The Secret Fire

The world has torn itself to pieces. Only small enclaves of life remain. The people inside them tremble under the iron-fisted rule of Moms with psychic powers and Dads who enforce the law, surrounded by the terrifying, black shadowed land known as the Void. For humanity to survive, obedience comes first no matter the cost. Children born into the world must do what they’re told, grow up to become a Mom or Dad—or refuse and be thrown over the line and into the black.

Throwaway Scott Mitchell fears he will die in the wilderness without a single friend, hunted and alone. But when a mysterious girl rescues him, he finally understands what kind of trouble finding a friend could get him into.

A story set in the Shadowland universe.