Clarkesworld Magazine Aperture by Alexander Jablokov (audio)
Sep 27, 2025
Dive into a frozen world where Prosper grapples with the challenges of rebuilding a social habitat. She navigates icy fortifications, explores cultural ruins, and confronts mysterious manipulations of airflow. Amidst social gatherings and friendships, tension rises as she faces Tremont's sabotage. Watch as her teamwork with the crew leads to an exhilarating rescue mission from a dangerous ice dam, ultimately unveiling stunning Coriolis water displays and a bright future on Ekbatan.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
First Visit To A Frozen Hab
- Prosper describes first entering the dark, frozen nave of Ekbatan and being called to help predict meltwater flows for the future glow-up.
- She explains her role reconfiguring the rind and her isolation while she longs to join Ephraim's social network.
Design Shapes Social Life
- Prosper admires the placemakers' design language: sight lines ending in visual anchors and neighborhoods defined by texture.
- She realizes thoughtful layout shapes social flows and later guides her reconstruction decisions.
Bust Found In A Fortified Baffle
- While surveying a fortified walkway, Prosper discovers a carved stone bust hidden inside a baffle and removes it to free the path.
- She logs it for Cultural Archives and later returns it to help Brack trace lost DNA samples.
