Mindbridge (7 page)

“And we have a fatality, Tamer Ch’ing. Undiagnosed suit malfunction.”

Before going through decontamination, they had to wait for an analysis team to come take charge of their samples. It took a while, since most of the scientists had to be routed out of bed-nobody had expected a milk-run training mission to come back with organic material.

The autopsy team, though, was ready and waiting.

Finally they went through the room of mirrors and cleansing lights, into the ready room. The cranes lifted off the top halves of their GPEM’s and they scrambled out to an orgy of backscratching. Then hot showers and clean clothes, a quick physical exam and some real food. Then six hours of rest before debriefing, while the analysts surveyed their accumulated data.

Jacque set down the totally naked bone of a ravaged pork chop. “Uh, Carol . . .”

“Sure. Should be fun.” She poured herself another glass of wine and passed the carafe down to Vivian.

“You know-“

“I’ve been waiting an hour for you to ask.”

“And I’ve been waiting for you. After all, you asked Ch’ing.”

“He would never have gotten around to it. I was curious how long it would take you.”

Jacque raised his glass. “In the interests of science, then.”

She joined him. “Pure research.”

“One of you lovebirds pass the salt?”

TO:
          
Medical Research Group, AED Colorado Springs, Westhampton, Lyon, Nagpur, Mengtzu, La Rioja, Charleville

FROM:
    
Johnathon Legman, M.D., Ph.D.

           
Andre Barnett, M.D.

           
Miriam Kophage, M.D., Medical Research

           
Group, AED Col Spr

RE:
          
Autopsy of Tamer 1 Hsi Ch’ing

Abstract

Tamer 1 Hsi Ch’ing died on his first translation, a training mission to a fairly earthlike planet of Groom-bridge 1618. The mission was highly unusual in many respects. Not only was the planet quite viable for geoformy, but one of the animals the Tamers discovered seems to function as an amplifier for telepathic communication (preliminary report attached; Appendix VIII).

Tamer Ch’ing died at 21:32:47.6, 17 August 2051. The GPEM attempted to diagnose the cause of death but was unable to, and so communicated to the supervisor “Death due to undiagnosed GPEM malfunction,” and then froze the cadaver for later analysis earthside.

Our bioengineering section has checked out the GPEM very minutely, and reports that it is functioning perfectly. Its data crystals show no indication of malfunction at the time of the Tamer’s death. The diagnostic it communicated to the supervisor can also be interpreted “Cause of death unknown.” (Appendix III)

Our examination of the cadaver was similarly negative. Tamer Ch’ing was in excellent health on 16 August 2051 (See pre-translation physical, Appendix IV), and the cadaver likewise showed no symptoms of illness or trauma not directly attributable to postmortem freezing.

Biometric data just prior to death are ambiguous, and can be variously interpreted as indicating death due to cardiac infarction or massive cerebrovascular incident. Autopsy, however, denies the possibility of either.

28 August 2051

Contents:

Autopsy report

Appendix I: Subject’s medical history

Appendix II: Raw laboratory data

Appendix III: Bioengineering Section report

Appendix IV: Pre-translation physical & interview

Appendix V: Autopsy visuals

Appendix VI: Specialist’s report: cerebrovascular

Appendix VII: Specialist’s report: cardiac

Appendix VIII: Preliminary report: The Groombridge “Bridge”

Copies of original data crystals available on request.

EXPERIMENT SCHEDULE: Groombridge “Bridge.”

Hours
        
Team
             
Purpose
          
Equipment

25 Aug

03:05
        
(translation)
    
-

03:05-10:00
  
Senior Survey
    
General investing.ad lib

10:00-17:00
  
Bio Group,
       
Meta/catabolic
   
Mod. Stokes

           
Willard
          
meas.
           
chamber

17:00-24:00
  
Bio Group,
       
Reaction to
ad lib

             
Jameson
          
stimuli

26 Aug
 

00:00-14:00
  
Math Comm,
       
ESP (stat)
       
Rhine deck

             
Chandler

14:00-15:00
  
PR Group
         
Public relations
 
ad lib

15:00-22:00
  
Bio Group,
       
Exp. w/modified

             
Van der
          
terrestrial
breathers,

             
Walls
animals
    
animals
         
ad lib

22:00-24:00
  
Lefavre,
         
Personal
         
cot

             
Wachal
           
(ESP, psych)

27 Aug
 
00:00-14:00
Math
       
ESP (stat)
       
Rhine deck

             
Comm, Fong

14:00-17:00
  
Riley et al
      
Press Conference
 
-

17:00-24:00
  
Bio Group,
       
Change in
        
Mod. Stokes

             
Willard
          
metabolic
        
chamber

             
rate wrt stress

             
increment

EXPERIMENTS 28 AUG-31 AUG TO BE DETERMINED BY RESULTS OF THE PRECEDING WORK.

