Arlen Bales understands the threat better than anyone. Resisting the coreling plague has shaped him into a weapon so powerful he has attracted enemies both above and below ground.
But as Arlen prepares his people for battle, a daylight war approaches from the south. Out of the desert rides an army led by a man who believes his destiny is to unite humanity against the demons, willingly or not.
Once, Ahmann Jardir and Arlen were like brothers. Now they are the bitterest of rivals, and Jardir's ambition is matched only by the magic wielded by his first wife, Inevera, a powerful priestess.
The corelings will attack in thirty nights, and the only men capable of defeating them are divided against each other by the most deadly demons of all: those that lurk in the human heart.