Ronin has succeeded in getting Julia admitted into General Genghis's mission to Kepler--a decoy for his true aim: K'Tara. Following her arrival Upside, we experience her shock in the face of the alien silence and the prejudice of Upsiders. Will Julia be able to adapt to life among enhanced humans and synthetics? Will she still be herself or become--a robot, as her father fears? Will she regret her decision to follow Ronin, or will she embrace it? And if so, at what cost?