A mammoth squid-like creature previously unknown to science and only hinted at in obscure supernatural tomes has washed into the Hopkins River and is clogging the sea lanes. In the high security prison known as the Octagon an entire unit of Unusually Dangerous and Unstable inmates has escaped at the instigation of the charismatic leader of a vampiric cult.

Meanwhile, intrepid reporter Sasha St. Cloud is on the verge of uncovering the identities of a dangerous cabal that controls every facet of the City of Denbrook…and that cabal has sent an assassin to make sure their secret is never revealed.