The Consul is at a loss. Despite their initial overconfidence and the best efforts of the Five Kingdom's combined military, the undead Scourge still plague the realm.
In Xandra, divine revelations and interventions ignite a dogmatic struggle between religious sects, pushing the nation toward civil war and hindering Xandran participation in the fight against the Scourge.
Prince Fortexxt, renowned for his honor and trustworthiness, takes responsibility for a mysterious stranger who appears to be more than she seems. Shortly after this pivotal decision, events escalate, and he finds himself trapped between promise and duty. From this point on, every decision he makes will impact the future of his people.
Gaiaus, the newest True Brother, is starting to understand what it means to make a deal with a daemon. His unique strengths and abilities are vast and varied but come with a steep price. That price, in this case, is that he must do the bidding of Ta'Lin, no matter how demeaning or despicable those orders may be. For now, it is a price he is willing to pay -- at least until a better opportunity comes along.
Pivotal pieces come and go as schemes succeed and fail. Who will be on the right side of history when the dust settles? Will there even be a Five Kingdoms left after the winds of change have blown across the continent?
For all of recorded history, the sentient races of Cordizal clashed in war and strife. Details changed from time to time, but the broad strokes remained the same — peoples, societies, and governments rising then falling, then rising only to fall again. Year after year, the patterns held until the five most powerful kingdoms on the continent, burnished and tempered by their past, set aside their differences and united into the Five Kingdoms.
Presently, this young coalition of sovereign nations faces its first enemy together and is embroiled in a decade-long war against an enemy without stated demands or obvious goals — an enemy whose only purpose seems to be to spread chaos and destruction as far and wide as possible.
In the capital of the Five Kingdoms, the Consul of the Five attempts to come to terms with a war they could very well lose. Unfortunately, old habits are hard to break, and bickering and posturing hinder effective governing at every step.
On the outskirts of the Arza, a disgraced, self-entitled Arzan noble is sent to a man with a questionable background to finish his tutelage while his father attempts to clear their family name.
Meanwhile, in Rame, a Maximus aligns himself with the foulest individuals the Five Kingdoms has to offer, hoping to restore Rame to its former glory and claim his birthright.
On the frontlines of war, the supreme commander of the Five Kingdoms' combined military does everything within his power to keep their tireless enemy at bay.
The winds of change are once again blowing their way through Cordizal. The question is, can the people of the Five Kingdoms somehow come together and weather the storm, or will a new force emerge to change the very face of the continent?
Miguela was the third-born child of a well-off merchant family and knew from around the time she could speak that her life’s path was already decided. She was to become an Orator, as was Xandran tradition. However, Miguela had an affinity with the magikal arts and somehow found herself studying at the Academy.
She did just enough to keep up with her studies but never found the motivation to apply herself and “reach her potential,” as her instructors often said. It was not that Miguela was uninterested in the arts. Rather, she knew her time at the Academy ultimately did not matter. Whenever Miguela returned home, she would become an Orator, and that would be that.
Or so she believed until, one day, an opportunity appeared that would change her life. Miguela was offered the chance to join a research team tasked with a mission of the utmost importance to the future of the Five Kingdoms. She could not turn down the prospect of regaining control of her life and finally finding a purpose for herself. Of course, Miguela might soon discover that offers that appear too good to be true are usually fraught with lies.
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