HMAS Sovereign has breached the asteroid belt, chasing the Russians to the mysterious Planet X, but this is also a mission of exploration. Their first stop is Jupiter, King of Planets and Destroyer of Comets. Many onboard feel Jupiter's mighty pull, and their intuition has nothing to do with its great magnetic field. Jupiter has much to reveal, including an inner core that all the scientists on Earth insist cannot exist, and a type of life that's the most incredible yet—the most legendary of creatures. Already sensing he's on the trail of something incredible, Nathaniel Stone has to ask whether this beast is an element of the same puzzle. Has it been created for a specific purpose? He may never know the answer if he doesn't survive getting up close and personal, yet the draco may be the key to the very thing he's looking for. Deep in Jupiter's core, there's a trap, and no one sets a trap unless there's something worth protecting. No stranger to suspicion, Nathaniel Stone is about to demonstrate the luck of the Irish and a willingness to sacrifice his self-respect for the good of the mission.