The White Fire Virus kills most of its victims, overwhelming their bodies with an onslaught of parasites. Yet, those able to survive find themselves endowed with the supernatural ability to manipulate the basic particles of light. Most of these survivors call themselves angels, and many on Earth believe them. As society falls to pieces, an elite group of Virus-carriers known as the Watchers is tasked with recovering a growing number of missing children in the Washington, DC area. When Watcher agents Robert Goldner and Darryl Ridley receive a hot tip on the location of a Virus-infected girl who disappeared shortly after attempting to massacre half her high school, they prepare to chalk up another success. But when they instead find the girl's best friend from school, beaten nearly to death, they become entwined in a conspiracy involving magick, bizarre creatures, fantastic realms beyond space and time, and even the death of God.