Chapter 29

1

WIDE — The Hail Mary alone. Tau Ceti shrunk to a fatter-than-usual dot. Where Blip-A should be: nothing.

WIDERYLANDSOLITUDE

"I float in the control room. The Petrovascope is set to maximum sensitivity. Nothing."

2

MEDIUM — Ryland at the CNC mill. New sheet-aluminum Taumoeba farm taking shape. "Sheet aluminum and some basic milling. It wasn't a problem."

MEDIUMRYLANDTAUMOEBA FARM

"The farm wasn't the problem. The problem is Rocky's ship."

3

MEDIUM — Ryland at Petrovascope, max sensitivity. The crosshair where Blip-A should appear: empty.

MEDIUMRYLANDVIGIL

"I know right where it should be. Down to the milli-arc-second. And from here, its engines should be lighting up my scope."

4

CLOSE — Ryland's face. The number ran. The formula proven. Now there's nothing. He knows what it means.

CLOSERYLANDDREAD

"I ran the numbers again and again. Now there's nothing. No blip from the Blip-A."

5

DIAGRAM — Taumoeba infection timeline. Xenonite slows spread by ~3 days. After that: all Astrophage gone.

DIAGRAMINFECTIONDERELICT

"Xenonite compartments give 3 days before Taumoeba-82.5 penetrates. Rocky couldn't stop it in time."

6

MEDIUM — Ryland at console, running the numbers again. The result doesn't change. Rocky is derelict.

MEDIUMRYLANDDENIAL

"I ran the numbers again and again. Though I'd already proven my formulae correct by daily observations."

7

CLOSE — Ryland's head in his hands. Rocky is derelict. "He's dead out there."

CLOSERYLANDGRIEF

"I put my head in my hands. His Taumoeba escaped their enclosure. Millions of kilograms of Astrophage gone."

8

WIDE — The two options. Left: Go home, be a hero, Earth saved, Ryland lives. Right: Go to Erid, Rocky saved, Ryland dies.

WIDETHE CHOICEDECISION

"Option 1: Go home a hero. Option 2: Go to Erid, save an alien species, and starve to death shortly after."

9

MEDIUM — Ryland pulls his hair. The logic is merciless: Earth or Erid. Hero or sacrifice.

MEDIUMRYLANDANGUISH

"I pull on my hair. I sob into my hands. It's cathartic and exhausting."

10

CLOSE — Ryland with eyes closed. He sees Rocky's dumb carapace. Those little arms always fidgeting.

CLOSERYLAND / ROCKYDECISION

"All I see when I close my eyes is Rocky's dumb carapace and his little arms always fidgeting with something."

11

MEDIUM — Six weeks later. Same vigil, same empty scope. But Ryland's posture is different. Decided. Calm.

MEDIUMRYLANDRESOLVE

"It's been six weeks since I made my decision. It wasn't easy, but I'm sticking with it."

12

MEDIUM — Ryland at the scope. He speaks aloud to the nothing. "Sorry, Rocky." Then: a tiny speck.

MEDIUMRYLANDGUILT / HOPE

"Sorry, Rocky," I say. Then I spot a tiny speck of Petrova light."

13

WIDE — Four beetles launching from the Hail Mary nose. Spin drives firing. Each carries a Taumoeba mini-farm. Bound for Earth.

WIDERYLANDBEETLES AWAY

"Each beetle with their own Taumoeba mini-farm and a USB stick full of data. Earth scientists will take it from there."

14

MEDIUM — Ryland watches the four beetle IR dots recede on the Petrovascope. Bittersweet goodbye.

MEDIUMRYLANDFAREWELL

"I know you'd love a beetle to take apart, but I couldn't spare one." The dots grow fainter.

15

INSERT — Beetle schematic: Taumoeba mini-farm + USB data stick + Astrophage radiation coil + mini spin drive.

INSERTBEETLEEARTH RESCUE

"The Astrophage coils protect the Taumoeba from radiation. The USB has all our findings."

16

WIDE — Scale comparison: 20-million-km search sphere (tiny) vs Tau Ceti system vs Earth distance (4000x further).

