*This Special Edition hardcover is printed on premium 70lb white paper and includes color maps of Theia and the Scarsands.RAW survival. Forbidden weaponry. A quest to save mankind turns into an experiment gone wrong."This accomplished, ambitious epic fantasy swells with fresh ideas, memorable characters...Great for fans of: Steven Erikson, R. Scott Bakker." -BookLife Reviews"A complex first novel in a fantasy series set in a world of advanced technology and brutality... LIVELY AND SOPHISTICATED" -Kirkus ReviewsTO SUPPRESS KNOWLEDGE IS HUMAN NATUREThe tarnished plaque on the door read: CUSTODIANS OF OLD-WORLD KNOWLEDGE.PRESERVERS OF THEIA THROUGH ENFORCEMENTOF THE TREATY OF NATURE.Hadamard must've read the words a hundred times and thought little of them. Lately he wondered how far they could be stretched and twisted, yet remain intact.In the disaster-ravaged land of Theia, Hadamard walks the line. He must enforce the anti-tech treaty barring old-world technology, lest Theia follow the same path of destruction that shattered civilization. Yet, he must circumvent the treaty entirely to prepare for a pending war, one his people are not equipped to fight, at least not with traditional weaponry. Hadamard understands the stakes, he understands what was lost and most importantly, he understands that time is running out.He needs to improvise.Fast.Hadamard's proposed solution - striker weapons - is drawing attention. The powerful space-rippling swords could make all the difference. Better yet, they fall outside the treaty, sort of. But they haven't been tested, their powers are not well understood, and, there is only one place to stage an experiment before it's too late. But it's risky: the laws of physics tend to misbehave on the proving grounds of Seventh Kaeda with its shifting gravity and non-linear time. And the mix of Kith rangers, military commanders and queensmen in such an environment is a recipe for disaster. But what's the alternative?To buy time, Hadamard's prized prot g , Vey Lancer, accepts a critical mission to Fort Abandon. Her talents of persuasion are needed to forge an alliance against a rival kingdom. But Vey has her own objectives in mind: time away from the crazed luminary with an eye towards romance involving the charming vice regent, whom she'd met briefly. But nothing ever goes as planned for the na ve diplomat. Her people have a long history of meddling and not everyone is happy with the way things turned out. A chance encounter with a vengeful old shaman sets Vey on a twisted path of darkness-abducted, drugged and fighting for raw survival.Will Vey's mission allow Hadamard to work the kinks out of his prototypes before it's too late? Or will it spark an all-out war between neighboring territories? A war neither side can hope to win.A high-stakes mind-bending fantasy filled with military-political intrigue, rooted in mankind's insatiable thirst for knowledge and power.
