A summary of Sergei Lukyanenko’s "Threshold"

This book is a science fiction novel published in 2019. The plot describes a paradox in the development of intelligence. Most civilizations inevitably destroy themselves in wars. They perish before reaching the fifth level of development and reaching deep space. Only six races were able to overcome this barrier. They united in the Accord. The series of deaths of young worlds is no coincidence. The powerful Rax race suspects artificial interference in the history of the galaxy.

The work won the Russian literary prize "RosCon" in 2020. The book won the nomination for best novel.

The Shadow of War on Sorgos

The events begin on the planet Sorgos. The local civilization has reached the brink of global conflict. Two factions are divided by hair color — black and red. Former missileman Ian serves in the Thunder launcher division. Commander Sark awaits the order to launch ballistic missiles. Suddenly, giant glowing wings appear in the sky. The soldiers fall to their knees, taking the glow as a sign from God. The launch is canceled. Ian returns to civilian life. He works as a physics teacher and begins living with sociologist Adian. Adian is certain that war is inevitable. The herbivorous nature of the local humanoids breeds fear of outsiders and overpopulation.

This phenomenon was accidentally triggered by the human spacecraft Twain. The ship’s commander, Valentin Gorchakov, activated protective reflectors during a magnetic storm. The radiation created the illusion of angel wings in the sky of Sorgos.

Valentin Gorchakov takes command of the new corvette Twain. He assembles a proven crew. Matthias Hofmeister becomes first mate. Günther Waltz is in charge of weapons. Lev Sokolovsky takes over as ship’s doctor. Anna Meger is in charge of flight control. At CosmoCity Station, Anna Meger and three cadets are late for a passenger liner because they’re shopping for shoes. Anna convinces Valentin to take them on the Twain. Theodore Squad is a brilliant systems administrator working with the artificial intelligence Mark. Alex Johansson is a genetically modified navigator. Lucia D’Amico becomes a life support systems specialist.

Expedition to Newar

The Twain embarks on a scientific mission to the Nevar system. Nevar surprises scientists. Two different civilizations coexist peacefully in the same star system. Humanoids and cat-like felinoids live on neighboring planets. Together, they build the first interstellar ship, the Druzhba (Friendship).

Four scientists board the Twain. Basil Nicholson studies the Nevar culture. Meili Wang researches felinoids. Walr introduces the Hull-3 race of furry moles. Walr suffers from induced claustrophobia, jokes about the fairy tale Thumbelina, and eats candies made from bug juice. The fourth researcher is the mysterious Xenia of the Rax race. Xenia holds the status of "Third-Out." The Rax forbid more than three individuals from leaving their planet. The emissary uses the synthetic body of a beautiful Earth woman. Xenia begins an affair with Matthias. Walr gets into an argument with Xenia. He predicts the destruction of the Rax civilization in seven months.

In orbit around the planet Laskovaya, the Druzhba (Friendship) is being assembled. Ange, a human, and Kridi, a cat, are working on the engineering team. Ange accidentally drops a plastic clamp into a long waveguide. Kridi crawls through a pipe and retrieves the debris. The cat saves Ange from a court martial. Later, Kridi forces the old engineer Tnak to abandon the mission. Ange receives a place on the interstellar ship. The friends share a strong bond. Kitties call this type of relationship a "tra-marriage" — a platonic union. Kitty physiology requires emotional attachment for conceiving offspring. Kridi asks Ange to be present during intercourse with the young cat Linge. Ange agrees to help her friend. The crew of humans and kitties initiates the warp drive. The ship departs for the star Sorgos.

Distorted history

On Sorgos, the fragile peace collapses. The capital is hit by a nuclear strike. Jan, Adian, and two teenagers flee into the snowy mountains. Refugees try to steal their concentrated food. Adian shoots the leader of the attackers. Later, the refugee children find the dead soldiers’ weapons. They throw incendiary grenades at Jan’s house. Jan returns fire with an automatic rifle into the darkness, accidentally killing three children. The family continues their arduous journey through the cold mountain passes.

The Twain emerges from a wormhole in the Nevar system. The crew witnesses a horrific scene. The humanoid and felinoid planets are waging a war of annihilation. Eighteen human ships and fifteen feline ships are battling in orbit. The peaceful dual civilization no longer exists.

Ksenia contacts Rax Station. Observer Prima allows the Twain to board. At the station, the scientists are met by Prima, a "kitty," and a humanoid of the Feol race. A thinking parasite, Two Hundred and Sixty-Five, lives in Feol’s head. Prima explains the mechanism of spatial displacement. If a material object is located at the point of invisibility exit, it is erased from the history of the universe forever. Prima suspects that the recent displacement has erased an important item from Nevar’s past.

Basil Nicholson checks his isolated archives. In the new timeline, a tiny meteorite pierced the hull of the Uragan 8 test ship. Astronaut Natris died. This accident caused Natris’s brother to resign. Command of the first contact mission passed to the aggressive Captain Laws. Laws disrupted the signing of a treaty for the joint exploration of the planet Laskovaya. The civilizations began an endless war. The ill-fated meteorite is now a memorial in front of the Space Defense Center on the humanoid planet.

Landing on the planet

The team is tasked with removing the meteorite from reality. Valentin, Gunther, and Ksenia descend to the planet in the disc-shaped Rax cutter. They land in the forest near a military center. A girl from the Heavenly Guard named Ange finds the invisible ship. Prima burns out the flyer’s equipment with a powerful electromagnetic pulse. Ange grabs a rocket-propelled grenade and runs to headquarters.

A trio of saboteurs in brightly colored local clothing reaches the memorial. A one-armed veteran and his wife lay flowers at the stone. Valentin takes the bouquet. The commander cuts out a meteorite with a power knife. A patrol notices the theft. Guards fire electric tasers. Ksenia returns fire with a plasma pistol. The charges tear the soldiers into bloody pieces. The retreat turns into a violent clash. Angel opens fire with a rocket launcher. A miniature rocket cripples Gunther’s arm. The fugitives board a boat and launch into space.

Restoring reality

At the station, Prima reveals a terrifying truth. Rax is recording similar historical changes across the galaxy. An unknown force is deliberately destroying civilizations before they reach deep space. Prima intends to use her ship to erase the stolen meteorite from time. This action will cancel the current reality. Prima herself and the corvette Twain, which has arrived here, will also disappear.

The station’s automation suddenly attacks the local Twain. The ship crumbles to dust. The station is programmed to enforce the law regarding three Rax specimens outside the homeworld. The fourth specimen was a security threat. Valentin Gorchakov orders his ship to enter the wormhole. Inside the spatial channel, they are isolated from time changes.

Prima leaps into the past. The meteorite disappears. History returns to its original course. Natris survives the fall. Captain Prax signs the treaty. The kitties and the humanoids unite.

The interstellar ship Druzhba successfully completes its flight. Engineer Ange and her friend Kridi prepare to enter orbit around a new star. On the snowy Sorgos Pass, Ian and Adian look up at the night sky. They see a bright moving dot. Nevar’s ship brings hope to a dying world.