In a spin-off from the Sword of Truth series comes the second book of The Nicci Chronicles, where new alliances are forged and old enemies return. The formidable sorceress and one-time Sister of the Dark Nicci and her companions – the newly powerless Nathan and the youthful Bannon – set out on another quest after driving ruthless Norukai slavers out of Renda Bay. Their mission: restore Nathan's magic and, for Nicci, save the world. Guided by the witch-woman Red's mysterious prophecy, the trio makes their way south of Kol Adair towards a wondrous city shrouded behind time, Ildakar. But the grotesque omens on their path to Nathan's salvation – severed Norukai heads on pikes, a genetically modified monster, and a petrified army of half a million – are just a taste of the unimaginable horrors that await within the Shroud of Eternity.