Nayoki receives the message and barely manages not to groan out loud. What now. 

She's been taking a break, but she goes back to mindreading everyone in her range. 

Julie is thinking she should really just up her sedatives and knock herself out but she kind of wants to die conscious, on the off chance that's what happens.

They get the transmission, of course, because the whole system's getting it. He gets called over to see it right away. 

"This is James Holden. When I last told the world what was going on, ships with stealth technology had just destroyed the Canterbury, after luring it to the Scopuli with Martian naval technology. Since then - well, I don't know if you're going to believe this. I don't know if I believe this. But there are some bad guys running around with secret plans to kill lots of people, and hopefully if those plans are not so secret, they're going to be running from the law, instead. 

Here's what we know. The stealth ships that attacked the Canterbury also attacked the Donnager. We witnessed the attack - Shed was killed in it - and I saw the ships. The same ones that shot down the Cant. Captain Yao of the Donnager wanted to get out the word - and wanted to avoid a situation where we died under suspicious circumstances, having just said that Mars would be clearly to blame if we died under suspicious circumstances - so we left the Donnager shortly before it self-destructed. Our Martian escort were all killed in the course of the escape."

"What the fuck is this. - get us away from Io, now. Well clear of that OPA - I guess it's Martian - well clear of that damned ship and everyone on it."

Holden continues explaining subsequent events. 

"...and then, our ship was boarded by a group of people claiming to be from another human civilization on a different planet, called Velgarth, where people have psychic powers. You're thinking, 'well, that's definitely insane', and I don't disagree, but I am not sure who is insane, here! I'm going to demonstrate the psychic powers, but of course, from your perspective that could just be video editing, though ask yourselves, where in the last three weeks did I have time to hire a fantastic CGI team to make it look like my ship is full of spatial portals? - they're distance-limited and mostly only usable for travel within a planet, we asked."

"Farther clear of Io."

Holden demonstrates various interactions with Gates. "We're sending video of their assault on the Roci, and all our sensor readings related to them, as an addendum. The timestamps should match the time their ship appeared out of nowhere pretty much on top of us, which they say it did because they told the protomolecule, which they taught to Gate, to Gate to the other protomolecule."

"They WHAT?"

"....with them was Julie Mao, biologically and until recently familial-ly related to Jules Pierre Mao, the CEO of Mao-Kwikowski Mercantile, and she'd been infected by the protomolecule, as had one of their operatives - I say until recently familial-ly because Mao told us that her father had orchestrated all of this."

Ack. Nayoki really really wishes Leareth had thought to explain what in all hells he was just DOING and WHY. 

She approaches the least busy and important-seeming crew member and asks, very politely, what's going on and whether she can please send a message back to her people explaining why she's suddenly running away with them. 

And, back on the lab base on Io, Leareth's people who are now up to speed on basic technology use and monitoring comms - it's a lot easier to learn when you have some mind-controlled scientists who will also cooperate with just about anything in exchange for protomolecule data - relay to Emril what's going on. 

She prods Leareth awake. :I am sorry. This is what just happened -: 

Leareth is not especially surprised. He's not upset either, not exactly. 

He rolls over in bed, with a grunt - ow - and Mindtouches Julie. 

:You told Holden to broadcast the message he recorded?: 

Yeah. 

:...I am not sure 'good for you' is exactly the right phrase, here, but...it will simplify some things immensely. Which is a relief, because I am very tired and thinking is hard: 

He closes his eyes again. Flops back. 

:At this point, maybe I ought go ahead and send my own message to the UN and Mars. I have most of one drafted: 

She relaxes considerably, enough that her machine chimes about the change in heart rate.

Doing the right thing is usually simpler.

He finds the energy to turn his head. Smiles wearily at her. 

:If we can constrain his options enough, provide the right incentives here, then perhaps even your father will come to agree on that. And if not, well, maybe we can at least get the rest of this goddamned star system unified on it: 

Pause. 

:- I would, at this point, actually be tempted to head straight for Earth. Speak to this Avasarala face to face; she seems - the most likely to react sensibly and update quickly. Unfortunately I am reliant on the Roci and its crew for transport, unless we feed enough to this protomolecule for it to Gate that range again, which I think Holden would object to: 

Well, the Roci's existence isn't a secret now, right, and Earth's going to be friendlier to them than Mars.

:Could you send him a message asking if he would take me - us, I suppose, if you are willing to come? You are more comfortable with comms than my staff: 

Also, Holden is probably a lot more warmly inclined to her than to Leareth, right now. 

Yeah, sure.

[Want to give me and Leareth a ride to Earth]

[Sure! Have you ever been to Niriept, I've been longing for a week's vacation there]

That's not a place. Julie squints confusedly at her screen for a minute, then 

[I'm not a hostage, Leareth was cool, but now that everything's public he wants to go talk to Avasarala.]

[To who?]

[Deputy Undersecretary of the UN?]

[I don't think she was on the ballot and I don't pay the government that much attention]

[Anyway we can come get you and Leareth]

[If you're sure it's not a ploy to steal the Roci]