Chapter 55 opens with a light shining in the sky. It's been forty-seven years since the last time we saw the light, and it's only now that the light is visible that we realize how long it has been since we've seen it. We're reminded that we haven't seen the light in a very long time, so we're a little freaked out by its presence. We also learn that the capsule that Arthur and the vampire used to launch themselves into space has grown back in time, and Arthur's life is now in danger. He decides to call himself "the blue princess" and watch over Arthur from the shadows. He feels as though time has come to a halt, and he feels as if everything in the room is an extension of his body. He's also reminded that he once wanted to be invincible, but now that he's lost that wish, everything is a loss. The population of the city continues to grow, and so does unrest. Eventually, the project to colonize space is put on hold, but not for long. In 188, the long-awaited "orbital elevator" is finally developed. The good news is short-lived, however, because it turns out that many people die in star-city experiments on artificial hibernation, which is a kind of artificial death that's used in the capsule to keep people from moving around too much. This is a big bummer, because the capsule was supposed to give Arthur a future, and now he doesn't have one.