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land mass, it seemed, and at about 38° north latitude. On most worlds this
would be a fairly pleasant climate; here, it was tundra.
Despite my warm clothing, the cold was beginning to get to me. I had spent the
last several weeks in perfect climate control, and my body was not used to
this kind of extreme. Even in the bus, where things should be fairly stable in
temperature, it was still damned cold.
We wound through streets past neat-looking modular apartment buildings and
what must have been office buildings and shops, finally pulling up at a
blocky, monolithic four-story building made out of some blackish stone. The
doors hissed open.
"Please follow us into the building," Gorn said. Despite the "please," it
still sounded like the command it was. "Do not hold back. You will have to
climb two flights of staffs. Do not get lost."
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Medusa
We followed the same route-step as before, entering the building and walking
down a wide corridor with offices and other corridors branching off to the
right and left of us. We then reached a stairway and climbed it, keeping up
with Gorn as best we could. I think most of us were a bit surprised to be
winded by a mere two-story climb, our sedentary imprisonment notwithstanding.
Not only were we all out of condition, but the slightly heavier gravity was
telling.
The blast of warm air when we entered the first room on the third floor was as
unexpected as it was tremendously welcome. Despite my clothing, I frankly
hadn't realized how terribly cold I was until the pain that the heat generated
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hit me. It took a few minutes before I could really think of anything else and
look around.
The first room, the heated one, was fairly large and furnished in a
utilitarian manner, with long, hard folding tables and collapsible chairs and
not much else. There were no windows, a fact our hosts were quick to explain.
"Just take seats anywhere and get accustomed to the temperature change," Gorn
told us. "This room and the three adjoining rooms have been raised to 21° for
your initial comfort. These are the only directly heated rooms, so stay within
them at all times. We chose this area to heat because, with no windows or
other outside vents, it is the most efficient system." He walked over to a
nearby door. "If you'll come in here, 111 show you the rest of the place."
We followed slowly, still not recovered completely from exposure and found
that the second room was a large barrackslike area with eight double bunks,
four on each side of the hall. The mattresses appeared to be paper-thin and
none too comfortable, but I'd seen worse. The place was well-maintained,
although obviously seldom used. Beyond was a third large room, with a large
common shower and three open standard toilets, plus four small sinks with
mirrors. Again it looked seldom-used, but serviceable.
We followed Sgt. Corn back to the "lounge" area and took seats. As yet nobody
had removed his thermal clothing and I had no inclination to do so myself. I
felt as if I would never be warm again.
It was Cpl. Sugra's turn at us. She looked like a lot of women cops I've met
in my work not unattractive, but hard, cold, and worldly; her voice matched.
For the first time I could look at her and Gorn and see a bit beyond the
manner and the uniforms. Their complexions, which at the spaceport and on the
bus were a granitelike gray, now seemed lighter, almost orange. There was a
certain toughness to then- skin, which, on close inspection, resembled the
hides of great animals. Soft they were not.
"I'm Corporal Sugra," she began, reintroducing herself. "Sergeant Gorn and I
will be with you over the next week. We will be staying right down the hall
from this complex and will be available to answer your questions and give you
basic preparation. At various times others from the government will come in to
talk about specific areas. Now, we understand you have just come from a bitter
experience, and you are now most concerned about what this new world is like
and what it both has for you and will do for you."
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Medusa
And to me, I thought.
"First of all, is there anyone here who does not know why Medusa and the other
worlds of the Warden
Diamond are used by the Confederacy for exile?" She paused a moment, then
seemed satisfied that we all knew at least the basics.
"The micro-organism that is now within all of your bodies will be making
itself at home. Please don't be alarmed. You will find there is no sensation,
no feeling at all that anything is different. In fact, you will probably feel
increasingly better as this process goes on because, despite the best medical
care, the human system is riddled with disease and physical problems of one
sort or another. Since the Warden organism depends on you for its place to
live, it wants that place to be in as good a condition as possible. So it will [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]