For many years now you have been living in a world where making a loud noise or speaking in a low voice means death. In this world, only minimal noise is possible. There are some nasty creatures in your city. They are completely blind but have excellent hearing. They can kill a person in one bite. Fortunately, creatures like them cannot breed in your climate, but they are immune to old age. In fact, if they feed and are not kill, they will live forever. Unfortunately they are difficult to kill. They will kill you faster than you can kill them.

Spring is now. Absolute silence. You quietly gather supplies from the store. You have a house where you live alone and grow your own food, but you still need things from the store. Suddenly someone taps you on the shoulder from behind. You flinch and turn around, clutching the hilt of the dagger. There's a guy standing there, about your age. He quickly took out a notepad and began to write something.