A centuries-long stalemate endures over possession of a sentient world. In one corner, a dwindling cabal of shamans holds onto a desperate defence; in the other, a colony of aliens try to control a bio-engineering experiment run amok.In the middle stands a youth who has been genetically altered to 'Shape' the elemental powers. Yet if Tokela claims his power, it will make of him an outcast, a catalyst--and a weapon. The stalemate is about to break... "e;Sullivan's commitment to creating a world unlike any we've ever experienced is astonishing."e; — Ulysses Dietz

A centuries-long stalemate endures over possession of a sentient world. In one corner, a dwindling cabal of shamans holds onto a desperate defence; in the other, a colony of aliens try to control a bio-engineering experiment run amok.In the middle stands a youth who has been genetically altered to 'Shape' the elemental powers. Yet if Tokela claims his power, it will make of him an outcast, a catalyst--and a weapon. The stalemate is about to break... "e;Sullivan's commitment to creating a world unlike any we've ever experienced is astonishing."e; — Ulysses Dietz