Lord Aeryk had one simple assignment; to bring the ambassador of the great Empire of Yorch to meet his lord, the king of Lochhaven. But from the moment he meets the mysterious adventurer Kelly, nothing is simple again. For a new and greedy king in the north has dispatched a cadre of the best mercenaries in the land - including the fearsome pirate Edword - to stop the meeting by any means necessary. Soon they will all cross paths, each of them bearing secrets that could spell disaster for themselves, the kingdom, and even the world.