Before the Commonwealth existed, there was an expanding, multi-galaxy civilization referred to by its descendants/survivors simply as "First Civ". Due to the combined effects of a too-aggressive policy of expansion, civil unrest, the inequality and abuse of the classes, and the categorizing of augmented humans as a slave class, First Civ disintegrated.
The period of darkness and barbarism that followed is referred to as the Downfall. Various groups of people fled First Civ as they became endangered or more powerful people tried to have them classified as mutants or non-humans, and either sterilized or made them into slaves. Among them were the Khybors, the ancestors of the Leapers.
Some groups of people managed to get hold of ships and flee to distant galaxies. Using sleeper ships, they could spend centuries in travel and no one would age. This caused problems later, when different waves of refugees landed on the same planet, and the newcomers came into conflict with those who'd been there for centuries.
It's a time of turmoil in the Central Allied Worlds when the governor of Rensler, his wife and eldest son are forced to attend a "conference" of colonial governors. They leave the youngest son, Edrian, and the colony in the care of his grandfather, the former governor.
The two begin a secret project by befriending the sentient, nocturnal Nightskimmers.
As Edrian grows up, and unrest intensifies, he learns real heroes sometimes operate in secret. His position as youngest brother of the next governor requires him to present a false face to the world against the day when he must strike out on behalf of the colonists if they're to keep their freedom.
When the expected revolution does erupt, Edrian's father and grandfather are taken away, accused of treachery. His older brother flees to the wilderness to lead the rebels, and Edrian and his mother become hostages.
Edrian hides behind his false reputation of being sickly and studious, allowing him to move freely at night, freeing prisoners and striking in defense of the colony. Only a boy on the verge of manhood, yet the Talon's reputation has already taken root...
