The Gods Themselves

Para-theoretician convinced the Electron Pump will cause the Sun to explode; systematically rebuffed by Hallam, Burt, and Chen as he seeks proof and allies.

Dominant physicist credited with the Pump; dismisses Lamont violently, blocks his publications, and poisons Burt against him.

Linguist collaborator who deciphers para-Universe messages including 'FEER' and 'YES PUMP BAD BAD BAD', advising caution throughout.

Head of the Committee on Technology and the Environment; politically pragmatic, refuses to act against Hallam without hard proof.

Populist revolutionary who champions Pumping as the path to immortality; rejects Lamont's evidence and reinterprets 'FEAR' as para-men fearing a stoppage.

Nuclear physicist who may have uttered the original fantasy suggestion about parallel universes during the seminar luncheon, overheard by Hallam.

Atypical Emotional who reasons like a Rational; deduces and attempts to stop the Pump's danger to the other universe, exhausting herself in the attempt before the final melt.

Stubbornly focused on completing the triad with a baby-Emotional; secretly powers a radiation source to force Dua to eat, triggering the initiation of the baby-Emotional.

Intellectual Soft One who educates Dua about physics and the Pump; ultimately guides the triad's final melt into Estwald.

Hard One and Odeen's special teacher; converses with Tritt about assigning an Emotional to the triad, treating Tritt's interruption with amusement.

Dua's right-father figure who protected and cared for her unusual nature before passing on; his departure leaves her newly independent and lonely.

Referenced Hard One who developed the Positron Pump; revealed at the end of Part 2 to be the Hard One form that Odeen, Dua, and Tritt become through their final melt.

Lunarite Intuitionist and tourist guide who collaborates with Denison on the cosmeg pump; emotionally connected to Neville but asserts independent agency; manipulates the Pionizer equipment in ways that raise Gottstein's suspicion.

Heavily built Lunarite physicist and political operator; Selene's partner; refuses to co-author the cosmeg paper; reveals the plan to use cosmeg momentum transfer to move the Moon out of the Solar system for Lunar independence.

Amateur physicist who develops the cosmeg pump on the Moon with Selene; refuses rehabilitation on Earth and chooses to remain on the Moon; diplomatically navigates tensions with Neville and Gottstein.

Earth Commissioner on the Moon who witnesses the cosmeg experiment, suspects Selene's motives, arranges publication of Denison's paper, and negotiates with Neville over cosmeg pump control.

Retiring Commissioner who failed to communicate his vague but serious concern about covert Lunarite activity to Earth; briefs Gottstein on departure.