The USS Hannibal is ordered to explore a remote section of Federation space along the Neutral Zone. A Rogue ion storm traps two officers on an unknown planet called Beta 9. To make matters worse, two Klingons have arrived. One is a fugitive, the other a deadly assassin. Both are determined to protect a vital secret that could determine the fate of the entire Klingon race. Also a new energy vortex forms when planet Odin II vanishes and almost destroys the USS Aristarchus in the process.