A killing virus has swept the earth, sparing only children through the age of twelve. Fierce gangs form, and many children go hungry. It would be the same on Grand Avenue but for ten-year-old Lisa. Lisa decides to make a fortress from the abandoned high school, a city in which the children can live safely and happily. After dramatic struggles with a violent gang, and though some of her followers choose a different sort of life, she brings her new city under control.