Jason and Sira--he a human telepath and independent trader, she now Speaker for the Clan Council, as well as Jason's life partner--are trying to forge a life for themselves free of the demands of both Clan and the Drapsk, a race determined to claim Sira as the long-awaited Mystic One. And as if these conflicting demands aren't making life complicated enough, there are at least two other factions with far more dangerous intentions seeking them out. Any hope Sira and Jason have of charting their own course seems likely to vanish forever when they are unexpectedly caught in a conflict between the Drapsk and a mysterious race that dwells in the M'hir. With all of their energies directed toward this crisis, will they become easy prey for those among the Clan and the Humans who are already mobilizing to take advantage of the coming conflict?