Set in a fictional Ancient Greece and Egypt, this book presents an 'alternate history' ca. 500 B.C. The book is filled with magic, and mystery, as Theoclea, the Oracle, Pythagoras, and others travel from the Temple of Delphi to the Pyramids and Cairo. While the others prepare to search for a rare book, Theoclea gives the speech of a lifetime, speaking from a platform between the paws of the Sphinx