"Blue Shift" is the tenth story chronologically to appear in Stephen Baxter's collection of linked stories anthology novel ''

Vacuum Diagrams ''Vacuum Diagrams'' is a collection of science fiction short stories by British writer Stephen Baxter. The collection connects the novels of the Xeelee Sequence and also shows the history of mankind in the Xeelee universe, and ultimately the u ...

''. "Blue Shift" was originally published in ''

Writers of the Future Writers of the Future (WOTF) is a science fiction and fantasy story contest that was established by L. Ron Hubbard in the early 1980s. A sister contest, Illustrators of the Future, presents awards for science fiction art. Hubbard characterized th ...

'' volume 5 in 1989.

Plot summary

Set in A.D. 5406, the story begins on an

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

that has been occupied by the Qax, an

amorphous In condensed matter physics and materials science, an amorphous solid (or non-crystalline solid, glassy solid) is a solid that lacks the long-range order that is characteristic of a crystal. Etymology The term comes from the Greek ''a'' ("wi ...

lifeform that profits from information and technology trade, for four centuries. Jim Bolder, a space pilot on the run from creditors, accepts an assignment from the Qax through a human intermediary to determine just what the Xeelee are constructing at the center of the

local supercluster The Virgo Supercluster (Virgo SC) or the Local Supercluster (LSC or LS) is a mass concentration of galaxies containing the Virgo Cluster and Local Group, which itself contains the Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies, as well as others. At least ...

. Bolder is provided with a Xeelee nightfighter that can travel faster than light. As Bolder in the nightfighter approaches the

Great Attractor The Great Attractor is a gravitational anomaly in intergalactic space and the apparent central gravitational point of the Laniakea Supercluster. The observed anomalies suggest a localized concentration of mass millions of times more massive than ...

, he discovers the Xeelee are constructing a massive ring from its matter, which they intend to use to flee the universe itself. The gravity from the ring pulled galaxies from all over the universe, and their light is blue-shifted, hence the title. But the Qax will not allow this information to be released, intending to keep it—and a possible defense against the Xeelee—for their own profit. Bolder dodges the Qax and launches a "starbreaker" that will gradually cause the Qax homeworld's sun to go

nova A nova (plural novae or novas) is a transient astronomical event that causes the sudden appearance of a bright, apparently "new" star (hence the name "nova", which is Latin for "new") that slowly fades over weeks or months. Causes of the dramati ...

, requiring them to divert their resources from the occupation of Earth, liberating the planet. 1989 short stories Short stories by Stephen Baxter {{1980s-sf-story-stub