Kaori Matsune

When Tasoshi Drakamoto didn't return, inaction no longer sufficed for the Gloridax Empire. With the Dragonsguard's ashinach drilling relentlessly day and night, the suam emperor deployed a vanguard led by Dragonlord Eric Mancer to the Wild Northeast to thwart not only Jicarilla the Rime's search for Praetoria's secret, but also the havoc she wrought on the empire's trade routes.

Among the vanguard is Kaori Matsune, graduate of the Imperial Academy and a dragutsu with ambitions of promotion. Her discipline and precision set her apart from other prodigies who squander their gifts in swagger and spectacle. Hers is the restrained power of a scholar-soldier who believes control is strength. To her, Joraki Venshiro's reckless abandon is weakness dressed as bravado, a flaw she endures for the sake of the empire, but one she does not respect.

Kaori's motives run deeper than duty. While she believes fiercely in their mission to foil the Conclave Arcana, she also craves recognition and higher command. If she succeeds where Tasoshi failed, if she makes her mark in this fight against the conclave, her dragyo will surely take notice.

To Kaori Matsune, it's about more than duty.

It is about opportunity.