The book begins with Elansa Sungold going to the border to heal a group of trees with her Blue Phoenix, a magical artifact passed down since the Age of Dreams to woodshapers in her family.

Elansa is taken for ransom, and one of the guards who were sent to take care of her by her husband, Prince Kethrenan, is mutilated and sent back to Qualinost, the elve's homeland, to inform them of the ransom demand, two cartloads full of the best weapons that the elves have.

Brand kills the son of Gnash, a hobgoblin, who was sent to assist the ambush, making him an enemy of the goblins.

Brand stores the weapons in caches all over the stone lands, so that they won't be discovered.

The weapons that can't be recovered due to transportation issues are destroyed.

Brand and his band know that they are being hunted, but not by whom, so they decide to go to the abandoned Pax Tharkas as a safe haven.

Brand and his followers arrive in Pax Tharkas, and a couple of goblins manage to rouse the undead guarding Kith-Kanan.