The Earth's magnetic poles have shifted, the electrical grid is down and society has collapsed. Survivors struggle daily to cope, as pestilence and plague take their toll. Famine and strife run amuck in the burning cities. Hospitals are abandoned. A chance discovery made while scavenging in the old attic of an herbalist cache of books, gives Zack the added herbal knowledge he needs to fight the rampant diseases occurring in his survivalist community. Forgotten medical knowledge from the Civil War era offers healing for a small group trying to reconstruct society.