The Cabal find their report to the Council ignored, halted by deadlock by how to best spend the Concilium's resources. Working to rectify this and impress the size of the threat, they arrange a meeting with Heirarch Ezekeilthrough Athaliah. They meet the doctor at hospital along with his bodyguard, provost, and cabal mate Sixty Six. He explains he was in favor of sending them aid but was unable to muster enough support among the rest of the Council. They prepare for their meetings with the other members of the council talking with the Chthonic Road and researching the Beshilu infested station. They also look into its geomantic resonance. With this in hand they meet with Councilor Alys on the shore of Lake Michigan. She agrees to try arrange a chance for them to present their case before the Council.
Meanwhile a wave of sickness effects the cabal as first Valkyrie, then Adele, and finally Mammon come down with a nasty cold. Colt continues to heal them but eventually he finds that a series of disease spirits are causing it. After failing to capture one, Colt manages to convince one to help them, purposely making himself sick to do so. He convinces the spirit Vector 33, to lead them to where a rat hybrid told it and others like it to infect them. At the street corner near the river, they investigate but find little evidence to help them. Then a car comes out of nowhere, headed straight for the cabal. Colt pushes the girls out of the way, taking the full brute of the impact. Even though he is mostly ok, he is taken away to the hospital. The driver was just a normal person who was in a rush. At the hospital, Vector 33 runs afoul of a potent antiseptic spirit and is devoured.
The Ebon Cross meets with the Council. After Mammon's logical argument and the wealth of evidence is displayed, the Heirarch brings the decision to a vote. The Council agrees to aid them and puts the full force of the Consilium into the eradication of the Beshilu threat. The Mages assembled near an entrance to the subway system, using the Chthonic Road's maps. In addition to the cabal, the Sentinel Hippolyta and the Iron Hand were there as were Athaliah, Samson and Goes. The cabal also arranges for the werewolf pack the Red Death to join them. Surprisingly two members of the Free Council also offered their strength, the Herald Vespa and Bourdelle.
Together the horde of supernaturals descends into the darkness. The rats respond with a rear attack, drawing the main group into the filthy decaying subway station. There the mages faces thousands of rodents, dozens of hybrids, spirits and even spirit infested zombies. The Iron Hand lead the charge with Red Thunder hurling lightning across the room while the others destroy the hybrids with punishing force. Meanwhile, the cabal engages the rat hybrids in close combat with pistols, shotguns, and sword. Adele spots what appeared to the leader fleeing at the far side of the chamber. The hunched over blind creature is being led by another less afflicted hybrid. She and Bourdelle shoot at its assistants with arrows.
As the monstrous horde begins to disintegrate, the cabal and a werewolf charge after the leader. The leader's aides willingly throw themselves at the cabal to buy their blind leader time to escape. After killing them, the cabal catch up to him in the darkness. In a final attempt to save its life, it cries out that it knows where Colt's brother is. With those words, the cabal decide to take the creature known as the Heir to Visions prisoner, planning to force the truth out of it.