Deadly Ploy

A talented troupe of street performers ply the towns and kingdoms of an alternate Middle Ages, secretly fighting the Red King who, with his disarmingly handsome son, the Red Wolf, are plotting world conquest. The troupe's showmaster is one of The Thirteen, a band of mentalist leaders charged with subduing the Red Monarchy and fulfilling a centuries-old utopian prophecy. Key to that achievement is finding the Red Whelps, hidden daughters of the Red Wolf, each unknowing their true parentage and kinship. They, when found and brought together, are foretold to manifest an until now unknown power to bring about the downfall of their grandfather, the Red King. If The Thirteen succeed, will the half-sisters' power prove wieldable or be chaotic? And is the Red Wolf secretly plotting to use it for his own ends? Will the seemingly innocuous Guild of Courtesans prove decisive in restoring order? What role, if any, will the mysterious 'Oid races play? [Deadly Ploy is 3rd in the book series Sundered Muse]