Chapter 23

Summary

• The protagonist arrives for a meeting, believing they are on time but discovers everyone already seated and looking at them.
• There is a media blackout regarding an accident; the protagonist notes that the Russians are adept at keeping secrets.
• The meeting takes place in a trailer provided by the Russians, with a view of the Soyuz launch system.
• The protagonist and Stratt have not spoken since an explosion, leading Stratt to head an urgent inquiry.
• Several experts are present at the meeting, each absorbed in their own work or thoughts.
• The meeting begins with Stratt revealing the electronic records survived an explosion because they were stored on a server away from the research center.
• They discuss the accident, concluding it involved testing a rare failure case in an Astrophage-powered generator.
• A mistake in Astrophage quantities led to a massive and unintended energy release, destroying the building and killing the researchers.
• Stratt stresses the lack of experience in handling Astrophage, highlighting the difficulties in discerning between a nanogram and a milligram of the substance.
• Despite the tragedy, the decision is made not to delay the launch of the Hail Mary mission.
• The protagonist is revealed to be the chosen science specialist for the mission, due to their unique gene combination and familiarity with the project.
• An emotional struggle unfolds as the protagonist grapples with being chosen, fearing death and expressing reluctance to leave Earth.
• Stratt explains why other candidates are not as suitable; the protagonist remains unconvinced and does not want to die.
• The chapter ends with the protagonist receiving an ultimatum to decide by 5 p.m. and the implication that they might not have much choice in the matter.
• The protagonist narrates the engineering adjustments made to the Hail Mary spacecraft and prepares for a trajectory change toward their mission objective.
• Experiments on Taumoeba fail to show promising results, leading to despondency between the protagonist and their extraterrestrial colleague, Rocky.
• There's tension as the protagonist faces coercion from Stratt to partake in the mission against their will, involving deception and possible drugging.