A master jewel thief in 21st century Los Angeles targets the illegal emerald smuggling operations of a highly-connected crime syndicate. During what he believes to be a routine heist, cat burglar Harry Maxwell discovers that his target, notorious criminal Sanchez Boon is also the target of a police raid. In attempting to evade both the law and Boon's well-armed men, Harry meets Pandora Grimes, one of dozens of young women Boon kidnapped to work in his factory. When Boon sets a group of social deviants free and hijacks a space transport ship and its crew, only Harry and Pandora's cunning can save the hundreds of innocent people aboard.

In future, the ozone layer is gone and Earth is a wasteland. Most survivors are on a space station, waiting for a chance to replenish the ozone, somehow. A dangerous man tries to take over the station, but its commander fights back.