The newlywed couple of Bayta and Toran arrive on Haven, one of the Independent Trading Worlds. They are greeted by Toran’s father Fran and his uncle Randu. Toran introduces them to Bayta, his new wife who is a Foundation citizen. They speak frankly about the direction of the Foundation and how they’re falling into the same trappings that made it inevitable that the Empire would fall.
Fran and Randu are upset with the way the Foundation is treating Haven, specifically forcefully trying to collect taxes. Randu suggests that Bayta and Toran go to Kalgan to find a new warlord known only by his nickname, The Mule.
On Terminus, Captain Han Pritcher of Intelligence is scolded by Mayor Indbur, the third in the line of all-powerful mayors. Pritcher has decided that he doesn’t need to follow orders and instead thinks it’s more important to investigate The Mule as he sees him as a bigger threat to the state. The mayor gives him a direct order to go to Haven to collect their taxes which Pritcher promptly ignores and makes his way to Kalgan.
On Kalgan, Bayta and Toran run across a clown performing on the street, and once the guards start to hassle him, Toran takes quick action to steal a gun away from the guards and protects the clown, saying they will only give him up to The Mule himself.
Captain Pritcher finds the three of them back at their ship. Pritcher knows that the clown, also known as Magnifico Giganticus, is one of the very few to have seen The Mule in person. Magnifico describes The Mule as an ultra-powerful mutant who can lift him with one finger and can kill a person by just looking in their eyes.
They decide to leave Kalgan with Magnifico while they can to get even more information, but this was just the pretense for war that The Mule had setup, broadcasting that the Foundation had forcefully kidnapped a member of his court.
On Terminus, Ebling Mis, a psychologist, has determined through his research on Seldon’s psychohistory that another Seldon crisis is due in just 4 months. The mayor insists that there are no concerning reports that would indicate a looming crisis just as he finds out that fighting has broken out around the Foundation.
The leaders of the 27 Independent Trading Worlds meet and discuss the situation that has arisen with The Mule. They are now worried about the speed of his advance and decide to join forces with the Foundation to stop him.
Nine weeks later, they all gather at the time that Mis predicted at the Time Vault for Seldon’s next appearance. Right on schedule, he appears, but his predictions seem uncharacteristically off. Right then, all of the power in the Time Vault goes out. The news comes in that The Mule has arrived on Terminus and his ships are equipped with nuclear field depressors causing all power and communication to be cut. Mayor Indbur feels that he is left with just one option, surrender.