The most dangerous race in the galaxy is the race against time. And the second most dangerous race? The Galactic Great Council believes it's the Humans. However, as the captain and officers of the Earth ship Marco Polo are about to find out, Humanity has plenty of competition for that title. While visiting Kula'as, Captain Takamura and his crew are recruited by aliens for a covert mission. The Thryggians may be close to breaking out of their pocket universe using a psi-powered heavy ship left over from an ancient war. If they succeed in activating the ship, they'll be unstoppable. Can a bickering bunch of Humans and aliens work together to find and steal the vessel before it is too late?