Book one of the thrilling Runebound Trilogy. Two heroes. One destiny. Bound by runes. Remus's ambitions are wasted in his small town. He never intended to spend the rest of his life as a blacksmith on the desolate border of the empire. Bound by the law, he has no way out, unless he walks away from everything and makes his own path. Aventine, the protege of a great house, is overjoyed to enter the Rune Guard, the most elite fighting unit in the empire. But not everyone wants her to succeed. As she embarks on her first mission, scheming rivals conspire against her, seeking to end her career before it can even start. In the east a darkness stirs. An evil beyond myth and memory sends its agents to plant the seeds of the empire's destruction. From the forgotten wastelands the vanguard of an invasion starts its slow but inexorable march. Ruin follows in their wake. As the forces of an ancient foe bring destruction to the Alkomian Empire, Remus and Aventine find themselves pulled into the conflict. Forged in blood and chaos, these young heroes fight not only for their lives, but for the very fate of the empire.