Lightning split the sky, and Alan Strator vanished. One moment, he was a high school student enjoying a game of mini-golf in Chicago. The next, he was thrust into a brutal world of magic, demons, and deadly hunters. Scarred, transformed, and with power he barely understands, Alan must navigate a realm where mercy is weakness and survival demands bloodshed. Taken in by a group of elite warriors known as Death Mages, Alan struggles to master his newfound magic while resisting the darkness growing inside him. His allies—cold and ruthless—see him as both a weapon and a liability. His enemies see him as prey. And the woman training him may be the most dangerous of them all. But his greatest battle is within. The power that saved him is the same force that could consume him. If he falters, he will become the very thing they hunt. Can Alan hold on to his humanity, or will he embrace the darkness to survive?