Project Hail Mary Quotes

“Be careful,' says Rocky. 'You are friend now.'

'Thanks,' I say. 'You are friend also.'

'Thank.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“Adjust orbit while stupid. Good plan.'

I snicker. 'New word: "sarcasm." You say opposite of true meaning to make point. Sarcasm.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“You observe, question?' he asks again.
'No.'
'Observe.'
'You want me to observe you sleep?'
'Yes. Want want want.'
Through unspoken agreement, a tripled word means extreme emphasis.
'Why?'
'I sleep better if you observe.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“Yes!' I press my knuckles against the tunnel wall. 'Fist-bump!'

'What, question?'

I rap the tunnel again. 'This. Do this.'

He emulates my gesture against the wall opposite my hand.

'Celebration!' I say.

'Celebration!”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“I was only off by one percent,' I grumble.
'You talk to you, question?'
'Yes! I'm talking to me.'
'Humans are unusual.'
'Yes,' I say.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“It's a simple idea, but also stupid. Thing is, when stupid ideas work, they become genius ideas. We'll see which way this one falls.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“Rocky cocks his carapace. 'Hey, your face is leaking! I haven't seen that in a long-ass time! Remind me- does that mean you're happy or sad? 'Cause it can mean either one, right?'

'I'm happy, of course!' I sob.

'Yeah. I thought so. Just checking.' He holds a balled claw against the xenonite. 'Is this a fist-bump situation?'

I press my knuckles to the xenonite as well. 'This is a monumentally epic fist-bump situation.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“I've gone from "sole-surviving space explorer" to "guy with wacky new roommate." It'll be interesting to see how this plays out.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“Yes. I have much Astrophage. My ship was more efficient than planned on trip here. You can have two million kilograms.'

I fall back in to my seat. I pant. I almost hyperventilate. My eyes well up. 'Oh my God...'

'No understand.'

I wipe away tears.

'You are okay, question?'

'Yes!' I sob. 'Yes, I'm okay. Thank you! Thank you thank you!'

'I am happy. You no die. Let's save planets!'

I break down, crying tears of joy. I'm going to live!”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“I'm all wired up, but if I don't go to sleep soon, Rocky will start hassling me. Sheesh- you almost ruin a mission one time and all of a sudden you have an alien-enforced bedtime.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“I guess this is it,' I say.

'It is time, ' he says. 'We go save homeworlds now.'

'Yeah.'

'Your face is leaking.'

I wipe my eyes. 'Human thing. Don't worry about it.'

'Understand.' He pushes himself along to the airlock door. He opens it and pauses there. 'Goodbye, friend Grace.'

I wave meekly. 'Goodbye, friend Rocky.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“Oh thank God. I can't imagine explaining "sleep" to someone who has never heard of it. Hey, I'm going to fall unconscious and hallucinate for a while. By the way, I spend a third of my time doing this. And if I can't do it for a while, I go insane and eventually die. No need for concern.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“Your ship has more science that my ship. Better science. I bring my things in to your ship. Release tunnel. You make your ship spin for science. You and me science how to kill Astrophage together. Save Earth. Save Erid. This is good plan, question?”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“You sleep. Human no function well after no sleep. EVA dangerous. Sleep first. EVA next.'

I roll my eyes. 'All right, all right.'

He points back to my bunk. 'Sleep.'

'Yes, Mom.'

'Sarcasm. You sleep. I watch.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“Hey. What's your ship's name, anyway?'

'Blip-A.'

'No, I mean. What do you call it?'

'Ship.'

'Your ship has no name?'

'Why would ship have name, question?'

'I shrugged. 'Ships have names.'

He points to my pilot's seat. 'What is name of you chair, question?'

'It doesn't have a name.'

'Why does ship have name but chair no have name, question?'

'Never mind. Your ship is the Blip-A.'

'That is what I said. Flash in ten seconds.'

'Copy.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“Rocky!'

A crackle. My ears perk up.

'Rocky?!'

'Grace, question?'

'Yes!' I've never been so happy to hear a few musical notes! 'Yeah, buddy! It's me!'

'You are here, question?!' his voice is so high-pitched I can barely understand him. But I understand Eridian pretty well now.

'Yes! I'm here!'

'You are...' he squeaks. 'You...' he squeaks again. 'You are here!'

'Yes! Set up the airlock tunnel!'

'Warning! Taumoeba-82.5 is-'

'I know! I know. It can get through xeonite. That's why I'm here. I knew you'd be in trouble.'

'You save me!'

'Yes. I caught the Taumoeba in time. I still have fuel. Set up the tunnel. I'm taking you to Erid.'

'You save me and you save Erid!' he squeaks.

'Set up the damn tunnel!'

'Get back in you ship! Unless you want to look at tunnel from outside!'

'Oh, right!”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“Settled.' He puts his claw against the divider. 'Fist my bump.'

I laugh and put my knuckles against the xenonite. 'Fist-bump. It's just "fist-bump."'

'Understand.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“I roll around to see Rocky hovering over me. Not in his compartment. He's in the control room!

He has slashed my restraints and pulled the chair free. He shoves it to the side.

He stands over me, wobbling. I can feel the heat radiating from his body just inches away. Smoke billows out of the radiator slits atop his carapace.

His knees buckle and he collapses on to the screen next to me, destroying it. The LCD unit blacks out and the plastic bezel melts.

I see a trail of smoke leading up the tunnel to the lab and beyond.

'Rocky!' What have you done?'

The crazy bastard must have used the large airlock in the dormitory! He came in to my partition to save me. And he'll die because of it!

He shivers and folds his legs under himself.

'Save... Earth... save... Erid...' he quavers. Then he slumps down.

'Rocky!' I grab his carapace without thinking. It's like putting my hands on a burner. I jerk away. 'Rocky... no...'

