In the ancient mists of time, a ragged band of refugees takes to the icy sea to escape the war-torn Scythian plains of Indo-Europe. Although the Cruithne, named for their chief, find a new home in a distant and unfamiliar land, fewer than two hundred survive the perilous journey. In the solitude of the northern Scottish highlands, they build an isolated civilization on the ideals of freedom and peace. For thousands of years, they conceal their existence from a predatory world. But now an insatiable thirst for conquest has brought the Romans to the shores of Britannia. After easily subduing the southern barbarian tribes, the Romans are astonished by the stuborn resistance of the Cruithne, whom they call the "Picts." Although the Picts have always been a loose affiliation of tribes, the extraordinary threat to their very survival now inspires them to unite under the leadership of one indomitable man: Calach. Can Calach guide the new Pictish nation to victory over the inexorable Roman advance, or will the Empire that has swallowed so many before them determine the Pict history?

For nearly two hundred years, the Crusades have raged across the Holy Land. Now, the Kingdom of God in Jerusalem is foundering, and support from Europe has waned. The city of Jerusalem has been in Muslim hands since Saladin, and more key cities fall with each passing decade. Louis de Garonne has resolved to change that. Pursuing his boyhood dreams into the Order of the Knights Templar, and across the sea to the shores of Outremer, he hopes to breathe new life into the Holy Crusade and to see the recapture of both the city of Jerusalem and the venerated True Cross, both of which Saladin captured nearly a century ago. However, Louis faces his own personal battles. At every turn, conflicts arise and threaten to undermine his dreams. He discovers love that could unravel his commitment to the Templar Order. His loyalty to the Crusade is challenged by disorder among the crusading armies. His convictions about right and wrong are threatened by human nature itself. Will Louis overcome these challenges to realize triumph in his quest?

Calach stood. His anger was surfacing, and he felt suddenly seized by the demons he had been struggling to contain. Sioltach stared at Calach in admiration as he quickly translated his words. "Why have you lost one legion, soon to be followed by another? Look, and see Your soldiers are wide-eyed Roman lads, fighting beside non-Romans who were your enemies longer than they have been your slaves. They are bewildered by a strange and frightening land. They are bound to you not by loyalty, but by fear, and when their fear ends, only hatred will remain. "For all of your pomp, you have none of what inspires men to victory. Your soldiers fight for nothing but the glory of an empire that has crushed their own nations and tribes. They have no wives to inspire them, and no parents to mock them should they shrink from battle. They have no country, or if they do it is not Rome, and it is in ruins." Agricola paled. He was certain that he would die at the hands of this man whose spirit he could not comprehend.