Nineteen-year-old Jamie Walsh boards The Sacramentum. He has paid Cormac, a Velorum crew member, to take his position onboard so he can investigate what really happened to his missing sister, who vanished from the same ship three months earlier.

During his induction, he meets the ship's autocratic officers and fellow new recruits, all eager to taste the freedom of being away from home for the first time.

As Jamie quickly establishes a bond with fellow newbie Vivian, he bumps into young, charming, Filipino waiter Olly, and there's an instant attraction.

While the new recruits attend a wild induction party, a crew member is brutally attacked.