Fifty years ago, the spiteful hidden deity named the One Who Speaks released bloodthirsty dragons into the mortal kingdoms he had begrudgingly served for eons. Most people left alive cower beneath the rubble of once-proud cities, awaiting their imminent demise. Reclusive Iko Phainor wants nothing but to keep his young daughter, Cas, safe until the dragons fly back across the sea.
 
But the overzealous cult of monstrous, flesh-eating wretchers hiding in the nearby caves has other ideas. 
 
The wretchers have succumbed to the drug-like voice of the One Who Speaks and agreed to attack humanity’s lone stronghold in the distant kingdom of Anuthura—the final obstacle to the maniacal god’s plan. But before war, tradition requires they mark the looming harvest moon with a fitting sacrifice—a sacrifice like Cas.
 
The wretchers kidnap Cas and carry her over the mountains, forcing Iko to follow with his seldom-used sword and too few arrows. To save her, he’ll have to overcome his deepest fears and foil a god’s scheme to snuff out civilization’s last hope. Epic battles, deadly monsters, and murderous traitors lie ahead. Can Iko endure the many snares of the One Who Speaks and save his daughter? Or will he fail, dooming her—and perhaps the world—to a horrific end?