A new generation of cyborg, they were supposed to calm hostilities between those who created the artilects and those who opposed them. Instead, they were the spark that ignited the Artilect War. They survived--but so did their enemies. Now the very people they're trying to save are intent on annihilating them. Nonetheless, as long as humanity fights for its survival, so will they. Only, this time, there needs to be a winner--the future of the human race depends on it. Cyborg Ailith wakes in the aftermath of the Artilect War to find the modern world destroyed and her kin facing execution. Letting them die is not an option, for humankind will survive only if they do. But to save them, she and Tor must confront old foes--and a self-proclaimed god. The Pantheon cyborgs have found the source of the mysterious signal, and with it, pieces of the past they'd thought lost forever. But everyone has secrets--their creators, their rivals...even their new ally, Fane, whose secret is the most dangerous of all. And when those secrets are exposed, they trigger a chain of events that once again leaves them all fighting for survival. Their enemies have joined forces to destroy them--and taken one of their own. When their hunt for allies ends in a deadly confrontation, Ailith and the others must decide how far they're willing to go to end this war--because if the human race is to survive, committing the unthinkable might be the only solution.