The Shadow Watch (Completed)

In ages past, the Old World was ruled by magic and monsters, but after a cataclysmic magical war, the Chancellors of old rid the world of these curses and ushered in a New World - a world safe from magic, but not from the harsh injustices of humanity. The New World is cruel and bitterly divided, a world where sorcerers are hunted down and lowborns are sent to their deaths fighting the wars of nobles.

Tori is the lowborn servant of an Oshan general, and she has accepted her fate. She will do whatever she must to keep herself and her best friend, Darien, alive. But everything changes when Darien is drafted into the army without her - and worse - chooses to resist. In a desperate attempt to save him from execution, Tori displays an incredible magic power in front of the entire kingdom.

Unconscionably, Tori is not put to death for this sorcerous crime. Instead, her magical blood is harvested for the Chancellor's dark purposes while her body rots away in a prison cell. But all is not lost, for Tori is not the only sorcerer discovering her power. Long ago, the magic Watchers fought to maintain peace in the world, and now, a new Watcher army is forming. With the help of a pair of Watcher brothers, Tori escapes and joins their resistance army, called the Shadow Watch, in hopes of bringing back justice, and magic, to the New World.

Meanwhile, Darien begins to lose himself to the indoctrination of the Shadow Legions. Demonstrating incredible bravery and strategy in battle, he soon rises in the ranks, until he even catches the Chancellor's notice. Darien becomes Commander of the magic hunting Metamorphi. His mission: to find Tori and destroy the Shadow Watch.

Darien and Tori soon find themselves pitted against one another in a dark game of magic, monsters, and politics that could send the entire world into another cataclysmic war.

Awards:
- Runner Up in The Chosen One contest by @Fantasci

Thanks to @-TheAnimeFreak- for the beautiful cover!

© Stephen Klopfenstein 2017