It's been seven months since the incident, and Sam Brausam is alive... if you can call it that. He's barely learned to walk again, his spirit seems broken beyond repair, and the booze and pain pills aren't doing his recovery any favors. His sister Dee-now eight months pregnant-and her boyfriend Mateo have moved into the old family home in order to help care for him. Meanwhile, the Blue Flame continues to build his case to defend humanity from extinction. But seven months into the discovery phase of the trial, the Tribunal Consensus is growing impatient.