In the near future a mysterious plague kills almost every adult and leaves behind "a world of orphans". Some fortunate few are raised by the surviving adults, including Lee (John Stockwell), who is taken in and raised by Albert (James Earl Jones) on his remote farm. Fifteen years later, Lee sets out for the nearby ruins of Los Angeles in the hopes of joining the Clippers, a famous motorcycle gang. Lee follows a convoy of trucks into a fenced off building, where he is noticed by Bolo (Norbert Weisser), who is overseeing operations. When workers begin to converge on Lee he flees on his motorcycle.