WIDESCALESPACE IS BIG

"Space is big. It's…so, so big. I'm extremely lucky to have only 20 million kilometers to search."

17

MEDIUM — Ryland staring at weak radar readout. "Better radar…" The idea forming.

MEDIUMRYLANDIDEA FORMING

"I wish I had better radar. Mine is good for a few thousand kilometers. Obviously nowhere near good enough."

18

CLOSE — Ryland shoots upright from pilot's seat. Eyes wide. "DUH! I have spin drives and a Petrovascope!"

CLOSERYLANDEUREKA

"I have everything I need for the best radar ever! 900 terawatts of IR light — then Petrovascope picks up the bounce!"

19

DIAGRAM — Spin-drive radar concept. Fire engines → wait → Petrovascope detects bounce. IR travels at speed of light.

DIAGRAMSPIN RADARSCIENCE

"Rocky is up to a light-minute away! I fire IR with the drives, wait for the bounce, scope detects it."

20

WIDE — Hail Mary spinning full-throttle yaw. 30 seconds per rotation. IR fan illuminates all 360° of space.

WIDERYLANDDONUTS IN SPACE

"I throw the throttle to full and turn hard to port. The astronavigational equivalent of doing donuts in the 7-Eleven parking lot."

21

MEDIUM — Ryland panning the scope slowly. Pass 1: nothing. Pass 2: nothing. 5-degree pitch tilt. Try again.

MEDIUMRYLANDBOREDOM

"Space is three-dimensional. I've only searched one flat slice. I pitch 5 degrees and try again."

22

CLOSE — The Petrovascope: A FLASH at the 55-degree plane. Reflected IR from spin drives. Something's out there.

CLOSEFLASHCONTACT

"A flash! I finally see a flash! Halfway through my Petrova pan of the 55-degree plane. A flash!"

23

MEDIUM — Ryland flails in zero-g, launched from seat in surprise at the flash. Arms and legs everywhere.

MEDIUMRYLANDCOMEDY

"I flail in surprise, which launches me out of the seat. I bounce around the zero-g control room."

24

MEDIUM — Ryland with stopwatch. 28-second round trip = 14 light-seconds = 4 million kilometers. "I have a heading!"

MEDIUMRYLAND28 SECONDS

"It's fourteen light-seconds away. That works out to about 4 million kilometers. I can cover that in nine and a half hours."

25

MEDIUM — Ryland grinning, scrubbing the lab clean. Moving junk out of Rocky's xenonite section. "I'm going to have a guest again!"

MEDIUMRYLANDHOPE / JOY

"I spend the next nine hours cleaning up. I move all my junk out of the xenonite areas."

26

WIDE — Hail Mary coasting toward contact bearing. Nine and a half hours. "I don't even need relativity. Just high-school physics."

WIDERYLANDAPPROACH

"I'll accelerate half the way, then decelerate the other half. And try not to think about whether it's really the Blip-A."

27

MEDIUM — Ryland arrives. Full active radar ping at full power. Screen: nothing. Still too far. Less than 0.1% precision.

MEDIUMRYLANDTENSION

"Nothing. I settled into the seat and strapped in. I just traveled 4 million kilometers. Radar range is less than a thousandth of that."

28

INSERT — The interlock: Petrovascope and spin drives cannot run simultaneously. Physical wire. But attitude drives might work.

INSERTINTERLOCKPROBLEM / SOLUTION

"Somewhere aboard is a wire from the spin-drive controls to the Petrovascope. But main engines aren't the only spin drives."

29

MEDIUM — Ryland fires attitude thruster, Petrovascope stays online! "Got to love those edge cases!" Now he has a flashlight.

MEDIUMRYLANDEDGE CASE

"The attitude drives put out enough light to vaporize steel. The scope stays active. I have a flashlight."

30

DIAGRAM — Both thrusters fire simultaneously: port (clockwise) + starboard (counterclockwise). Net rotation zero, IR illuminates all angles.

DIAGRAMATTITUDE THRUSTER TRICKSCIENCE

"Port thruster yaws clockwise, starboard counterclockwise. Computer complains loudly. I ignore the warnings."

