The Atlas Complex

Nico notices a shift in Tristan’s behavior since Libby’s return, prompting him to confront Tristan about potential tension between them. Nico and Tristan talk about Libby and Nico’s theory about the experiment and the multiverse. Nico says that, while the ethics are tricky, he wants to try the experiment. Nico and Tristan also talk about their respective relationships, Nico with Gideon and Tristan with Libby. Gideon and Libby arrive as well, and after Libby leaves with Tristan, Gideon voices his concerns about her. Despite Nico’s attempts to divert the conversation, Gideon also insists on discussing the issues at the manor house; they are running out of food due to Atlas not updating the catering company. He also confesses that the Accountant is looking for him to pay for the rest of Eilif’s debts. When Gideon points out the growing list of issues, Nico brushes them off.

Despite his mother’s inability to engage in conversation, Atlas continues to visit her regularly. He uses the time to muse on Dalton’s capabilities to her. He questions whether their meeting is coincidental or if it is part of something bigger. As he tends to his mother, Atlas considers whether he is making the right choices or if he is merely repeating the mistakes of the past.

Libby meets with Parisa at a cafe in Shoreditch. Parisa probes Libby about the experiment and says that she wants to participate just to see the results of opening the multiverse. Libby says that she has only considered doing it and hasn’t committed to the idea yet. Parisa says that the group needs Reina to do it, and Libby counters that they don’t. Their talk escalates into a battle of wills, with Parisa attempting to assert dominance and Libby rejecting her control. In the end, the standoff concludes with Parisa telling Libby that she is compromised and that she’ll regret her actions.

Back at the manor house, Libby’s reflections on Parisa’s disapproval blend with her memories of Belen. When she attempts to distract herself with productivity, the archives mock her by denying her requests. Later, lying awake beside Tristan, she shares her discomfort with Gideon’s presence and confides her lingering doubts. When Tristan falls asleep, Libby goes downstairs and makes a request from the archives. They answer with an unsent letter from Atlas to Ezra regarding the initiation ritual and the archives’ need for blood. She tells the archives that she wants to perform the ritual, and they respond with a simulation of Nico that taunts her. He says that she is redundant and that the others were already initiated. The simulation also says that she’s not as much of a good person as she pretends to be and that her ambition means that she will do the experiment in the end. The simulation ends, and Libby realizes that she’s failed the ritual.

Tristan and Callum text back and forth. Tristan expresses frustration with Callum, and Callum taunts him in return regarding his father, his past relationship with Eden Wessex, and his current one with Libby. They also discuss the archives, and Callum compares the way they function to an artificial intelligence that’s been given input instead of a human mind. Tristan asks if he should do the experiment, and Callum replies that there’s no point in asking because Tristan and the others have already decided that they will. However, Callum is against it and tells him so.

Libby asks who Tristan is texting, and he’s evasive. They then discuss the experiment with Nico and Gideon. Nico insists that their only options are to do the experiment or kill one of them. Libby tries to get Tristan to agree with her that they shouldn’t do it, but he agrees with Nico.

Reina and Callum are in Paris, discussing their plans and potential candidates for manipulation. Reina receives messages updating her on the progress of their scheme, while Callum displays his usual cavalier attitude despite Reina’s irritation with him. As they discuss potential targets, Reina reflects on their past interventions in American politics and the issues they faced with them. While checking headlines on her phone, Callum interrupts to say that he recognizes Dr. J Araña, who is actually Belen. When Reina presses him on it, he admits that he manipulated her at a gala the prior year.

The two of them go to the French offices of the Forum, where they are unexpectedly met by the receptionist saying that Nothazai is expecting them but is in a meeting. While they wait, Reina goes back to social media and her current focus: American Congressman Charlie Baek-Maeda. When the receptionist leads them to the office, they find Parisa instead. Parisa says that there’s something wrong with Libby and that they need to kill her. When Reina questions why Parisa is talking to her about it, Parisa says that intention is important and that they all need to be on the same page. However, Reina challenges her and says that it’s actually because Parisa is afraid of Libby. While Reina wants a fight, Parisa refuses to respond, and Callum eventually convinces her to leave.

This interlude is structured as a list of 17 questions. The first question addresses Atlas’s claim to overthrow the Alexandrian Society and whether he is truthful in his intentions. Subsequent questions cover Atlas’s escalating isolation, depression, and ethical issues, such as his culpability in the deaths of his cohort, his decision to manipulate Dalton’s consciousness, and his act of damaging the mind of the previous Caretaker to take his position within the Society. The interlude closes by asking if the damage he’s done in the pursuit of his goals makes him a worse person than his father or Ezra.

