House of Orla

“Harm will happen regardless; we are charged to mitigate that harm.” That is the maxim that the House is founded upon and that humanity has accepted as reality since time immemorial. Only the religious order can temper the deadly desires of the Divine, monstrous gods that do as they please. And only the Mothers, the heads of the Houses scattered across the kingdom of Aubrin and beyond, wield unassailable authority rivaling that of the Crown as a result. It is that  influence that Orla, dutiful priestess of the House, craves and will do whatever it takes to attain. 

Orla always thought that meant devoutly carrying out the directives of the Matriarchs, but when Alaric, a mysterious no-name lord, slaughters the royal family to claim the throne, her plans are disrupted. Alaric possesses the blessing of a god, something that has not occurred in millennia, and if that wasn’t enough to throw everything into chaos, his first plan as sovereign is to expand his dominion into the lands of untamed Divine…and take a priestess with him to establish a new House there.

The House is outraged and perhaps Orla should be too—for the Crown to meddle in the affairs of the order is not only unacceptable but also prohibited outright—but where others see blasphemy, Orla sees opportunity. It's an unconventional path forward, one that puts her dream in great jeopardy, but the gamble means she may not only become a Mother decades earlier than any of the few favored candidates typically do, but she may also have a new House to mold into whatever she commands. Or if she spies on the House’s behalf so they can undermine Alaric’s rule, she’ll cement her ascension as a Mother; either way, Orla will come out with power clenched in her fist.

If she’s able to play her cards right, that is. On the expedition, Orla must balance her loyalty to the House and her alliance with the king, two strategies which are at odds—all while dealing with the insatiable, enigmatic wants of the Divine. And it doesn't take long for truths to unravel once the group embarks on their quest; there's more to the journey than the king lets on, and what they find in uncharted territory upends everything Orla knows about the House.