Sixth-century Byzantium: The Emperor Justinian is determined to reunite the whole of the Roman Empire and his best general, Flavius Belisarius, is poised to invade Italy. Flavius and his men march north unopposed until the local senators of Naples refuse to surrender and a bloody assault ensues. Rome, hearing of the fate of Naples, yields the city to Flavius, but before long the Goths arrive and stage a brutal attack which Flavius's army only just survives.

Besieged and mired in a cesspit of corruption, Byzantium's greatest general must navigate a world rife with deceit and brutality where only the most cutthroat survive.