Empire of Ashes

Lyra, a survivor haunted by the brutal massacre of her village and family, is shackled and dragged into slavery by Anglian invaders. Stripped of everything, she finds a flicker of defiance when fate thrusts her into the presence of the formidable Northern warlord, Temris. Caught between vengeance and an unexpected alliance, Lyra must navigate a treacherous world where loyalties are fluid and survival demands a cunning mind. Can she reclaim her freedom, avenge her family, and forge a new path in a land ravaged by war? Or will the 'Empire of Ashes' consume her too?

Empire of Ashes

Lyra, a survivor haunted by the brutal massacre of her village and family, is shackled and dragged into slavery by Anglian invaders. Stripped of everything, she finds a flicker of defiance when fate thrusts her into the presence of the formidable Northern warlord, Temris. Caught between vengeance and an unexpected alliance, Lyra must navigate a treacherous world where loyalties are fluid and survival demands a cunning mind. Can she reclaim her freedom, avenge her family, and forge a new path in a land ravaged by war? Or will the 'Empire of Ashes' consume her too?

The world was a blur of dust and despair. My feet, raw and blistered, moved mechanically forward, each step a testament to a will I no longer possessed. They had called me a slave, clapped shackles on my wrists, and a collar on my neck. I didn't care. Nothing mattered after watching my village burn, after seeing my little brothers and sisters cut down like animals. The icy weight of the collar, once suffocating, was now just a dull throb, easily ignored.

We were a column of the broken, trudging through a land that had once been home. My gaze, usually fixed on the ground, lifted slightly when the procession came to a grinding halt. Fear, a palpable scent on the breeze, rippled through the line. Something was afoot.