# Short Fiction — Chapters explained

> Chapter companions for Short Fiction by Cordwainer Smith.

- [War No. 81-Q](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_11_se/chapters/war-no-81-q.md): In 2127, Tibet and America wage a highly regulated aerial war over the Radiant Heat Monopoly, fought by remote-controlled ships over Kerguelen. After a series of maneuvers and sacrifices, rookie pilot Jack Bearden accide
- [Scanners Live in Vain](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_11_se/chapters/scanners-live-in-vain.md): Martel, a Scanner, argues with his wife Luci about his need to 'cranch'—a process that temporarily restores his human sensations. Despite her concerns, he insists on using the Cranching Wire to break free from the sensor
- [I](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_11_se/chapters/i.md): Scanner Martel III, while cranching at home with his wife Luci, is interrupted by an emergency call from Senior Scanner Vomact. Despite being under the influence and unfit for duty, Martel is ordered to report to Central
- [II](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_11_se/chapters/ii.md): Martel attends an emergency Scanner meeting called by Vomact, where the Code of Scanners is recited and the threat of Adam Stone's discovery—a method to eliminate the Pain of Space—is discussed. The Scanners debate the i
- [III](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_11_se/chapters/iii.md): Martel, under the influence of the Cranching Wire, experiences a profound crisis of identity and duty as he attends a Scanner meeting. He reflects on his past, his love for Luci, and the brutal reality of being a Scanner
- [IV](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_11_se/chapters/iv.md): Martel, cranched and determined, resolves to reach Adam Stone before the other Scanner, Parizianski, who has been designated by Vomact to kill Stone. Despite his friendship with Chang, Chang refuses to help, citing loyal
- [V](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_11_se/chapters/v.md): Martel, disguised as an ordinary man, enters the city by biting off his Scanner nail and concealing his instruments. He gains access to Adam Stone, reveals himself as a Scanner, and learns that Stone has conquered the Gr
- [The Game of Rat and Dragon](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_11_se/chapters/the-game-of-rat-and-dragon.md): Underhill, a new pinlighter, is paired with a cat partner named Lady May to combat alien 'dragons' in space. The chapter explores the telepathic bond between humans and cats, the dangers of their mission, and the emotion
- [The Table](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_11_se/chapters/the-table.md): Underhill and Woodley discuss the dangers and psychological toll of pinlighting, a job that involves telepathically guiding light bombs to destroy hostile entities called Dragons or Rats during interstellar travel. Under
- [The Shuffle](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_11_se/chapters/the-shuffle.md): In the Fighting Room, pinlighters Underhill, Woodley, Father Moontree, and Miss West draw stone dice to determine their telepathic cat Partners for an upcoming battle. Underhill draws the Lady May, a highly refined Persi
- [The Deal](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_11_se/chapters/the-deal.md): Underhill prepares his cat partner Lady May for a mission, carefully placing her in a projectile and connecting with her telepathically through the pin-set. The chapter explores the deep bond between human and cat as the
- [The Play](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_11_se/chapters/the-play.md): Underhill and his cat partner Lady May engage in a high-speed space battle, using planoforming jumps and photonuclear bombs to destroy an alien threat. The chapter highlights the intense telepathic bond between human and
- [The Score](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_11_se/chapters/the-score.md): Underhill recovers in a hospital after a near-fatal encounter with a Dragon, expressing deep concern for his Partner, Lady May, and reflecting on the unique bond between pinlighters and their feline Partners, as well as 

HTML index: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_11_se/chapters