Baird Ulrik, an assassin for hire who lives in outer space, returns home for a kill to find that he is being framed for drug possession, a crime that warrants extreme punishment. A government agent, Illini, informs Ulrik that the government wants him to travel to another planet to kill the last remaining member of the planet's human population so that other people can move in to colonize the land. Illini reveals that the planet's low gravity causes the planet's inhabitants to grow to be ten feet tall. Ulrik becomes injured while landing on the planet and is rescued by the giant, who never reveals his true name, though Ulrik refers to him as Johnny Thunder. He tells Johnny that he needs to rescue ten other men who also crashed on the planet with him, so the two set off to travel the planet to find the rest of the shuttle. Along the way, the two face near-death together and become close as the giant shares the history of loss in his past. Illini arrives on the planet and urges Ulrik to kill him so the planet can be colonized, but Ulrik intervenes in an attempt to save the giant's life. Johnny Thunder dies while attempting to rescue Ulrik again, so Ulrik returns home and is given an immense bounty.