With a new emperor on the throne, the Kastanian Empire embarks on a concerted campaign of conquest, both east and west. With his younger half-brothers taking command of the expansion, Emperor Jorqel can concentrate on stabilising the internal politics of the Empire. He may think he might be able to cower any rival House from challenging his newly acquired status, but he finds the priests a different matter. With the ailing former High Priest Burnas no longer able to keep the domestic clerics in line, the temples of Kastania vie to promote their own candidates to a position of prominence, assisted by the religious Prince Elas and his brother. Together they hatch a dark plot to elevate Elas to the throne. Jorqel’s other temporal problem is from the Tybar, who send in priest after priest in an attempt to convert much of the population to both destabilise the Empire, and to pave the way for a successful counter-attack following the fall of Imakum. So Jorqel has to turn to the darker side of politics and employ someone who can hunt these priests down and murder them before they do too much damage to the faith of the Kastanian people.