The first war in a thousand years has only just begun... Sylvia Thorne is one of the few people brave enough to travel through the empty lands of what remains of once great civilizations. She is a Rider: delivering messages between the Four Cities and setting up trade are her business, one that thrives only because she knows how to defend herself in the empty spaces called the wilds. Everything changes when Sylvia returns home to Meadowcity, carrying a message from the Governor of Skycity. She quickly finds out that what she's been carrying isn't some trifling correspondence-but a declaration of war from Governor Sorin Greyling. And the message isn't their only cause for concern... Join Sylvia as she embarks on a journey that will decide the fate of Meadowcity-and all of those who live in the Four Cities of Arcera. And relive the past to discover what drove Sorin down his path of destruction...