Eleven-year-old Temple Avery lives with his aunt, who checked out from the world when her husband died during an alien invasion. Temple's mother is dead, and his father, Paris, is in space fighting the invaders. Bullied and alone, Temple tries to find his place in a world reeling from the deaths of a billion people. When Paris returns, he brings with him a secret that could mean the end of the world. The aliens are planning to introduce a biological weapon, one that will wipe out civilization - unless Temple and Paris can stop them. Thus begins a race against time as Paris and Temple search for a cure to the most devastating virus man has ever known. But what Temple doesn't yet know is that the key to finding the antidote is already inside him.