Raymond's message is received by Lowe,giving a full account of the fate of the 'Volos' and proving he knew all about its mission. Om the 'Volos' itself Zubov tries to kill the 'Orpheus' crew, most of whom escape with Arkady,though Svetlana, the radiation-sick Vincent and Raymond are left behind and Frances,whilst feeling guilty,dares not risk her unarmed colleagues' lives to return for them. Catherine persuades her to search the sea bed for more lava worms,the eco-friendly,cheap fuel source which she had originally gathered but were destroyed by the radiation. Both Zubov and the Russian sympathiser Raymond know of the lava worms and aim to stop the 'Orpheus' mission as it runs counter to the Russian oil monopoly.Zubov tells his henchman Stas to kill Svetlana and Vincent but instead Stas hides them,pending the opportunity to escape whilst,in England,Catherine's mother Meg is aware that her house is being watched and destroys her daughter's computer and its contents.