Book excerpt: When demons bear down on Cormyr with great force, the heir to the Obarskyr throne must assume a different title: heroine The seer Alaundo prophesied that seven scourges would sweep Cormyr away in ruin. For centuries, the royal family has stood watch against that day and devoted their lives to the protection of the realm. But in a time when their ancient guardians slumber and their most loyal servants disappear, when a terrible evil prepares to sweep down upon their home . . . Who will protect the royal family? It falls to Tanalasta, the eldest Obarskyr princess and heir to the throne, to find a way to defeat the ghazneths—the demon forms of old Cormyrean traitors—who now threaten to raze the kingdom to the ground. Under the tutelage of Court Wizard Vangerdhast, Tanalasta has come to hone her magical abilities. But will they be enough to save everyone and everything she has ever loved?