Winifred - Weethao as her parents know her, Wini to her friends - was one of the smartest kids in her reservation school. However, her reckless attitude and lack of respect for authority meant she often got herself into trouble. The course of her life changed forever when she found an old biplane in a farmer's garage and decided to "take it out for a spin." The owner, a former pilot in the Great War, was awestruck by her natural talent and offered to teach her what he knew. Now Wini is known as the "woman without fear," showing off her skills in barnstormers all across the country. That nickname would be tested when, during one of her shows, she spotted a creature she could scarcely describe: a thing with leathery wings and a single, mutated, pus-filled eye.