At a fairground in rural Northern Ireland, Provisional Irish Republican Army volunteer Fergus and a unit of other IRA members, including a woman named Jude, led by Maguire, kidnap Jody, a black British soldier, after Jude lures him to a secluded area with the promise of sex. The IRA demands the release of imprisoned IRA members, threatening to execute Jody in three days if their demands are not met. Fergus guards Jody and develops a bond with him, much to the chagrin of the other IRA men; Jody tells Fergus the story of the Scorpion and the Frog.