Young wizards Kit Rodriguez and Nita Callahan manage to wangle their way onto an elite team sent to investigate the mysterious, long-sought "message in a bottle" that holds the first clues to the secrets of the ancient Martian race.

Thirteen-year-old Nita, tormented by a gang of bullies because she won't fight back, finds the help she needs in a library book on wizardry which guides her into another dimension.