Summary

Chapter One opens with a quote from The Manual of Dreamwalkers saying that even gods cannot judge the deeds of humanity.

In Cuecola in the first year of the crow, Balam knows an age has ended. Despite his noble status, Balam travels alone to a small temple in the jungle. Abandoned after the Treaty of Hokaia, the once vibrant building decays, but Balam gives an old prayer and waits. The thief arrives with a book stolen from a vault titled The Manual of Dreamwalkers. It says spirit magic can lead to unfathomable power or madness. Balam kills the thief, paints himself with blood, and opens a magical gateway through the freezing shadow world to home.

He tells a servant that he cannot be disturbed as Balam's cousin Tiniz (who goes by the name Powageh and uses xe and xir pronouns) has been pleading...