The Fall of the Absolute

by Karen Page

Chapter 11

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Chapter 11

Both Reggie and her grandfather had been summoned back to their home world. Reggie by the head of the Reginadde Intelligence Division who was overseeing her. Her grandfather by their leader, the Law Bearer.

It had been two days since Reggie had worked out what had been going on, but nothing had leaked out. They'd obviously got concerns, but Jennifer didn't understand why it was still secret. Perhaps they worked differently to the governments of Earth. If that had happened there, it would have been over the internet within a day.

Without Reggie, the shop didn't feel the same. There were still the people coming in, and the gossip still flowed, but it seemed empty. Dull. When there were no shoppers, she was on her own with little to do. To pass the time, she got the device to provide her with various cultural topics to build up her knowledge.

On the third day they both returned. She didn't say anything when she saw Reggie, but just held her.

"You can talk to me. My implant has been removed. When we returned, my grandfather ordered the doctor to remove it."

"What's upset you? That it's removed?"

"No. I hated the implant. Back home some called my grandfather a traitor. That he should have warned them so they could protect themselves. They have lived with an interdimensional drive for so long, the thought of not having it is making some of them irrational."

Irrational didn't sound good. "Oh no. What happened?"

"Someone in the government tried to get him removed. There was a vote by the signatories. They are like your ministers. They failed, but it was close."

"He's still the Ambassador then?"

"Yes. There can't be another vote for two cycles."

This was something she needed to report. Adelle had given a detailed session on reporting, but this was the first thing she felt she could report. Even with her secure connection, she didn't feel she could safely report about the interdimensional drive issue.

A customer interrupted their discussion. An Alphonian. He wasn't there for clothes, but for some human chocolate. He'd tried a sample that Jennifer had given two days previously, and he wanted a box as a gift for his wife.

"I think we need a day off," Jennifer said. "You've had far too much excitement. That was the last pickup. Let's go see how Kelly is doing with her training. She said yesterday she was getting better."

In a sudden peak of curiosity, Jennifer turned on the full imager. As Reggie walked out of the door, not only did the 3D body scanner do its usual scan, the extra electronics in the ceiling and floor came on. It wasn't a perfect image, but she saw the implant Reggie had previously was gone. It had been replaced with something shaped differently.

Reggie gave a gurgled scream of pain and put her hands to her head. A few ticks later, she was unconscious on the floor just outside the shop.

Jennifer instantly used her device to contact the doctors. As she did that, she shut down her scanner just in case that had caused the issue and raced across to her friend. While she waited for medical help to arrive, she sent a message to Reggie's parents and grandfather.

The first medic on scene was a species Jennifer hadn't had many dealings with. A Scotutr.

"What happened?" he enquired as he began to check Reggie.

Jennifer filled him in with what she saw, omitting the implant. "I believe the Reginadde ambassadorial doctor performed a procedure on her this morning."

"I can see that, but not what it was. He isn't available."

A trolley that looked like it was floating in the air approached from the main shopping area. It was at waist height with a large upright segment so people could see it. When it arrived it automatically lowered itself to the floor next to Reggie. With the help of a few passers-by, she was placed onto the floating trolley which enveloped her in some type of material to keep her from moving or falling.

"Where are you taking her?" Jennifer asked while closing the shop.

"Medical-2. No, I've just been instructed to take her directly to the medical bay on the Ambassadorial floor."

Jennifer followed and watched as they went to the Transport Hub and disappeared to the relevant floor. Jennifer went in and asked her device to hop her to the Ambassadorial floor.

"Access denied," her device informed her.

"Please retry."

"Access is still denied. That floor is sealed. Nobody can enter or leave."

"I just saw Reggie go there," Jennifer fumed at her device.

The device responded in the same pleasant tone. "They went to Medical-2 as the floor was sealed."

"Why was that floor sealed?"

"Security."

"Take me to Medical-2," Jennifer mentally screamed.

She then followed the tracker to where Reggie was being treated. As she walked, she contacted Theo. "What's happening?"

"How do you mean?" Theo asked.

