Ravaged by water wars, famine, and drought, the West is once again wild, and peace is but a thing of the past. Children are rare, water is scarce, and life hinges on a delicate balance. The resulting America is brutalized by brazen acts of ruthlessness. Rallying around gas-guzzling gladiators, a new and brutal form of drag racing called "Dirt-Joust" has become the sport of the people. With not much to live for but the purse at the end of the race, these drivers compete to win or die trying. The only driver to have survived a loss is Key. But she lost her freedom and her wife in the process. In order to escape a manslaughter prison sentence, she makes a deal with Gael, the leader of a brutal gang of outlaws known as the Revelers. Key's mission is simple: A Native American reservation has the region's last freshwater aquifer beneath it. She is the only one with a map of how to avoid the booby traps that surround it. If she can get on, she can get free. To Ensure Key's success, Gael puts a tracker and a gang of crazed Revelers on her trail. "You're my dog," Gael tells Key, "and that car is your leash." On her journey, Key stumbles upon an orphaned boy named Kellan. She protects the child and goes in search of Brand, the sole deed-holder of the reservation. Once Key understands her connection to his tribe and what is truly at stake, she turns against the tide and braces for a battle against the odds. Now, with an opportunity to right her wrongs and a new-found sense of duty, with the young Kellan on her side, Key works with Brand to foil Gael's plan and fight for the future of the West.