From Africa to Mars

Meanwhile, Mafuro Mwanda becomes the first female president of the now unified African continent. She promises the world to take Africa to Mars in a decade and begins by making radical changes at the African Space Agency. Soon after, scientists discover that on the surface of the red planet lay the largest deposit of an incredibly potent mineral - sankerite.

Mafuro will do everything to make the continent a forerunner in the space race; getting the Sankerite before other world powers would also be an added benefit. Like the burden of Atlas, Mafuro's plans fall heavily on Fotso's shoulders. He is to lead an all-African team to Mars for the sankerite deposits. Before long, his daughter is born with a disease that can only be cured by sankerite. He becomes a desperate man.

When an experimental space shuttle explodes on re-entry, millions of people begin to protest the Mars mission. We should focus on repairing the earth, they said. Meanwhile, China and the United States form an alliance to develop a new generation of vessels, an unexpected move to secure a pole position in the new space race.

With the rest of the world at their heels and dissenting citizens at their throats, will Fotso save his daughter and take the continent up to Mars?