The Sterlings settle into a new agricultural town called Tarka. For their safety they use the crystal they stole from Commander Kroll to change their names to the Hardins. Trace Hardin (Sterling) has a lackadaisical attitude towards school, his grades suffer, and he gets a yellow slip - meaning he is drafted into the Zone Troopers. Trace learns that being a Zone Trooper is for life, unless he can figure out some way of escape.
