Contents
CHAPTER 15
Overview
At Relay’s beach, Skroderiders Blueshell and Greenstalk weigh the perilous rescue to the Bottom as their ship is upgraded against the spreading Blight. Ravna meets Pham Nuwen, the Emissary of Old One, seeking protection. Pham refuses, arguing the Blight won’t profit in lower Zones. Ravna realizes the mission must proceed without Transcendent backing.
Summary
On a unique Relay beach, Skroderiders Blueshell and Greenstalk discuss the Straumli Blight and their secret contract: a risky rescue to the Bottom of the Beyond. Their ship, Out of Band II, receives deep-Beyond upgrades and antenna drones for a descent near the Slowness, with hazards including shifting Zone boundaries and potential entrapment.
They debate motives and danger. Blueshell fears that if the downed Straumer ship threatens the Blight, the Blight could pursue; Greenstalk argues the mission could save countless civilizations. They hope for protection from a Transcendent-designed escort negotiated via an Emissary Device.
Ravna Bergsndot, now vital to Vrinimi Org’s Blight intelligence, tracks the refugee ship and exchanges brief messages with survivor Jefri Olsndot. Jefri reports nearby raids, dead soldiers, and claims his family is dead while Mr. Steel protects him. The ship’s crippled automation hints at Transcendent gear suppressed by the Zone, reinforcing its potential strategic value.
Ravna meets Pham Nuwen, Old One’s Emissary, and requests Transcendent equipment or fleets to shield the mission from detection. Pham, not actively tele-operated, dismisses the request, arguing Powers can’t hold hands at the Bottom and that this Perversion is a banal, self-limiting pattern confined to higher Zones, not worth costly intervention.
Ravna presses, warning that any rescue could reveal the ship to the Blight. Pham declines again, offering rationale and offhand comfort that the Middle/Bottom are safe. When Ravna attacks the authenticity of his past, Pham deflects, asserting the depth of Transcendent knowledge, then departs.
Left on the beach, Ravna accepts there will be no help from Old One. She prepares to tell Blueshell and Greenstalk that their high-stakes rescue must proceed without Transcendent support, even as Jefri’s peril and the Blight’s spread heighten the urgency.
Who Appears
- Ravna BergsndotVrinimi Org analyst; coordinates the secret rescue, messages Jefri, pleads with Pham for Transcendent support, and realizes none is coming.
- Pham NuwenEmissary Device’s human front; refuses to provide Old One’s aid, rationalizes nonintervention, deflects challenges about his origins, then departs.
- BlueshellCautious Skroderider co-captain of Out of Band II; fears Blight retaliation but commits to the risky Bottom rescue.
- GreenstalkSkroderider partner; advocates undertaking the rescue for moral and strategic reasons, hoping for Emissary-designed support.
- Old OneTranscendent Power; through Pham declines to assist, deeming the Blight contained to higher Zones and intervention too costly.
- Jefri OlsndotHuman child survivor; his messages report raids, dead soldiers, and claimed family deaths, intensifying urgency.