Stan and his companion Natasha land in a storage room at a NASA base. They discover alien sabotage among the computer systems and are arrested as the culprits. Meanwhile, the shuttle Orbiter is on a routine mission in Earth orbit. The shuttle is attacked by metallic spider-like creatures. Three of the astronauts are kidnapped; the others perish in the attack. Martinson, chief of NASA security is busy questioning Stan and Natasha when Colonel Dougherty of the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce appears on the scene and assumes control of the situation. He is aware that Stan is a Time Lord based on the contents of his pockets and asks for his help. There is an alien craft in Earth's outer orbit that has disabled the shuttle and Dougherty wants Stan to find out why. Stan agrees and he and Natasha leave in the TARDIS to establish contact with the alien craft. After rescuing one of the astronauts, a man named Ernest Getz, they are captured by two of the ships inhabitants; a small metal spider named Balancesheet and a large metal beast called Trailer. They are brought before the Assembler, a large arachnid alien named Damask-5. The alien agrees to let them live if Stan gives it time travel technology. Stan appears to cooperate and learns that the alien is here to sabotage NASA's space travel program. Tricking Balancesheet, the group is able to escape in the TARDIS just as missiles from the Russian space station Mir destroy the alien ship. Stan returns the astronauts to NASA and learns that the Russians may have been in cahoots with the Assembler. They then pop off to Mir, with Ernest in tow, to see what they can find out. However, due to the unpredictability of Stan's TARDIS, they end up someplace completely different than a Russian space station.
