Donk, a photojournalist from the Midwest, and Graves, a journalist from England, report together from Afghanistan. The two men met only ten days before, when Graves bribed his way into Afghanistan and Donk tagged along. Graves has malaria, and his illness continues to get worse. The two men flee gunfire and try to get to the more secure city of Mazar. Suddenly, the wheel of their car spins off. The men abandon their car and start to walk, accompanied by Hassan, a local boy with whom they travel. Donk starts to think about human conflict, which he enjoys. Graves has to sit for a while, slowed by his malaria. They finally get picked up by a man in a Jeep named Ahktar. Ahktar takes the men to his town, where he introduces them to his father, a general. The general says he can keep them safe in that town, but cannot take them to Mazar (their destination) because he has no authority there. Graves suddenly has a seizure, and his illness gets frighteningly worse. Donk ponders his relationship with death. The fear in Graves’ eyes finally pushes Donk into action. He runs out of Graves’ room to look for help.