Army Private William Mandella sits through a training session, Eight Ways to Silently Kill a Man, or, in this case, a Tauran, a race of beings from the planet Aldebaran in the constellation of Taurus. The training sergeant stresses the importance of finding the Taurans’ vulnerabilities. After the class, Mandella retreats to the enlisted men’s lounge, where he reads the news. An Earth ship was “caulked” four years ago, and the military is planning a counterattack, although it will take ships four years to reach their destination. Back at the billet, he snuggles with Rogers, his platoonmate, but he is too tired for anything but sleep.

Mandella and his platoon construct a bridge in the freezing rain. After they drop a “stringer” in place, an “epoxy crew” secures it in place. During a smoke break, Mandella and Rogers discuss their pre-military career plans—he planned to teach physics, she studied biology. Both were drafted for their scientific skill to “guard humanity from the Tauran menace” (8). While the epoxy teams finish their work, Mandella ruminates on the history of the conflict. When humanity discovered the “collapsar jump” 12 years prior, the discovery allowed instantaneous travel to remote parts of the galaxy, specifically to