The planet Aluwna lays in the path of the Genesis Wave, though their resources cannot possibly save all of their population. Overseer Tejharet frees political prisoner (and his former lover) Professor Marla Karuw and agrees to make her regent if she can work a miracle. Her plan is to hold tens of thousands of people (though still only 10% of the population) in transporter pattern buffers on hundreds of satellites and tow them to safety, only rematerializing those people after the danger had past. The events of this book take place concurrently with The Genesis Wave, Books I–III.