Cetagandan soldiers of the ghem military class appear in The Warrior's Apprentice, Ethan of Athos and Brothers in Arms.

Miles and Ivan are sent to the home world of the Cetagandan Empire to represent Barrayar at the state funeral of the dowager Empress Lisbet, mother of the current emperor, the haut Fletchir Giaja.

Miles takes it upon himself to investigate — without informing his superiors — and eventually discovers that the artifact is a fake copy of the priceless Great Key, which has been stolen.

Realizing that an unknown enemy is trying to frame him and Barrayar, Miles forms an unusual alliance with the haut Rian Degtiar, the "Handmaiden of the Star Crèche", who is charged with the duties of empress until the new one is chosen.

The Star Crèche is the heart of the genetic engineering project that is the haut class's efforts to evolve beyond the merely human.