Mammon is unexpectedly called away on to deal with work, while the others continue to investigate the university. Colt calls Valkyrie, describing the men in blue, the custodial staff that he has spied missing their auras. He continues to hide outside, watching the yard worker trim the hedges with shears. As he does he warns Valkyrie on the phone to keep an eye out for more of them.
The cabal returns to the Athenaeum where they meet with Iskandria, Logos, and Polymath. Polymath is investigating the symbols found overlaying the High Speech runes. Adele talks to Logos about what he knows about the spiritual landscape of the university. He notes there have been a number of suicides in last few years, though relatively few ghosts exist on campus. Adele theorizes that something might be dampening the ghosts, or perhaps it is just that the flow of students in and out means that the ghosts' anchors have been damaged or moved.
Adele returns to her dorm room and researches the university on the internet. She discovers there are a large number of ghost stories and strange happenings going on. Cataloging them, she also discovers the names and details about several of the suicides including Ben Newell and David Milford.
Colt meanwhile approaches the custodial worker and tries to talk to him. Unfortunately the man just replies "no habla inglese" in a strained voice. Colt notices the man is pale with sunken eyes. After trying some poor Spanish on the him, Colt let's the man leave and calls Valkyrie again. After explaining odd situation and mentioning that he isn't sure the man was actually Hispanic (as his grandfather was Mexican), he convinces her to help him look for more people without without auras at the university. Valkyrie also relays the cabal's finding on the spiritual energies at work. As they search they find several more aura-less people, all of them custodial workers. They include an old woman sweeping and a pair washing windows. Valkyrie asks Colt to check the workers' health with Life magic. He discovers none of them are alive, though Valkyrie can confirm that they are made of flesh and blood. The Obrimos calls Adele to confirm that the campus is infested with zombies. Adele arrives soon after and scrutinizes them. She finds that in addition to being undead, they all died a few months ago of natural causes. For instance the old man and tattooed teen died of heart failure and infection respectively. Faced with spiritually created zombies, they decide to investigate further.
They head to the Physical Plant but as they approach Colt spots a figure crouched atop nearby building. He quickly asks Adele for a compact. As she doesn't have one, he borrows Valkyrie's and using the mirror spots Binary hiding on top of the building. Colt calls Mammon, asking him to call and feel out what Binary is up to. Confused Mammon calls Cornerstone and gets Binary's email address. He emails her asking if he can talk to her.
Meanwhile Colt and Adele watch Binary who soon leaves, distracted by something. They decide to enter the Physical Plant. There they find many of the maintenance zombies and detect one living person in the building. Spying on her with magic, they learn that the Building Services Manager Judy Lyden is a mundane Sleeper and seems to be completely unconcerned about the zombies. In fact she is talking with her travel agent on the phone planning a trip later in the fall. Adele tries to look at the interconnections for the zombies but her magic is not strong enough. Needing strong Space magic, Colt texts Mammon his current location as well as the fact that there are zombies. Intrigued and confused, Mammon comes over. Meanwhile Adele asks Hope how she feels about the university. The ghost says it feels oppressive but she can't say how. Adele takes some pictures of the zombies for identification later.
Mammon soon arrives and they fill him in, outside the zombie infested building. Adele is able to determine that the zombies were all animated at once, one month ago, shortly before school started. Apparently this is how they solved the labor dispute. Mammon is able to determine that the zombies are tightly connected to the university with weak ties to something or someone in the Physical Plant. They quickly track that connection to Judy and Colt cons his way into a meeting with her. As he talks to her about his restoration project and the difficulties in that, Mammon scries her and reads her resonance of materialism and determination. Colt asks where she hired her workers but she skillfully lies and gives him references to her usual agencies. Mammon unfortunately is unable to read her thoughts. Colt soon returns outside to discuss their findings. At a loss and with evening fast approaching, they disperse. Mammon takes one last look the runes, finding that the marks have sympathy only to the university.
Back at the sanctum, Adele goes to her oratory to attempt to scry the ghost of the suicide victim again. She finds him in the room where he hung himself, seemingly anchored to the room. The ghost is agitated and trying to escape the confines of his anchor. Adele informs Colt and the two of them along with Rota walk over to the location in Twilight, leave Hope behind. Adele talks to the ghost, who seems conscious but says that he can't escape and that something is keeping him here. He says he could never leave the university, he was even signed up for summer classes against his will. Suddenly a sound echoes from everywhere. Sensing something horrible coming, Colt grabs Adele and they flee the room. Rota just disappears to his other anchor, sensing some danger. As they leave they can hear the ghost scream and then is cut off. Further investigation reveals him to be completely gone. The two mages return to the sanctum and talk with Rota. The old ghostly mage says something ate the ghost and that all of these events are connected. He suggests that they should investigate what has changed at the university in recent years.
The day of the Battle of the Bands concert arrives. In the evening the cabal discusses what to do about the zombies and the mysterious entity which made them. They determine that a large medical shipment to the university went missing at right time and may be the source of the zombies. Colt proposes to track Lyden who might have made a deal with with the spirit behind this. Adele talks to Hope, who promises to stay off campus. They also bring up Binary, who is already surveilling the area and might know something. This however results in a small argument between Colt and Mammon about poor communication within the cabal.
Miguel soon shows up to take Adele to the concert. Adele fills him in on their findings. He quips "Does trouble seek you out?" The pair then head to the Battle of the Bands where they meet up with Adele's friends Sasha and Michelle. Michelle complains to Adele about her crazy roommate, Ellen. She explains the woman is a total shut in and a bit unhinged. Any further discussion is drowned about by the next group, 4.0 Suicide. However on the start to their second song, the lead singer is electrocuted when he grabs the mike. As Adele hears the groaning in Twilight again, Miguel jumps up onto the stage and with the help of some premed students saves the dying young man. Meanwhile Adele spots Binary and approaches her. The secretive mage asks to talk about this outside. There she explains to the young supernaturals that she thinks there is a conspiracy causing these events. The three then head to the Ebon Cross's sanctum.
Colt meanwhile watches Judy work late into the night at the office. He hears the ambulance taking the injured band member away and shortly after gets Adele's text about the events and to meet up later at the sanctum. A couple hours later he follows Judy home where she lives alone. Nothing unusual happens.
Back at the sanctum, Binary explains to the cabal that the university is covering up the loss of the medical shipment and it is that which got her attention. She says there is a conspiracy of professors and staff who are experimenting on the students. Miguel posits the events could be explained by a magath or hybrid spirit, perhaps combining electricity and death. Binary continues presenting her evidence. Of the six students who have died on campus, four had roommates and each ended up getting a 4.0 for that semester. There is no natural explanation.
Armed with this knowledge, Mammon decides to summon the university spirit (possibly for the second time). The cabal gathers that night at the empty track field. As he begins the rite, an odd woman approaches slowly counting up. Adele remembers her as professor from the art department. She soon wanders off. As the ritual is completed, the lights begin to flicker, barely illuminating the approaching zombies. Then the lights go out.