In a world still bearing the scars from an ancient magical conflict, those who wield magic - or are changed by it - are condemned as abominations, their lives forfeit. Raised at sea under the tyrannical rule of his father, there is nothing the young Captain Fiaer Dradorn won't do for the knowledge of a lost treasure that drove his father's obsession. Even start a war. Betrayed to the mercy - and consequences - of catastrophic, uncontrolled, magic, Fiaer is left with nothing but the belief in his own monstrosity and the overwhelming desire for revenge. As his plans take form, he realises that true monstrosity is less what someone is, and more who they chose to be. A choice he must make before others make it for him.