At the end of the previous book, Five killed Eight when Eight stepped in front of Nine. Ella and John had a vision of a future in which the Mogs ruled Earth, executed Six and Sam, and Ella was a Mog princess of some kind. Ella is then kidnapped by Mogs.
In Florida, Six, Marina (Seven) and Nine are determined to find Eight’s body. They find it in a Mog camp, guarded by Five. Five leaves it behind for them, as he is starting to question his involvement in all of this, on either side. The group steals a Mog warship and flies to Washington DC, where John (Four), Sam, Malcom (Sam’s dad) Sarah and Adam (a Mog teen on their side) are waiting.
John has sent Sarah, with Bernie Kosar, to Alabama to meet with her ex-boyfriend Mark, who is apparently heavily involved in the web site They Walk Among Us. Except for phone calls, Sarah does not appear in the book beyond this point.
Adam tells John, Malcome and Sam about a nearby suburban development that is actually a Mog base. They take it down with the help of some new Chimaerae. In going through the base, they discover where Six, Marina and Nine are, and remotely access the warship. Adam talks them through flying it to Washington to meet them.
Ella awakens aboard a Mog warship orbitting Earth. She learns that she is Setrakus Ra’s granddaughter; he is some weird Loric/Mog hybrid that he created himself. He’s all about genetic modifiction for “improvement.” Ella learns he can change his appearnce to a movie-star handsome human, which is part of his plan to win over Earth. He tells Ella she’s going to meet her betrothed, and it turns out to be Five; this is how she learns of his betrayal. They make a failed escape attempt, during which Ella discovers that the charm S. Ra has placed on her means that any injury inflicted on him will appear on her body.
Meanwhile, in Washington, the gang are joined by FBI agent Walker, who now believes that the Mogs are up to no good and offers assistance. Malcom has found recordings of himself being tortured, and on one of them he describes a Sanctuary that the Garde (Loric kids) must go to and empty their Chests into so that Lorien can essentially be reborn on Earth. Marina, Six and Adam head off to Mexico to find it. They bring along Eight’s body.
Walker explains to John, Nine, Sam and Malcom that many politicians and top cabinet members have been sweet talked by the Mogs and are on their side, though the don’t really understand what’s coming. They head to New York, where S. Ra and the Secretray of Defense plan to announce the Mogs’ benevolent plans for Earth. The SOD has since realized his mistakes, wants no part of what’s coming, and tries to end his life. John heals him of his Mog “improvements” and convinces him to make a different announcement at the UN.
In Mexico, the gang battles their way to the Sanctuary, which surprisingly allows Adam to enter as well. They dump all their stuff in, and Lorien possesses Eight’s body briefly to explain that it is an entity/diety and it can’t really affect what’s going on in the Mog-Lorien battle.
In New York, S. Ra and Ella appear for the big announcement, but the Secretary of Defense instead tries to warn people. S Ra is seriously pissed, shows his true form and scares the crap out of everyone. Nine, Five and the FBI agents try to kill him, but John realizes that if they do, Ella will be the one who dies, so he winds up protecting S. Ra instead. S. Ra returns to the warship, takes Ella with him, and opens fire on New York. In the battle, Sam uses telekenetic powers that he didnt’ know he had; the book ends with him looking at his hands and saying “Did I do that?”