orn into a sorcerer bloodline, cursed, and cut off from my power, I was accustomed to being an outcast. For generations, my bloodline carried the weight of a crime committed by our ancestor. But my mother’s death changed everything. She left a clue that could prove our innocence: an ancient text hidden deep beneath Nightsbridge Academy.

The Academy is a fortress of power, housing the most dangerous incantors and sorcerers, conscripted to keep Horrors and Echoes at bay. And as the last surviving Onyx, I’m owed admission. My plan is simple—find the book and expose the Imperium as the liars they are. But I didn’t plan for the whispers that haunt my dreams. Or the complication of feelings I shouldn’t be capable of—stirred by two men bound to the very institution I’ve come to destroy.

One sees too much yet says too little. The other is steady, protective, and always in my corner. I can’t have either. Yet when I’m in their presence…my curse begins to crack. If they discover my true purpose, I’m dead. But some truths are worth dying for. The Imperium cursed my bloodline. Stripped us of our magic. Branded us as traitors. And now they will pay.