The trauma that Ram endured during the Coal Hill autumn prom is exacerbated when he witnesses a man being mutilated by a huge dragon-like creature. Ram suspects the involvement of Dawson, his demanding football coach, who has suddenly acquired a dragon tattoo that appears to move of its own volition. But after everything he's been through, Ram feels unable to reach out to his friends -- even as the body count mounts. Meanwhile, Miss Quill's suspicions are aroused when the school Governors assign a mysterious examiner to her class.