In the late 16th century, young British seaman adventurer Andrew Battell is abducted by Portuguese pirates while seeking treasure off the coast of Brazil. shipped in chains to the steamy slave-trading colony of Angola, he is seduced and betrayed by a passionate woman, tortured in Angola's foulest dungeons, then finally condemned to death. Escaping into the African interior, Battell begins the most frightening adventure of his life -- a nightmare journey into a strange and exotic world, where, to survive, he rises to become trusted blood brother to the barbaric and mysterious warrior-king called the Lord of Darkness.