Book excerpt: Lieutenant Jaymes Ellias is ready to leave the Basilean Navy. A career spent in coastal defence and administrative positions has left him dejected and resentful, and he has a plan for life outside the military. But when he is suddenly sent to the ship’s company of the HW Pious, an elohi-class frigate, he is propelled into action under the command of the harsh, sardonic Captain Charn Ferrus. Ferrus and his squadron are employed in pirate hunting duties in the sun-drenched Infant Sea, combating the increasingly aggressive exploits of the self-styled orc admiral, Ghurak. Fighting alongside Jaymes are Karnon Senne, a newly appointed Basilean marine captain experienced in warfare on land, and Caithlin Viconti, a privateer captain whose expert knowledge of sailing does not match her inexperience in warfare. Jaymes and the crew of the Pious must brave deadly orc warships and their violent pirate crews across the idyllic, green seas of the Infant Sea and the sandy island chains south of the Basilean mainland to put a stop to the brutal, deadly fleet of Ghurak.