Tarik, Hayli, and their crew have failed. They risked everything to thwart an insurgency bent on toppling the Cavnish monarchy, but despite all their efforts, the monarchy has fallen, the nation is leaderless, and the threat of a world war looms larger than ever. Heartbroken, torn between his duty to his homeland and his desire to fulfill King Trabin's last command, Tarik travels across the wild sea to face the harsh and hostile land of Istia, to secure an alliance with Cavnal that he hopes will prevent the outbreak of war. Once there he finds himself pitted in a political contest against Rigvar, a powerful mage whose vision for Istia could throw Cavnal into ruin. But as his grip on reality falters, and visions that should not be possible begin to plague his mind, Tarik realizes that the political battle will mean nothing if he cannot win the battle for his own soul. Left behind in Cavnal, Hayli and Tarik's old crew try to put the pieces of their lives back together, but they all know that nothing will ever be the same. The failed insurgency and the fall of the monarchy left the nation rudderless and divided, and forces are hard at work to topple what remains of the old regime and usher in a new. To make matters worse, there is a mage in Brinmark who not only looks like Prince Tarik, but truly believes he is the missing Prince-and is desperate to prove it. As Hayli faces her darkest fears to protect Tarik's people and the Ministers who are Cavnal's last hope of stability, she begins to understand that the enemy is not who she thought, and victory looks nothing like what she expected. But there are other forces in motion that no one ever dreamed of-and ancient powers are stirring that could unravel everything Hayli and Tarik have sacrificed so much to achieve. On the chessboard of the gods' war, everyone is a player, and everyone must choose a side...