Two months after leaving Yellowstone, Volyova meets Sajaki in the ship’s artificial forest glade. She proposes using an intermediate recruit before relying on Khouri, citing fear of another Nagorny-like breakdown. Sajaki responds by striking her with his shakuhachi and—seemingly—injecting her with something. After, Sajaki and Volyova take Khouri to meet Captain Brannigan. They explain that Brannigan is centuries old, that Calvin Sylveste treated him for injuries in a secret arrangement, and that Dan Sylveste is in fact Calvin’s illegal clone, a fact unknown to Dan himself. The geneticist who created him, Janequin, traveled with the Resurgam expedition. A century ago, the crew kidnapped Dan Sylveste for a month, using the beta-level Calvin simulation installed in his brain to temporarily possess his body and perform repairs on the captain. Now, the captain needs another such treatment.

The narrative shifts to Resurgam, year 2566. Sylveste and Pascale’s wedding takes place inside the buried Amarantin city. Sylveste and Girardieau discuss the city’s inscriptions, the Banished Ones, and Sylveste’s suggests that the colony must send an expedition to Cerberus/Hades to understand what killed the Amarantin. The Stoner wedding proceeds, with special attention paid to the sharing of genetic material for the benefit of the colony.