Giavolo: proudest of the city-states and home to the great university, where the Magical Sciences are taught alongside more mundane studies. The city has been at war for longer than any of its inhabitants have been alive.Vervain: Mistress of the Magical Sciences, she is dismayed to find herself assigned a bodyguard after divination reveals an ill-defined threat to the university's teachers. Even worse, the bodyguard is an orc.Riyu: Vervain's orc bodyguard is determined to save her life-if she'll let him.Brighthand: When this sinister figure attacks the university and kidnaps Vervain's partner, it's up to Vervain and Riyu to get him back...or die in the attempt.