Once upon a time, an endless dust storm engulfed the world, stranding an itinerant circus in a time without purpose. One day, a high-wire walker, lured by a tune hidden in the wind, leaves the circus and finds the melody revealed in the shape of a mysterious fiddler waiting at the crossroads. The stranger presents her with an hourglass that can stop the wind, but only until the sand runs out. The wire-walker rejoins the show and, taking control of her fate, decides to walk the wire one last time.

ER explores the inner workings of an urban teaching hospital and the critical issues faced by the dedicated physicians and staff of its overburdened emergency room.

Dr. Mark Sloan is a good-natured, offbeat physician who is called upon to solve murders.