A seasoned hunter-narrator recounts leading an expedition into a remote African interior at the request of two companions seeking a map to a legendary source of wealth. The party endures harsh landscapes, severe thirst, dangerous hunts, and violent clashes with a powerful local polity; an alliance with a mysterious native exile changes their prospects. The account traces the practical challenges of survival, the shifting loyalties among men, and the moral and human costs that accompany the discovery of an ancient hoard.