In the thrilling conclusion to the Oracle trilogy, Seth and his companions return from the desert to find a new reign of terror upon the Two Lands. General Argelin has pronounced himself King and declared war upon the Rain Queen and the God. Hired mercenaries repress the populous and prepare for battle with the forces of the Emperor. Returning the dead Speaker to the world of the living has become Argelin's one obsession and brings him under the malign influence of the sign of the Scarab. The young Archon, Alexos, knows that he and Mirany must take Argelin on an impossible journey through the Nine Gates to the Garden of the Rain Queen, a place from which no mortal can return.