Set in a distant future, the story takes place on a planet colonized by humanity after Earth was devastated by an apocalyptic event—likely extreme climate change or ecological collapse. The new world, however, is far from ideal. Its soil is nutrient-poor, especially lacking in nitrogen, an essential element for growing crops to sustain the remaining human population.

In this society, an authoritarian regime controls an agricultural program known as the Carcass Redistribution Program (CRP), designed to enrich the soil by burying human bodies alongside seeds in hopes that they’ll grow. The program was introduced as a necessary evil to keep the colony alive. Bodies are gathered through voluntary donations, but there are darker aspects—some bodies come from the poor, the sick, or people deemed "unproductive," quietly coerced into giving their lives for the greater good. There are even rumors of living people being buried alive for the sake of expediency.

The protagonist is an aging laborer, who has spent his life working in the body-processing facility of the CRP, where inorganic materials are removed and are sorted for reintegration back into society. He's always believed in the necessity of the program, viewing it as the only way to ensure humanity's survival. For the first time he is promoted to the surface, where the bodies are planted, he witnesses the reality of the program, and the true horror of what happens to those who “volunteer” or are taken. He wasn’t prepared to see his own daughter being marked for "voluntary donation," even though she’s still alive. Horrified, he realizes she was quietly pushed into the CRP due to her illness, viewed as a drain on resources.

Shaken by what he discovers, the protagonist begins to question the CRP’s necessity and morality. He decides to escape, fleeing into the wasteland in search of an alternative way to add nutrients to the soil. He dreams of dismantling the CRP and freeing his society from its reliance on the practice.

The main character figures out that the planet’s sun emits a rare type of radiation that, under specific celestial conditions—such as solar flares, planetary alignments, or eclipses—interacts with the planet’s atmosphere, creating bursts of nitrogen-rich particles. These particles rain down onto the soil, temporarily enriching it with nitrogen. However, this phenomenon is incredibly unpredictable, occurring only during periods of intense solar activity, which might happen only a few times a year. Worse, the radiation that accompanies this nitrogen-rich light is highly dangerous, causing severe heat waves, radiation sickness, and even mutations in the crops and people exposed to it for too long.

The primary conflict arises from the protagonist’s realization that the CRP is not a sustainable or ethical solution to the colony’s problems. The society’s ruling class knows that their nitrogen stores will eventually run out and that the planet’s soil is inhospitable in the long term, but they are willing to sacrifice the populace just to extend their control and maintain their own power for a little while longer.

As the protagonist explores more of the planet, he uncovers a deeper secret: the colony’s rulers knew all along that the planet was unsuitable for long-term habitation. They have a contingency plan to abandon the colony entirely, leaving the working class to die while they escape to a hidden paradise—a far more habitable part of the planet or even a space station. The CRP was never meant to save humanity; it was a way to buy time for the elite.

The protagonist’s ultimate challenge is whether he can expose this truth and rally the masses to revolt against the governing class before it’s too late—or whether he will be buried, like so many before him, in the cold, unforgiving soil.