"The Ambassador floor is in lockdown. My device says nobody can enter or leave that floor."

"Is it? I'm not sure if anybody is aware."

"Find the Reginadde Ambassador. He will have been notified that Reggie has been taken ill. He might be trying to get off the floor. Someone tried to remove him from his position while visiting his government. They failed. If he is locked on your floor, he will be a sitting duck."

"On it," Theo responded, already rising from his desk.

Rupert looked up at him quizzically.

"Lock yourself in with Georgina," Theo said to Rupert as he strode purposefully towards the door. "I've been told this floor is sealed. Under some type of lockdown. I've also been told someone doesn't want the Reginadde Ambassador to retain his job."

Rupert gave a quick squeak of surprise at Theo's assertiveness and did as he'd demanded.

"Good job," Jennifer whispered in Theo's mind. "I need to concentrate on getting Reggie safe and getting a message out."

Next, she contacted Hope. When she answered, Jennifer said, "Code 323."

"Acknowledged. What's happened?"

Jennifer gave an executive summary. "Someone might come to see why Reggie isn't responding. Though the doctors have contacted their home-world, so the people responsible may be aware."

"And K?"

"She knows what to do."

She disconnected the connection as she approached the medical room where Reggie was. She looked in and saw three doctors were looking at Reggie. Any scans they did would show in their brains. They had no need for monitors like hospitals on Earth.

"She told me earlier that her implant had been removed. She said she could no longer interface with it after that."

"Jennifer. You are classified as a close friend. Her parents are on the way, but they said we could talk to you. We can see the implant was removed. However, another one was inserted. This is an old-style Reginadde unit that was discontinued because it couldn't be removed. It was recording only. There was no way she would know it was there."

"I don't think she knew about it."

"It has become dislodged. She is unconscious because the new implant is unstable and it is hurting her. I have asked for assistance from the Reginadde doctor, but he still isn't available. A request to her home world has been made but they said this type of unit is not used. They are researching it to give us advice."

Jennifer let out a long breath. She'd had some emergency medical training, but nothing that covered anything like this. It was more how to patch themselves or someone else up if injured by a weapon. It wasn't anything to do with delicate neural surgery.

Reggie's parents arrived. They had normal jobs and were totally at a loss seeing their child hurt like this. They were just concerned about their child. There were no recriminations about her job. She did the job she did and they accepted it. What they couldn't understand was why someone had done something without her consent. That wasn't the way the Reginaddes behaved.

Reggie's mother looked at Jennifer. "We'll keep her safe. My father showed me some tricks, though I've not had to use them since Reggie was born. Do you have somewhere to be?"

Jennifer nodded. "I might send a friend to visit. She's called Hope. She is the partner of Kelly."

"If she is anything like you or Kelly, she will be a wonderful person. If she visits, we will make her welcome."

Jennifer crossed her hands at her wrists and put her head to one side. It was the Reginadde sign of goodbye, and she was out of the door before Reggie's parents could respond in kind.

Jennifer made her way back to her apartment and got out her rucksack that was already packed for emergencies. It contained her Direct Tunnel Device. After never using it, this was the second time so soon after the first. She didn't make the call from in her room but made her way to the lower viewing window. It looked out towards the stars, not towards the planet. It was a random location, so she hoped that randomness gave a touch extra privacy.

She placed the call, not going via the Rohastin Beacon. It wouldn't even touch Earth-1. It would hit one of the three planetary nodes. It was the closest and most secure she could make it. She overlayed the call with the notation "IA". In Action.

"Yes?" The call was answered immediately. No names were given. Jennifer recognised the person who answered but didn't mention that.

For what seemed like the first time in ages, Jennifer spoke in English. "The Rohastin activity that has led to a lot of species becoming nervous, has leaked. I can't reveal the details of the issue. However, Reginadde Intelligence became aware. This has led to instability in one of the most stable species. One that is the backbone of the Rohastin. It was described as them acting irrationally. There was a vote to replace the Reginadde Ambassador. It failed by a narrow margin. His granddaughter is in hospital. The ambassadorial floor is under lockdown. We are working on the assumption of an attempt to remove the Ambassador by extreme measures."

