The instinct for freedom and for the preservation of the integrity of the individual is a major theme in this novel.

After Ross has been swept by a storm through a time gate into the ancient past of Hawaika, he must constantly evade powers that try to enslave or absorb him.

Barely escaping drowning, he enters an imposing fortress which belongs to a powerful and mysterious group, the Foanna. Local superstition regards them as gods, but Ross considers this nonsense. His desperate need for survival allows him to break into the castle which is supposed to be protected by undefined mental barriers. He is able to pass them only because he does not believe in them.

His stubborn refusal to fall under the spell of the Foanna and to believe that they are alien gods who can protect or curse keeps him from giving in to their power...