Thrown twenty-five years into the future the crew of Deep Space Nine discovers the cult of the Pah-wraiths is in possession of a Red Orb, and a red wormhole has opened. Does it herald The Reckoning - the next step in the evolution of the Alpha Quadrant? Or will it bring about the destruction of the entire galaxy, as the tattered remnants of the Federation believes? The crew of Deep Space Nine must each carry out their separate missions to ensure the survival of the Federation. But scattered across the Quadrant, they cannot know that Gul Dukat, Emissary of the Pah-wraiths, has raised an army of mindless warriors, the Grigari, who thrive on the carnage they create and will stop at nothing to bring the Reckoning about.