From his army of the undead, Xar, Lord of the Nexus, learns of the existence of the mysterious Seventh Gate. It is said that this gate grants whoever enters it the power to create worldsâor destroy them. Only Haplo knows its locationâbut he doesn't know he knows it. Now an ex-lover has been sent to betray Haplo and bring back his corpse. Meanwhile, the assassin Hugh the Hand is also after Haplo, wielding the Accursed Blade. With his old companion Alfred, Haplo must seek sanctuary in the Labyrinthâa deadly prison maze whose inhabitants are condemned to death.Â
 Millennia ago a battle raged between the Sartan and the Patryn, and the Sartan sundered the world into four realmsâair, fire, stone, and waterâand then vanished. But now the two races have rediscovered each other through the magic of the Death Gateâand war is about to erupt anew.