When invasion looms... After a harrowing battle Lady Kyferin and her stalwart followers have earned themselves a brief respite from Lord Laur's fury. They know, however, that the next assault will be impossible to resist. Their sole hope of survival lies in forging an alliance with the only force capable of resisting the empire's might: the Agerastian heretics themselves. But time is running out... Yet over these political machinations looms the Black Shriving, the ancient curse that has struck down all who seek to defend Mythgraefen Hold. Asho and Kethe must embrace their newfound powers and undergo a dark journey into the heart of hellscape of the upper peaks in search of answers and a hope of salvation. Their lives hang by the slimmest of threads... If Magister Audsley can but divine the lost secrets of the Sin Casters, if Asho and Kethe can wrest the truth behind the existence of the second Black Gate, and if Lady Kyferin and Ser Tiron can forge a tenuous alliance with their most hated of enemies, they may just have a chance of surviving the oncoming darkness...