Shards of Empire

The center of the greatest empire in the world, the seat of Christianity, Byzantium is a revered city. Marked by gargantuan monuments to God and peopled by the most royal of princes, and the most affluent citizens, Byzantium cannot possibly ever fall. Now under siege by Islam, the Byzantine Empire must look to Christians from the West for help in winning back Jerusalem, the most hallowed of cities. The Byzantines must prevent the disintegration of their empire while protecting the faith of many, but at what expense?

In the tenth century, the center of the world is not Rome, but Byzantium--a glorious empire, upon which the sun never sets. Constantinople, the center of this mighty dynasty, is starting to unravel. The great kings and princes, the holy city, the affluence of the empire will be scattered to the winds. Attacked by the Turks on all sides, Byzantium looks to its emperor for deliverance. Leo Ducas, heir to the Byzantine crown, must fight for his inheritance, but he doesn't truly know who his enemies are. Shunned by the citizens of Constantinople, Leo flees the city and great works are revealed to him. He learns of a realm that falls outside his Christian training, a realm of magic and wisdom...