8. The Search

Bob arrives in Cedar Rapids, a prosperous port town in Heaven's River, and attempts to gather information about the Resistance while blending in with the local Quinlan population. He takes lodging at an upscale apartment complex and observes the docks for signs of surveillance, while Hugh reports on his progress working as a deckhand on a trading vessel and reveals he has been given the Quinlan name "Beer Can."

Bob travels overland to Cedar Rapids, a major trading hub near the mountains that serves as a choke point for goods between segments of Heaven's River. He attends a local festival and observes Quinlan performances before deciding to investigate whether the Resistance maintains a presence in the town. He visits an upscale tavern and befriends the barkeep Melanie, who recommends her cousin Maurice as a landlord at the Oaken Bale luxury apartments. At another tavern, Bob extracts directions to the apartments and information about nearby libraries from a barfly named Marty, using a cover story about visiting his cousin Theodore. He rents an expensive apartment and spends days observing the docks, identifying two men who may be lookouts but cannot confirm they are Resistance operatives. In his VR library, Bob encounters Hugh, who reports on his work as a deckhand aboard a trading vessel that circuits all four main river systems of the segment. Hugh reveals that the translator assigned him the Quinlan name "Beer Can," which Bob finds hilarious after initial denial of responsibility. Hugh shares observations that most Quinlans are aware of the artificial nature of Heaven's River and the existence of the Administrator and Resistance, but remain unconcerned because their lives are stable and comfortable. Bob concludes he has learned little in Cedar Rapids and plans to travel to a transit station downriver to attempt breaking in.