An old soldier, a young wizard and a snake man bounty hunter escape the dungeon of Baroness Thade during a chaotic and violent attack on her castle. Mistaken for the heroes who attacked the castle, the three find themselves on the run from the baroness's army. As the old soldier - Jobek Crenshaw - struggles to find his home, his companions - wizard Karina Moya and snake man Asperathes - are more worried about the regiment on their heels.Never having trusted the young wizard, Asperathes is appalled when Moya and Crenshaw fall in love and settle down to make a life together. With the baroness hunting them down, however, there is no quiet life for any of the fugitives and as the years pass they are forced to move from town to town, building their reputations along the way. Before long they have achieved legendary status and there is nothing the common folk won't do for their sojourning heroes.Chasing them all the while, Captain Serita Wren is discovering the difficulty in catching heroes the people won't surrender, with her constant failures preventing her from gaining the promotion she desires.After so long on the run, Crenshaw begins to understand the only way to get the army off his back is to make a direct assault upon the baroness's castle and become the heroes they have for so long pretended to be. With the baroness determined to label them heroes, it seems it is time at last to stop fighting their destiny.