The next day, Damon asks to see his father. He's been in the Earth-orbiting station since the launch, and Damon hasn't seen his son in a while. Damon tells his son that the power interruption caused by the launch has "soiled the earth-light alliance" . The U.N. still wants to remove Damon from the station because he brought aboard so much cargo, leaving a budget gap for the multi-national corporations to move into. The smaller countries, he says, are trying to "back out" of paying for the station. He tells Damon that he's in the "fight of his life" , but he tries to keep his son focused on the task at hand: keeping the moon and the earth from "blowing itself to pieces." Damon says that he doesn't care what time it is, he just wants to be with his son. He explains that the flu bug he contracted on the launch was to keep him off the station while he did what he had to do. He says he never intended to harm anyone, and he knows that the coming weeks and months will be tough on Damon, but Damon also knows that his son will "come through these stronger than ever." He adds that the school has put his mother in "maximum security custody" on earth, so she won't be able to shoot Damon up on the moon.