The Emperor of Aria has been murdered, the Empire is in crisis, and Dead Men walk the streets... But Myla, Fings, and Seth couldn't care less. They're too busy just trying to survive in the Sulk-struck city of Varr, committing petty violence and pettier crimes to earn their keep in the Unrulys, a motley gang led by Blackhand. When the Unrulys are commissioned to steal a mysterious item to order, by an equally mysterious patron, the trio are thrust right into the bitter heart of a struggle for the Crown, where every faction is after what they have. Forced to lie low in a city on lockdown, they will have to work together if they want to save their skins... and maybe just save the Empire as well.

With lives on the line, do you choose revenge or justice? Myla has returned with Orien to her native Deepwater to face her past. Learning she's in trouble, Fingers and Seth head off on a rescue mission. Myla doesn't need rescuing, thanks, but now that they're in Deepwater, Seth delves into the secrets of a dead warlock and Fingers digs into the truth of his missing brother. But as the trio converge towards a conspiracy against the throne, Deepwater is attacked by an incomprehensible enemy. As demons, madness and the walking dead stalk the plague-ravaged city, Myla discovers that saving her friends and family is more important than a glorious death, and Seth embraces the darkness within.

The Wraiths have raised an army of the dead. An army of the living is marching on the throne. Caught in the middle, Myla is supposed to be spying on a sorceress who can read minds. Things are not going well. Far away, Seth and Fings are trying their hardest to have nothing to do with any of this. All Fings has to do is not steal anything. All Seth has to do is not meddle with Forbidden Magics. All they have to do is lie low. And for once, it’s all going swimmingly. Until, that is, Fings sees a face he thought they’d left behind in the ashes of Deephaven. As Seth’s past catches up with him and Myla unravels the true nature of the Empire’s new Princess-Regent, the trio converge on the dead city of Valladrune. Armed with sinister secret behind an old war, they once more hold the fate of the Empire in their reluctant hands. If only they knew what the heck to do with it.