"What is your worst case?"

"If the Rohastin falls, there is a good chance the World Government might fall and instability returns."

"Understood. Is there any information we can get locally?"

Jennifer considered. "Yes. But I can't visit for four years to get it. Getting that issue resolved would calm everything down. Until then, it is just sticking plasters."

"Good luck. We have faith you can keep a lid on things. We're always here if you need advice."

What they would do with the information, she didn't know, but she knew it was just the four of them. But that is how it had to be. They might only be eighteen, but it was their region of knowledge.

Jennifer never wanted to be like her aunt and uncle. She never dreamed she would have a job similar to Stacy, Andy, David and Helen. They'd swept in when she was seven and protected her and the project. Andy and Helen had spotted her mum when she'd been kidnapped. Her aunt had gone into the lion's den and steered the situation to keep her mum alive until rescue arrived.

All she wanted was to learn and help others. She'd had that at Hayfield in ways she had never dreamed of. Her desire to help others had been the hook that made her look at Hayfield from a different perspective. She wondered what Hayfield could do for her. Then if going to Hayfield would be selfish when others would miss out. Until she was asked if going would help someone else. Was that a chance question? Looking back, probably not. Hayfield were nothing if not thorough in their research. They'd wanted her, and they made it seem like it was her choice.

She didn't care. If Hayfield had steered the conversation, it no longer mattered. They hadn't lied. She did learn. She did help others. Then the invite to the Beta program was given. She could have said no, but by the time she was asked, she was comparing it to her aunt and uncle. They'd gone there. When they explained the Beta program, she knew that had been their route. She knew her life would be in helping others and she wanted it.

And then there was her birth mother. She hadn't only helped others; she'd helped the world. It showed how helping just a few people could make the world of difference. Literally. She'd been there to help Georgina Harries when she'd been infected with a virus that should have broken her mind. She'd helped Becky start Star Bright and kept the scientists from burnout. She'd given birth to Jennifer who was in some ways following her footsteps.

Without those people before her, she would not have been there today. It was her turn, along with Theo, Hope and Kelly. She just hoped they were ready to stop the galaxy falling to bits.

She packed her items back into her rucksack and powered down her device. She wouldn't be able to talk with the station, but it would remove the easiest method to track her. Making sure nobody was watching, she went to one of the maintenance bot ports. It was small, not being designed for a living person. Now the bots were tiny, but going back a few centuries, they must have been a bit larger. Nobody had bothered to make the entrances smaller, so there was just enough space for her to wriggle through.

She almost banged her head when she was half-way through. There was a narrow passageway that went left. She had to twist her way around to get in. Helpfully the hatch closed behind her. Unhelpfully she was plunged into darkness. The bots didn't need light, so why would they light a maintenance corridor? She fumbled for her rucksack and after fumbling with the catch heard the contents clang onto the corridor floor. They seemed to echo on the metal surface, breaking the silence. She'd never heard the maintenance bots and hoped the soundproofing had masked her mistake.

She berated herself for her clumsiness in not spotting the rucksack had been upside down. At least the corridor was flat, so things didn't roll everywhere. Finding the torch was her first success. Once the area was lit, she packed everything away and crawled onwards. The blueprints that Adelle had sourced had indicated a wider vertical corridor. She just hoped there wasn't a bot trying to come down this narrow access corridor as she edged forward, trying to make as little noise as possible.

When she reached the end of the passage, she wanted to praise the bots. It seemed they didn't just clean the public part of the station, but also the maintenance corridors. She'd thought they might be dirty, with decades of grease and muck. But they were clean and sterile. Perhaps someone could introduce the bots to a nice citrus smell or even lemon zest. It might make these corridors feel a bit more homely.

At the end, there was another crawl hatch. She lifted it, hoping to see a magical environment with stairs, ramps, lifts and bots zooming everywhere. She was disappointed. It was so dark she was sure she couldn't see the end of her nose. She'd grown up with darkness, so it wasn't her enemy. The little hamlet she'd spent the first twelve years of her life had no streetlights. Without a torch, it was dangerous going out at night. It wasn't pitch black as there was light pollution from neighbouring cities that spoilt the view of the stars. Hayfield did have outside lights along the driveway. It was never as dark as home, but it wasn't the city life that her parents had grown up in.

