Chios, Spring of 1822. An 8-year-old boy is witness to the most inhumane atrocities ever committed. Christophorus Plato Castanis sees thousands of Chians killed or sold into slavery during the "Massacre of Chios." He is captured by the Turks, sold several times as a slave before managing to escape. With the help of American Philhellenes, Castanis is educated in the United States where he lectures extensively on the cause of the Greek Revolution.