Born of the Source an immortal Conduit, Given seeks out one who can offer him the ultimate gift-the peaceful embrace of death. Unfortunately, Owen, the vessel that can contain his power, is steeped in sarcasm and self-doubt making the Transition all the more difficult. Discovering things in each other they both have lost, they unite to fight off a horde of vampiric Vorus led by the greatest enemy of the Conduits-a Desolate. At the same time, another Conduit seeks his own peace after millennia of torture. With a fractured mind, the one man who provides him a balance is dying, and the only way to save him is to find a Conduit ready to Transition. Hopes are burned away when Masha finds out that his oldest friend has been working against him since the very beginning.Immortality may be a gift, but what do men forsake when tomorrow becomes a burden?