In the far future, sixteen-year-old Jehan Amato lives in New Hope City, on Menkar VII, a colony world only recently rediscovered by the rest of the galaxy. He lives with his single mom, and only rarely sees his father. After a run-in with a dangerous gang that wants to exploit his secret psy talent for opening locks without tools, Jehan is sent to live in a Drifter caravan of float trains with his father. He finds out the hard way that the plains the Drifters travel over can be as dangerous as the worst parts of New Hope City. But although Jehan is initially wary of the nomadic people and their unfamiliar customs, in the caravan he comes to understand and appreciate their way of life. And he learns things about his family and himself that will change his life forever.