
Yelena is sentenced to death for using magic. The only salvation is to escape to Sycja, her native land from which she was kidnapped as a child. Here in the Mages Stronghold, she only has a year to perfect her extremely rare magical gift. If he doesn't learn to control him, he will die.
Nothing is going as expected in Sycja. She feels lonely and alien. The local customs irritate or make her laugh, she does not remember her parents, and her brother shows her open hostility.
Unexpectedly, Yelena is drawn into a game with evil forces so primal and strong that they can threaten the existence of Sycja. It all starts with the kidnapping and brutal murders of young adepts of magic. Souls have been stolen from the victims and can be an additional source of enormous power. During a fight to the death, Yelena finds out that her powerful magical abilities are as much a gift as a curse?