Synopsis

All that stands between survival and oblivion for the Empire is the bent man known by some as The Undertaker. He is no hero. He is not loved. He is a gambler and a bitter rogue, yet he is fated to be the only man capable of stopping an ancient enemy from devouring the world. What he has to decide is whether or not he cares.

The air is dry, the heat unbearable, and Lord Malspire Ronsteim is being flogged. Fractious and rebellious they say, yet he considers himself just craven and weak, the crippled son of a Lord Admiral and pale twin to the heroic Ajator. His bent body is tied to the frame where he is lashed to within an inch of his life. The spiteful and bitter Captain Crosp, wants Malspire's life, but Malspire is saved by a crewman - an unlikely ally who sees him through the resulting fever.

His wounds heal and Malspire befriends the crew who teach him the ways of the sea. Crosp is enraged by Malspire's chosen company and seeks yet another opportunity to rid himself of the cripple. Malspire is called upon to rescue a merchant tall-ship from pirate boarders. The fight is desperate and he can tell that they are losing when he spies the enemy captain. Malspire challenges the man to a duel. Although vastly out-skilled by the pirate, Malspire is lucky or fate has a greater plan, for he survives and saves the brave and beautiful Veinara with whom he falls in love. He knows he is bent and ugly but she seems to like him and offers him the hope of a brighter future. Malspire is not to win her heart however as his brother, Ajator, is awaiting him at port. When the perfect Ajator and Veinara's eyes meet, Malspire knows he has lost her, for the couple fall instantly in love. Out of loyalty and pride, the heart broken Malspire keeps his feelings to himself.

The Wraith Deep is the name of the steam frigate taken as prize and given to the now newly promoted Captain Malspire. He is now free of Crosp and his lackeys! The ship is a wreck and the ragtag crew he is given hardly enough to even set sail let alone fight the rebellion, yet Malspire is elated and high on dreams of adventure and discovery.

In the meanwhile, Ajator is approached by an agent of the enemy. Thinking it is a test, he refuses further contact, but cannot let the incident rest and so seeks out the secret police of the Emperor, known simple as the Secret Servants.

Malspire puts to sea in his new ship, eager to prove himself and his command. The rebels are thought to be amassing a fleet for an attack on the Empire’s western most port, but the Empire needs more intelligence so Malspire plans to take a rebel codebook. With the ship of a privateer the plan is simple: Sail into a rebel port in disguise and snatch one from under their very noses. Madness perhaps, but Malspire has little to lose and much to prove.

The Wraith Deep is in trouble and requires calm waters for repairs. Discovering a fjord, Captain Malspire orders a reconnaissance of the waters and discovers a fishing village. It would seem however that some terrible tragedy has struck for only a single villager survives, the rest, slaughtered and rotting in their homes. The horror has only just begun however, as from the inky waters emerge dark, forbidding shapes. The beasts are half man, half fish and led by a terrible Sea Hag. In the desperate fight that follows, Malspire ends the hag’s life but not before she prophesies Ajator’s doom.

Through cunning and luck, Malspire and his ship make it to the rebel port where he tricks a rebel officer, assumes his identity and steals aboard a rebel battleship. Here Malspire is forced to kill in order to take the book. Trapped and out of options he climbs over the side of the ship and swims for safety and comes within only a single breath of drowning. He has a copy of the codebook, so the Wraith Deep makes full speed for home but not before witnessing the rebel armada about to launch its strike.

Pushing the ship and crew beyond all tolerance, Malspire takes the news directly to the High Admiral aboard the flagship, the Grand Oak, who together with the enigmatic secret agent of the Emperor, Lord Mornight Pavantu, orders Malspire to capture a rebel watchtower so that the Imperial Fleet can ambush the enemy.

With the aid of a dainty beauty who proves more deadly than arsenic, Malspire and his men overcome the watchtower. The victory allows the Imperial Fleet to move in. Malspire however is not satisfied, and decides to join the fleet. The night-time, epic battle that follows is a thunderous vision in black and white of hell and fire, and sees Malspire and his men make the ultimate sacrifice by using their ship as a battering ram to stop the rebel flagship from destroying the Grand Oak. Victory is theirs. The rebels retreat in tatters.

Malspire, now a hero, and his victorious crew return home where fate twists and turns its unjust course. He is instantly placed under arrest by Lord Mornight Pavantu! The crime however is not Malspire's but his brother's. While Malspire was busy in the west, Ajator has attacked the master of the Imperial secret police, the Secret Servants, a crime deemed to be high treason. Ajator is called a traitor and Malspire is now under the burning scrutiny of the feared Secret Servants. Pavantu however does not suspect Malpire, and helps him escape in secret with the aid of the high admiral. Pavantu does however smell a rot and it is coming from the Imperial capital. Pavantu is beginning to realise that the true enemy is within. By releasing Malspire, he hopes to draw them out.

Malspire is close to panic. His beloved brother, the great hero, is being called a traitor. His world is crumbling about him and all he can think of is finding Ajator, for he is now missing. Not only this but Veinara arrives in the hope that Malspire will search for him. She confides in him that she is now pregnant with Ajator's son.

Together with his crew and the now pregnant Veinara whom Malspire still secretly loves, they set off in search of Ajator. He must find his brother before the Empire does!