Chapter 19: The Gates of Babylon

Through mist at the hangar gate, Marlowe, Switch, Crim, and Siran step from the Mistral toward March Station, unsure what reception awaits. Marlowe recalls telling Otavia that if the mission fails, she must leave him; she refuses, tying her fate to his and strengthening his resolve as they approach the unknown.

The hangar opens onto pouring rain in a cavernous city under a clouded ceiling, its gloom lit by shifting holograms and multilingual ads. The crew enters a dense crowd of cybernetically altered citizens—prosthetic limbs, embedded ports, armored suits—triggering Marlowe’s visceral dread and whispered prayers as he forces himself to accept they are still human.

Unchallenged by any authority, they follow Crim into the streets. Crim claims familiarity with Extras and argues their love of freedom; he warns Marlowe that his noble bearing is obvious but unlikely to matter here. The alien scale and population of the ring-city impress Marlowe with its self-contained, worldlike vastness.

Seeking an approach, Marlowe recalls the Painted Man’s claim that palatines come here for forbidden life extension. Crim suggests leveraging Marlowe’s status; Marlowe considers posing as a buyer. Switch bristles at the decadence implied, his past fueling his distrust. Siran proposes selling their Cielcin captive, Tanaran, but Marlowe rejects it as dangerous here.

Accepting that Vorgossos will not be simple to find, the crew settles on a first step: ask around for anyone sailing there. Marlowe, determined not to return home defeated, steels himself to navigate the city’s markets and myths in pursuit of a path to the hidden world.