Agritania was a small kingdom of mostly farmers and merchants but, as the Lord Chancellor Fengold knew, was sitting on vast deposits of silver and gold. But the king was a fool and wouldn't allow Fengold to develop these resources even though the wealth could be used to improve the lives of all the citizens...but especially Fengold himself. When the new prince is christened, Fengold enters into a conspiracy with a counselor from Ferristein to ambush and assassinate the royal family so he can become king and begin mining the silver and gold. It takes seven years, but the opportunity finally arrives and when the royal family was about to enjoy a picnic, they were attacked. As the attack began, the king told Prince Stephen to run into the woods and not to stop or look back. While he was running, he suddenly came to a cliff and fell. At the bottom of the cliff, an old man named Barnabas picked up the injured prince and carried him off to his cottage in a hidden valley. Fengold sent soldiers to look for them but he never found them. Over the years, others began living in the valley until they became a village of outcasts and outlaws. Becky Dixon's parents were getting divorced and they were moving to her mother's parent's ranch. But, once they arrive, she found it wasn't so bad. Especially since her best friend Emily Washburn was going to spend a month with them. The two girls were exploring the ranch when they found a cave and decided to investigate. While they were crawling through a narrow passage the floor gave out and they tumbled into another world. They soon find themselves in the middle of a desperate war to restore Prince Stephen to his throne. Do they succeed? Do they all survive? And if they do, do the girls ever get home?