Challenge

At the end of "Lodestar," Nicholas van Rijn is dramatically challenged by his trader team, by an Ythrian spaceship captain and even by his newly introduced granddaughter, Coya Conyon. Between them, these characters represent almost all that Poul Anderson's Technic History has been about until this point. Fortunately, however, "Lodestar" is not the conclusion of the Polesotechnic League sub-series because it is followed, in the chronological order of fictional events, by Mirkheim in which Coya, Commodore Nadi, Sandra Tamarin and the Baburites reappear, David Falkayn's much-mentioned home planet, Hermes, is seen for the first time, indeed becomes a fully realized place like Avalon and Dennitza, the secret of Mirkheim is revealed and the cat is out of the bag. Thus, a climactic conclusion but also an episode in a continuing history because Mirkheim is only the first of six instalments to be collected in The Technic Civilization Saga, Volume III, Rise Of The Terran Empire and that title alone informs readers that much more history still lies ahead.

After "Lodestar," Hloch comments that everyone knows what happened next. In other words, we are all supposed to have read Mirkheim...