Far beyond the bounds of Federation territory, in the Taurus Reach — a sector of space on which the Klingon Empire has its own designs — a new Starfleet starbase known as Vanguard has been established. Its mission is Starfleet’s most jealously guarded secret — because its outcome will change the shape of the Federation’s future forever.
Ancient secrets of the alien tyrants known as the Shedai lie on the fourth planet of the Jinoteur system, and three great powers are fighting to control it: The Federation and the Klingon Empire want to wield its power; the Tholian Assembly wants to bury it. But the threat stirring on that long-dormant world is more dangerous than any of them realize….
While undercover Starfleet Intelligence agent Cervantes Quinn battles an entire Klingon army, and journalist Tim Pennington is embarks on an unlikely journey of redemption, former Vanguard commander Diego Reyes lives as a prisoner of the Klingons. Their fates all depend on an alien artifact — and on whether Doctor Carol Marcus can unlock its deadly secrets in time.
Captain Kirk and his crew search for a lost scientist, only to become trapped between an enemy and Starfleet’s mysterious Operation: Vanguard.
Surrounded by foes, Admiral Nogura sends the scout ship Sagittarius to find an ancient weapon that might be the Federation’s only hope of stopping the alien threat known as the Shedai. But to prevent Starfleet from wielding the Shedai’s power as its own, the Tholians deploy an armada with one order: Kill the Shedai — by destroying Vanguard.