It's a strange day for Otto Hush when a mysterious girl appears, tells Otto he will be a hero, and then disappears. Then when a message appears from the past, Rhiannon, a young chess champion in Otto's city, finds it all the stranger: she is a Citizen and to her, magic is a dirty word. Whether they like it or not, Rhiannon and Otto must travel together to answer calls from the darkest time in Karmidee history. Amidst the madness of magic and the ravages of an ancient war, they must face the sinister Circus Ringmaster, TumbleMan - who can juggle with the past and the future. When the future of his people is at the mercy of a quixotic juggler, Otto needs his friends more than ever ...