Book excerpt: Gangs rule Cantilucca. Two syndicates dominate the planet. Guns are the only law. Both sides are arming for a bloody showdown that can only end with a handful of survivors sifting for subsistence in the ruins of what could be a rich world. Then the survey team arrives . . . David Drake introduces a new kind of Hammer's Slammer. At the publisher's request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management).