"Light on", she whispered in Hytuna. She meant it as a joke to relieve a bit of pressure. But when the area lit up, she almost fell out of the hatch.

There were levels. Walkways. Ladders. Ramps. And some type of zip wire, with bots using it to move quickly between levels.

There was a wide ledge, so she finished climbing out of the corridor. The door sealed behind her. It was the first time she'd been able to stand since she'd entered the hidden area of the station. She wondered if there were workers who maintained it, or if there were repair bots who serviced the maintenance bots. Reggie had mentioned the bots cleaned, but she'd heard nothing about station maintenance. Perhaps it was something long forgotten about because nobody had to think about it.

The almost vertical ladder was the shortest way to climb. It wasn't straight up, but close. There were steps, and not rungs, so it was easier on her feet. She had a long way to go. Every level, there was a ledge and she had a new ladder. At least it didn't seem she'd have far to fall if she ever did. She estimated she'd climbed four levels when she hit a barrier. If it was a ship, they would be described as bulkheads. A way to limit any disaster to a limited range of floors.

She had two choices. A hatch leading up, but another one on the opposite wall. She opened the hatch. It was dark. She called for the lights to turn on, and she saw the same pattern as earlier. She asked for the lights to turn off, and they did. She decided she would see what was behind door number two.

There was a chamber, which was lit as she opened the door. There was a ramp, which seemed to arch so at the end, someone would be horizontal. Strange. She thought about going back, but she was curious why the ramp was like it was. Slowly climbing the ramp, she felt strange and stopped, trying to work out what was strange. She took another few steps, and realised it never felt like she was approaching vertical. It was like spinning in a hamster wheel, but gravity was moving with her. When she reached the hatch at the end, what had been horizontal was now vertical. In Earth terms her orientation had changed ninety degrees.

She entered into a wide corridor that ran up the length of the station. Movement would be easier now she no longer had to climb those almost vertical ladders. The gravity in this corridor was different. She could now walk along the station. What would have been a long climb was just a hike.

It made sense. The station didn't spin. All gravity was artificially created using some amazing technology. So why shouldn't they have a corridor that had gravity that went the other way? If they could create artificial gravity, they would be able to control the structure to cope with it being different in some areas.

There seemed to be two sides to the corridor. Bots zipped one way on one side and zipped the other way on the other side. If she kept to the middle, she wouldn't be in the way of any of them. There weren't a lot of bots, but she saw several types, probably designed for different tasks. They ignored her, as if it was expected to have someone walking in that corridor. Where they lived, or who was instructing them, briefly crossed her mind but she didn't have any data to go on. That would be something interesting to discover if she survived this.

This route meant she could make better time. She didn't run. She could have done, but she suspected there would be hatches to go through along the way. She kept a steady pace. Every four levels there was a door continuing along the corridor and another door leading back to the ladders.

In her mind, she counted the levels at each hatch. When she'd reached the rough level she wanted, she returned to the ladders. She entered from the transition chamber. It was dark. She didn't know if they were there.

After waiting and not hearing anything, she decided to chance seeing if they were waiting for her. It was where they were supposed to meet. She cupped her hands over her mouth and mimicked an owl hooting. It was a pretty lame impression. It was good enough for a light to come on, a level below her. She leaned over and saw Kelly and the Reginadde Ambassador. She sighed in relief. Theo had managed to extract the Ambassador and pass him to Kelly.

A fiery plasma bolt shot across the enclosure. Jennifer felt a lurch, not from fear, but from a sudden change in gravity. The plasma started dissipating before hitting the wall behind where Kelly was. Kelly quickly extinguished her light before a second shot was fired. How had that weapon got past the stringent security of the station? How had the gravity suddenly shifted? As soon as the plasma bolt hit the wall, gravity went back to normal. If it hadn't been for that change in gravity, it would have hit where they were. If that was a Reginadde weapon, she would have 60 ticks before they could fire again. If it was a Yvestigan, 40 ticks. But they could also have a second gun that they could fire instantly.

