Across the river from the great city of Obann lies a greater city, but a dead one—the ruins of Old Obann, destroyed in the Day of Fire a thousand years ago: the seat of Obann’s Empire, now a place of death and desolation. But do its ruins contain the secrets of the Empire, and its power? Can the distant past be brought to life again? The usurper who has seized the city from King Ryons now seeks that power for himself. The past calls to him, and he hears its voice.

Far away, beyond the mountains in the east, Lord Orth, the exiled First Prester, prepares to bring God's Word to the nations of the Heathen; but he is also needed, more than ever, in Obann. His heart is set on his mission, but Jack and Ellayne must persuade him to come home.

But once in Obann, the usurpers will surely try to kill him...