For years only the thinnest barrier kept the Il Ronnian Empire from launching full-scale war on mankind. Now that barrier is about to crumble: Space pirates have raided an Il Ronn planet and made off with the Vial of Tears--a holy relic with cosmic religious powers.Only one man can hunt down the sacred relic--bounty hunter supreme Sam McCade. McCade has his own reasons to answer the call to duty. He has a personal score to settle with the pirates. And he intends to brave his way through the grueling tests of the Il Ronn warrior-priest and claim his alien bounty...