Children of Time, #2
Children of Ruin
by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Contents
PAST 1: JUST ANOTHER GENESIS — CHAPTER 4.
Overview
The chapter shifts from planetary engineering to the psychological strain of waiting, showing the crew’s anxiety over decades-old news of war on Earth. Senkovi’s private obsession with modified octopuses expands from a practical underwater-labor project into a more ambitious experiment in animal cognition and virtual interaction.
Han’s discovery of the hidden work creates tension over authority, resources, and Senkovi’s motives, but her curiosity softens the confrontation. The final reveal that Salome can independently enter the game suggests the octopuses may be developing capacities far beyond simple tools.
Summary
As the terraforming of Damascus continues, the crew of the Aegean struggles with waiting. Humans are accustomed to shorter rhythms than planetary engineering allows, so the crew fills the time with art, music, reading, games, and private obsessions rather than returning immediately to cold sleep.
Many crew members become fixated on delayed news from Earth. Poullister, Han, and Maylem argue about old reports of expanding proxy wars and the possibility that chemical or biological weapons might be used. Because the messages are more than three decades out of date, the crew can only speculate about whether Earth has since recovered or worsened.
Senkovi avoids these discussions and focuses on his own project in Payload Bay Seven. Months after his compromise with Baltiel over Paul, Han finds Senkovi occupying the bay with a large tank of modified octopuses. Han notes that Senkovi’s formal plan was too thin to justify how far he has gone, while Senkovi insists the work is still payload-related research.
Han challenges Senkovi’s choice of octopuses when the ship carries a broad genetic library, joking that she would make a tiger. Senkovi admits that the intended practical goal is underwater labor, such as repairing coolant pipes beneath an ocean, but also reveals a more personal reason: Senkovi kept octopuses as a child and is attached to them.
Han then discovers that Senkovi is not merely keeping the animals but connecting them to games. Paul 5 has learned to interact with a virtual tile-laying game, understanding basic move limits without yet grasping strategy or victory. Han warns that the ship will need the bay back, but Senkovi shows he has reorganized storage well enough to justify keeping the tanks.
After Han leaves, Senkovi finishes the game and feeds the octopuses, worrying the rest of the crew will mock him. The console then signals another player: Salome, one of the octopuses, has used her implanted connection to enter the game and is waiting for Senkovi’s turn. Senkovi considers seeking human company but instead continues the experiment with his eager subject.
Who Appears
- Disra SenkoviTerraformer pursuing a secretive octopus project while avoiding crew anxiety over Earth.
- HanEngineer and pilot who confronts Senkovi, then becomes intrigued by his octopus experiments.
- Paul 5Modified octopus able to interact with a virtual tile-laying game.
- SalomeOctopus subject who independently breaks into the game system and waits for Senkovi.
- BaltielMission authority referenced as having required Senkovi’s formal plan for Paul.
- PoullisterCrew member caught up in arguments about delayed reports of conflict on Earth.
- MaylemCrew member involved in anxious debates over old Earth war news.