Professor Luke Mann is the leader of a team heading back to the Languedoc, year 1305. Their goal? To study the environment, refine delta T and, in Luke's words, "to change the universe". With him is Artemisia Wormwood: a Medieval historian who needs the money to save the life of her dying sister.
But time travel is untested, and dangerous. Saint-Guilhem-le-Desert, a village in Languedoc, is a desert of souls. Monastery, pilgrimage path, and legend; that's all there is. Perfect for scientists who have promised their work will not interfere with history.
They have nine months, and they're not telling Artemisia about their research. Who needs a historian when the village looks like a gamer's dream?