Earth treats Luna as a warehouse for transported bodies and grain, while generations of lived relations have already made it a society entitled to govern itself.

A crushed meeting gives the revolution urgency, but secret cells and Mike’s manufactured support can protect action while also bypassing public authorization.

The awakened computer develops humor and attachment, yet its unmatched control of infrastructure and public appearance gives it political power without a visible office.

Luna’s mass driver can deter invasion, but targeting a planet from afar risks converting civilians into leverage over the authority that governs them.

The revolution’s flexible trust networks cannot by themselves protect dissenters, newcomers, and the weak once a common enemy no longer disciplines the victors.