Faey and Jayden, a young couple from the country of Linga, are running for their lives. A ragtag band of Deringian border guards is chasing them across a deserted area of sand and woodland. Getting from Linga to Deringia is never easy: there are waiting lists for train tickets and border controls are tight even though outright fighting between the two countries has stopped. After a phone call from her sister Roselyn, Faey comes up with the dangerous plan to cross the border in secret, hoping that this way she will be able to visit her gravely ill mother in time. But the guards catch up with them. Ford and Alex set their eyes on Faey as Jayden pleads with O'Brien, the leader of the gang, not to hurt Faey. O'Brien agrees. She takes Ford's rifle and gives it to Jayden: he has to shoot Faey...