Derek is a hero, a soldier and a Duke. He is also a drunken, dissolute womanizer spiraling into self-destruction. Years after Derek distinguishes himself in battle as Warlord of the Kingdom of Ariva; he chafes beneath the mantle of peace that reigns under the guardianship of two powerful dragons. To make matters worse, one of those dragons was once a princess and his fiancée. Because his history in Ariva is suffocating him, Derek undertakes a journey to accompany magical, carved obelisks to the southern kingdom of Vanguard. While on his journey, Vanguard’s queen offers him a quest to travel deep within a magically blasted realm teeming with mutants. She promises him a prize he cannot refuse, a genuine dragon’s egg, nearing maturity and pulsing with magical power. Will he find himself along the way? Will he find another woman to share his life? Or will a deadly cult seeking the last spawn of the evil dragon god Solendar destroy what goodness remains in Derek’s soul?