Scott Dalton and Jackie Sullivan, intelligence specialists and former military pilots, are called in to investigate the mysterious mid-air destruction of two American fighter planes. As they proceed, they are surprised to learn that the loss of two navy jets is just the latest in a series of seemingly unrelated, and previously unexplained losses of American combat aircraft. It soon becomes clear that the culprit is China, using a ship-mounted laser to target American aircraft.

Relations between the two global powers deteriorate, ultimately to the point of armed conflict. As the United States begins to achieve decisive battlefield success, the finger of the Chinese president is poised over the nuclear button.