At fifteen, Aram Sarafian wants nothing to do with being a hero.
When the System marks him as an Awakener, everyone in his village sees a blessing. Aram sees a death sentence. His older brother was once given the same promise before the Zotl Theocracy sent him to war—and he never came home.
Rather than follow him, Aram runs.
His escape takes him to a remote island where civilization barely holds against monsters, undead, and the ruins of a forgotten age. With little money and even less experience, Aram has only one advantage: the same power that made him a target.
Every fight can earn experience. Every achievement can unlock new abilities. And when he reaches level five, the System will decide what kind of Awakener his actions have made him.
Under the mentorship of a veteran Awakener, Aram begins learning how to survive, fight, and shape a future of his own choosing. But freedom is harder to hold onto than it was to steal, and the stronger he becomes, the more he must decide what kind of person he intends to become.
Aram ran because he refused to die for someone else's cause.
Now he has to decide what he's willing to fight for.
