When Robin wakes up on Gaia, he sees nothing but problems he doesn't have the power to fix. And though he already feels lost, things spiral even further out of control when he's injured in an encounter with the Blighted, twisted amalgamations of flesh and bone possessed of dark strength and near-human intelligence that seem hellbent on hunting humanity to extinction.

Impossibly, Robin is forced to confront the fact this new life may somehow be even worse than the last.

Thankfully, there's a silver lining in the form of Medea, a girl Robin accidentally frees from an eternal slumber (along with the ancient calamity sealed in with her, oops) and despite his cynicism, he finds himself going out of his way for another person for the first time in... ever.

But there's more to Medea than meets the eye, a dark secret even she isn't aware of that all but guarantees she'll never stop being hunted by man and monster alike.

If Robin wants to keep them both alive, he'll have to learn Tempering, an ancient aetherforging technique to cultivate and guide his very soul, leading him down a path determined only by his deepest desires.

There's just one problem with that plan; when Robin traversed the Void between worlds, something else came along with him… something dark.

Now the aether inside of him is a bottomless well of writhing shadow too powerful for him to control, and worse, he feels desires emanating from within that are not his own.

...And the more Robin learns about Gaia, the more he starts to think maybe…

…just maybe…

…things would be better if he burned it all to the ground.

If you like reading about characters who have to earn their power through blood, sweat, and tears--you're in the right place. Expect a slow burn with flawed characters who don't always know what they want or what's best for them, dark humor, serious themes, and of course, plenty of magic progression.