Void's Tale — Christopher G. Nuttall

A hundred years before Emily, just after the fall of the Empire and the start of the Necromantic Wars, Void worked for the White Council as an agent of last resort, the sorcerer they called upon when no one else could complete the mission.  But this mission may make or break him. Searching for a missing alchemist, Void is drawn into a deadly plot threatening the newborn Allied Lands, one that may send them plunging into ruin.  And, as he starts trying to unpick the plot, he is forced to confront a truth that will change his life forever ...