Australia in the far future - the water- and oxygen supplies of the planet earth have been depleted. Life is only possible in hermetically sealed cities that have to be supplied through a subterranean tunnel system and hard physical labour.
Annual tests and a subsequent lottery system decide who of the people who have turned sixteen that year have to go and work in "The Pit", the cities' supply system.
It is hard for Scarlett and Prince when Scarlett is chosen. Prince decides to follow her, and both become entangled with a plot of rebels who want to leave the Pit behind.
This book is a short novel aimed at learners of English in their fourth year of learning at a German secondary school.