Laia lies awake in bed as her older brother Darin sneaks in through the window. He’s been going out at night for months, and Laia fears he is working for the Martials—the warrior-people who conquered the lands of the Scholar Empire and enslaved them. Laia almost calls Darin out on his actions because he’s needed at home, but she is too afraid to ask questions. Darin hears the sounds of Martial soldiers raiding in the distance, which terrifies Laia. Raids usually happen during the day so the Martials can make a show of violence, but the night raids are “for when the Empire doesn’t want witnesses” (5).

Laia hides Darin’s sketchbook, which holds drawings of the forge where the Martials make their unbreakable weapons. While her grandparents stay behind, she and Darin sneak out the back, only to come face-to-face with an elite Mask warrior.

Elias is a Senior Skull (Mask in training) at Blackcliff Academy. He has one day until graduation, and he hides a backpack full of supplies in the underground catacombs in preparation to desert the empire. Distant drums boom a rhythm telling soldiers a deserter is on the loose, and as Elias’s best friend Helene comes upon him, he quickly pretends he’s looking for tracks.