This chapter refers to Galactic Survey which, of course, features in Virgin Planet.
Spaceships, although not those of either the Coordination Service or Galactic Survey, have been quietly disappearing in a particular volume of space. The Tiunran response is to avoid that volume. The human response, both Cordy and Nomadic, is to investigate, surely a wiser policy or am I biased? Not entirely. The threat, whatever it is, might grow. Some attitudes have a higher survival value than others.
Neither the characters nor the readers realize that the threat is already present on Rendezvous and will infiltrate the Nomad ship that is conducting the investigation. That ship will also be joined by the Cordy investigator. Everything comes together when the author knows what he is doing.
2 comments:
Kaor, Paul!
Of course it's wiser to investigate how and why these ships were disappearing. I'm reminded of how, in Chapter II of THE PLAGUE OF MASTERS, we see a frustrated Dominic Flandry wishing a dangerously inert Imperium would more vigorously investigate each of a million mysteries. And never mind the extra work that meant for the civil service and Navy if any need for taking decisive action was found!
Ad astra! Sean
Poul was very deft with strands of a plot. By the late 50's, he rarely made a mistake with that.
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