Kim's group, still stranded halfway across Antares, must get back to the base camp through a journey filled with deadly encounters. Meanwhile, at the base camp, a trip to the neighbouring planet source of the strange ray that vaporised Kim's daughter is being organised. The prospect of meeting an intelligent species, though, drives the religious fanatics in charge to clamp down on any person or activity deemed rebellious. As if a hostile world isn't enough, the colonists have brought their own worst enemy with them...