Absolution

What is faith, except hope in desperation? All Putera Mikal wants is to gain the Amok Strength, the supernatural power granted by Kudus to the Mahan royal family. No matter how religiously Mikal keeps his vows, Kudus still denies him the Strength-whilst his father, Sultan Simson, flaunts the Strength despite his blatant defiance of the Temple and the priests' visions of coming doom. Then the prophecies come true. Taken captive, Mikal must find a way to liberate his people and restore his throne in Maha-and the key to this is the Amok Strength. But what does it take to gain Kudus' favour?

Yosua wears an uneasy crown. Although he is now Raja of Bayangan, he still longs for the land of his birth where everything was much simpler…and less deadly. But peace doesn't come easily, not for a twenty-year-old servant playacting at being king. With his parents brutally murdered and his uncle bent on revenge, Yosua must decide where his loyalties truly lie. With his only remaining relative and the kingdom he has claimed? Or with his best friend Mikal and the sultanate that raised him as a hostage?

If cursed is the hand that kills, then it wouldn't matter if that same hand stole, would it? Tulen feels doubly cursed, forced to serve the bratty princess of Impian as punishment for her crimes. When said princess embarks on a pilgrimage, Tulen grabs her only chance to offer a sacrifice at the holy city of Suci-and maybe, finally, feel clean again. Sultan Mikal has set his face towards Suci-and certain death. Nothing about his Penance is clear, except the fact that if he fails, Terang will fall along with him. When Tulen's pilgrimage intersects with Sultan Mikal's quest to fulfil the Covenant of Salt, Tulen faces a difficult dilemma: What is her absolution worth in the face of the sultanate's very existence?