Tricked into signing a royal contract, Oliver Lamb has precious little time for preparations before he is whisked off to Basthinia; there he must find a way to defend the country of Laubendum against an invasion of Sarcynthians, a southern tide flooding northwards and devouring everything in its path. Oliver and his schoolfriends Sage and Peregrin must navigate their way through squabbling senators, secretive monks, and cumbersome bureaucrats in the capital city, Nova Marmoxa, in order to hel...