In the near future Dr. Holland, a scientist running from a painful past, joins the Mars colonisation effort, cataloguing the remnants of Mars' biosphere before it is swept away by the terraforming programme.When an artefact is discovered deep in the caverns of the red planet, Holland's employers interfere, leading to tragedy. The consequences ripple throughout time, affecting Holland's present, and the destiny of the red planet.

For in the far future, Mars is dying a second time. The Final War of men and spirits is beginning. In a last bid for peace, the disgraced Champion Val Mora and his 'spirit' lover are set free from the Arena to find the long-missing Librarian of Mars, the only hope to save mankind.

Holland's and the Champion's lives intertwine, across the millennia, in a breathtaking story of vast ambition.