Descending Road - DOWN FROM FOUR by Dana W. Paxson

DOWN FROM FOUR

2416 CE

Doug opened the door, swung inside, and closed and locked it behind him. He knew this sector. Ahead was another lock; beyond this door he would have air. Moving through, he switched on his ultra and started tracking the tiny glowing arrows on the wall of an utterly-black corridor. No one yet occupied this part of the starship.

Eight minutes in a tortuous maze brought him to a narrow door in one wall. Here the arrows ended. A sign on the door, in Putonghua and Share, announced:

ZONE 304A PERSONNEL REFREEZER

DO NOT OPEN

MIDCOURSE MAINTENANCE CREW USE ONLY

AFTER MAINTENANCE COMPLETE:

1. STRIP TO SKIN

2. ENTER CHAMBER

3. SEAL DOOR

4. FOLLOW SPOKEN INSTRUCTIONS

He was going with the ship. The realization rose up in him like a tidal wave, and he fought it back; this was Nye‘s gift. No time now to think. He burned away the message on the door, set aside the suit lamp, stripped himself naked, and played the plasma torch over the suit and its remaining equipment until only ash and metals remained to float off into the darkness of the corridor. For system-integrity reasons, the refreezers operated completely autonomously. There would be no system report of Doug‘s presence here.

He grabbed the door handles and twisted; the metal chilled him. The door opened and he herded the suit lamp and the nearly-empty plasma torch into a space no wider than the depth of a coffin. He squeezed himself into the plastic-shroud-lined gap, sealed the door, and waited.

Chilly fluid began flowing in along the folds of plastic sheeting. A soft, precise Sinese voice said, “Congratulations on completing your ship repair work. Hau Ren gives you its heartfelt thanks, and wishes you well on the remainder of your journey to Opo Bira Lima. You will now eliminate all excess bodily content using the chemicals and the tubes as I will instruct you. Thanks to the use of our unique Da Mai pharmaceuticals, you will experience no discomfort.”

Doug obeyed.

“Please take three deep breaths and count down from four.”

Doug remembered Jan, and Geordie, and Nye, and said, “Four.” He never reached three.

Story List	SURPRISE ME	Author Page
USER SURVEY	PUZZLE ME	MAKE ELM MARK

HOVER Lucida Bright BARE	HOVER Lucida Bright FULL	HOVER Palatino Linotype BARE
HOVER Palatino Linotype FULL	HOVER Times New Roman BARE	HOVER Times New Roman FULL
PAD Arial BARE	PAD Arial FULL	PAD Lucida Bright BARE
PAD Lucida Bright FULL	PAD Times New Roman BARE	PAD Times New Roman FULL


	DOWN FROM FOUR 2416 CE Doug opened the door, swung inside, and closed and locked it behind him. He knew this sector. Ahead was another lock; beyond this door he would have air. Moving through, he switched on his ultra and started tracking the tiny glowing arrows on the wall of an utterly-black corridor. No one yet occupied this part of the starship. Eight minutes in a tortuous maze brought him to a narrow door in one wall. Here the arrows ended. A sign on the door, in Putonghua and Share, announced: ZONE 304A PERSONNEL REFREEZER DO NOT OPEN MIDCOURSE MAINTENANCE CREW USE ONLY AFTER MAINTENANCE COMPLETE: 1. STRIP TO SKIN 2. ENTER CHAMBER 3. SEAL DOOR 4. FOLLOW SPOKEN INSTRUCTIONS He was going with the ship. The realization rose up in him like a tidal wave, and he fought it back; this was Nye‘s gift. No time now to think. He burned away the message on the door, set aside the suit lamp, stripped himself naked, and played the plasma torch over the suit and its remaining equipment until only ash and metals remained to float off into the darkness of the corridor. For system-integrity reasons, the refreezers operated completely autonomously. There would be no system report of Doug‘s presence here. He grabbed the door handles and twisted; the metal chilled him. The door opened and he herded the suit lamp and the nearly-empty plasma torch into a space no wider than the depth of a coffin. He squeezed himself into the plastic-shroud-lined gap, sealed the door, and waited. Chilly fluid began flowing in along the folds of plastic sheeting. A soft, precise Sinese voice said, “Congratulations on completing your ship repair work. Hau Ren gives you its heartfelt thanks, and wishes you well on the remainder of your journey to Opo Bira Lima. You will now eliminate all excess bodily content using the chemicals and the tubes as I will instruct you. Thanks to the use of our unique Da Mai pharmaceuticals, you will experience no discomfort.” Doug obeyed. “Please take three deep breaths and count down from four.” Doug remembered Jan, and Geordie, and Nye, and said, “Four.” He never reached three.