In a dystopian North America in 2044, war and environmental decay have driven urban life to a near-abandonment and given rise to a totalitarian military regime, the Regime, that polices every move with drones and drums of fear. Niska Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers and her eleven-year-old daughter Waseese Violet Nelson live off the grid in the woods, eking out a precarious existence while staying hidden from a world that would rather forget them. When Waseese steps on a trap while hunting, her leg is badly injured, and a drone quickly discovers their improvised bus-home, forcing them to flee into the night.
The pair makes a perilous journey by canoe toward a war-torn city, where Niska insists that Waseese keep her face concealed from any strangers they might encounter. Their escape is nearly thwarted when a boy they meet is seized by Regime soldiers under eighteen, a brutal reminder of the price of disobedience in this rigid society. After eluding more drones and patrols, they seek shelter with Niska’s old friend Roberta Amanda Plummer. Roberta lays out a grim option: medicine for the leg would come only with surrendering Waseese to the Regime, a trade that would spare her life but sever a mother from her child. For Niska, the choice is excruciating: she could abandon her daughter forever to ensure her survival and a comfortable, regulated life, or hold on to hope for a future that might never come.
With Waseese’s condition deteriorating, Niska makes the heartbreaking decision to surrender her daughter. Waseese is sent to a brutal military academy where children undergo harsh training and indoctrination. After a failed escape attempt, she is spotted by a recruiter who sees potential for a brighter, more selective future at the elite Emerson Academy.
Ten months pass, and Niska lives in a city apartment, where a man she knows, Randy Shaun Sipos, claims there is a path for both of them to become official citizens of the Regime, with all its supposed benefits. But when Niska slips outside the Academy, she is captured by Cree night raiders who have been covertly rescuing kidnapped children from the academy. The Cree’s female leader Ida Gail Maurice shares a prophecy: a stranger from the north will lead their people to Bigstone, a place of safety. Ida believes that Niska might be that destined figure who would guide the Cree children away from harm. Leo Alex Tarrant, a military operative of Maori descent aiding the Cree, asks a hard question: is saving all the Cree children more important than protecting one woman’s daughter?
Niska returns to the city, where an epidemic—possibly tied to the food packets dropped by drones—threatens the populace as the Regime orders a mandatory evacuation. She reunites with Randy and Roberta, and the three crowd onto an evacuation bus, only to be forced apart again amid the chaos. A struggle ensues, and Niska and Leo manage to slip away from Regime forces, though Roberta is killed by her own son, who has been brainwashed into a soldier. In a tense exchange, Niska convinces Ida and Leo to help rescue Waseese in exchange for leading the Cree children north to safety.
With the help of a hacker named Charlier, Niska and Leo infiltrate Waseese’s academy and free the young captives, including Waseese. The following day, Regime forces encircle the Cree camp with soldiers and drones. In a surprising turn, Waseese communes with the drones and turns them into allies, causing the enemy to retreat. But a Regime soldier shoots at Waseese, and Niska throws herself in front of her daughter, taking the bullet that was meant for the girl. Waseese is identified as the true Cree guardian foretold by Ida, and the prophecy of a northern savior becomes real in the most personal of battles: a mother sacrificing herself for her child while a community learns to fight for its future together.
