1747. After a traumatic time serving as a mercenary at the Silesian front, Jan deserts from the Austrian army. Destitute and exhausted, he returns home, to the Flemish region of Aalst. To his surprise, everything has changed beyond recognition. His village has been transformed into a French army encampment. His family and friends have been outlawed and banished to Kluisbossen forest. Jan joins the ramshackle gang of robbers led by his half-brother Tincke. But in a country suffering under the yoke of poverty and exploitation, there's hardly anything left worth taking. Moved by these harsh living conditions, Jan manages to convince Tincke to see the bigger picture. Instead of stealing from each other, they should rob those who actually have money: the rich and the collaborators consorting with the French occupiers. John's ideas start to resonate and when a stagecoach is raided successfully, the ragtag bunch of scallywags develops into a real gang. The decision to share their booty with ...