Vaster Golt, teenage criminal living on the grimy streets of the city of Nizwel, has spent years committing petty crimes for his owner and master, Svolger, under threat of the revelation of his most dangerous secret.

When he and fellow thief Gedwen are sent to raid the contents of a noble family’s vault, they find a powerful resource hidden inside that might help them free themselves from servitude… and a Scribe, a wielder of powerful runes who is none too happy to find a pair of teenage thieves stealing from their home.

But Vaster and Gedwen aren’t ordinary criminals. They have gifts of their own, ones their master has been cultivating for a purpose that goes far beyond simple robberies. As the pair begin to unravel the schemes that have ensnared their lives, they find out the lengths to which Svolger is willing to go to prevent them from becoming masters of their own fates.