In shock after her firsthug, Aster buries her feelings as she and Halan prepare for QTA Manager Coley to arrive on the beacon. Coley immediately distrusts Halan and sees him as a threat, forcing Aster to make a tough decision.
Aster and Halan become obsessed with learning more about The Artifact, when an organization known as The Column arrives at the beacon and reveals even more connections. The weight of this knowledge turns out to be too much for one of our heroes.