This first half of the adventures of Fauston and Ramid, followers the necromancer and his assistant, to the cold and barbaric reaches of Shan. Here Fauston is paid to help an ambitious warlord to conquer his neighbors and create a kingdom. To do this Fauston supplies Lord Brekka with undead soldiers. But darker magic lurks in the secret black book Fauston hides under his bed. G. W. Thomas begins here an epic tale of necromantic magic and epic battles that will come together in one series called The Gods Have Left Us. This story originally appeared in Swords of Fire 1.