Willing Instrument, A

In the Conclave States, the law is absolute, and the truth is extracted in blood. Junior Inquisitor Octavia Odes is a flawless instrument of the Pale Commission. Armed with a silver stylus and the agonizing power of blood magic, she carves binding runes into reality, compelling suspects to speak the undeniable truth. To Octavia, strict procedural compliance is the highest form of morality—a psychological fortress built to keep the trauma of her father's state-sanctioned execution at bay. But her perfect, orderly world is about to shatter. Dispatched to the provincial city-state of Cordast, Octavia is ordered to secure a confession from a scapegoat for the assassination of a powerful governor. It is meant to be a simple bureaucratic closure to appease the ruling Lectors. However, when her infallible blood magic reveals the suspect is entirely innocent, Octavia uncovers a terrifying conspiracy. The crime scene has been magically scrubbed by her own superiors, and the dead governor was on the verge of exposing a secret that threatens the very theological foundation of the Covenant Vein. Forced to choose between the comfortable lies of the institution she serves and a truth that could get her killed, Octavia must decide what kind of instrument she is willing to be. A Willing Instrument is a gripping, grimdark tale of political intrigue, dark magic, and the devastating cost of justice.