The metal thing has kept a grim vigil within its blasted circle of bone for more than ten thousand years, and those who cross the boundaries of that ring can expect only death. Standing as God to a cracked and broken people, it waits for the one who holds within him the key that can unlock the miracles of the land beyond. Pehr lives with his family in their village by the sea, far removed from the metal thing and its worshipers. He is sixteen, fit and strong, nearly ready to take the Hunter's Test and become a man. All he has ever known exists on this small strip of land, trapped between the churning sea on one side and the deadly jungle on the other. When the vile creatures known as Lagos descend upon his village, Pehr's world is shattered, his family destroyed, and his life thrown into chaos. What begins as a simple attempt to rescue his cousin becomes instead a journey that will change him forever. Somewhere, past the jungle and through the mountains, a girl with purple eyes stands upon the vast plains of her land. She is searching for him, and when at last they meet, the choices they make will bring the entire human race salvation ... or destruction. High above them both, the metal thing awaits.