This is the story of a young boy's life in Baghdad while studying under the great Middle Ages magician Michael Scot. While in Baghdad, Fletcher Ashdown has many adventures and learns many things about magic. He tells this tale to a group of Vikings who capture him during one of their many raids along the Scottish coast. While this tale is fictional, Michael Scot was in fact a great magician during the Middle Ages and the information about the Arab magic is true as well.