Forty-nine states are no more. Nearly two years after Qi Jia's annihilating chemical attacks, only a few thousand Americans remain--most of them living under the cover of Hawaii's Shield. The Shield is impenetrable. Supplies are limited but sufficient. The survivors have everything they need, and there is no reason to leave the islands. Until a threat emerges from within. Until the survivors make a discovery they cannot ignore. Until a friend becomes an enemy and forces some who risked their lives coming here...to consider risking them again to go back. Stay or go? That is the question. The answer depends on what you have to lose.