Dushavenya, the Haven of Souls, is a realm forged between gods and mortals-a world whose very purpose is to preserve the eternal flow of souls into Preispodnya, the labyrinthine underworld where the dead are judged and reborn. For centuries, its people have lived with war not as an exception, but as a rhythm of life. Just as winter returns each year, so too does conflict somewhere across its vast cities, cursed forests, and endless steppes. Peace is never more than a pause between storms.
At the heart of this world stand the Strazhevnyks, long-lived guardians sworn to hunt twisted soul-monsters, bind the restless dead, and keep Dushavenya as a whole in order. Yet they are as fractured as the realm they defend. Their 12 divisions of the Strazhdivy fight not only against external threats but also against traitors within their own ranks, jealous nobles vying for supremacy, and the rebellious faction known as Razlom, who seek to tear down the order that has ruled for centuries.
The story follows many voices across this war-torn land-captains bound by impossible duty, heirs of proud houses cursed by their own bloodlines, outcasts tempted by Razlom's promises, and young Strazhevnyks who must decide whether to uphold the laws of their ancestors or break them in pursuit of truth. Some wield divine Arkheia, weapons of impossible power, or possess impressive Vradenye powers, unique magic from within oneself. Others carry only their scars, their convictions, and their fragile hope that souls might one day flow undisturbed.
Most of us long to "Be" but when the path gets too costly, or steep, we take solace in what we "Have." Remove the trappings of what we own and then what is the sum of us?
They were the survivors, abandoned by the allies who swore to protect, in the ultimate gesture of greed and betrayal. Their world plunged into annihilation and chaos. With the passage of years in this blighted landscape order was established anew. Those who had been anonymous before the war found their will to rule, those who had experienced the comforts and ease of western life, thrust into darkness and despair.
This brutal conflict had awoken those long sleeping, those who had ceased to care, those of immense power, the ones entrusted with the safe keeping of the often volatile mankind. Although their parallel world too was at risk, lethargy and arrogance ruled them.
Against the backdrop of this savage landscape the saga of three such tribes of survivors unfold, and the unwitting chosen among them. One tribe sought to prosper via savagery, one by organized military might, and the other who ruled with no more than fairness and love. Three tribes thrown together, competing for the limited resources to survive, in a world teetering on the brink of total decimation. Driven by human avarice.