As Lightfoot heads toward the new rendezvous near the inner planet’s orbit, Fabian suggests the asteroid-belt aliens and the planet-based aliens may be rival factions. Portia worries the meeting could be an ambush, but the chosen point seems deliberately distant from the planet, perhaps a compromise meant to reassure the visitors.

Kern’s scans deepen the mystery. The planet shows heavy technological activity but far less radio traffic than a densely populated broadcast society should produce, and Portia proposes that much of the activity may be orbital or non-broadcast. Kern also detects extensive orbital structures, sporadic energy signatures, and a planet whose surface appears almost entirely liquid, probably water.

The crew debates whether the civilization could be aquatic. Portiid assumptions hold that ocean-bound cultures struggle to develop spaceflight, but Kern’s calculations suggest the huge alien vessels may be filled completely with water, matching the wreck they previously encountered. Helena, still studying the aliens’ transmissions, argues that their communication is partly visual and may include other channels such as infrasound.

Kern then reports that the waiting ships have created a new meeting structure: a transparent globe, apparently water held by membrane or electromagnetic field, docked to an alien ship by an umbilical. A newly received transmission includes a recognizable docking authorization code, making the structure an invitation. Portia immediately volunteers to enter, and Helena joins because she has begun forming a basic communication system.

During deceleration, Fabian explains that water-filled ships would face severe momentum and braking limits. Viola and Kern object to entering alien-controlled ground, but the others support the attempt, and Viola lacks the influence to block it. Kern questions Helena’s progress, and Helena explains that she can link some visual signals to actions and emotions well enough to attempt a basic message of peace, though the aliens’ command structure may involve more than one species or a machine system.

As Lightfoot nears the water sphere, Helena sees two mirrored clusters inside, suggesting a deliberately symmetrical meeting space. Kern reveals that she had prepared an electromagnetic pulse weapon for escape, but using it could collapse the magnetic field holding the water globe together. With the weapon effectively unusable during the meeting, Portia and Helena prepare to enter in suits designed for water or vacuum.