Rhia is a Courier, a transient messenger who freely travels the land without calling any town or port home. The job suits her, for in a land ruled by the Temple, it is difficult to find your own way, especially when you have a Talent. Rhia's is water, and when she arrives in distant Cerretour to deliver a message, she finds a village wracked with suffering. The well is dry. It hasn't rained. The only person who can save these villagers is missing. At night, a strange creature prowls the prairie. The villagers have a name for it: greyhowler.

Rhia knows it by a different name: the lusus mendace, the predator of lies. It is a monster created by Temple Priests to scare the initiates and acolytes. It knows deceit. It knows fear. It hunts those who harbor lies in their hearts.

Is it hunting her? Is it hunting someone in the village? Is it nothing more than a myth, a tale meant to scare children? All Rhia knows for certain is she may be the only person who can save these people. But doing so means accepting what she swore she would never be . . .