Chapter 23
Contains spoilersOverview
Flashbacks reveal Baikonur’s explosion stemmed from a milligram Astrophage mix-up during an edge-case generator test. Despite the loss, launch remains on schedule and Stratt drafts coma-resistant Grace, coercing him and planning amnesia to ensure compliance. In the present, Rocky and Grace reinforce beetle mounts, execute a three-hour burn toward Blip-A, and discover Taumoeba cannot survive in Venus or Threeworld conditions.
Summary
At a tense Baikonur meeting, Stratt presents recovered records showing DuBois was testing an extreme generator failure: activating one nanogram of Astrophage under forced IR conditions. A quartermaster mistakenly issued one milligram, and DuBois’s modified test vaporized the research building, killing DuBois and Shapiro. The team concludes procedure gaps around Astrophage handling caused the tragedy.
Despite the disaster, Stratt, Dimitri, and others decide the mission cannot be delayed: Hail Mary’s orbit is decaying and launch windows are tight. With only coma-resistant candidates viable, tests show Ryland Grace qualifies. He objects, suggesting alternates such as Andrea Cáceres, but Stratt insists his years of direct training make him uniquely qualified.
In the present, Grace and Rocky install xenonite struts to secure the beetle probes, then coordinate a three-hour, full-power burn, using 1.5 g to set an eleven-day transfer toward Blip-A. Grace leverages the temporary gravity to check long-running Taumoeba experiments designed for Venus and Threeworld atmospheres.
The results devastate them: both slides remain jet-black, showing no Astrophage consumed. Taumoeba that thrived in the ship’s conditions fail in those planetary environments. After anger and despair, Rocky urges perseverance, and Grace resolves to continue the work.
Returning to the earlier timeline, Stratt confronts Grace at his decision deadline. He refuses, citing fear and duty to teach. Stratt calls him a coward, then orders Private Meknikov to detain him. She outlines a plan: sedate him for launch, have Yáo and Ilyukhina start his coma, and dose him with a French DGSE amnesia drug before wake-up so he won’t remember resisting. Grace is dragged away as Stratt urges him to “think of the kids.”
Who Appears
- Ryland Grace
Protagonist; runs beetle burn with Rocky, discovers Taumoeba failures, resists mission in flashback, then is coerced.
- Stratt
Project lead; confirms explosion cause, keeps launch on schedule, coerces Grace and plans amnesia to ensure compliance.
- Rocky
Eridian engineer; fabricates xenonite struts, operates beetle controls, shares frustration, pushes perseverance after failed tests.
- Commander Yáo
Mission commander; wants only willing crew, unknowingly part of Stratt’s plan to secure and coma Grace preflight.
- Engineer Ilyukhina
Flight engineer; welcomes Grace as crew in meeting, slated to help secure him and start coma procedures.
- Dr. Lokken
Centrifuge designer; explains generator edge-case and how DuBois’s test led to catastrophe.
- Dimitri
Spin-drive expert; notes Hail Mary’s decaying orbit necessitating timely departure.
- Dr. Lamai
Medical lead; her automated med-bed treats Grace’s burns and will administer the coma.
- Steve Hatch
Beetle probe inventor; present at the meeting, associated with the ship’s auxiliary propulsion probes.
- DuBois
Deceased scientist; his diary reveals the generator failure test that, with a supply error, caused the explosion.
- Shapiro
Deceased colleague; died in the Baikonur blast during the erroneous high-mass Astrophage test.
- Private Meknikov
Russian soldier; detains Grace as Stratt orders his forced participation.
- Andrea Cáceres
Coma-resistant alternate; considered but passed over due to limited time and Grace’s superior preparation.