Thorgal is finally back home and his family reunited ... but his past continues to haunt him. A young woman on a pilgrimage tries to kill him – or rather the pirate he once was, Shaigan the Merciless. He wounds her mortally while defending himself, and she demands from him the weirgild. A life for a life – he is to assassinate a Jarl who oppresses the member of the cult she belongs to. Once again, Thorgal sails off towards adventure ...