Raised on old Arth by monks who were masters of the old realm, hiding themselves and their charges from the witch hunters, Torl spent his life dreaming of journeying to the fabled planet Aleron. There it was said people lived with the freedom to be who they were and use their talents freely without fear of the witch hunters. After years of working as an expert computer specialist, he has finally saved enough money to begin his journey. He stops on a small planet called Earth to rest for a few lunars before resuming his journey. When a young witch is captured by the witch hunters, he finds he cannot sit idly by and let her be tortured and killed. Instead he rescues her, and begins a whirlwind race to stay ahead of the witch hunters as they flee across the known universe in search of a path to Aleron