Prologue: Manéo

Manéo Jung-Espinoza, a young slingshot racer from Ceres, coasts in a stripped-down ship, the Y Que, after months executing a meticulously planned, one-burn trajectory. Starving and conserving power, he aims to slingshot past Europa and Saturn to hit the Ring at extreme speed, seeking fame despite certain jail time.

Recalling how his cousin Evita introduced him to the illicit slingshot scene, Manéo frames the stunt as his path to immortality. He follows Ring coverage, watching debates over the protomolecule’s ethics, but his focus remains on timing, cameras, and the reveal that will shock the gathered Earth–Mars fleets.

Approach windows narrow; he records a brash intro for the black net, then receives a brief message of support from Evita. Confident and minutes out, he powers systems for recording, intent on streaming the pass even if authorities intercept him afterward.

With three minutes to go, the Martian frigate Lucien hails and threatens fire. Manéo stalls, warms the reactor, and maintains course toward the Ring. When the Lucien launches torpedoes, he continues, broadcasting and switching to exterior feeds as the target point nears.

At the final second, the stars abruptly vanish from his displays. An instant later, an unexplained ninety-nine-g deceleration slams the Y Que to a stop, killing Manéo before alarms can fully register. In the ensuing darkness, his high-speed external camera keeps transmitting frames of nothing—and then, of something new.