A young harling comes of age in the ruined City of Ghosts, unaware of his heritage and the secrets his father has kept for so long. In the city of Immanion, Calanthe has ousted Thiede from power and a new age has dawned for Wraeththukind; the reverberations of its arrival shake every corner of the earth. In the wake of this event, a remarkable child is conceived, affected by weird energies to become something more than the sum of his parents. The Tigron, Pellaz, is faced with the dilemma that something huge and terrifying threatens the new race of Wraeththu, just as it is trying to establish itself in the ruins of human civilisation. It is a threat from beyond earthly reality, and it is searching for avatars to work in its name. The Forest of Gebaddon is about to spew forth its captives, the disempowered Varrs. Their leader, Ponclast, is about to be transformed into a foe worthy of taking on the Tigron himself. The warring factions of Wraeththu must unite to protect their world, and Pellaz must venture into unimaginable new territories. Will he make the ultimate sacrifice to protect his people?