The long-awaited third book in the CLOAKS series!
Hundreds of years ago, the Settlers created the quistrils to kill for them, then die for them--ultimately leaving the planet empty for them. Their plans didn't work as expected, and now the Settlers are gone; but the quistrils remain, keeping the world stagnant under their authoritarian rule.

Heldrick has been fighting a lone battle against quistril domination for years, but with the recent coup, he's suddenly become the Ascendant of Kallikot Citadel. It's a great opportunity to institute change--except that in order to secure his position, he seems forced into taking the very actions he's been fighting against. As if that weren't enough, Estrienn, one of his closest associates, is actually a spy for Norvenmot.

But Estrienn has her own difficulties. Over the past six months her respect for Heldrick has grown, and she's fallen in love with Grayvle, Heldrick's prime lieutenant. Everything was fine while Heldrick and Grayvle were fighting against the Citadel, but now that Heldrick is in charge of it, her Norvenmot masters are pushing harder for information that she's no longer anxious to provide. No matter which course she takes, she'll feel like a traitor.

Meanwhile, Norvenmot itself is hatching plans that not even Estrienn is aware of. And a small village near the Norvenmot-Kallikot border may just be getting ready to take actions that could spell disaster--for everyone.

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