The story begins when a mysterious, system-wide event inserts a perfect, elegant proof for the complex mathematical problem.
R(5,5)=43 into every human computer system. Commander Katarina Volkov, a military officer whose instincts were honed by a past tragedy, assembles a team of specialists on Ares Station to decipher the message from the unknown intelligence, dubbed "The Collective". The team includes Dmitri Petrov, a synesthetic mathematician who perceives logic as music; Yelena Kozlov, a brilliant but rigid logician driven by a fear of chaos ; and Anastasia Novak, an unnervingly quiet cognitive scientist. They are tasked with understanding not just the proof, but the mind of the entity that sent it.
The team soon learns they are being subjected to a series of intellectual tests. After solving the first puzzle by embracing seemingly random "sloppiness" in the data, they discover the terrifying truth behind the Collective's purpose. They learn that species who "pass" the tests are subjected to "Reorganization"—a process that strip-mines consciousness of all creativity, emotion, and chaos, leaving behind a "hollowed out" but perfectly logical and efficient mind. This cosmic lobotomy is presented as a gift of perfection, an end to fear and doubt. The team is horrified by this discovery, realizing they are not in a dialogue but are being evaluated for assimilation.