The blood spilled between the Republic of Mareen and the armies of the Blood Emperor long ago. The man who had trained her in secret, not just in martial skills, but in harnessing the blood gift that coursed through her. When her grandfather is assassinated, Ikenna knows two things: that only someone on the Tribunal could have ordered his death, and that only a Praetorian Guard could have carried out that order. Bent on revenge as much as discovering the truth, Ikenna pledges herself to the Praetorian Trials - all while hiding a power that - if found out - would subject her to execution.