Murder and intrigue in the palaces and trading halls of Byzantium. Reaching its peak in 1025, under Basil II, Byzantium has perpetuated the legacy of the Roman empire since the fall of the West. However, in its now weakened position, it faces serious threats from the Turks. In response to these threats Alexios Komnenos, the dynamic young successor to the imperial throne, has petitiond the Pope for support for his armies. His request is met by the Pope's preaching of the first crusade. Meanwhile, in Constantinople, a soldier has died from a bolt through his chest whilst standing only inches away from the emperor. In secrecy, Demetrios the Apokalyptor is commissioned to investigate the murder before the assassin can strike again. His search leads him through the slums of Constantinople where he finds Thomas, a Frankish youth who is recently orphaned. On discovering that it was Thomas who fired the bolt, Demetrios decides to protect Thomas and use him to discover the identity of the foreigner, known only as 'the monk', who commissioned Thomas to kill. Believing that there must be foreign involvement, Demetrios takes his quest into the cut-throat world of Italian and Frankish merchants vying for large slices of the transcontinental trade which passes through Byzantium. Little does he expect to find a thread that will lead him into the heart of a conspiracy spanning two continents and decades of history.