Mankind's only interstellar colony has been trapped on a sideways planet for the last five hundred years. Alex Vonn, a young man with a talent for irritating others, becomes Marshal Hugh Redland's newest deputy. Will this be an opportunity to make a difference in the world, or is he just being played as a pawn in a far-reaching scheme for global dominance? Will his efforts even matter on a planet that grows increasingly hostile to human life? The answers lie on a mountainous field of boulders at the edge of the civilized world.
Alex Vonn, now a seasoned marshal, hunts escaped convicts for a living. Track, capture, and carry out summary judgment against them without being killed in the process. If only life were that simple. Now, old enemies want to team up. Old friends want him out of the picture. Human technology fails and strange alien tech appears. An escaped psychopath leaves a trail of bodies in his wake. Is the killer running away, or luring Alex into a trap? Is this man somehow connected to the increased geologic devastation across the whole planet? Before Alex can find answers, he'll have to decide whom he can trust.

Marshal Alex Vonn is trapped in Dolina. For several months, he has been suffering from progressively worse symptoms of an unknown condition. Medical experts are baffled. Even with their high-tech devices, they are unable to help as his body is wracked with debilitating tremors. His days as a marshal may be over. Then, disaster strikes when the force field protecting the city shuts down. The mountain range above them threatens to collapse. There is little hope in restarting the force field. There is less hope of evacuating the city. Time is running out for everyone. The only thing Alex can do is find the people responsible and hold them accountable, if he could only manage to walk without falling down. With silent forces working against each other in the city, Alex revisits the investigation that first brought him to Dolina.