After the battles, the land is sick and wasted, until Green Mantle's magic arts restore the meadows, heaths and woodlands. Megwin is Green Mantle, protector of all living things and youngest member of the powerful College of the Mantles. Disillusioned by palace intrigue, still bitter from the treachery of those she loved and trusted, she returns to the wandering life of her predecessors. As she travels through the five kingdoms, alone with her horse and fox, she encounters strange and ancient powers, unravels the mystery of a deadly curse and confronts her private nemesis.