The year is 1892, the American Indian Wars are drawing to a close. 400 years of brutal conflict and rampant disease have left the native population of the Americas decimated. At Fort Assiniboine in Havre Montana, a court martial is being held, and Lieutenant Mathew Monet is being tried for the violent murder of a peaceful Cree family living at the fort. A veteran of the 7th cavalry who served at Wounded Knee, Monet is no stranger to murder, but this time was different, this time he was operating outside of orders, and on his own behalf. The events of Wounded Knee still hang over the heads of many, and so to save face in the eyes of the American public, president Harrison orders that the prisoner be transported to Washington where he will hang before the very halls of democratic justice. The old ways are drawing to a close, the age of the frontier is over. Charged with ensuring Monet is put aboard the train, is Corporal Patrick Malloy, also a veteran of the 7th Cavalry at Wounded Knee he is a skillful navigator and has been selected by Colonel Mizner to lead the prisoner down the banks of the Missouri river from Fort Assiniboine to Fort Shaw, where he will be placed aboard the train that will carry him to his death. It seems like a simple enough job, however the more he ponders the context of his life and the reality of the situation, existential doubts begin to plague him concerning the nature of good and evil.
