100 years into the future, American society collapses. When the fat don't want to be thin, the poor don't want to be rich, and the less don't want to have more, the gears of society stop turning; because in a culture where everyone wants what they can't have, being unhappy is what keeps us going.
Scrambling around in chaos, but wobbling to our feet again, we started fresh, using the eight traits that we valued most: bravery, intelligence, strength, beauty, charisma, compassion, honesty, and leadership. People chose an Aggregation, deciding which they valued more and living with the value in mind. Citizens began a new lifestyle, one chosen entirely by themselves.
In the year 2218, 100 years after the end of the Collapse, it begins again. Thousands of students are tested, dozens interviewed, but only eight are chosen.
Prepare to perform in the 25th Showcase, the challenge of a lifetime.
In a society engineered to perfection, children are not born from mothers but in test tubes. They grow up in loveless nurseries, competing relentlessly to rise and catch the eye of the nine families who uphold the world's order.
Each Father selects its future disciples, and depending on the lineage assigned, bodies are genetically modified to embody their spirit animal, amplifying their abilities until they become flawless cogs in the social machine.
But when a structure is built on segregation and fear, balance is destined to collapse. From one of these cold nurseries, an unexpected rebellion emerges-a movement that uncovers an unsettling truth: no species deserves to rule over the others. Ambition, like a virus, infects every animal. And sooner or later, the virus must be eradicated.