In a post-apocalyptic world where digging into the past could land you in jail or worse, eighteen-year-old Semmi and her father travel using false identities as they research an ancient race known as the Hvaldi. At a newly discovered Hvaldi city, they make a miraculous discovery: a journal. Using her gift for deciphering ancient languages, Semmi finds out that the Hvaldi are from another realm, but before she can connect all the dots, the authorities realize their ruse and rush to hunt them down. On the run, Semmi finally figures out the riddle in the journal about how the Hvaldi traveled to their world. With no time to spare, she opens a doorway to the Hvaldi realm, and she and her father escape only to find themselves in a land populated by humans on the brink of civil war. With her father captured, Semmi learns that as in her world, there are those in authority who will stop at nothing to maintain power and control. To save her father and free the people, she must help Dav, a handsome yet aloof rebel commander, to uncover the truth of their past and how they are connected to the Hvaldi.