The Crimson Torch loves entertaining children and adults with brilliant bursts of flame and dazzling aerial acrobatics. But when growing pressure from dragon rights activists threatens to bankrupt the circus where he's performed since his hatching, Torch's owners have no choice but to sell him. Torch embarks on a harrowing odyssey through a world where dragons serve humans as beasts of burden, pampered pets, and everything in between. From an elite messenger corps to a seedy racing circuit, from the luxury of an aristocrat's estate to the brutal harness of an airship team, Torch struggles to survive and find somewhere he can call home. Far across the sea, the dragons' ancestral homeland beckons. But conflicting accounts from both humans and dragons leave Torch confused and torn. Is Dragana a savage wilderness where vicious, barbaric dragons battle to the death, or is it a peaceful haven where dragons govern themselves according to ancient wisdom? In the end, Torch faces a wrenching choice: resign himself to captivity, or risk everything for a slim and dangerous chance of freedom.