Driven from their home, they become allies of the people of the valley in their struggle against the invading Rat Creatures and the Hooded One. In this volume, the Bones, along with Gran'ma Ben (a.k.a. Rose, the land's queen, returning from exile) and her granddaughter Thorn, enter the city of Atheia, where Gran'ma reunites with old allies and faces danger from a usurper while Phoney Bone schemes to take charge of the city's treasury.