It is the early 15th century and Athena struggles to defend her ancestral home from the predations of the Ottoman Empire. When she learns that House Petrova has struck a fateful pact with the Church of Rome, the pagan vampire commits the ultimate blasphemy. Desperate to save her land and driven by demons of her own, Athena forges a living weapon with which she will rout the enemies of Transylvania. But this is a weapon that cares for nothing but blood and butchery, and Athena may realise too late that she has started a fire that may consume both herself and the world.