The story begins with El Borak climbing a cliff-face to escape pursuit. Afdal Khan, the chief of the Orakzai, had invited the Afridis and their ally El Borak to a feast before swiftly attacking and slaughtering the chiefs of the other tribe. El Borak was the only survivor. The focus shifts to Geoffrey Willoughby some time later. Willoughby is a British diplomatic agent who, along with secret service agent Suleiman, has been sent to quell violence in Afghanistan. El Borak has led the Afridis in a successful tribal war against the Orakzai (later revealing that he adapted Apache tactics to do so).