Years before, a gateway opened between their world and ours. Sending one young woman through may be the key to survival for the kingdom of Fourline. Strapped for cash, college student Natalie Barns agrees to take a job at a costume shop. Sure, Estos - her classmate who works in the shop - is a little odd, but Nat needs the money for her tuition.

Natalie Barns is falling apart. Since returning from Fourline, she's tried desperately to focus on the world in front of her - the one of classes, money, and family. But the wound in Natalie's shoulder from her final encounter with the Nala radiates pain constantly throughout her days, while her nights are tormented by terrifying dreams of the Nala - and of Soris, the rebel fighter she failed to protect.

Following her forced departure from Fourline, Natalie Barns has been aching to rejoin the struggle to overthrow its evil dictator. With Soris and those she left behind constantly on her mind, Nat bides her time, determined to find a cure for the duozi - those infected by the terrifying Nala. An unexpected discovery propels her back to those she has sworn to protect, but her reappearance in Fourline is anything but straightforward, particularly when familiar faces appear when least expected.