She slowly made her way as quietly as possible down the ladder. It was all about feel. She couldn't have moved quickly, even if she wanted to. She couldn't see where she was going, and it was all memory from her initial climb. How many steps to the next ledge. How far along the ledge to the next ladder.

She'd made it down two ladders when she heard the clunk of a hatch shutting. She paused, trying to listen. Had the shooter left? Had Kelly and the Reginadde Ambassador left? Or had someone else joined them?

There was a muffled noise followed by the sound of something dragging on the metal. The light came on, and Jennifer saw a Reginadde wrapped in a mesh. Two bots next to him.

"They do exist," the Reginadde Ambassador said in awe as he got up.

"What do you mean?" Kelly asked.

"Security bots. I've never seen them. There hasn't been a call for them in a long time. Just folklore recorded by some of my predecessors. I knew the station security protocols were already heightened because the attack that killed the Reginadde doctor that sealed the floor. The gravity change must have been the station too. I heard my granddaughter was taken ill. Is she okay?"

"She's in the medical ward. A colleague should be with her. Her parents are with her too."

"Do they know what's wrong?"

"Yes. What was your instruction to the Reginadde doctor?"

"To remove the implant. He did that. I saw it after the surgery."

"He took it out but replaced it with an old model. One that she couldn't interact with. One that they said couldn't be removed."

The Reginadde Ambassador became extremely angry. He muttered words in his native language. Only some Jennifer had understood and those weren't nice words.

"Watch your language," Jennifer scolded him, but her tone was light and teasing.

They made their way carefully to the secured assassin. The bots hadn't moved him. Jennifer didn't know why. Perhaps they were waiting for instructions, or maybe their job was just to secure and other bots take them away.

"Why?" the Ambassador asked, his voice full of fury.

"You lost our confidence. We had to put someone in here to take control. We can't risk losing interdimensional drives. We would lose contact with our other planets. We would stop being one."

The Ambassador said gravely, "We are part of the Rohastin. We do things together. Other species have different skills with the drive. Only by us working together will we solve this. Only the humans have skills with thrusters on large ships. They are new to interdimensional drives and have not lost that knowledge like we have."

A trolley like the medical one Jennifer had seen Reggie on arrived. It positioned itself upright, wrapped more fabric around the assassin, and then slowly rotated, the Reginadde losing their footing. It then went up the levels to the outer hatch and the corridor.

"Is it safe now?" the Ambassador asked. "I don't have access to the station systems while in here."

Jennifer set her rucksack down. "I will make a call via Earth. It will be slow, but we won't be tracked by the beacon."

The definition of slow was relative. Back before using the interdimensional tunnel technology for communication, a message would have taken longer than their life. Because she was bouncing via Earth, she would probably have a two second delay.

"Status," Jennifer said to Theo, as the call was connected.

"Everybody safe. The person who killed the Reginadde doctor attempted to kill the Ambassador. He was still unconscious when some bots arrived and took him away. The floor is still locked. Is there another threat?"

"The station detected the threats. Ask your device if there is still danger?"

The delay was longer than expected, but Theo responded. "I didn't have access, but Georgina did. There is a Yvestigan at the top of the ramp, waiting for the unlock. The station can't do anything as he hasn't made any violent moves. A trio of Alphonians from the mall are going to have a word with him and find out why he has a weapon and how he got it on the station. Very few know my involvement. Nobody knows yours."

"Okay. We're going to make our way down and exit via the next larger hatch. I'll let you know when we're out."

Jennifer hung up and placed everything back in her rucksack. She turned and saw the Reginadde Ambassador looking at her with interest.

"That is an interesting tool," he said.

"It is. Shall we make our way out of here? I'm sure you're eager to see your granddaughter."

"That was where I was heading before this incident happened."

"If we go down through to the next section, there is an easier route," Jennifer suggested.

"It's a hidden area of the station that nobody really knows about," he mused. "Perhaps it's best like that. Just in case I need to escape again."