Dax Nelson was destined to protect the empire. When he’s gifted the power of an unusual essence, everything changes.

The Great Serpent grants a gift of powerful essence to those who come before him. The experience, and the gift, is unpredictable but all have a vision of the Great Serpent so they can understand the purpose of their essence.

Not Dax.

With his new essence, rather than learning from his father, he now must go to the Academy to learn to control his essence. It’s not fire as all in his family possess, but even the most powerful in the Academy don’t know what it is—or what it means for Dax.

And the only thing he remembers from his visit to the Serpent Stairs may be key to stop an attack on the empire, if he can understand his essence in time.