As the great mountain in the west speaks to the sky with a tongue of flame, the Talisman Prophesy is on the verge of fulfilment. The rulers of the Federation believe Clearwater's unborn child is the Thrice-Gifted One and they hold both in their power. Cadillac and Roz, who have combined their formidable talents, are determined to free her but Steve, lured by the prospect of a career within the First Family, is no longer sure of who to support and who to betray. He has little time to decide for in Ne-Issan, home of the Iron Masters, a lone woman intent on avenging her dead lover, is about to plunge her nation into a civil war that will set the whole continent abalze.
