Deeper Darker

Book 2: Chapter 9: Slow Motion

Fourth Quadrant.

VendX Depot 4.

Central Authority Vessel Nirvana.

Ubik rubbed the bridge of his nose and blinked hard to get rid of the stars spinning around his head. Not real stars, just the aftermath of slamming into the wall. Breathe out, PT had told him. Now that he thought about it, youd have to breathe out very hard to stop yourself in weightless flight down a corridor.

You okay? said PT.

Ubik managed to swivel around and found himself facing a pair of knees. He flapped his arms to try and right himself, but only managed to swivel around to face the wall again.

This whole moving under your own power concept was turning out to be very tiring. Humanity had evolved beyond this, surely. Machines made it possible for people to go beyond the limitations of hands and feet. He would have to build something to avoid this sort of thing happening in the future.

He was suddenly moving, unceremoniously kicked by the king of the space swingers. PT stopped him spinning with his foot, a smug look on his face.

I blew my lungs out, said Ubik. I still crashed into the wall. Is my nose bleeding?

No, said PT. I was kidding.

Ohhh, said Ubik. You were kidding. Were in the middle of a fight for our lives, and you decided it was time to debut the PointTwo comedy show. Nice.

PT smiled. You get quite grumpy when you cant cause any trouble.

You think I cant cause trouble from here? said Ubik, pleased to see PT flinch.

The ship shook again.

Now what? said Ubik.

Thats a clamp, said PT. Means we cant run off while they try to open the doors. He was the spaceman here, so he would know how you boarded a ship.

They wont do that until someone higher up arrives to take the credit, said Ubik. VendX never let lowbies collect the big prizes. Theyll send someone in a nice suit to come pick us up.

Okay, said PT. More time is good, right? Which way now?

Ubik looked around. There were three passages in a Yshape, all looking exactly the same.

I got a bit turned around, which way did we come from?

We came from there. Its either this one or that one." PT pursed his lips. How can you spot a hidden access panel with your eyes closed but you cant remember which way you just came from?

How is that the same? said Ubik, turning and pushing off the wall.

Are you sure this is the way? said PT. Or are you guessing.

Why cant it be both? said Ubik, although the main reason he chose this direction was because he happened to be pointing in it and it would be too much effort to turn around. Anyway, its not about how things look, its the vibe they give off. Theres no He made circles with his fingers but he could see from PTs blank expression that he wasnt getting through. Its all even and balanced here.

Sorry, said PT, shaking his head as he soared past Ubik bouncing off the walls. I cant fathom your Null Void ways.

How many times do I have to tell you, theres nothing special about being null and void. The clues in the description.

You managed to work out the alien tech on this ship without breaking a sweat, said PT, turning to face him as he continued to float along backwards. Dont tell me theres nothing weird about that.

Theres isnt. And it isnt alien tech, its hybrid, mixed with ours and built by the Central Authority. It wasnt that hard to figure out, at least not the basics. It follows the same progression all tronics do. You know, one, two, four

What happened to three?

Ignore prime numbers, theyre just attentionseeking trash.

PTs forehead creased. And whats after four? Sixteen?

Ubik rolled his eyes. What did they teach you on that ship of yours? On-the-go astrology? Its a wonder you didnt end up diving into the nearest star. What Im saying is that the CA had to dumb it down to use the Antecessor tech. Im sure the original version would be incomprehensible, but this version is just patched together with duct tape, relatively speaking. The problem with letting AI run the show is that they lack imagination.

Yeah, said PT. Tezla said something similar.

Oh, whispering galactic secrets into your ear, was she? Poor woman must have got very lonely out in the First Quadrant. Look at this. Ubik pointed at the wall.

PT stopped and came back to where Ubik was pointing. What am I supposed to be looking at?

The wall. The panels.

Yes. I can see them.

They dont look different to you?

Different to what?

There really was no helping some people. These panels have been neutralised. The colours different from this side, isnt it? Ubik pointed at the opposite wall.

Theyre both white, said PT.

No, theyre not, said Ubik. This side must be the outer wall of the ship. It took the brunt of the energy beam VendX used. They used the fact the ship works as an integrated module to cascade the effect.

What effect? said PT.

The ship, its not working, but were still okay. Breathing, seeing. They must have spent a lot of time and money researching the CA so theyd have the perfect weapons to deal with a ship like this. Its very impressive.

I have no idea what youre going on about, Ubik.

They cant destroy a CA ship, it would set off all sorts of alarms. But they can turn everything down.

Tune it down?

Yes, not turn it off, turn it down, like with the volume on a radio. You cant hear it, but its still on. They reduced the ship to its lowest operational level and slowed it to what looks like a full stop.

But its still going? said PT, looking around like he was seeing something new. Youre right. If the ship was dead wed see a lot more open doors. I should have realised

At least PT was quick on the pickup. He knew what happened on a ship once systems went down. The CAs own rules came into effect. Access to all vital supplies. But this ship was still closed and private.

And because the ship is a series of symbiotic cells, said Ubik, affect one, affect all. Youve got to hand it to VendX, its a beautiful job. Not like them at all. They must have been researching this stuff for years. Decades. And then they use it now. On us. Its impressive and flattering.

Dont look so pleased with yourself. Theyre just very keen on killing you.

No, I dont think so, said Ubik. They wouldnt go to these lengths to kill someone. No, this is more important than life and death, this is business. They know Fig found something that could revolutionise their business model, change the face of galactic commerce. Only, hes Ramon Ollos son, so they cant get to him. But they know I was in the simulation, too. They want to get hold of me and then rip the information out of my brain. Probably do it at their new complex in the Second Quadrant. Thats where they have their R&D facility. Ive always wanted to visit but never had the time. Plus, they rank first in evil among the top one hundred corporations, there was a poll. Won by a landslide, mostly due to their shockingly bad customer service. Ever tried getting a refund out of them after the thirtyday limit? Good luck!

