In the 32nd century, the Republic of the Sphere is beset on all sides. As the Capellan Confederation's mighty military penetrates the crumbling Republic, they target the one goal that will let them destroy the Republic once and for all: the planet of Northwind, homeworld of the famed Northwind Highlanders mercenaries.

Northwind boasts the only working hyperpulse generator along the line of the Capellan Confederation's advance. Sang-shao Lindsey Baxter and the Fourth McCarron's Armored Cavalry have been tasked with taking Northwind at all costs, and the besieged Republic is unable to support the defending XII Hastati Sentinels. Northwind should be an easy conquest, allowing the Capellans to use it as a launch point for the next phase of their campaign.

But the arrival of a Draconis Combine fleet, recent allies of the Confederation, further shifts the balance of power. Will the Capellan force finally bring Northwind back under the rule of the Celestial Throne, or will Countess Tara Campbell, Captain Declan Casey, and Knight of the Republic Maeve Stirling find a way to lead the outnumbered Highlanders-who have pledged to defend the planet to the last 'Mech-to victory?

This omnibus collects both novels in the Highlander Covenant duology-Grey Watch Protocol and Paid in Blood-along with the short story "Perceptions of Victory."