Dalziel has run away to be with her uncle as she is forbidden to marry her love, Lesta, the king's eldest son. Her Uncle Quikso believes she is his daughter, but her mother knows the truth, for her father, is a Varan – Donas, a son of Doella and Carnos. However, Dalziel isn't safe with her uncle, for the ruler of his kingdom is evil and although Dalziel hides in her uncle's tower, King Presnol finds and desires her. Presnol outwits them, marries Dalziel, and sends his first wife into exile. They conspire to escape, and then Lesta and Dalziel's mother arrive. Her mother is aware of her daughter's latent power, and the more she makes use of it, the stronger it grows. Finally, through the use of her power, she and Lesta escape to her uncle's friend, Salumestra, who lives in an old fortress across the desert. Salumestra is a good man and he helps Dalziel. However, also hiding in the fortress is a dragon son of Doella and Wylar, banished there as punishment by his mother for eating a human. This changes everything.