Please read In Recent Years: Introduction before reading this post.
Year 1478
Renado, son of Gharo, sets out from Kedar Port after securing an arms deal for his smuggled goods—though not the deal he had expected to make. The voyage home to Sheld is normally a safer one, but a hurricane bears down on the Vanci Dispatch—named for Ren’s uncle Vanci—forcing the smuggler vessel to seek shelter. The only island within their reach is the strange Isle of Dusk, where sailors dare not venture. As they hide aboard this ship as near to the Isle as they dare, they spot movement on the shore. Moments later, the Dispatch vanishes—crew and all.
Year 1479
A year later, the galley appears in the bay approaching Sheld as suddenly as they had disappeared. They sail toward Sheld in confusion, only to realize how much time has passed. Ren finds unrecognized mercenaries patrolling the streets of his city; Vanci and a few others are captured while Ren searches for answers. Sneaking into the besieged Family estate, Ren meets with Tassina, the wife of his brother—who apparently assumed control of the Family from their father—and Gadra, who now runs the trapped tatters of their organization. They recount that a captive Lerran was dragged out before the estate wall and demands were given for those inside to surrender. When Gadra had refused, they had struck Lerran over the head with a club—hard—and had dragged him away, limp.
Gadra and the remnants of the Family will not yield, fearing death, so Ren decides to flee the estate once more. Tass accompanies him and reveals that she is pregnant with Lerran’s child, Ren’s future nephew or niece. Later, the estate is stormed by the mercenary troops at order of the Grey Brethren or Atmos Septi. All remaining members of Ren’s family are killed and their bodies are hung over the walls of the estate.
Ren and Tass organize a beleaguered resistance, picking off Brethren guards and staging sabotage in the harbour. Eventually, Ren is tipped off as to a prison transport that will be leaving Sheld by the road east. A risky attack manages to secure those kept by it; Ren rescues his uncle Vanci, a trusted warrior named Omma, and—to his shock—a near-dead Lerran.
All their attempts to nurse Ren’s brother back to health fail and Ren, along with a distraught Tass, are forced to seek more radical options abroad. Before departing, they are ambushed by Gharo, the original patriarch of the Family; in the ensuing struggle, Gharo and Vanci are killed. Thus, the Sons of Gharo leave Sheld—Ren sails them for the Isle of Dusk once more.
This time, the magicians on the Isle do not send their ship away without asking questions. Ren meets with Telan, who describes the procedures of the Isle and forces them to make oaths of secrecy with the Tether, a magical artifact that will ensure the oaths are kept. The magicians agree to nurse Lerran back to health in exchange for the service of Ren and the surviving warriors in his service.
Lerran recovers but remains plagued by foul moods and crippling headaches. The duo meet with Gravagan, the magician who will command their service until the debt is paid. Gravagan is a shrewd, sharp old man—the sort of schemer that Ren knows not to trust, but he has no option but to comply. Gravagan commands that they will train in the art of effectively fighting magicians, in preparation of a mission to Ith to kill a rogue magician named Axar.
Before Ren departs, Tass tells him of Lerran’s tempers—that since the injury, Lerran has been like a different man. Ren assures Lerran that if he hurts Tass or the unborn child while Ren is gone, he will pay for it with his life—an ultimatum that Lerran encourages upon hearing it. Then, Ren and his most loyal soldiers, Woodro, Asar, and Karsef, are sent with a Journeying spell deep into Radregar.
They arrive, a couple months later, in a village in the Raderan Highlands. They are directed to speak with Irrith, the leader of Gravagan’s Conclave, in the nearby city of Vagren. Irrith explains that the Conclave sought to offset the rule of the Mage Kings in Ith and replace them with more “reliable” leadership. Axar ceased communicating with them and began to follow his own schemes for gaining power in Ith, but Lotha and Irrith were able to neutralize him by turning his own rebels against him. Lotha has since gone missing. Irrith sends Ren to gather information in the dangerous city—to determine if Lotha or Axar still live.
