From Introduction: The cities? They burned. The people? They scrape by, scavenging and hoarding, growing engineered plant-stock in the new urban soil. The government? There is none. As many predicted, it was the corporation that had real strength. Certainly, not all withstood the tests they were subjected to. But while markets crumbled, new ones emerged, and only those with a command of resources and manpower could hope to keep faith with civilization. The corps provide, and without them a person is powerless. In fact, with the new biotech, a human can achieve more than ever before: he can reshape the world and bring humanity forward—we know the current troubles must eventually end, though that future may be millennia away.