After years of violence, a relative peace has returned to the Holy Land. Yet the magic and afflictions that permeate the region haven''t gone away. When Gauthier of Flanders, a wandering knight, stops at a caravansary and gives water to a Christian woman who is held prisoner by the Order of Assassins, he has no idea what evil is about to be unleashed upon the world... nor that he will be brought to stand against a deadly demon. The opening chapter of a new arc, following the 4-volume Hierus Halem cycle (published by Cinebook).