Eleven-year-old Telemakos is the grandson of two royal men: one African, from the kingdom of Aksum; the other Artos, the fallen High King of Britain. He is also a remarkable listener and tracker. Now his country needs his skill. Even though there is a quarantine, plague is spreading through Aksum, leaving disease and death in its wake. Telemakos is recruited as the emperor's spy. He must travel through the brutal desert to the salt mines of Afar; there, he needs to discover who has been traitor to the crown. This challenge will take all of Telemakos's skill and strength and his ability to stay silent - for if he is discovered, there will be no mercy.