Kylara Vatta is the only daughter in a family of sons. Rather than follow the path of successful insterstellar commerce that the family has built through generations, she chooses to attend her planet's Naval Academy. About to graduate near the top of her class, she instead is forced to resign in disgrace when a good deed done for an underclassman is used to embarrass the academy and the space force. This is a pattern for Ky, many of her good deeds - which are truly good, seem to be punished, rather than rewarded.