arachnids. Reports of ghost ships all filter their way across the vast, empty nothingness to the hearts of the bold, strong, and curious. There is a demand for warriors, for men and women with the metal and vision to protect the lives of the innocent. The call for assistance can be heard across the galaxies, as colony worlds struggle to survive in the morass of conflict, uncertainty, and danger. The word goes out from the isolated reaches of The Thendrax Empire in Spirax to the urban centers of the Industrial Provinces of the Fornax galaxy. "Come. Bring your weapons. Bring your courage. Bring your honor. It's showtime!" And so the mega-corporations have hired on a few good men to get the job done. They are referred to as Battlelords. Some are veterans of war. Others are not. But they all have one thing in common. Each believes that he can make a difference. They come from everywhere, from the vast savannahs of Cashoulis, to the infernal volcanic regions of Trishmag. From the methane hell of Eridine, to the great Seas of Pythos, these warriors come. They are energy controllers, bounty hunters, Swordsaints and changelings, aliens from different worlds, with different agendas, thrown together in a morass of danger to carve out a common destiny together.