Zar Boaz is preparing for the imminent arrival of the Galinsean fleet and it seems inevitable that the realm will be plunged into war. His only hope is to use Lazar as a bargaining chip but despite the necessity for him to be in the city for the negotiations, the Spur is determined to travel back to the desert to rescue the abducted Zaradine Ana and bring her home. However, finding Ana will not be a simple task. She is being held by the despotic Arafanz and his fanatical followers and as it slowly becomes clear what the presumed madman plans for Percheron, Ana does not know if she is to survive ... and if she is, to what end? In the meantime a much larger doom hovers over Percheron that no-one but Pez and his nemesis, the charismatic Grand Vizier Tariq, understands. The chaos between the neighbouring realms could become irrelevant when the final confrontation for the region's faith is played out.