The Expanse, #3
Abaddon's Gate
by James S. A. Corey
Contents
Chapter Sixteen: Holden
Overview
A forged broadcast from the Rocinante claims the Ring for the OPA, while the ship’s comms and weapons are hijacked. The Behemoth fires a torpedo, forcing Holden to race through the Martian fleet and dive into the Ring. A brutal deceleration saves them as the speed cap freezes the incoming missile. Inside the dark "slow zone," they detect clustered objects, and Miller reappears, spooked by the apparent nothingness.
Summary
A forged message of Holden claiming the Ring for the OPA begins broadcasting—from the Rocinante itself. Naomi can’t stop it, revealing a deep systems compromise. With Alex reporting the Behemoth targeting them and Monica’s crew on the ops deck, Holden orders everyone strapped in and sets course toward the Behemoth, figuring they’re least likely to fire while the broadcast runs.
The Roci’s weapons inexplicably power up without crew input; comms and countermeasures are dead. The Behemoth launches a torpedo. With defenses unresponsive, Holden vectors the Roci through the Martian fleet. Alex hides them within meters of a Martian heavy to break the torpedo’s lock, but Martian targeting resumes guiding it in.
Seeing no escape and unable to surrender safely, Holden orders a high-speed dive for the Ring. He programs a perilous flip-and-burn to decelerate under the Ring’s velocity cap just before entry. The crew endures a crushing burn that knocks them all unconscious.
They awaken inside the Ring’s interior “slow zone,” in free fall. Outside, the OPA torpedo burns furiously but hangs motionless, then is drawn away by whatever enforces the speed limit. The Rocinante survives by arriving slower than the missile.
Holden checks sensors and finds numerous nearby objects clustered within about a million kilometers; beyond them there is only starless darkness. Miller appears again, oddly lucid, and when Holden asks what’s out there, Miller calls it “nothing” and admits it terrifies him.
Who Appears
- James HoldenCaptain of the Rocinante; orders a dive through the Ring to evade a torpedo and survives the slow zone.
- Naomi NagataEngineer; discovers the fake broadcast is originating from the Roci and can’t stop hijacked systems.
- Alex KamalPilot; evades the torpedo by skimming a Martian heavy and executes the dangerous flip-and-burn into the Ring.
- Amos BurtonMechanic; physically isolates comms, reluctant to power down weapons; provides calm, fatalistic commentary.
- Monica StuartDocumentarian; witnesses the crisis on the ops deck, frightened but cooperative during the escape.
- CohenDocumentary crew member; mutters an angry aside mid-chase, later unconscious after the deceleration burn.
- OkjuCamera operator; films during the fake broadcast, straps in for the high-g maneuvers.
- ClipCamera operator; strapped in during the pursuit and knockout burn, largely a silent observer.
- MillerApparition guiding Holden; reappears inside the Ring, unsettled by the starless “nothing.”