The year is 79 AD. 17 year-old Roman student Pliny the Younger is at his home across the bay from the bustling town of Pompeii, where people are going about their daily business. The tremors that sometimes shake the ground are coming more frequently than usual, but all are unaware of the cataclysmic event that is about to unfold. Meanwhile, underground, pressure is building beneath the mountain that looms over the surrounding towns and villages. What follows is one of the most extraordinary and frightening natural distasters in recorded history. This dramatic retelling is based on letters written by Roman historian Pliny the Younger after the event, and is reimagined featuring characters from the town of Pompeii who are known to have existed. The story describes the various stages of the eruption, as well as detailing how the history of Pompeii was later uncovered by archeologists.