Vendetta: Legend of the Iron Warrior, Vol. 3 follows a fallen hero who is pulled back into a war between heaven and hell, forcing him to confront his past, his faith, and his failures as he decides whether redemption is earned through power or sacrifice. How does Vol. 3 deepen or challenge Travis’s sense of identity compared to earlier books?

Volume 3 peels back the layers of The Iron Warrior like an onion. Volume 1 is the introduction, where we get introduced to him and gain an understanding of who he is. Volume 2 takes it another step up, where he must confront the darkness in him. As challenging as those obstacles were, there was still very much left in the man underneath the armor. Candace attacks him at the levels that no one is supposed to know about. His darkest secrets are exposed. So that leads to the question he has to face throughout the book. What happens when every bit of you is exposed? There is truly nowhere for him to run. It’s one thing to be a public figure, but it’s another when every part of your being is displayed for the world to see. Now he must choose if he should try to be the man he is expected to be or be the broken man he is without worrying about what everyone thinks. We all face that challenge in life. If we are truly aware of ourselves, can we choose the higher choice all the time. And at what point do we break down from the weight of our choices?

Candace Loveless is driven by something deeply personal. What makes her more than just an antagonist?

Candace was introduced in Volume 1: Slaying Paradise. Every scene with her became so much more. It sounds weird, but her voice was so easy to hear. There is so much life in who she is. She felt powerful. Candace is a fully realized person. Because there is so much to her, she can’t fall simply into one category. She is a well-rounded woman with so much more story to tell.

The novel reframes greatness as service rather than glory. When did that idea become central?

That was born in the moments when service is spoken about. Many of us chase greatness and the glory that comes with it. We’ll do things in hopes of attaining that attention, but when you truly look at what makes those who are great, you see service. Unapologetic service to someone or something else. They are unmoved by what they do, and their works capture our attention. It’s their service to others and what they give that we are drawn to. Those who serve the most, who give the most, are the greatest because it shows us what is possible. They become the ones whom we can strive to be. They become the example. Greatness for the sake of glory is worthless. Service is greatness. That is what’s remembered.

What does this volume reveal about the long-term journey of The Iron Warrior?

The Iron Warrior has been tested inside and out. Volume 3 was originally meant to be the end of the story, but Candace changed that. She brought so much to the table that the story with her deserved to stand on its own. The second half of this story literally takes us to hell, Brimstone, where it will end. We’re going to follow The Iron Warrior, who is almost a completely different man from whom we met in Slaying Paradise. It’s taking a man who is potentially at his most reckless and throwing him into a place where his nature will be right at home. A volatile man in a place where there are no limits. What’s the worst that can happen?

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