Will Farnaby is awakened by a voice yelling, "Attention". He first thinks it's his wife, Molly, telling him that he must get up for work. As he pushes himself up on one elbow, he remembers going down a corridor to Molly as she lay dying in a hospital bed. He then realizes that he's on Pala after having shipwrecked on the Pala Straight and the voice is a mynah bird. Two children find him and they bring their grandfather, Dr. Robert MacPhail, to his aid. He treated and carried to a nearby shelter by Dr. MacPhail and his research assistant, Vijaya, accompanied by Murugan—a young boy Will has already met along with the dictator of a neighboring country and who Will soon discover is the future ruler of Pala.
Pala is a Utopian society. Crime is.....