You seem to know an awful lot about VendX, said PT. Whats your history with them?

Just some minor brushes with them in the past. Nothing noteworthy.

So they just want whats in that brain of yours? If I hand you over, maybe theyll let me go free.

Dont think so, said Ubik. Dont think theyll want to leave any witnesses. They might mindwipe you, if youre lucky. Theyre not very good at it, though, dont own the patent and wont pay for a licence. Use their own version most of their clients come out dribbling and rubbing themselves inappropriately in public. No, me theyll stick in a torture box ever been in one? Very cramped you, theyll just shoot in the head.

Please dont smile so much when you say that, said PT. He spun around, kicked off a wall hed seemed too far from to reach, and floated past Ubik with irritating ease and grace. He stopped Ubik had no idea how and inspected the wall more closely. Then he turned around and squinted at the one opposite. Cant see any difference.

Its simple, said Ubik. This one should be the mirror of Oh, this is it.

What is what? said PT.

The armoury. Its here. Look. Ubik could see it now, clear as anything. The panel PT was looking out stood out like it had a red line drawn around it. Only not red, and not a line.

I thought you said you opened it? said PT.

Unlocked it, opened it, same thing.

Ubik struggled to get himself nearer, kicking his legs behind him. Okay, I dont know what kind of weapons will be in here, but theres a good chance we wont be able to use them.

Great. There was a sarcastic edge to PTs voice that Ubik didnt appreciate.

We may have to bluff the boarding party, which may be tricky if they send drones in first. Kind of hard to bluff drones. Not impossible, though.

Maybe itd be quicker to just shoot myself, said PT.

If the guns work, shoot them first. He assumed PT was joking but he couldnt really tell.

Ubik managed to get to the panel hed been reaching for and put his hand against it. Once he was touching it, the way to open it seemed obvious. The combination of Central Authority and Antecessor technology came down to putting the front in front of the back. It was simple on the outside, even if it was completely baffling on the inside.

He pushed and slid his hand across. The panel slid to the side, revealing a room with no weapons in it. In fact, what it contained was far better than any weapon.

My Delgados! said Ubik, pulling himself into the room.

Boots? We came here for your boots? PT didnt sound as thrilled as he should have been.

Ubik grabbed the boots from the floor as he floated past. He didnt even care about smacking into the wall. He put them on. He straightened up and sank down to the floor. He was able to walk again. You know, I was actually not very confident about getting out of this, but things are looking better already.

We have the might of one of the largest corporations about to descend on us, but as long as youve got excellent arch support

Ubik couldnt stop grinning. The boots felt great, like having his limbs restored after a terrible accident. He stomped about the small room.

Why the hell did Janks put them all the way over here?

PTs question was a good one. Why go this far to store a pair of boots? When Janx had taken his boots, he hadnt been gone for very long. He could have boosted his way here and back, but that didnt seem likely.

Ubik looked at the wall. Of course. He didnt go that far. He put his hand on the wall and it slid aside. Through the opening, Ubik could see the chair hed recently been attached to, and a floating drone. We went the long way around.

PT floated past him even though there was barely any room. He went straight to the drone. You said he isnt dead, right? Just slowed down.

Not quite, but the science is complicated. There seemed no point explaining the finer points of quantumtronic physics. It wasnt like he was an expert on the subject. Yet.

Cant you boot him back up? asked PT.

Id love to, said Ubik. But if I knew how, Id get the ship back online and send us through the wormhole.

The wormhole controlled by VendX?

This is a CA ship, said Ubik. Probably has an automatic doo-dah that forces wormholes open on approach.

That the scientific term is it? asked PT. I dont really fancy playing chicken with a closed wormhole. Maybe being taken prisoner wont be so bad.

Its not that risky, said Ubik. If you understood the underlying science

I understand, said PT. The ship isnt dead, its just comatose. Every part is linked to the rest so its all affected, like this drone. But the ship must have a failsafe for near-death so it can take action, like it did with Tezla. She was the first priority so it got that off before everything slowed down.

Okay, said Ubik. So you were paying attention.

Yes. He grabbed Janks and handed the drone to Ubik.

What do you want me to do with it? I cant fix what isnt broken. We just went through this

Kill it, said PT. They didnt because they knew what would happen. So we have to. Every part is connected.

Ubik looked at the drone and he knew PT was right. VendX had gone to great lengths to avoid triggering any kill switches. There had to be a good reason for them being so cautious.

Sorry, Janks, said Ubik.

Is that regret? said PT, an exaggerated look of shock on his face.

No. But the CA will do an investigation and this will be recorded. He looked at the drone again. This was his idea. He turned the drone towards PT. Then he placed it on the floor and stamped on it.

The drone looked very sturdy, but the Delgados had gravitational booster plugs. Not cheap. One stamp at full power for only 5 microseconds, was enough to flatten the drones casing.

The room changed as coloured lights flashed along the walls.

What does that mean? said PT.

Ubik looked at the lights flashing around them. Its an emergency signal. Probably wont get out but its the first phase.

Of what?

No idea. Wait the wormholes activating.

How do you know? said PT.

Ubiks eyes followed the lights which were moving even faster now. Its providing a running commentary.

Is it going to take us through?

Uh, no, I dont think so. Were not the ones who opened the wormhole. Its an incoming activation.

Who is it?

Um, one, two ah, it appears to be the VendX Priority Fleet. Wow, the big guns. And yep, thought so. Were about to attack them using the only available weapon the selfdestruct.