Feldman, a starship captain, takes on the suicidal mission of eliminating a vortex; one of many that make colonization of an otherwise suitable planet, impossible. He finds romance and adventure in his struggle against the ruthless opponent Tiras Welby, who will stop at nothing to protect his source of Biferox, and his growing empire. Can Feldman free the aliens Welby has enslaved to mine Biferox?