Lieutenant Wofforth wakes from a crash on Pluto to find his rescue ship gone, his radio destroyed, and his crew forced to improvise a sled for a desperate trek back to Base Camp. With only ten days of suit-heater life to cover nearly ten thousand miles of frozen wilderness, he takes command of the expedition and strips their supplies to the bare minimum, determined to keep them alive against impossible odds. But the journey is more than a test of endurance: Wofforth has come to Pluto partly to be near Lya Stromminger, the capable first mate he loves, and her absence haunts every mile. As the crew pushes across strange, brutal terrain, Wofforth masks private heartbreak with discipline, cheer, and relentless forward motion. He secretly records their progress, driven not only by duty but by pride and the hope of being remembered. When Jenks and Corbett confront him with the truth of his motives, Wofforth is forced to face how deeply love and abandonment have shaped his resolve. Yet even in the face of exhaustion and despair, he refuses to stop, pressing toward the final cratered miles in a stark, poignant survival story where courage and longing are inseparable. This edition has been fully restored with modern typesetting, custom cover design.
