Four Times Ten to the Ninth Power A.D.; The Big House Summary

Diane and Tyler are in a hotel in Padang, Indonesia. They are looking at the Archway on the horizon, a magnificent bridge-like structure that rises high from the Indian Ocean and into the sky. Tyler reflects on his past and worries about the possibility of losing some of his memory to the recovery process. He concludes that he should start writing down his story from memory while he is undergoing the treatment. They both sit on the hotel bed and Diane injects a liquid in Tyler's arm.

On a chilly October night, Tyler Dupree and his two friends, the thirteen-year-old twins Diane and Jason Lawton, are sitting on a lawn discussing their relative knowledge of the stars, along with other more...