The Vampire Queen of Black Tear, is she friend, foe, or something else entirely? Rothan pleads with King Albrecht to free him from captivity. Hordes of vicious creatures march on the cold land of Skald, and only he can find the way to stop them. But after a twist of fate, Rothan is taken aboard an imperial ship, taken to the island of Black Tear, a place so cursed that the sun never touches it, a place where minds are flayed, where bodies are torn apart and rearranged like playthings. This is to be Rothan's fate. But perhaps he can find some way to bargain for his life. For all beings, even vampires, are bound by chains, chains of one kind or another . . . Contains mature themes.