 In 2274, after a holocaust which has wiped out much of the life on Earth, much of life on earth is scattered into different pockets of humanity. One such pocket is located in the City of Domes, where no one is allowed to live past the age of 30. It is at that point where people are given a choice of being "renewed" in a ritual called Carousel or run the risk of becoming a fugitive known as a Runner and being hunted down by an elite police force known as Sandmen. One such Sandman is Logan 5 who while chasing a runner meets up with a young woman named Jessica 6. Jessica, who knows Logan s doubts about the truth of Carousel, encourages Logan to become a runner. Logan is then pursued by his former friend Francis 7, who is assigned by the city s governing counsel, which happens to be run by a group of elderly men, to not only capture Logan, but to destroy Sancturary, the destination of the Runners. If he does that he will gain a spot on the council. In he meantime, Logan, Jessica and an android named Rem, who they meet along the way, travel throughout the devastated remnants of America and along the way discover that there are other societies trying to rebuild what is left of the world.