Since its founding centuries ago, the four clans of Iochdar have lived in harmony. The Shea, Halwyn, Llyr, and Fasach clans worked together and none were inferior to another. But now something threatens the very peace and equality upon which the country was founded. A power-hungry king with a tenuous hold on his throne seeks a legendary amulet that will prove his right to rule. A clan seeks redress for injustices done to its people. Inequality is rife throughout the land. And an orphaned girl seeks nothing more than her freedom. In a world where the powerful go free and the innocent suffer, history begins to repeat itself. And the fate of the country rests in the hands of an escaped slave girl.