For intern and jousting valet Kip Pureweather, a little insubordination goes a long way. In defying the oppressive knight-executives of the Incorporated Realms of America’s largest corporation, Kip sets in motion a revolution across the country and a civil war within his own conscience about the life he’s been pursuing.

By sparing the family farm of office maiden Abbey Fairchild from foreclosure, Kip has brought the wrath of the country’s royal class down on himself and anyone brave enough to stand with him. In an attempt to protect those he cares about, Kip flees on mechanical horseback to the forbidden Empty Lands north of the Realms. Venturing into the Lands reveals a secret the corporations have kept since the time of the war that brought them to power and ushered in the second Dark Ages.

With a new war in the Realms imminent, Kip returns to York City to warn his friends. Enlisting the help of a slave, a mailroom clerk, a tabloid princess, and a marginalized scientist, Kip and Abbey take a final stand against Vassalcorp and the army of genetically enhanced soldiers that have been unleashed from the north to crush the country back into submission.