[1][2] The book begins with an ancient vampire of Nordic descent awaking after being frozen in a block of ice for hundreds of years.

Marius continues to live this way even as the Roman Empire splits, with its capital city moving to Constantinople.

After a series of violent conflicts, Marius angrily drags Eudoxia back down into the shrine and casts her at Akasha, who suddenly awakens to destroy her.

Realizing that he cannot live with other vampires due to his custody of the Divine Parents, Marius elects to return to Italy.

It is in Venice that Marius meets Amadeo (Armand), whom he discovers in a filthy cellar, waiting to become a prostitute in the city's brothels.

As the years pass, Marius happily continues his life, disappearing occasionally to attend to the Divine Parents.

When Marius is away looking after the Divine Parents, his house is attacked by the Englishman Lord Harlech who became obsessed with Amadeo after sleeping with him.

Marius does indeed find Pandora there, but discovers that she does not want to live with him and Bianca and wants to stay with her traveling companion, who was not holding her hostage after all.

50 years later, as he is shifting to America, Marius discovers a letter from Pandora offering to live with him if he comes to collect her at a certain place, but it is too late and she is gone.

Marius then shelters a young vampire named Lestat de Lioncourt, who wakes up Akasha when playing a song for her on his violin.

Marius sends Lestat away, thinking that he can pose a danger, but is sad that it is the fourth time he is losing a love.

This, Marius feels, corrupts their minds, and Akasha awakens from her slumber with the evil idea of taking over the world.

Finally, Maharet's (who created Thorne) mute twin sister, Mekare, fights with Akasha and destroys her.

The story then moves back to the present day, where Marius and Thorne are at a jungle hideaway with other old and powerful vampires—Amadeo (now going by the name Armand), Santino, Maharet, Mekare, and Pandora.