When an elite group of specialists receives a long-awaited first contact from an alien race, it’s nothing like what they’d imagined. The “gifts,” from a long-dead but seemingly benevolent alien race, have been delivered to help humanity defend itself against an imminent threat. It’s apparent that the gifts are intended to help, but at what price? Caught in the centre is normally Sam Steele, a high-level programmer and veteran having a tragic past, up against the arrogant, intransigent Colonel Eric Internet, who considers Steele a loose cannon and it is most worried about giving america an edge in the upcoming battle. As the group races against the clock to divine their site visitors’ complex instructions, they have a problem with infighting and, eventually, the question of what this means to be human.