Helen Sarkissian wants to be the first Human to talk to Aliens. So she signs on as a linguist crewman aboard a Shi'ite-run starship. But she is bisexual and must hide her nature from the Shi'ite religious police, while fighting for everyone's rights as the religious tensions that divide the Western Alliance humanists and the Shi'a colonists threaten to erupt into violence. Will she and every non-Muslim on board the starship end up dead? Or will human differences be put aside in the face of a more pressing threat—the Swarm aliens who were first to colonize the world of 36 Draconis refuse the Shi'ite demand to leave. Who will triumph in a battle to the death between Human jihad warriors and Swarmers who have never been defeated? And will Helen be able to communicate the concept of peace before both sides are destroyed?