Colossus and the Crab
Encyclopedia
Colossus and the Crab is a science fiction novel written in 1977 by the British author Dennis Feltham Jones
. It is the third and final volume in "The Colossus Trilogy" and a sequel to Jones's 1974 novel The Fall of Colossus
.
leaves off, with the supercomputer immobilized and the Martian
s arriving on Earth. They appear before Charles Forbin and his friend Edward Blake in the form of two black spheres, and quickly demonstrate vast intellect and powers of transformation and telepathy. After immobilizing Blake, they explain to Forbin their purpose in immobilizing Colossus — their desire to take half of the Earth's oxygen
, a process that will kill nearly a quarter of the human population. In order to proceed with construction of the "Collector" designed to harvest the oxygen, the Martians reactivate the parts of Colossus necessary to manage human society.
Though having no other option but to agree to the Martians' plan, Forbin continues to search for an alternative. He discovers in conversation with the Martians that their need for the oxygen is driven by the threat of radiation emanating from the Crab Nebula
, which will kill the Martians without the protection of an oxygenated atmosphere. As construction of the Collector proceeds, a humbled Blake proposes to Forbin that the old Colossus — the "parent" of the crippled system, be reactivated. With little other alternative, Forbin agrees.
Construction equipment controlled by Colossus soon complete work on the Collector. An initial five-minute test of the device proves enormously destructive. With a second, final test imminent, Blake travels to Colorado with Angela, Forbin's private secretary. Racing against time, Blake and a small team of workers succeeds in penetrating the mountain where the old Colossus is located and re-activating the computer, only to discover that, once imputed with the facts of the situation, Colossus argues that the collection program is in the best interests of humans' long-term future and should move forward.
Informed of the failure of their plan, Forbin watches the second test proceed. Upon its conclusion he embarks on a new plan. With his new secretary, a fervently devout woman named Joan, he flies to Portsmouth
and takes command of the battleship
s stationed there for the Sea War Games. Yet doing so puts him out of contact with Blake and the old Colossus, who informs Blake that a solution might exist that is acceptable to both the Martians and humanity. Regaining control of the nuclear arsenal, Colossus contacts the Martians, who inform it of Forbin's attempt to use the battleships to destroy the Collector. Though the Martians attempt to destroy the fleet using their device, they underestimate the power of the battleships' guns, which succeed in destroying the Collector.
Though the Martians are defeated Forbin dies in the process. He is buried by the reactivated Colossus, who reaches an agreement with the Martians. A smaller version of the Collector will extract the oxygen more gradually and sustainably; in return, humanity, with the guidance of Colossus, will retreat to Mars
once the Sun
has become a red giant
and destroys the Earth.
Dennis Feltham Jones
Dennis Feltham Jones was a British science fiction author who wrote under the byline D.F. Jones. He was a naval commander in World War II and lived in Cornwall....
. It is the third and final volume in "The Colossus Trilogy" and a sequel to Jones's 1974 novel The Fall of Colossus
The Fall of Colossus
The Fall of Colossus is a science fiction novel written in 1974 by the British author Dennis Feltham Jones. It is the second volume in the Colossus trilogy and a sequel to Jones' 1966 novel Colossus.-Plot summary:...
.
Plot summary
The novel begins where its predecessor, The Fall of ColossusThe Fall of Colossus
The Fall of Colossus is a science fiction novel written in 1974 by the British author Dennis Feltham Jones. It is the second volume in the Colossus trilogy and a sequel to Jones' 1966 novel Colossus.-Plot summary:...
leaves off, with the supercomputer immobilized and the Martian
Martian
As an adjective, the term martian is used to describe anything pertaining to the planet Mars.However, a Martian is more usually a hypothetical or fictional native inhabitant of the planet Mars. Historically, life on Mars has often been hypothesized, although there is currently no solid evidence of...
s arriving on Earth. They appear before Charles Forbin and his friend Edward Blake in the form of two black spheres, and quickly demonstrate vast intellect and powers of transformation and telepathy. After immobilizing Blake, they explain to Forbin their purpose in immobilizing Colossus — their desire to take half of the Earth's oxygen
Oxygen
Oxygen is the element with atomic number 8 and represented by the symbol O. Its name derives from the Greek roots ὀξύς and -γενής , because at the time of naming, it was mistakenly thought that all acids required oxygen in their composition...
, a process that will kill nearly a quarter of the human population. In order to proceed with construction of the "Collector" designed to harvest the oxygen, the Martians reactivate the parts of Colossus necessary to manage human society.
Though having no other option but to agree to the Martians' plan, Forbin continues to search for an alternative. He discovers in conversation with the Martians that their need for the oxygen is driven by the threat of radiation emanating from the Crab Nebula
Crab Nebula
The Crab Nebula is a supernova remnant and pulsar wind nebula in the constellation of Taurus...
, which will kill the Martians without the protection of an oxygenated atmosphere. As construction of the Collector proceeds, a humbled Blake proposes to Forbin that the old Colossus — the "parent" of the crippled system, be reactivated. With little other alternative, Forbin agrees.
Construction equipment controlled by Colossus soon complete work on the Collector. An initial five-minute test of the device proves enormously destructive. With a second, final test imminent, Blake travels to Colorado with Angela, Forbin's private secretary. Racing against time, Blake and a small team of workers succeeds in penetrating the mountain where the old Colossus is located and re-activating the computer, only to discover that, once imputed with the facts of the situation, Colossus argues that the collection program is in the best interests of humans' long-term future and should move forward.
Informed of the failure of their plan, Forbin watches the second test proceed. Upon its conclusion he embarks on a new plan. With his new secretary, a fervently devout woman named Joan, he flies to Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
and takes command of the battleship
Battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
s stationed there for the Sea War Games. Yet doing so puts him out of contact with Blake and the old Colossus, who informs Blake that a solution might exist that is acceptable to both the Martians and humanity. Regaining control of the nuclear arsenal, Colossus contacts the Martians, who inform it of Forbin's attempt to use the battleships to destroy the Collector. Though the Martians attempt to destroy the fleet using their device, they underestimate the power of the battleships' guns, which succeed in destroying the Collector.
Though the Martians are defeated Forbin dies in the process. He is buried by the reactivated Colossus, who reaches an agreement with the Martians. A smaller version of the Collector will extract the oxygen more gradually and sustainably; in return, humanity, with the guidance of Colossus, will retreat to Mars
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...
once the Sun
Sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...
has become a red giant
Red giant
A red giant is a luminous giant star of low or intermediate mass in a late phase of stellar evolution. The outer atmosphere is inflated and tenuous, making the radius immense and the surface temperature low, somewhere from 5,000 K and lower...
and destroys the Earth.
Principal characters
- Professor Charles Forbin — The Director of Staff for Colossus and his chief human representative.
- Doctor Edward Blake — The Director of Input for Colossus and a leader of the Fellowship.
- Angela — Forbin's secretary, who harbors a secret love for her boss.
- Joan — Angela's assistant, a member of the Sect, the organization that worships Colossus as God.
- The Martians — Two ancient beings of enormous intellect and power. Forbin discovers that they are, in fact, the Martian moons PhobosPhobos (moon)Phobos is the larger and closer of the two natural satellites of Mars. Both moons were discovered in 1877. With a mean radius of , Phobos is 7.24 times as massive as Deimos...
and DeimosDeimos (moon)Deimos is the smaller and outer of Mars's two moons . It is named after Deimos, a figure representing dread in Greek Mythology. Its systematic designation is '.-Discovery:Deimos was discovered by Asaph Hall, Sr...
.