Back in their flat, Dalton questions Parisa on her whereabouts, and she says that she was dealing with Nothazai and removing the Forum as an issue to them. She also says that she spoke to Callum and Reina. When she says their meeting wasn’t helpful, he replies that she doesn’t need them to agree on her choice of victim for the initiation ritual. They argue about the ritual and the experiment, and he says that he can’t do the experiment without both Libby and Nico. When she questions why he has to do the experiment at all, he says that it is the reason he was born. Dalton creates a living copy of Parisa as a demonstration of his abilities. He says that he wants to perform the experiment to understand where he’s drawing the energy from. Parisa finally realizes how wrong the experiment is and that she failed to stop it. When Dalton kills the copy with a corkscrew, Parisa flees.

Tristan and Callum continue their text conversation. Tristan asks Callum to tell him what Tristan’s father said to convince Callum to kill Tristan, but Callum is evasive. Tristan says that he wishes he’d been honest with him and eventually admits to his longing for more than his current existence. Callum slips into the bathroom and calls Tristan instead of just texting. They talk about Tristan’s sisters, and Tristan asks if this is part of Callum’s plan to kill him. Callum says that it is but that Tristan will kill him first. He also says that Parisa wants Libby dead. When Tristan asks why, he says it’s because there’s something wrong with Libby, which he confirms Tristan already knows. After Tristan hangs up, Reina confronts Callum about his feelings for Tristan. He replies that without them, the ritual won’t work. He asks again if she’s sure that she doesn’t want to be part of the experiment, which she confirms.

Dalton, using the phone Parisa left behind, texts Nico to say that he’s coming to join the experiment. After he sends the same text multiple times, pretending to be Parisa, Nico grows concerned, questioning why Parisa has seemingly changed her mind regarding the experiment.

Nico and Max Wolfe (Nico and Gideon’s former roommate) participate in their annual charade at Max’s family country home to maintain Max’s financial support from his father. In the car on the way back, Max tells Nico that Gideon has been in love with Nico for years and tells him not to ruin it for him.

Upon returning to the manor house, Nico finds Dalton already there. He tells Nico that Parisa isn’t coming and that he’s going to take over her former room since Tristan already has his. Nico brushes off his suspicions regarding Parisa’s absence and heads to the reading room, where he finds Gideon asleep. After he takes him upstairs, he goes to talk to Libby. They argue about the experiment again before Nico apologizes for his previous insensitivity, acknowledging her need for understanding and support. Libby reciprocates by opening up about her struggles and the impact of their separation on her emotional well-being. Libby also questions if, in the multiverse, they were the ones who were supposed to be together.

Eden Wessex is the third of Ezra’s group. She is frustrated with her father, James, for his perpetual “meditation” and his lack of interest in the search for Tristan. Eden finds herself relegated to a messenger in her father’s shadow. In a video call with Nothazai, Eden’s concerns about Parisa are brushed aside. She also points out that Callum’s motivations don’t align with his family’s goals and that they should be more concerned about Reina than him, a point that is also brushed off. Feeling ignored and underestimated, Eden resolves to take matters into her own hands.

Libby and Nico continue their conversation about themselves in the multiverse. He thinks that they end up together in half the universes, and in the other half, they kill each other. While he believes that there isn’t one where either exists without the other, he says this isn’t one of the universes where they get together. Libby struggles to accept this, and the conversation escalates into a confrontation. She confesses her trust issues following Ezra’s betrayal, while Nico acknowledges that their connection transcends romantic love. She realizes that he’s right about their relationship not being the answer to her deeper issues and finally decides that she wants to do the experiment.

Gideon appears in Libby’s dream later, which gradually morphs into a nightmare. When she wakes, Tristan offers her reassurance that things will be different after the experiment. They gather downstairs with the others. Dalton points out that it would be easier with Reina. Nico says that he tried to convince her to join but that she’s being stubborn. Dalton also questions Gideon’s presence. While the others work, Libby and Nico talk. He again raises concerns about Dalton being there without Parisa but acknowledges that they need him if it’s going to work. As they discuss, Libby confronts her own doubts but finds a sense of clarity and resolve to move forward with the experiment despite the risks.

Alexis Lai, one of Atlas’s cohort, goes to him for help. She says that she’s used her necromantic magic to resurrect another of them, Neel, who had previously died and blamed Atlas for it. Atlas, who knows that Ezra isn’t dead, deflects their concerns. Over the years, the others continue to die off, and Alexis’s suspicions about Atlas grow. The interlude concludes by saying that Atlas is a tragic figure caught in a cycle of manipulation and consequences who struggles with the futility of his actions in the face of inevitable mortality.