Book 1 of the Cursed series. The five Elite guards are charged with the protection of King Alastor and his heir from the moment that they walk down the Hall of Ancestors and utter the words of their vow. But when a mysterious new danger begins to rise in the north, will the Elites be prepared to lay down their very own lives for the survival of the kingdom that they have sworn to protect? Even if the threat comes from one of their own?