When young John of Wycliffe arrives at Oxford University, he finds it a fascinating and perilous place. With his friend, Sebastian Ayleton, John experiences the terrible plague called "the pestilence" (the Black Death), and he becomes involved in clashes between university factions as well as riots among the townspeople. Whenever he can find time away from his studies, John's favorite place is the inn of the Kicking Pony. There he and his companions discuss the political and religious issues of the day, and it is with his friends that he first shares his growing vision of an English Bible for all Englishmen to read. In the darkness of medieval England, John's pursuit of truth gleams like a solitary star, the morning star that promises the sunrise to come. He paved the way for the theologians of the next century and opened hearts in preparation for the great Reformation itself.