Chains of Honor

His mother was one of the most powerful wizards in the Nurian Empire until she abandoned her people to become a notorious pirate. That choice doomed the family she left behind to a life of disgrace. Yanko White Fox doesn't remember his mother, but as the only gifted child in the family, he is expected to erase the mark she left on them all. With an affinity for earth magic and communicating with animals, he's not the most natural candidate to become a warrior mage, but it's the only sure route back into the Great Chief's good graces. He has resigned himself to training for that destiny, whether it matches his passions or not. Long before he's ready for his first battle, insurrection comes to his distant corner of the empire. Rebels take over the salt mine his family manages and slay the only relative who ever supported Yanko. On the heels of the tragedy, a courier brings a message from the Great Chief's son. Whether he is prepared or not, Yanko must undertake a quest, one that could save millions of lives... or fail utterly, leaving him dead, his family forgotten, and his people the victims of starvation and endless war.

Tasked with an impossible mission, hunted by the very people he wants to protect, Yanko White Fox is the only one who can save his nation from famine and anarchy. Armed only with his fledgling skills as a wizard and accompanied by allies he's not sure he can trust, he must track down an ancient relic before his enemies find it first. But countless obstacles stand in the way, including his mother. The deadly and infamous pirate Snake Heart cares nothing for the family-or the son-she abandoned, and wants the artifact for herself.