The codeword came to England in June. Only one man understood it, Ax Preston, rockstar warlord, leader of the English people, icon of the embattled techno-Utopians of Europe. And he decided to do nothing. Ax took a gamble. He knew the price would be high, but he believed he saw a chance of winning the game. His partners – Sage Pender and Fiorinda Slater – believed it too; and they were formidable allies. The Chinese had invincible military superiority, but they didn’t have the secret of the superweapon. Maybe they’d come to England to find it. Or maybe they’d come to obliterate the existence of the Neurobomb, write it out of history, at whatever cost.
In September the Chinese arrived, and slaughtered the innocents. In January a winter journey to the drowned world and a propaganda rock show in a labour camp called Rainbow Bridge led Ax to the secret identity of the Fifth General.
And the game of risk began…