Few are born with the power to conjure fire. Fewer still survive. In a time when magic is seen as no more thanmyth, a new darkness is making its presence known in the mountains of The Al'Durast. An Emperor, ambitious, ruthless and, rumourhas it, in search of an ancient magic, is taking control of the border towns and cities in the east, laying waste to every settlement in his path. Meanwhile, a young Prince of Carathron, Thormir, is recovering from a potentially lethal poisoning at the hands of a rare Mirakithorn. His best friend and half-brother, Fern, a skin changer, joins Thormir's side as the two journey to the shadowed lands to the North, to discover the true nature of the Emperor's ambitions, and to begin the hard battle to defend the kingdom..."