31

MEDIUM — Sixth pass, 25-degree tilt. Ryland leaning close. A faint contact. Flicking thruster on/off: response is nearly instant.

MEDIUMRYLANDCONTACT

"On my sixth go-around — at 25 degrees from the Adrian ecliptic — I spot the contact. Still too far for detail."

32

CLOSE — Ryland calculating: less than quarter-second response = within 75,000 km. The smile breaking through.

CLOSERYLANDCLOSING IN

"Less than a quarter second. I'm within 75,000 kilometers. I point toward the contact and fire up the drives."

33

WIDE — Careful approach: 20,000 km hops, measure, hop again. Contact getting cleaner. "It's working."

WIDERYLANDCAREFUL APPROACH

"With careful flying and repeated measurements, I finally have the object on radar!"

34

MEDIUM — Radar shows the blip: "- ." The Blip-A's identifier. Rocky named it for a reason. "Oh, right," I say.

MEDIUMRYLANDCONFIRMED

"It's right there on the screen. '- .' I forgot that's how it got its name."

35

MEDIUM — Ryland sips Ilyukhina's vodka as he creeps toward the contact. "Dang, she liked her liquor rough."

MEDIUMRYLANDVODKA / TENSION

"I have a bag of Ilyukhina's vodka handy for just such an occasion. I take a sip from the zip-straw. I cough and wheeze."

36

WIDE — At 500 km: pixelated triangle in telescope. The Blip-A. Dark, dead, no engine glow. Rocky's ship. Velocity matches.

WIDERYLANDVISUAL CONTACT

"It's the Blip-A. I know the profile well. Rocky's ship sits 50 meters off my starboard side. Something is definitely wrong."

37

MEDIUM — Ryland suiting up in Orlan EVA suit at the airlock. Tether coiled. "EVA time. He can't see. He doesn't have windows."

MEDIUMRYLANDEVA PREP

"He thinks he's hopelessly derelict in space. He wouldn't know I'm there at all. Why would he look outside?"

38

WIDE — Pure blackness. Ryland floating across the void, tethered to Hail Mary. Blip-A: a dark mass that blots out the stars.

WIDERYLANDTHE VOID

"I look out into the vast nothingness before me. I can't see the Blip-A. I only know where it is because it blocks the background stars."

39

MEDIUM — Helmet lights illuminate the Blip-A hull — blotchy tan, xenonite-textured. Ryland reaching out. Rail ahead. Getting close fast.

MEDIUMRYLANDCLOSING

"It gets brighter and brighter. I can see the hull more clearly now. I have just seconds to find something to grab."

40

CLOSE — Ryland SLAMS into the hull. Scrabbles for the rail, misses. Bouncing away. Tether tangled. Starting to drift.

CLOSERYLANDIMPACT

"I hit the Blip-A much harder than an EVA suit should. I scrabble at the hull. I bounce and start drifting away."

41

MEDIUM — Ryland drifting away, spots xenonite antenna protrusion. Throws tether slipknot. One shot.

MEDIUMRYLANDTHE THROW

"I tie a quick slipknot in the tether and throw it at the antenna. It's now or never."

42

CLOSE — Slipknot loops tight around the xenonite antenna. It holds. Xenonite — it's not going anywhere.

CLOSEXENONITESAVED

"I'll be gosh darned, I nailed it! I just wrangled an alien spaceship. Xenonite — not going anywhere."

43

WIDE — Ryland on Blip-A hull, gripping rail, wrench raised high. Silence around him. Time to make some noise.

WIDERYLANDON THE HULL

"I pull the biggest wrench I have from my tool belt. I rear back and smack the hull. Hard."

44

CLOSE — CLANK! Wrench on hull. Vibration rings out. Ryland pressing helmet against wrench handle, shouting into it. "ROCKY!"

CLOSERYLANDSIGNAL

"Clank! Clank! Clank! I hear the sound through my EVA suit. I push my chin against the faceplate. 'Rocky! I'm here, buddy!'"

45

MEDIUM — Static. Nothing. Then a crackle. Ryland's ears perk up. "Rocky?!"

MEDIUMRYLANDTHE CRACKLE

"All I hear is static. 'Rocky!' A crackle. My ears perk up. 'Rocky?!'"