1 Sept
 
19:00-20:49
Bio Group,
 
Dissection
 
Surg instr.,

             
Willard
    
cameras

20:49
  
-
    
(translation: “slingshot”)

A preliminary to an action, event, condition, or work of broader scope and higher importance . . . an independent piece of moderate length, sometimes used as an introduction to a fugue...

SETTING: The finest restaurant in Colorado Springs, Saturday evening, 26 August 2051. JACQUE LEFAVRE has invited CAROL WACHAL to dinner. Candlelight, heavy velvet, music by a neoElizabethan octet. The waiter has taken the dishes away; JACQUE orders from the wine steward a bottle of Château d’Yquem 2039.

CAROL

Teasing:

Am I really worth that much?

JACQUE

A little defensive:

It’s an occasion.

CAROL

Won’t be much of an occasion if we drink too much. Alcohol is a depressant.

JACQUE

Good wine never hurt that. . . facility.

CAROL

Are you always so formal?

JACQUE

Me? I’m not so-

CAROL

Yes you are. You’ve been treating me like a cousin you haven’t seen in a long time. Not like-

JACQUE

Well, hell. Maybe I’m a little nervous. It’s not your usual first date.

CAROL

That’s true. Loosen up, though. It’s not as if we’ll be on a stage in front of-

JACQUE

Yeah.

I’m glad you stepped in when old Chandler wanted us to-

CAROL

Shrugs.

There are limits.

JACQUE

I suspect you weren’t quite as outraged as you acted, though.

CAROL

Don’t pry, now. You’ll have your chance later.

JACQUE

Laughs.

I suppose. Here comes our man.

The wine steward serves the bottle with appropriate ceremony. They toast and drink.

CAROL Good.
 
Are you used to this kind of living?

JACQUE

Was once. Not since I was a boy.

CAROL

Your parents were rich?

JACQUE

Fairly well off. Dad was a senior physicist at Institut Fermi in New York.

CAROL

He’s dead now.

JACQUE

Hesitates.

In a manner of speaking. Let’s talk about something else.

CAROL

Sure, I’m sorry.

JACQUE

It’s funny.

CAROL Hmm?

JACQUE

Well . . . that we should have gone through so much together-discover a new world together- and be such strangers.

CAROL

Together separately. I can’t get used to seeing you as a solid human, inside a body. You’re supposed to be just a voice in my ear.

JACQUE

I don’t have any trouble getting used to your body.

CAROL

You’re so gallant.

JACQUE dips a forefinger in the wine and skims along the top of the glass. It’s fine crystal and makes a pure singing note, which unfortunately doesn’t go well with the octet. A man at the next table gives JACQUE a sharp look, and he stops.

CAROL

You don’t care for the music?

JACQUE

Music! It’s just a gimmick to sell lutes and flutes.

CAROL

It’s pretty...

JACQUE

Next year it’ll be electric guitars.

CAROL

Could be.

JACQUE

If it were real Elizabethan music, madrigals and such, that would be all right-austere, controlled; but this modem-

CAROL

Calm down, Jacque. It’s nothing to get all worked up over.

JACQUES finishes his wine and pours another glass. CAROL declines.

CAROL

What time is it?

JACQUE

Five after nine...

CAROL

If we left now, we could walk to the chamber.

JACQUE

That’s...

Regards his drink.

probably a good idea.

Signals waiter.

It’s a nice night.

JACQUE settles the check and they leave, CAROL’S hand lightly on his arm.

A polyphonic composition based upon one, two, or more themes, which are enunciated by several voices or parts in turn, subjected to a contrapuntal treatment, and gradually built up into a complex form having somewhat distinct divisions or stages of development and a marked climax at the end.

The Groombridge bridge was housed in a room-sized hyperbaric chamber adjacent to the ready room. It was overbuilt for the purpose, the air pressure on Groom-bridge being nine-tenths of an atmosphere, but as Jacque pointed out, it had one real advantage for their particular experiment: no windows.

They were a little early, and were sharing a cup of coffee when Van der Walls and his group came out.

“Any results, Dr. Van?” Carol asked.

“Difficult to say.” He shook his head. “Most of the animals were lethargic.” He opened the cage he was carrying and took out a small collie, still trailing wires from its head and chest. It was limp as a rag; didn’t want to stand. Van der Walls stroked it gently and talked to it.

“They couldn’t wear masks, of course. Carbon dioxide got to most of them. We’ll know more after we look at the biometrics results. There, boy.” The dog was standing sleepily.

His two assistants brought out the rest of the cages. “That’s it, Van,” one of them said. Van der Walls tucked the dog under his arm and with a straight face wished them good luck.