#1 – The Thief’s Tale
Constantinople, 1481–1490. The Greek brothers Skiouros and Lykaion are taken through the devşirme system towards service in the Ottoman state. Skiouros escapes into the Christian quarters and survives as a thief, while Lykaion converts and advances within the Janissaries, leaving the brothers divided by the empire…
#2 – The Priest’s Tale
Crete, Spain and the Atlantic, 1492. Skiouros leaves Venetian territory with Parmenio and Nicolo, determined to find the surviving conspirator responsible for Lykaion’s death. His private mission intersects with the final fall of Granada and the expulsion of Jews from Spain, which sends refugees and violence…
#3 – The Assassin’s Tale
Italy, 1493. Returning from the Atlantic, Skiouros travels through a Europe marked by the Inquisition, displaced communities and the Borgia papacy of Alexander VI. He remains committed to killing Cem Sultan, whose failed bid for the Ottoman throne set the tragedy of his family in motion.…
#4 – The Pasha’s Tale
The Mediterranean and Constantinople, mid-1490s. Five years after leaving the Ottoman capital, Skiouros has learned how thoroughly vengeance has directed his life. Rescued from French custody by the Romani sailor Dragi, he returns east with Parmenio under an obligation whose meaning is not revealed until they…