46

CLOSE — Rocky's voice on the radio. "Grace, question?" Ryland's face inside the visor: pure explosion of relief and joy.

CLOSERYLAND / ROCKYALIVE

"'Grace, question?' I've never been so happy to hear a few musical notes."

47

MEDIUM — Ryland on hull, punching air in triumph. Shouting "YES! I'm here! Set up the airlock tunnel!"

MEDIUMRYLAND / ROCKYREUNION

"'You are here, question?!' his voice is so high-pitched I can barely understand him. 'Set up the darn tunnel!'"

48

WIDE — Hail Mary manoeuvres to dock with dead Blip-A. Hull robot extends the xenonite tunnel. Three months since they separated.

WIDERYLAND / ROCKYDOCKING

"Rocky keeps the tunnel. Why not? It's an artifact from his species' first contact with alien life."

49

WIDE — Tunnel pressurised, hiss of air. Ryland flying through the airlock tunnel toward Blip-A. Rocky waiting on the other side.

WIDERYLAND / ROCKYREUNION

"I throw open the door and fly in. Rocky waits for me on the other side."

50

TWO-SHOT — Rocky covered in Taumoeba residue, two arms burned. But bouncing with joy. "I am very very very happy."

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / ROCKYJOY / DAMAGE

"His clothes are a mess. Covered in Taumoeba residue. Burns along one side. But his body language is sheer joy."

51

CLOSE — Ryland pointing at Rocky's scorched arms. Alarm on his face. Rocky: "I will heal. Attempted many things. All failed."

CLOSERYLAND / ROCKYCONCERN

"'Are you hurt?!' 'I will heal. Attempted many things to stop Taumoeba infestation. All failed.'"

52

TWO-SHOT — Ryland explains: Taumoeba-82.5 evolved to penetrate xenonite — the N2-resistance side effect. "Amaze," says Rocky.

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / ROCKYTAUMOEBA-82.5

"The Taumoeba evolved to resist nitrogen. But it also evolved to get into xenonite to hide from nitrogen."

53

MEDIUM — Ryland's fuel bays: 2 million kg Astrophage intact. "Bring your stuff aboard. We're going to Erid."

MEDIUMRYLAND / ROCKYGOING TO ERID

"My ship isn't made of xenonite. I still have two million kilograms of Astrophage. We're going to Erid."

54

TWO-SHOT — Rocky asks "What about Earth?" Ryland: the beetles carry Taumoeba-82.5 to Earth. Earth will be fine.

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / ROCKYEARTH / BEETLES

"I sent the beetles with the mini-farms. Taumoeba-82.5 can't get through Eridian steel. Earth scientists will take it from there."

55

CLOSE — Ryland calm and resolved. "I'm not going home. After I take you to Erid, I will die. Not enough food for the return trip."

CLOSERYLANDSACRIFICE

"About that… I'm not going home. The beetles will save Earth. But I won't ever see it again."

56

TWO-SHOT — Rocky goes low. Voice drops. "You no can die. We send you home. Erid will be grateful. We do everything."

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / ROCKYROCKY'S GRIEF

"He trembles. 'No. You no can die. You are friend.'"

57

DIAGRAM — Food math: Earth trip (enough food ✓) / Erid trip (enough food ✓) / Erid + return (starvation ✗).

DIAGRAMFOOD MATHNO RETURN

"I have enough food to survive the trip to Earth. Or the trip to Erid. But not Erid and back. I'll have only months left."

58

TWO-SHOT — Rocky: "Then you go home now. I wait here. Erid maybe send another ship someday." Ryland: "That's ridiculous."

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / ROCKYSTANDOFF

"Do you really want to risk the survival of your entire species on that guess?" Rocky, finally: "No."

59

TWO-SHOT — Rocky: "Eat Erid food." Ryland: heavy metals will kill me. Rocky: "Same proteins. Same sugars. Must work!" Ryland: "It will kill me."

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / ROCKYNO ERID FOOD

"Your whole ecology uses heavy metals. Most of them are toxic to me. I'd die immediately."

