It is not death that frightens the Familiars, but what awaits them after.
Two thousand years ago, The Darkness That Breathes consumed half the Ember Empire. When all hope seemed lost, Seigmund Galador–a simple sheepherder–beat his ploughshare into a crude sword, mounted his donkey, and charged into the jaws of the Mad Chasm.
The unthinkable happened. Galador returned, having slashed aside the groping tentacles of The Darkness That Breathes.
Against all reason, Galador was able to do what the Gods of Bronze and the Champions of Iron failed to. He repelled the infernal horde. Galador then anointed his twelve closest advisors—a hardscrabble company of thieves, lepers, and whores—naming them the Knights of the Radiant Dawn. Together, they forced The Darkness That Breathes beyond the Glass Frontier, liberating the eastern half of the empire.
But then, on the eve of their greatest victory—for reasons lost to time—Galador’s twelve Knights betrayed him. They set upon him with knives, staining the dark earth with his red blood.
In retaliation, Tolmor Morrow, the Archmage, placed a curse on the twelve Knights of the Radiant Dawn. From now until they end of time, whenever they fall in battle, they will be reborn. With different faces, but the same names. With the same blood-debt. With the same eternal adversary. He then refashioned the Knights of the Radiant Dawn into his Familiars.
Now, the Familiars are condemned to continue the war that Seigmund Galador started. They will take up arms against The Darkness That Breathes, fall in battle, be reborn, and then be sent back into the front lines.
Such is their fate.
Now, Waroth and Draven are Familiars. And they are something of a rarity among their kin. They were reborn to the same womb. Twins. Making them brothers not just by destiny, but by blood as well.
But Waroth is sick of this way of life. After generations, The Darkness That Breathes continues to ravage the Ashen Empire. By the time they liberate a town, three more require their aid. He cannot fight the sinking suspicion that he and his siblings are simply treating the symptoms, not the disease.
But when an old face from Waroth and Draven’s past returns, the two are forced to reckon with both their duties and their loyalties. They are forced to reconsider not only their heritage, but the bonds of love and destiny that have bound them together for two thousand years.
Production Timeline
June 19th, 2023: started writing. Painfully, unapologetically, disgustingly aware of what I was getting myself into.
Now: Still working away on Draft One. Currently 130,855 words in.