Ulf’s mother was a Seidkona, a walker of the Nine Worlds. His father was Úlfhéðinn as is Ulf himself. He has held a sword in his hand since his fourteenth summer. The burning land of Syria has been under Roman occupation longer than anyone can remember. And it is here that Ulf and his father Sven have sold their sword-hands following the death of Ulf’s mother.
The Roman governor of Antioch Damian Dalassenos has plans to keep the Fatimid threat at bay, but it soon becomes readily apparent that there are other forces at work besides those placed in power by the Emperor. Theophana, the Emperor’s half sister knows through channels connected to the secret society of Lampros, that the casket containing the secret of Medean Fire has gone missing. She thinks she knows how to get it back and in so doing ensure her base of power will not be toppled. When the shadows of Valhalla close over Sven at the battle of Apamea, she directs her attention to Ulf, sure that he knows the location of the casket. When he escapes her spidery grasp at last with the help of the exiled daughter of the Emperor, he must come face to face with his own truths.