The U.S.S. Enterprise is assigned to the planet K'Trall - a planet just coming out from under the heel of barbarous suppression. When the planet's newly emerging freedom is threatened by a rogue ship attacking Federation shipping, Captain Jean-Luc Picard and his crew put their lives on the line to protect K'Trall from the raids.

But the planet itself holds a deadly secret, one that could lead to a resurgence of the despotic cruelty they have suffered for centuries. With time running out, Captain Picard must see his way past a maze of deadly deception, with billions of lives hanging in the balance.