As the runt of her family of dairnes, Byx sees herself as a disappointment because she is smaller and weaker than her siblings. Dairnes are similar to dogs but have opposable thumbs, a pouch, and glissaires—excess skin under the forelegs that allows them to glide. They also have the ability to speak. Byx’s pack consists of just four families. Humans hunt dairnes for their soft coats. Due to all the poaching, Byx’s pack worries that they might be the very last of the dairnes, but there is a legend that the First Colony of dairnes still lives on a mythical, sentient island. Byx knows that her parents worry about her, believing that she might die easily in an attack, but Byx would rather die than be the last dairne left.

Byx’s family sleeps during the day and travels or works at night. Currently, the family is staying in a mirabear hive, which is a massive, wasp-like hive. Today, Byx is restless and slips outside the mirabear hive when she hears a noise that turns out to be four butterbats—flying creatures with shimmering wings. As Byx watches the butterbats, her mother, Maia, comes outside to check on her and tells her that the butterbats are migrating north.