Koenig is pensive. The imprecise quake forecast renders the transfer process unstable—but with the impending eclipse, they cannot delay. As three people can be conveyed at once, Koenig selects himself and volunteers Helena Russell and Alan Carter for the first trip. They proceed to the dome and the countdown begins. At minus two seconds, Texas City is struck by a major earthquake. Too late to abort, Logan and staff watch a nimbus of light build in the reception area...then fade. No one has materialised. On Moonbase, the transference dome is also empty.
