Across space, spider-built biotechnological receptors listen and watch, extending the planet’s reach far beyond physical orbital webs. The Messenger stops acting mysteriously and plainly explains the human threat, forging unprecedented planetary unity with a single aim: survival against the returning makers who, She warns, tolerate no competitors.

Drawing on preserved histories, Bianca recalls ancestral encounters with a fallen human and recognizes the scale of the threat. She travels from the Seven Trees conurbation to a cleared equatorial anchor and boards the space elevator thread. As general and tactician, Bianca begins the long ascent to the orbital city to direct the defense planned by many greater minds but dependent on her decisions.

In orbit, Great Star Nest sprawls as a three-dimensional web of habitats. Spiders have adapted rapidly to free-fall life, using silk lines, precise jumps, and safety tethers. Their astronaut-soldiers wear minimalist bio-chem suits: lung systems generating air, transparent films to prevent desiccation, insulating leg sleeves, chemical heat packs, radios, spinneret-linked silk factories, and small propellant packs for maneuvering.

Portia leads a squad drilling across the lattice, readying for combat they know will be costly. They trust that the chosen strategy is the best achievable, constrained by the need to preserve the planet that both sides desire. Yet Portia understands human weapons remain largely unknowable and unpredictable.

News of Bianca’s imminent arrival hardens resolve. A new star—Gilgamesh—marks the approaching crisis. Accepting that many will die, Portia and the front line prepare to meet the invaders in defense of their species and history. The humans are coming.