60

TWO-SHOT — Rocky: "Not Astrophage. Taumoeba. Eat Taumoeba." Ryland freezes. "I… what?"

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / ROCKYTHE IDEA

"Can I eat Taumoeba? It has DNA. Mitochondria. Glucose. Krebs cycle. It's not Astrophage. It's just an amoeba from another planet."

61

DIAGRAM — Taumoeba biology vs human cell: same DNA, same mitochondria, same Krebs cycle. No heavy metals. Maybe edible.

DIAGRAMTAUMOEBA BIOLOGYTHE SOLUTION

"It has DNA. Mitochondria — the powerhouse of the cell. Glucose. Krebs cycle. Not Astrophage. Just an amoeba."

62

CLOSE — Ryland's eyes go wide. Green-lit realisation. "I… I don't know. Maybe I can." First genuine hope in a long time.

CLOSERYLANDHOPE

"It's the first time I've felt genuine hope in a long time."

63

WIDE — Rocky's Blip-A fuel bays: 22 million kilograms of Taumoeba. All glowing green. A lifetime of food.

WIDE22 MILLION KGTHE ANSWER

"I have twenty-two million kilograms of Taumoeba in fuel bays. How much you want, question?"

64

TWO-SHOT — "Settled." Rocky's claw against xenonite wall, Ryland's knuckles on the other side. The fist-bump.

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / ROCKYFIST-BUMP

"'Fist my bump.' I laugh. 'Fist-bump. It's just fist-bump.' I put my knuckles against the xenonite. 'Understand.'"

65

CLOSE — The fist-bump through xenonite. Ryland's knuckles and Rocky's claw, separated by the wall, touching across it.

CLOSERYLAND / ROCKYCONNECTION

The xenonite wall — first contact with alien life — now the site of their final agreement.

66

WIDE — Both ships linked by tunnel. Hail Mary + Blip-A. Tau Ceti shrinking behind. Course: Erid. "I'm coming, buddy. Hold tight."

WIDERYLAND / ROCKYBOUND FOR ERID

"Rocky: 'I make sure my people take good care of you.' The tunnel glows gold between the ships.",

67

MEDIUM — Ryland in lab. Jar of Taumoeba from Blip-A. Transfer tube connected. Eyeing it with wonder and apprehension. What does it taste like?

MEDIUMRYLANDTAUMOEBA FOOD

"Twenty-two million kilograms. That's a lot of Taumoeba slurry. But it might just keep me alive."

68

TWO-SHOT — Rocky insists on nitrogen wash before coming aboard. "Need to make sure no Taumoeba-82.5 get into Hail Mary."

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / ROCKYN2 STERILISATION

"I have full faith in your abilities. Make a sterilizer." Rocky wastes no time.

69

MEDIUM — Rocky in the tunnel, five arms all moving, building the decontamination system at speed. Eridian engineering.

MEDIUMROCKYFIVE ARMS

"Five arms whipping around. Rocky moves fast. He's building the N2 sterilizer to make the tunnel safe."

70

CLOSE — Ryland watching through the airlock porthole. N2 mist filling the tunnel. Rocky nearly done. Ryland smiling softly.

CLOSERYLAND / ROCKYWATCHING

"There's nothing Rocky can't fix. And he works fast." The N2 wash almost complete.

71

WIDE — Both ships linked and heading for Erid. The tunnel glows gold between them. A scientist and an alien. Together.

WIDERYLAND / ROCKYBOUND FOR ERID

"I'm coming, buddy." The Hail Mary and Blip-A, linked, leave Tau Ceti behind.

72

MEDIUM — Ryland sets course for Erid. Navigation console glows amber. Destination locked.

MEDIUMRYLANDCOURSE SET

The long journey to 40 Eridani begins. Ryland Grace — last human from Earth for a very long time.

73

WIDE — The two ships together, ahead: 40 Eridani burning orange. Ryland's engines lit, Rocky beside him. The journey to Erid begins.

WIDERYLAND / ROCKYEND OF CHAPTER

Ryland Grace. The last human at Tau Ceti. Heading toward an alien star to save an alien world. "Fist-bump. Understand."

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