A village in the 14th century. For weeks, rumours have been heard about a terrible disease. And then it reaches the village. The helpless people try to stop the dying through faith, superstition and magic. Nobody knows why so many die and only a few survive. A young girl, Hanna, and her brother, Matthis, bury their grandmother and, although it is forbidden, flee into the forest. On the way, they meet a flagellant procession, and Matthis joins the religious fanatics, while Hanna continues her flight. She finds refuge with an old, silent fisherman, for whom she sells fish on the market. There, she repeatedly sees a child who smiles at her. She soon has the feeling that she must follow this mysterious child ...