A desperate pact. A dying world. A debt in blood. Helena of Equanes longs for adventure beyond the dull, secluded life on her father's estate. When she receives an otherworldly stone with unimaginable power, she is thrust into the heart of a centuries-old conflict embroiled with shape shifters and other worlds, tribal wars and ancient curses. With only the stone's fleeting visions to guide her, Helena embarks on a perilous journey through untamed jungle, frozen mountains, and savage desert, little suspecting that the salvation of her world rests on the one sacrifice she cannot make.