Rule 68: Don't accept a jewelled egg from a Rhombian. Certainly not when you're already trying to hock illicit goods ... though are they really illicit if you found them on a long, lost treasure ship that you uncovered for a greedy gangster and calculating noble? Having found the Celeste and escaped both death and imprisonment, the crew of the cargo ship Lyra just wants to get back to hauling bugs for unscrupulous harvesters so they can earn enough for food and fuel. Unfortunately, the crew is missing one of its members... Navigator Ishmael Damath is in the hands of gangster Ludovicus Visi after sacrificing himself for the safety of the others. Said gangster has given him the impossible task of translating an ancient book written in a long-dead language. If Ish doesn't translate it, he'll be thrown to the tigers ... too bad he didn't pay more attention in school. The crew suspects Ish didn't go with the gangster entirely...

Rule number 27: Don't trust the weird Sisters. Or maybe it's don't steal from gangsters. Either way...words to live by. The Lyra is safe. And so is Alek Wa's secret. His mission is over, and he can leave the ship. But he's not sure he wants to. And when the Sisters of Elazir drop them into the Green Zone, Alek's stomach sinks. The last time he was here, he fled with his life and barely got away. Rebeka Mino isn't happy to be in the Green Zone, ruled by gangsters and reprobates. She can survive it though — she's been there before. But then things go from bad to worse: her ex shows up with a treasure map to a fabled ship. With the Lyra back in working order, Tink has no desire to chase after mythical treasure ships. She wants life to get back to normal: odd jobs, the occasional salvage and tinkering in her engine room. But with her secret exposed and unwelcome guests, she doubts if things can ever go back to normal...and Alek Wa is still...

Rule number 1: Whatever you do, don't open the box. Well, that's rule number two actually. Rule number one is don't take salvage jobs from people who've tried to sell you to an Antillian bug salesman. Neara "Tink" Bell is used to a life of odd jobs and even odder crewmates, working as the engineer and all-around fixer on the cargo ship Lyra. But when the ship picks up two new crew members and a salvage job on a third-rate space station, things go sideways in a cosmic way. Alek Wa is on the run. And he's pretty sure he can hide amongst the motley crew of Lyra. But that's not the only reason he's on-board. He has a mission. If only his minders had told him what it was. Captain Rebeka Mino just wants to retire with a whiskey and a steamy novel. She'd even let the ship's cat sit on her lap, provided he keeps his claws to himself. Too bad the ship keeps getting shot at. And when they arrive at the coordinates for the salvage job, they're confronted...