A world without mountains and volcanoes, where the seas shift and all matter rots sooner or later.A world where forgetting is the deadliest sin, according to an old adage, but little is remembered of ancient days.A world where Andris Myrasol, imprisoned prince and soldier-of-fortune, faces two unpleasant alternatives: work for years on crumbling city walls or become the host of a seed which will grow into a thorn tree, impaling him from within in the spirit of scientific enquiry. When Andris' cousin helps him break out of prison he is more than pleased to join an expedition into unknown lands searching for mystical places and beings. But, like so much on this world, things do not work out as expected.