Chapter 15

Summary

• The narrator is curious about how an extraterrestrial named Rocky modifies the connecting tunnel between their ships despite the different atmospheric needs.
• Observing through the airlock porthole, the narrator sees that the hull robot has replaced the old tunnel with a new one, tailored to fit Rocky's requirements.
• The modified tunnel includes an enlarged airlock and a metal stripe along with a companion pipe, providing the necessary atmosphere for both the narrator and Rocky.
• Rocky, secured within a geodesic ball, uses powerful magnets to navigate and operate controls through his xenonite shell.
• The narrator hauls Rocky into the ship, finding him surprisingly heavy due to his metal-based biology.
• They explore various rooms in the ship, with the narrator giving Rocky a tour and explaining different functions and sections including the control room and lab.
• Rocky suggests moving his resources from his ship, Blip-A, to the narrator’s ship to collaborate on science experiments aimed at saving their respective planets.
• Stratt introduces Dr. Grace to Dr. Lamai, who is in charge of medical preparations for the mission, including coma technology vital for the journey.
• Lamai's lab is conducting research with unconscious monkeys; the technology is not AI but relies on complex procedures to manage comatose patients, pivotal to the mission's success.
• Stratt volunteers to have her blood tested for genetic markers indicating resistance to long-term comas, prompting the narrator to do the same to exemplify cooperation.
• Lamai explains the low commercial viability of her coma resistance technology due to its limited applicability, further highlighted by its rigorous selection criteria.
• The narrator reflects on packing up with a previous girlfriend and compares it to the current situation with Rocky bringing copious amounts of belongings onto the ship.
• Rocky demonstrates his adeptness with magnets, organizing his equipment in the dormitory, and they discuss strategies for sampling Astrophage, an energy-absorbing organism threatening their planets.
• They convert time measurements between Earth and Eridian units, revealing that Rocky has been alone for 46 Earth years and is 291 Earth years old, much older than the narrator.