Selene Grey has waged a century-long war against the vampires, forging a 50,000-strong army into a legendary 800-man Vanguard. But when she finally achieves the impossible, her father Edmund and mother Violet arrive with her pampered younger sister Grace — demanding she surrender her command so Grace can steal her glory and marry Prince Allen.
Selene publicly signs a blood oath of severance, cuts all ties with House Grey, and rides away with her 800 Vanguard. She retreats to the ancient Grey Moon Altar and fakes her own death. Grace, meanwhile, enters the Mooncrown Capital hailed as the "Saint Heroine," worshipped by the masses.
But when Vampire King Cassius personally leads ten Vampire Lords in a full-scale invasion, the Ironfang Gate falls in an instant. Grace leads 50,000 reinforcements to the rescue — yet with zero combat experience, she is struck down in a single blow by a Vampire Lord. Her entire army is annihilated, and the Mooncrown Capital hangs by a thread.
Edmund's family finally panics. As Cassius's army surrounds the capital, the entire wolf race realizes — the one they betrayed was the only one who could save them.