by G. E. Cochran
A post-heroic dark fantasy adventure, with a young man learning to wield his strange bloodline power. One hundred and fifty years after the Demon Lord was vanquished, the world has grown comfortable in its peace. The great war has faded into legend, the heroes who saved mankind are remembered more as statues and bedtime stories than as flesh-and-blood warriors, and demons are widely believed to be little more than old fears dressed in horns and fire. Yet beneath that peace, ancient enemies have not forgotten their defeat, and the shadows have begun to move again. Rowen is no hero, at least not to anyone who matters. He is a poor sellsword with worn armor, too many blades, and a talent for surviving work that should have killed him. For most of his life, his skill with a sword has been his only inheritance, but a strange power has recently awakened in him: the ability to command steel without touching it. What begins as a secret he barely understands soon draws him into a conflict far older than he imagined, tied to forgotten gods, buried history, and a bloodline that has protected the world without recognition for generations. As whispers of evil return to the roads and cities of men, the kingdoms look to chosen champions and polished legends for salvation. But Rowen’s path leads elsewhere, toward unlikely allies, dangerous truths, and a war that may not be won by the heroes the world expects. Before the end, he must discover what his power truly is, why ancient darkness recognizes him, and whether a nameless man can stand against a nightmare that history thought it had already buried.
