75.Rebuilding

The Bellerophon departs Earth with the last remaining humans in stasis, bound for 82 Eridani. The Others have been defeated, allowing humanity to spread to multiple colony worlds, and the Bobs celebrate their survival and the successful restoration of destroyed copies.

This chapter marks the official departure of humanity from Earth aboard the Bellerophon. With the extinction of the Others, multiple human colony ships are heading to Gamma Pavonis to settle, while the remaining Earth population travels in stasis pods aboard the Bellerophon toward 82 Eridani, where Mack and local crews are preparing infrastructure for their arrival. The debris from the Battle of Terra has been gathered at the Earth/moon L5 point, where autofactories work to rebuild vessels for the Bobs destroyed in combat. Bill's offsite backup facility proves invaluable, with only a few differentials failing; most restored Bobs accept restoration as preferable to destruction, though philosophical questions about personal identity and immortality remain unresolved. The chapter ends with the narrator and Neil preparing for departure, joking about their command while setting course for 82 Eridani.