A ruthless warrior, a curious mage, and an ancient secret that could destroy them both... When Tamas discovers the long-forgotten ruins of the Nystrean Mor—an ancient and powerful civilization—he's certain the incredible find will lead to fame and respect. Instead it leads to the end of a Boa Visk sword, its poison blade biting his throat. Tamas, a scholar mage without the power to defeat the Boa Visk warriors that surround him, is certain he'll die unnoticed in the haunted Tyrasha Forest, where no one will venture to find him. And the secrets he's spent his life trying to uncover will die with him. Until a mysterious swordsman drops from the trees and saves his life... Damen has only two things left in his life: his dragon-forged swords and his personal vendetta against the Boa Visk. The monstrous beings who've subjugated humans all across the continent have taken everything from him, leaving him broken and alone, with nothing to sustain him but the death of any Boa Visk who wander into his forest. But when he sees their captive mage, poisoned and weak, he hasn't the heart to let the man die alone. Compassion is his first mistake. The kiss he shares with Tamas is his second. With emotions he believed long dead flaring back to life, and the foolish mage destroying the walls Damen worked so hard to erect, Damen is certain his next mistake will be his last. But the secrets of the ruins that compel Tamas might be more dangerous than they imagined, more dangerous even than the Boa Visk, who have no intention of allowing them to leave the forest alive...