One hundred years have passed since the events of the previous chapter, and the Federation is still in a state of crisis. The population of the Inner Planets has declined by about a third, due to the fact that the Federation's anti-matter engine is no longer powerful enough to destroy all life on the planets. The only thing that keeps the population going is the use of the currency, "megasol," which is a unit of money used in the outer planets. Martin wonders about the fate of the Anaes, the girl who loved the hero of his youth. He wonders if she would have fallen in love with someone else if she had known that he would live to be one hundred years old. Martin reminds himself that he is here to "payback" for the hundred years he has spent in the underworld, where he was a "superstar" and a "starveling weasel." He tells Martin that after the war, the big boys of the underworld stole money from the bank accounts of Martin and his friends. Martin left the underworld and went to the Federation. Martin says that looking back on his life, it feels like "nothing at all." He says that he has always wanted to talk to Martin about the creation of the universe, but Martin has no right to do so because he is a "block head." Martin says he is more useful to the people of the Federation than he ever was, but that he will not be able to make it back in time.