The Shadow War is at a standstill as 2261 begins. Ancient, implacable enemies, held at bay by races long dead or departed, the Shadows were no more than legends to most of the younger races. All that changed in 2260. The Shadows, awakened years earlier from a millennium-long slumber on their ancestral home of Z'ha'dum, gradually made their presence known, and their purpose became clear: weeding out the weak and defenseless among the younger races to promote rapid evolution. Moving largely behind the scenes, they set the younger races upon one another, causing wars and inciting genocide. The Shadows are the embodiment of the question, "What do you want?" They seek not military victory, but philosophical dominance, a universe in which younger races scramble madly to attain their goals withou