Dawn

Lilith is in a room a little larger than a football field. There are bathrooms, food, and about 80 sleeping humans in the room, all under 50 and healthy. Nikanj set her up in the room, which mimics the light cycles of day and night. Lilith has dossiers about all the people and is trying to be strategic about which ones she’ll eventually choose to Awaken—she has to pick at least 40 of them. She is afraid, both for herself and for the other humans, who will become trading partners for the Oankali. Still, with the Oankali totally in control of the ship, Lilith figures the only hope for herself and the others is on Earth.

Lilith looks at a dossier and considers a Hungarian-American man named Victor Dominic. She likes him and thinks he seems clever based on his profile, but she’s afraid of Awakening him first because he might be able to outsmart her. Lilith looks at another profile—Leah Bede—who seems to be a quiet religious woman. Lilith likes her as a potential ally but also doesn’t want to Awaken her first. Next, Lilith is drawn to the profile of a man named Joseph Li-Chin Shing who is about 40 and seems unremarkable in most ways. Still, Lilith has doubts. She goes on to Celene Ivers, who spent most of her time awake crying about her dead family.

Lilith continues working through profile after profile. Curt Loeher was a cop in New York City. Derick Wolski was Australian and interested in nature photography. Gabriel Rinaldi was an actor who confused the Oankali by playing roles. Beatrice Dwyer was a very modest woman who only talked to the Oankali while fully clothed. At last, Lilith arrives at a woman named Tate Marah. She often gets bored at jobs and comes from a wealthy family. She attempted suicide twice but ultimately fought to survive in the wake of the war. Lilith thinks Marah could be helpful but not too dangerous. Lilith creates a room for Tate to inhabit. She goes to Tate’s plant and prepares to Awaken her. Tate is pale and has a childlike face, although she is 27.