(from the back of the book) While the eyes of the empress and her court are directed to Almada and the conflict on the Yaquir, another threat grows - unnoticed - in the northwest of the kingdom. Paralyzing uncertainty dominates much of the Greifenmark and is discharged in the spring of 1034 BF in turmoil. The heroes are drawn into a web of ancient oaths and new feuds. Old nobility, war lords of the Wildermark, Orcish collaborators and not least a darker shade from the Finsterkamm vie for power - and there's no sign who will prevail. What started as a courtly intrigue, extends now to bloody battles that threaten not only to devour Lichthag but the Markgrave country.