Fate rips Kaie from the life he planned and thrust him into a world of slavery and casual brutality. Faced with the destruction of everything he knew and hiding from a society that turns those born with magic into mindless creatures called Hollows, he'll have to discover the difference between being a good man and surviving a bad situation. The gods themselves have turned their cruel attention to teaching him the true meaning of sacrifice, in all its horrible forms. He will be forged in fire and death, and everything he loves is up for grabs. For he is the Catalyst...

None are reviled more than males gifted with the sight. Cursed by Kosa, god of destruction, all who allow one among them will suffer an agonizing death. Few would be willing to face that fate for the sake of a boy who should not exist. Where Kaie is going, he will not find any. His peaceful village has been invaded by outsiders from the Urazin Empire. Everyone he’s ever known has been murdered or enslaved. Captured and sold for a handful of coins, any safety Kaie might have found with those who love him disappears forever. He’s exposed, and it is only a matter of time before Kosa realizes what he is.Kaie has more pressing concerns, though. Because those with magic have a worse fate waiting for them than enslavement. They have their magic - and their minds - ripped away from them by the malevolent people known only as Namers. If his power is discovered, Kosa will never get the chance to come for him. He will be emptied out and made Hollow.

They stole his family, destroyed his home and made him a slave. They took his life away as if it were nothing. They burnt his destiny to ashes. They tried to break him and make him Hollow. That was a mistake.Kaie won't let the Urazin Empire take anything else from him. Survival isn't enough anymore. He's going to be free. He's kept count of every second of his enslavement. He will see them pay for every single one in blood. And Kaie will teach anyone who stands in his way what it means to cross the Catalyst. Even the gods. He will be free.