In the shattered world of Atherton, the devastating Great Wizard War left only scattered islands amidst a sea of ruin. From this cataclysm arose the Council of Magic, an order dedicated to restoring the realm while restricting the very forces that had nearly destroyed it. Yet their harsh prohibitions bred defiance, and on the island of Amir, protected by the noble House Lancaster, rebels formed the Guilds of Unbound Sorcery to study forbidden arcana. Among them was the enigmatic Helical Guild, obsessed with the mysteries of the Helix - an ancient relic imbued with the power to control all magic. For generations, the Guild's leaders, known as Horns, passed down their accumulated knowledge through an unnerving process of cloning and soul transference upon death. By the time the 7th Horn held mastery, the Council's fears could no longer be contained. In the year 86 ACC, they invaded Amir, seeking to crush the guilds once and for all. The 7th Horn summoned horrific monsters to defend the city of Rask, igniting the First Guild-Council War. Sixteen years later, in the year 106 ACC, the embers still burned bright. On the eve of his 16th birthday, Salaun Lancaster, sole heir to House Lancaster, was violently torn from his home by the roguish Harith Vasu and his cold companion Elizabeth. Setting the stage for the second Guild-Council War.