But he is motionless.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“Right now, we're soft. You, me, the whole Western world. We're the result of growing up in unprecedented comfort and stability. It's the kids of today that'll have to make the world of tomorrow work. And they're going to inherit a mess.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“Good good. Enough talk. Check breeder tanks, please.'

'Yeah, yeah. Let me get some water first.'

He bounces and skitters down his tube to the lab. 'Why humans need water so much, question? Inefficient life-forms!'

...

'Eiridians need water too, you know.'

'We keep inside. Closed system. Some inefficiencies inside, but we get all water we need from food. Humans leak! Gross!'

I laugh as I float in to the lab where Rocky is waiting. 'On Earth, we have a scary, deadly creature called a spider. You look like one of those, just so you know.'

'Good. Proud. I am scary space monster. You are leaky space blob.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“You told me not to talk about that in polite company.'

'I'm not polite company, my friend!”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“Sample device radio signal strong.' Rocky says. 'Getting closer. Be ready.'

'I'm ready.'

'Be very ready.'

'I am very ready. Be calm.'

'Am calm. You be calm.'

'No, you be cal- wait. I see the sampler!”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“Mechanical suffocation, it’s called. It’s how boa constrictors kill their prey. What an odd thing to think as my last thought.

Sorry, Earth, I think. There. Much better last thought.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“Rocky admonished me for leaving the sample at (human) room temperature for so long. He had a lot to say on that subject, actually. We had to add “reckless,” “idiot,” “foolish,” and “irresponsible” to our shared vocabulary just so he could fully express his opinion on the matter.

There was another word he threw around a lot, but he declined to tell me what it meant.

Three days off the painkillers and I'm a lot smarter than I was. At least he understands that much- I wasn't just some stupid human. I was a human with enhanced stupidity.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“,,, It's been a hard day. Night. Whatever. A hard day's night.' I lie back in the bunk, and pull the blanket over me.

'That sentence make no sense.'

'It's an Earth saying. From a song.' I close my eyes and mumble. '...and I've been working like a dog...”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“This is waste of time. Also waste of my food.'

'I need to know if I can eat your food.'

'Eat your own food.'

'I've only got a few months of real food left. You have enough aboard your ship to feed a crew of twenty-three Eridians for years. Erid life and Earth life use the same proteins. Maybe I can eat your food.'

'Why you say "real food", question? What is non-real food, question?'

I checked the readout again. Why does Eridian food have so many heavy metals in it? 'Real food is food that tastes good. Food that's fun to eat.'

'You have not-fun food, question?'

'Yeah. Coma slurry. The ship fed it to me during the trip here. I have enough to last me almost four years.'

'Eat that.'

'It tastes bad.'

'Food experience not that important.'

'Hey,' I point at him. 'To humans, food experience is very important.'

'Humans strange.'

I point at the spectrometer readout screen. 'Why does Eridian food have thallium in it?'

'Healthy.'

'Thallium kills humans!'

'Then eat human food.'

'Ugh.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“This is happy! Your face opening is in sad mode. Why, question?'

'Going to be a long trip and I'll be all alone.'
...
'You will miss me, question? I will miss you. You are friend.'

'Yeah. I'm going to miss you.' I take another swig of vodka. 'You're my friend. Heck, you're my best friend. And pretty soon we're going to say goodbye forever.'

He two tapped gloved claws together. They made a muffled sound instead of the usual click that comes along with the dismissive gesture. 'Not forever. We save planets. Then we have Astrophage technology. Visit each other.'

I give a wry smile. 'Can we do all that within fifty Earth years?

'Probably not. Why so fast, question?'

'I only have fifty years or so left to live. Human's don't'- I hiccup- 'don't live long, remember?'

'Oh.' He's quiet for a moment. 'So we enjoy remaining time together, then go save planets. Then we are heroes!'

'Yeah!' I straighten up. I'm a little dizzy now. I've never been much of a drinker, and I'm hitting this vodka harder than I should. 'We're the moss imporn't people in the gal'xy! We're awesome!'

He grabs a nearby wrench and raises it in one of his hands. 'To us!'

I raise the vodka. 'To ush!”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“... his body language is sheer joy.

He bounces from handhold to handhold.

'I am very very very happy.' he says with a high pitch.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“Good good,' he says. 'I make sure my people take good care of you. They will make Astrophage maybe for you to go home!'

'Yeah...' I say. 'About that... I'm not going home. The beetles will save Earth. But I won't ever see it again.'

His joyous bouncing stops. 'Why, question?'

'I don't have enough food. After I take you back to Erid, I will die.'

'You... you can no die.' His voice gets low. 'I no let you die. We send you home. Erid will be grateful. You save everyone. We do everything to save you.'

'There's nothing you can do,' I say. 'There's no food. I have enough to last until we get to Erid and then a few months more. Even if your government gave me the Astrophage to get home, I wouldn't survive the trip.'

'Eat Erid food. We evolve from same life. We use same proteins. Same chemicals. Same sugars. Must work!'

'No, I can't eat your food, remember?'

'You say is bad for you. We find out.'

I hold up my hands. 'It's not just bad for me. It will kill me. Your whole ecology uses heavy metals all over the place. Most of them are toxic to me. I'd die immediately.'

He trembles. 'No. You can no die. You are friend.'

I float closer to the divider wall and talk softly. 'It's okay. I made my decision. This is the only way to save both of our worlds.'

He backs away. 'Then you go home. Go home now. I wait here. Erid maybe send another ship someday.'

'That's ridiculous. Do you really want to risk the survival of your entire species on that guess?'

He's silent for a few moments and finally answers. 'No.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary

“I know,' he says, titling his carapace in what I've come to realise is a smile.”
― Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary