The tainted heart - C. L. Werner

Amidst a deadly blight that has engulfed the Realm of Metal, witch hunters Talocarn and Esselt pursue a cultist whose bloody trail leads them into danger - and a possible solution, if they can survive

Chamon wails in anguish. An untraceable blight has engulfed the realm, and oases scattered across its deserts recoil and fester at the dread touch of Nurgle. Lands once brimming with life now suffocate beneath a leprous undergrowth. The stink of rotting souls, wracked by the pestilence that compels them, spreads throughout the metallic dunes, and the tendrils of decay ever broaden their reach. Resisting the epidemic are witch hunters of the Order of Azyr, Talorcan and Esselt. A renowned tracker amongst the Brotherhood, Talorcan's brooding severity is matched only by the ruthlessness of his lover's sword. Together they pursue a cultist whose bloody trail leads them to the site of a massacre, whereupon the witch hunters stop at nothing to purge the realm of its loathsome affliction - until they're confronted with their greatest challenge yet. Faced with the unthinkable, the battle against corruption swiftly escalates into the ultimate test of faith, and Talorcan and Esselt turn to the only certainty they have: each other.