Fourteen-year-old Alavis Hansen has been locked up in the Marden for five years. The reason? She has magic, as do all the other prisoners.

But things get even worse when prisoners start to be taken away to an unknown location, starting with Alavis' little sister.

Alavis sets off on a journey to find her with the help of some new friends she makes along the way. But something that started as a search for her little sister turns into something so much bigger when Alavis and her friends make a horrifying discovery.