In Ith, Ren and his men find the burnt out remains of Axar’s house after a great deal of investigation. Avoiding poison traps and snakes, they manage to find some of Axar’s secrets in tact—namely that Axar had a hand in the destruction of the city of Ellakar by volcano, and that he was then blackmailed by the Grey Brethren, ever reaching beyond their proper bounds, ever ruining Ren’s day.
Year 1480
Early into the New Year, Ren receives reports of a sorceress escaping from one of the Mage Kings’ jails. After questioning a guard to confirm that it was Lotha, Ren and his men return to Vagren, to report their findings to Irrith. Irrith curses the failure of their plans in Ith, and also points out that Axar could have survived the burning of his house if no body was recovered. Irrith sends the news they have learned to Gravagan, while Ren and his mercenaries wait in Vagren, training and drinking at taverns.
To Ren’s surprise, Gravagan arrives in person. He reports that there were some complications in Tass’ childbirth but that she successfully delivered Ren’s nephew, Rado, who was named after him. Gravagan then explains the next step of his plans—the death of the Mage Kings. It seems the Conclave has struck a temporary alliance with another coven of magicians, the Circle. The Circle, who elevates its warriors with great skills and powers, will assist in the death of the Mage Kings if the Conclave later dismantles the Grey Brethren, who pose a threat to the Circle safe-havens on the southern seas.
Eager to see the Grey Brethren stripped of their foreign influence, Ren agrees. While he awaits the Circle warriors, he meets a professional gambler in Vagren, a woman named Ira. The two bond over drinks and games, but when Kazra and Virn—two intimidating warriors from the Circle—arrive, Ren must bid farewell to Ira and head to Ith. Kazra banters with the group while Virn skulks silently during most of Ren’s exchanges with him.
In Ith, the powerful team of swordsmen and women plan a simultaneous attack on the remaining eight Mage Kings. During the ensuing battles, Virn is nearly killed by ailing magic cast upon him but Ren saves his life by carrying him to a healer. Of the Mage Kings, all save one are killed in the first attack. King Turim hunts them through the streets and uses Karsef and one of Kazra’s subordinates as hostages, but Kazra manages to kill Turim before they are all slain in his ambush.
Over drinks, Virn admits that he misses Paksis when Ren recounts the story that Lerran once told him. It seems the Circle uses threats, hostages, and blackmail to force its warriors to remain loyal. Virn has suffered greatly at their hands.
Rather than returning to Vagren immediately, Ren and his allies wait in Ith, searching for Lotha and tying up loose ends. During this time, Omma and Captain Urro arrive in Ith, bearing the babe, Rado—Ren is livid to learn that Tass died in childbirth. Gravagan told them lies to ensure they would carry out the plan against the Mage Kings. Of Lerran, little is known; after losing his only love Lerran left the Isle of Dusk, alone and without his son.
Ren seeks out allies among the factions that soon divide the power vacuum in Ith. The Delivered are too bent on vengeance against the city’s elite, the City Watch unwilling to aid a group of criminals, and Domeran’s Gang too ambitious to concern itself with an alliance with what remains of the once-great southern Family. Ren finally consults his loyal men themselves and all unanimously agree to take the fight to Gravagan, using the skills he had them taught. Virn asks to join Ren in exchange for his future help—when Ren’s vengeance is sated and Lerran is found once more, Virn wishes Ren to help him save his family, which the Circle holds captive.
On the journey back to Vagren, Ren asks Karsef to stay in the Highlands to protect Rado. Ren bids his infant nephew farewell and then continues on, to the dangers that wait him. The companionship soon encounters Lotha, apparently freed from capture by Axar—who hopes to redeem himself with a plan to solidify Conclave influence over Ith and by saving Lotha’s life.
They report the success of their mission to Irrith, hoping to draw Gravagan back to Vagren once more to kill him. Irrith sends a letter instead of a summons, and Ren is forced to play loyal longer, if he wishes a chance to orchestrate revenge against the old schemer. Ren offers to join the Conclave in destroying the Grey Brethren, but grows distrustful as Irrith prepares to teleport them south once more. For all he knows, she could send them into the ocean or into the caldera of Mount Lukar. He storms out, departing Vagren with his men and Ira in tow.
