Panacea was a lie. An elaborate scheme instigated by Zeus, greatest of the Ruined Gods. Among its many victims was the former strategos Dexios, tricked into murdering Zeus's brother, Hades, as the city of Thena fell to an unstoppable tauran herd. With the death of Hades, the barrier between realms has been shattered. The lifeless shades of Tartarus are no longer bound to the Underworld, but free to return to their decaying bodies and walk the lands of Tyrris once more. Only one can stop this. Makar, son of Hades, reluctant heir to his father's legacy. Accompanied by the disgraced priestess Graycea and the sophistes Elena, he must find a way to traverse the mists of Tartarus and reclaim his birthright. A long, arduous path awaits. For deep in the fiery pits of the Underworld, someone is releasing the shades of the damned. Decrepit, pitiful shadows, their tortured minds broken by an eternity of torture. Yet, despite the madness, a single, overwhelming desire remains. Vengeance.