Midnight’s Rebellion died a generation ago. The Axe Army was broken at the gates of Lockhaven, and in those hallowed halls where the Black Axe changed paws again, returning to its rightful owner. For his crimes, the blackfur called Midnight was banished beyond the Scent Border to live out his last days in the dangerous Wild Country.

Despite persistent unrest and a litany of later foes, internal and external, the Guard Mice still maintain their hold on Lockhaven and the Mouse Territories. But the Guard is not what it used to be. Once they were a mighty army with many victories to boast. In Gwendolyn’s time as Matriarch, they added new duties, becoming pathfinders, weather watchers, apiarists, loremice, carpenters, and much more. By the time of Gwendolyn’s passing in 1185, the Guard retained very little of its original martial capacity.

In his time, the traitor Midnight feared the softening of the Guard and sought to seize control by leading an army against Lockhaven. Now, in these terrible days of famine and predation, his treacherous sentiments seem prophetic. And his name, Midnight, has become the watchword whispered by every malcontent mouse in the Territories.