The wizard Korga has arrived in the depraved city of Zanda to search for clues to the whereabouts of Deeping Lore within the Citadel of Zandine, home to the God of Chaos and Illusion. Hunter, a centuries old first rank Black Dragon Assassin is contracted by the Church of Thieves to kill him and arrives in the city during the Festival of the Lad. For Hunter, this is no ordinary contract. At stake is something that he greatly desires...an opportunity to father a son to love and raise as his own.