The trek south is a long one, without Journeying magic. Ren and his men begin to hear rumours of war in the south, of a great bandit army taking out cities one-by-one on the Great Isle. He hears of alliances growing, fleets forming, and times changing.
Towards the end of the year, Renado and his men arrive in Saanazar, the holy city of the Atmos Septi—Grey Brethren. They begin studying the leadership of the religion that robbed them of their home and killed their loved ones. They learn of the Five Creeds, each a discipline within the religion and each led by an Archpriest. One of the Archpriests, Serand, presides over the others as Speaker, a chancellor. They begin by targeting Archpriest Morrus of the Militant Creed, the most likely one to have commanded the mercenaries that sacked Sheld.
When Woodro, one of Ren’s best fighters, is captured by the city guard, Ren is forced to bargain to save him. Thus, he enters negotiations with Archpriest Par of the Cardinal Creed, which oversees matters pertaining to the city of Saanazar itself and the religion’s treasury. Ren uses the information he has learned from Gravagan’s Conclave and his experiences in Sheld and Ith to convince Par that he is a worthy ally—the Tether prevents him from sharing all he knows. From Par, Ren learns that it was Archpriest Roithe who arranged the fall of Sheld. Roithe is either the leader of the Speaker’s Creed—while the Speaker himself serves as chancellor—or is the leader of the mysterious Sixth Creed, the existence of which is summarily denied by the Atmos Septi.
Of Roithe, they are unable to find any information. It seems he is not even in Saanazar at present. They manage to learn that he studied volcanic activity a few years earlier and wonder if he has any connection to the destruction of Ellakar—which Axar’s evidence had proven the Atmos Septi were well aware was an act of magic.
When Ren learns of an upcoming meeting between the Archpriests and the Matriarchs of the Empire of Noress—another party involved in the downfall of Sheld—he hires an assassin for most of his remaining funds.
Year 1481
After laying low in another city for a while—all the while researching the affairs of the Atmos Septi—Ren and his friends return to Saanazar. Soon after, Woodro is captured once again and delivered to the Burnt Keep, the puppet government of the city. Trying both a direct approach of demanding an explanation and a stealthy approach of checking the dungeons, Ren is unable to find his missing man. He arranges a meeting with Par once more, but this time, he comes prepared for a trap.
Instead of Par, Ren is met at the docks by Archpriests Morrus and Roithe. When Ren refuses to answer Roithe’s questions, the mysterious Archpriest orders them seized. Swords are drawn—before it comes to bloodshed, Ren attempts to flee, but is caught on the docks when Roithe sunders them with magic. A disastrous battle begins—Ren and his men face down guards trained with magic and the two Archpriests. One-by-one they fall—even Virn—until Ren faces Roithe alone. Surrounded by illusions and sliced to pieces, Ren’s cunning manages to find a weakness in Roithe’s defences—he slashes his enemy along the torso, inflicting a terrible wound. Before Ren can finish him off, Roithe vanishes by magic.
Morrus, however, is not so fortunate. Kal, Ren’s only surviving warrior—at least in the harbour—kills him and saves Ren by dragging him into a nearby rowboat. Weeks crawl by as Ren slowly heals. Soon, they learn that the Atmos Septi will be publicly executing a number of prisoners—among them is Woodro and… Ira. Ren grows furious, but feels helpless as he is a fraction of his previous strength.
Forced to turn to a local gangster named Sarim, Ren, Kal, Asar, and Omma plan an attack on the prison transport as it moves Woodro and Ira to the nearest barracks to the execution scaffolding. Sarim betrays them to the city guard—Ren stabs the traitor in the eye, but is forced to flee once more. Asar is slain; the prison transport succeeds in reaching its impenetrable destination.
Ren gets blisteringly drunk at a tavern as his friend and his lover are killed by the religion that took everything from him. Defeated, he resolves to depart Saanazar in the morning.