On a cold, stormy evening in Ireland, five teenagers suddenly find themselves lost, separated, and unprepared for a dangerous quest "beyond the Veil" into Morsden Forest, a secret world hidden from ours. There they must learn to grow, learn to trust, learn to fight, learn to sacrifice, and learn to love in order to rediscover the first of seven lost jewels that contain the ancient verses of The Master Song. Together with a myriad of the Awakened humanlike animals and plants they will battle wild beasts, wraithlike doppelgangers, and an evil power nearly as ancient as creation itself. Will they stand strong and discover the virtues they have within themselves? Or will they, too, fall to the Corrupted?

Cyno Dolan, an Awakened coyote, stumbles across a mystical Voice in the swamplands of Tírcluddaithe and is tasked with organizing a breakout from captivity for the Coeduine known as the Most Evil. The Coyote returns to the Westlands and throws in his lot with a conquering usurper named Guarí, but his loyalties lie elsewhere. Who is he really serving? The glory-hungry Bull King...or someone far more sinister? Meanwhile, King Orbo III is summoned to give an account of his hand in the Battle of the Sanctuary, and a political trap is laid by Dubric the Dark in an effort to consolidate his power over the Hidden Lands. Whispers of civil war are in the air while the incognito Prince Chadric strikes off on a quest of his own to find his missing father, High King Alaric. Meeting a host of new allies and enemies alike, Nolan and his friends return to Tírcluddaithe, this time exploring the Westlands and uncovering a web of trickery and deceit while looking for the next Verse of the Master Song. Can Nolan muster the courage to prove himself a worthy guardian of the legendary Valor verse?