The elders are missing. A strange power hovers. The resistance continues. After a great battle with the Desert King, Isika has returned to the Royal City of Maween to find that the elders have vanished without a trace. Ben is the only one with any sense of them at all. He embarks with the seekers on a quest to find the elders, but soon a foreign malevolent power makes itself known. Six elders wake up in six unfamiliar places, flung out of their lives by a mysterious force. Disoriented and afraid, they must discover what has happened to them and survive in their new surroundings. Estranged from the source of power in Maween, will they have the strength to keep themselves safe and find their ways home? Or, like the queen before them, will they be lost forever?

Haunting dreams. The power of the resistance. A battle for freedom. Betrayal magic from the past is still hindering Isika's powers, and the rains haven't come to the lands of the Maweel, causing drought. Growing desperate, the elders decide to crown Isika queen, and at the same time, Ben begins to dream of Aria and the Desert King at sea. He senses that these dreams have been sent by their sister to warn them. Fearing an attack on the Hadem, Isika gathers a group of travelers to aid Maween's allies, journeying great distances to confront the king and put an end to the poison of betrayal magic for once and for all. Will they succeed this time? Or will the power of the Great Waste be too much for the resistance?

A poison arrow. A prophecy of two sisters. A journey into the heart of the resistance. While Isika is preparing for her future role with the Maweel, members of the Karee tribe come to ask for help with the problem of masses of disappearing people. Meanwhile, Aria grows weaker daily from the poison arrow lodged inside her, and time seems to be growing short. A disturbing Karee prophecy might contain more answers, and as Aria is pulled deeper into the Desert King's trap, Isika races to find a healer who might be able to save her sister. In the most dangerous places, she finds more help than she expected, and the group of friends grows and changes as the Resistance enfolds them all. Isika has resisted the power of the Desert King, but will Aria fall under his sway?