In a discontent kingdom civil war is brewing. To unify the divided people Conner a nobleman of the court devises a cunning plan to find an impersonator of the king's long-lost son and install him as a puppet prince. Four orphans are recruited to compete for the role including a defiant boy named Sage. Sage knows that Conner's motives are more than questionable yet his life balances on a sword's point—he must be chosen to play the prince or he will certainly be killed. But Sage's rivals have their own agendas as well. As Sage moves from a rundown orphanage to Conner's sumptuous palace layer upon layer of treachery and deceit unfold until finally a truth is revealed that in the end may very well prove more dangerous than all of the lies taken together.