Book excerpt: The bridge at Canterbri cannot be ignored. Either a conduit to the east or a conduit into hell, but the bridge is not quite as abandoned as it first appears. The shard has awoken something in the mountains, something ancient and evil. A monstrosity has been alone for far too long and is hungry. From its hidden lair, the fiend threatens with nightmares. The beast simply will not allow the ranger to rest. Drawn to the prospect of expansion like a moth to a flame, Fox sets out to make his mark and carve an empire of his own, but will Emperor Bhaal tolerate the ranger’s trespass? Fox quickly learns simply taking something is not the same thing as owning it. A deadly assassin steps onto the field, but his motives are not truly exposed. It seems death is not finished with the ranger yet. Fox must avoid the pitfalls of success to regain what was lost and navigate the road to paladinhood.