For the last several years, a civil war has raged between the Glorious Path -- a militant religion based on the teachings of a former US soldier -- and what's left of the US government. The Glorious Path seeks complete control of the country, and those they capture are given the Choice: convert or be killed.

Fifteen-year-old Cal and his younger brother were captured and forced to convert five years ago. Cal gets along until he befriends a stray dog named Bear, and then kills a commander who wants to train Bear to be a brutal attack dog. Thissends Cal and Bear on the run and sets in motion a series of events that will test Cal's loyalties and beliefs, ending in a brutal battle that the fate of the entire country rests on.