# XIII explained — The Cosmic Computer

> Chapter companion for The Cosmic Computer by H. Beam Piper.

## What happens

The Harriet Barne departs from Barathrum for Koshchei, with Conn Maxwell and the crew experiencing weightlessness and making course adjustments. Upon arrival at Port Carpenter, they explore the abandoned city and discover the power plant is dead, requiring refueling and repairs. Conn reveals his priority is building a hypership, not finding Merlin.

## Themes in this chapter

### Economic Decline and Revival

The crew finds Port Carpenter abandoned and its power plant dead, symbolizing economic decay, but they aim to revive it by refueling and restarting operations.

### Myth vs. Reality

Conn explicitly states he would trade Merlin for a hypership, contrasting the myth of Merlin with the practical reality of building a functional ship.

## Character check-ins

### Conn Maxwell

Sets course for Koshchei, explores Port Carpenter, and prioritizes building a hypership over finding Merlin.

### Yves Jacquemont

Assists with navigation and exploration, posts signs about weight vs. mass, and leads the team into the building.

### Captain Nichols

Handles the ship's shift to vertical and later turns control over to Jacquemont.

### Charley Gatworth

Works with Conn on the astrogational computer and questions Conn about Merlin's importance.

### Mohammed Matsui

Power-engineer who diagnoses the dead power plant and estimates repair time.

### Jerry Rivas

Pilots the manipulator-boat and suggests finding building plans.

## Key lines

> If I had Merlin in my hip pocket right now, I'd trade it for one good ship like the City of Asgard or the City of Nefertiti, and give a keg of brandy and a box of cigars to boot.

Conn says he would exchange Merlin for a functional hypership, emphasizing his practical priorities.

_Highlights Conn's focus on tangible assets over the mythical Merlin._

> When this gang bugged out, back in 854, they left the power on. Now the conversion mass is all gone, and the plutonium's all spent.

Matsui explains that the power plant was left running during the evacuation and has since depleted its fuel.

_Reveals the cause of the power failure and the scale of the repair challenge._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_cosmic_computer_se/chapters/xiii
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_cosmic_computer_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_cosmic_computer_se/chapters