Cosmo has lived on the island of Sonamba all of his life. As its self-appointed guardian, each day he patches the wall that surrounds it. He does this while reciting the following instructions: "Hammer in a stick from the billabom bush, then smear it with the tar from the ticamo tree." He does this to prevent a fate so terrible that it cannot be thought about. He does it successfully until the day the townspeople decide to honor him, then disaster strikes.