Toby and Ren have survived a biological disaster, and when they discover another survivor, Amanda Payne, being attacked by two violent criminals, they try to rescue her. The two criminals are sociopaths; they have no empathy to the pain or feelings of others due in large part to long-term participation in a game called Painball, which was played in a colosseum-style stadium, and was similar to the "battle to the death" type of games played by the ancient Mayan civilizations in Mexico.
Slowly, the disaster survivors begin to meet up with each other and forge bonds and friendships. Toby and Ren reunite with an old friend, Jimmy, and the three are instrumental in the creation of a camp which gives the survivors a base and enables them to rebuild their decimated civilization alongside the Craikers. This is not without its threats and its dangers; more criminals, with vengeance in their hearts, begin to appear out of the woodwork and they constantly stalk the group, looking for ways in which to attack them.
Although the characters are mostly looking forward, sometimes they cannot help but look back and reminisce. Toby and Zeb start a relationship and become lovers, and Zeb tells Toby about his former career . He grew up with his half-brother, Adam One. Their father was a preacher, who was the antithesis of an environmentalist. If it ran on gas he was in favor of it, and never mind the effects this use of oil were on the environment. Zeb was appalled by his father's attitude and his reckless lack of concern for the planet. He hacks into his bank account and drains it. He knows that his father has many connections, and that he is politically influential. Zeb and Adam One both leave their family home, separate, and assume different identities. Although they stay away from each other long enough to evade detection and capture, they eventually come back together and form the foundation for God's Gardeners, living their lives in the completely opposite way from the way in which their father lived, determined to prove how different to him that they are.
