But Nermesa soon learns there is a great distance between his courageous idealism and the gory battlefields of the Westermarck, where the savage Picts wage unceasing warfare. Through bravery and cunning, Nermesa comes into his own as a warrior and a man. When he kills the Pictish leader, he is hailed as a hero. But he also unleashes an unholy power that will shake the very foundations of the Aquilonian Empire...