Readyworld

fiction by michael werneburg

"Nope."

"Doctor Hu?"

"All of my 'colleagues' are back on your ship," the man said, turning his attention back from the still-approaching giant bird. He'd gathered the things he'd dropped to deploy the servomech, and was watching the map carefully. "No," he added, "they look more like tourists to me."

"Of course!" I exclaimed. "That's what it is. My God, I don't know why you accept them here."

"Not our decision, I assure you, Doctor," Mead said, dryly.

The soldier who'd cautioned us to stop suddenly resumed his course, and quickly advanced on the little structure that sheltered the top of the ramp. The soldier who'd been behind us, and to our right, followed quickly. I went to follow, but Mead held up a hand. "Let them check it out," he said softly.

With a glance back at the bird, which was now circling on the rising air that rose over the hill, I said, "I imagine your OHUD's telling you a lot more than mine's telling me."

When that didn't prompt him to respond, I said, "What's going on in there? Any new developments in the state of the room?"

"Not sure of that, Doctor, but we're good to have a look ourselves. The situation has been... normalized."

"Normalised? What the hell happened?"

After one of the soldiers ducked into the entrance to the ramp, Mead indicated that I should follow. "They've apprehended two young people entertaining themselves in the mud of the chamber's floor," the officer said, his voice neutral.

"Entertain-" I blurted. I looked at Mead in disbelief. "What? In there?"

"Yup. Two of the kids that came down in shuttle last night. Been chafing to get away from their families, it seems."

Hurrying down the ramp behind the vast dark bulk of the soldier, I called back, "Spoiled little bastards! I hope they haven't contaminated anything!"

"I'm not too concerned about that. It seems that we'll have plenty to digest, from what the guys are telling me. It may be the kids that were contaminated."

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