The Outer Dark by Zachary Rawlins

As treaties collapse and alliances crumble, Central is plunged into a state of war.

While the new Director, Rebecca Levy, struggles to control the situation with the help of Alice Gallow and a motley group of novice Auditors, the Anathema lurk in the Outer Dark, turning cartels and testing loyalties, armed with a World Tree and waiting for the right moment to invade Central.

The rivalry between the North Cartel and the Thule Cartel threatens to boil over into open conflict, dragging the rest of the Hegemony into chaos. As Anastasia Martynova reaches her debut and adulthood, tensions with her father over control of the Black Sun threaten to pit father against daughter for the fate of the cartel.

And, from an overlooked club room at the Academy, the Rescue Alex from the Outer Dark Club embarks on its daring mission.

The Outer Dark is the fourth of five novels in the Central Series.