Ezr Vinh’s near-fatal childhood accident during a Family synch frames his habitual optimism on waking from coldsleep. He now wakes gently in near zero gee, recalls the OnOff mission and the Emergent ambush, and finds Anne Reynolt and Tomas Nau at his bedside.

Nau says eight days have passed since the battle and announces Ezr’s new role as Fleet Manager over the surviving Qeng Ho. Reynolt supplies hard numbers: roughly fourteen hundred Qeng Ho dead, four of seven starships destroyed, the rest with disabled ramscoops, and most smaller craft ruined. Emergents are building at L1 with volatiles lifted from Arachna and insist the joint mission continues.

Ezr learns the Pham Nuwen was lost with all hands, Captain Park and other leaders are dead, and senior survivors are held in coldsleep. Ezr has been “cured” of the alleged contagion, which he recognizes as part of a preplanned ambush. Searching crew lists, he finds Trixia alive but flagged as “Focused,” which Reynolt describes as ongoing medical treatment, revealing her clinical detachment.

The next day, Nau tours Ezr through an expanding L1 complex: an incomplete habitat, diamond mountains of bundled salvage and lifted ice-rock, and starships moored together. Nau outlines a long lurk—returning home is possible but empty-handed; instead, they will watch the Spiders and refit from planetary resources if the civilization advances far enough.

Ritser Brughel boasts of Emergent dominance and points out the Qeng Ho temp in an eight-day orbit, spared through Park’s earlier positioning. Nau reinforces Ezr’s authority as Fleet Manager, pledging support while making clear that survival hinges on cooperation under Emergent control.