The prelude novella to a brand new epic fantasy series. For two hundred years war has ravaged the known world. The knights of the Vale of Fristad and the Necromancers of the Black Serpent are locked in a destructive and seemingly endless struggle. Only the nomadic tribes have managed to avoid the conflict. Until now. In the mountains, a boy and his sister flee from shadows in the woods. In the dark, clandestine deeds are done in the name of ancient gods. In the Vale, an ancient foretelling is brought into the light and seven warriors are called forward to fulfill it... Seven swords, four...