Ordered to patrol the Gradin Belt, the Galileo crew receives troubling news shortly after their arrival. The planet Kimuramin XII has seen an increase in the formation of blood dilithium crystals. These crystals have severely affected the pre-warp civilization as various pirate factions have claimed the crystals for themselves. The Galileo arrives uncertain of how to asset the planet’s population without violating the Prime Directive. Is the civilization’s fate sealed? Will Captain Naris stop the pirates from forever changing the population’s future?