The Downs, the poor district of the city of Avarest, is home to cutthroats and thieves, pickpockets and prostitutes, all of whom pay tribute to one of two powerful crime bosses. It is also home to Aaron Envelar, a disillusioned sellsword known as the Silent Blade, who cares nothing for the criminal overlords or their schemes, who only wants to survive and make a little coin in the process. But when a group of unwitting thugs steal his mother’s necklace, the only link he has to his murdered parents, Aaron decides that sometimes gold isn’t enough—sometimes, blood is the only payment worth taking. And whatever else will come, this time, he will not be silent. After all, when you take everything from a man, what else does he have to lose?

War sweeps the land as the sons and daughters of the late King Marcus battle over who will claim their father’s throne and able-bodied men and women flock to one cause or the other in the hopes of a better tomorrow. At least, most of them. If life has taught the jaded sellsword, Aaron Envelar, anything, it’s that hope is for fools and causes are a sure remedy for breathing. But when his latest job leads him to the corpse of a prince and a conspiracy that threatens to destroy the entire realm, Aaron is forced to choose sides in a war he doesn’t want, between forces he doesn’t understand. Thrust into a world of mythical assassins, a madman with a superhuman strength, and a nagging ball of light with a superiority complex who claims to be the embodiment of compassion, Aaron takes on his hardest job yet—staying alive.

Aaron Envelar thought a sellsword's life was as dangerous as any life could be. He was wrong. Trapped in a conquered city with a reward on their heads, Aaron and his companions must find a way to elude the soldiers pursuing them while he struggles to understand his bond with Co, a magical creature of myth and the Virtue of Compassion. There is power within the bond, power that could help him protect his friends, if he's lucky enough to master it before the darkness within the bond consumes him. But luck, Aaron knows, is a blade reached for in the dark, the man who grasps it as likely to bleed for his trouble as find the handle. Stalked by Belgarin's soldiers, Aaron and his companions struggle to find allies before it's too late. But Belgarin's army is not the only danger they face, and even should they escape, even should Aaron master his bond with a legendary creature of magic, they may still fail. They may still die. For there are other legends in the world, other magic. And not all legends are good ones. Not all magic is benign.

War isn't coming. It's here. Aaron and his companions prevented the assassination of a queen but in doing so they angered an ancient evil. Angered it, wounded it, but did not kill it, for such evil never truly dies. An army greater than any the world has ever known marches bringing steel and death with it and somewhere a thousand-year-old evil lurks in the darkness, plotting and bending its will toward revenge. Aaron and his companions have gathered allies to help them in the coming battle and each day his bond with the Virtue of Compassion grows stronger, gifting him greater and greater power. But if life on the street taught Aaron anything, it’s that no one is better able to stab you in the back as those standing behind you. And as his power with the legendary creature grows, so too does an uncontrollable rage that threatens to consume him. His enemies are many, his friends few, but no matter what happens, they will all learn the truth of a sellsword’s strength. He will show them a sellsword’s resolve. A Sellsword's Resolve is the third book in the epic fantasy series the Seven Virtues by Jacob Peppers. It is an action-packed dark fantasy tale of sword fighting, magic, and legends come to life.

The Battle is won. But the war is just beginning. Belgarin’s forces have retreated, but in the city of Perennia there is no rejoicing. The air is filled with the mourning cries of survivors, and the wind that blows through the city carries the smell of freshly dug graves and death. As the city grieves, Aaron and his companions attempt to hold together an alliance that threatens to crumble around them. While the alliance’s leaders bicker and argue, Boyce Kevlane, an ancient wizard bent on revenge, has taken Belgarin’s place as king and uses his twisted powers to create an army out of nightmare. To stand a chance of keeping the coalition together, Aaron is forced to venture into Baresh, a city gripped by madness and terror, in search of proof of the coming danger. But evil is a thing of shadows and darkness, and it will not go easily into the light. To survive, Aaron will be forced to call on his friends and the growing power of his bond with a creature of myth. Yet even this may not be enough. For there are other powers in the world, darker ones, and there is no telling what secrets the shadows hold.

To battle the creatures of darkness, one must first leave the light behind. Aaron and his companions return from Baresh with the truth of what the alliance faces, yet such knowledge is little comfort. Throughout the city, men and women whisper of demons, of monsters. But though they might disagree on the nature of Kevlane's twisted creations, there is one thing they have in common. Fear. For the creatures they face are not men—not any longer. They are death given form and function. They are, it seems in the darkest hours—and there are many such now—Telrear's doom. Crippled by indecision, the alliance leaders argue; they argue, they bicker, and they hesitate. A hesitation which, Aaron could tell them—if only they would listen—will kill them swifter than any blade or bow. For shadows move in the night. Shadows which feel no pain or mercy, that have long since forgotten the meaning of compassion. But there are other threats in the darkness, other mysteries, and in poorly-lit taverns, men and women huddle together and whisper. If one listens closely enough, he will hear a name, one spoken in hushed, fearful tones. He will hear Akalians. Little is known about the followers of the Shadow God, only that where the Akalians walk, death follows. Meanwhile, confident of victory, Kevlane bends his dark desire to creating even more terrible horrors. Yet there is one thing he has not accounted for, one which the coming days and weeks will teach him—the strength of a sellsword's will.

When darkness comes, there is no knowing who will carry the light and stand against it. Aaron and his companions have been saved from Kevlane's creatures only to find themselves in the power of the Akalians, a shadowy group of warriors many believe aren't men at all, but creatures of nightmare bent on blood and death. But not all the shadows' secrets are evil ones, and allies are often found in the unlikeliest of places. In Baresh, the tournament has begun, and the ancient mage, Kevlane, adds more twisted creatures to his army, fashioning a force the likes of which the world has never seen. Meanwhile, Grinners sows seeds of distrust in Perennia, turning the city against its would-be saviors, against itself. As suspicion spreads, neighbor turns against neighbor, friend against friend. Blades are drawn in dark alleyways and well-lit taverns alike, and the world's last bastion of hope totters on the brink of destruction, a knife held at its own throat. If Perennia is to be saved from the approaching threat, then its salvation will come not from great kings or queens, but at the hands of ordinary men and women, many whose hands are long-stained with the blood of innocents.

The final battle has come. Grinner and his conspiracy to overthrow Perennia have been defeated, but victory came at a high cost. The alliance suffered losses it could ill afford, for the true enemy still lies in Baresh, growing stronger with each day that passes. Leading the combined armies of three kingdoms, Aaron and his companions march to the city, but even with such a force, even with the power of the Virtues, victory is anything but assured. For when blades are drawn, when battle begins, the only certainty is blood. Aaron knows this, just as he knows the terrible odds he faces. Yet, he is not alone. His allies march with him—creatures out of myth and legend, cut-throats and thieves, sailors and smugglers, and the mysterious Akalians who have finally chosen to step out of the shadows and into the light. But the ancient mage has allies of his own, creatures endowed with speed and strength greater than any man, bereft of any human feeling, including pain. But there is strength in emotion, a power that even the thousand-year-old mage, even creatures out of legend, cannot stand against. For with emotion comes valor and courage, honor and duty. With emotion comes hope.