What stalks within the darkness? Kira has completed her training, and is ready to take on the duties of an officer, but will she be able to do so? The other officers see her as a curiosity. The men hate her for their defeat. Only the East Carwich guard will follow her, but how long can that last? Worst of all, in the quiet of the night, she is tormented by a dark and malevolent entity that want nothing less than her soul. Duty comes with a price. Gidon's feelings for Kira have only grown stronger, but they threaten his ability to lead the men. Surrounded by troops who might turn against him at any moment, and beset by a spy within his own ranks, he must resolve the situation between he and Kira--but how? His feelings are obvious to everyone--everyone except himself. Worse, he is compelled to submit to the man who tortured the woman he loves. His only option is to trust his newest officer, and risk her life. But can he? A prophet has risen. Far to the east, a man named Malechi has been hailed as a prophet, and has overthrown an entire city in a popular rebellion. Aesa, the young daughter of its former Patron Lord, has fallen under his spell of emptiness. As she follows him in his quest to submit to the True King, will she lose everything she has ever known? Or will she find that her own life's worth is different than she ever could have imagined? Shadow will reign. All paths now lead to Greyrest, where faith, rage, malice and love must eventually collide. Gidon and Kira's futures, and the fate of the world, will turn on the confluence of honor, betrayal, and bloody revenge.