Claire is an impetuous young woman with a weakness for illegal "hues"—potent nanodrugs that ease her mind from the bleakness of her hardscrabble homeworld. Cade is the older brother who worries Claire will be condemned to bound servitude—the usual punishment for those who break the law. Startling events unfold that might condemn both to a life of bound servitude. But there are rumors of a hidden sanctuary to escape servitude Tēleos. If it truly exists.