ran things up at Central and even talked back to Comp. This showed the top brass took Tunnel seriously. But there was something just slightly odd about his voice.
He said: “Citizens. It is a great honor to address you today on the eve of yet another of the difficult and often dangerous missions by means of which the UN Special Force maintains order in Europe and environs. I will not detain you long. I merely wish, on behalf of the Central Strategic Command group which I have the honor to lead, to express our warm appreciation for the constant dedication and commitment with which you, and other members of both the civil and military arms of the Force as it stands today, have carried out and will continue to carry out the necessary tasks, no matter how hazardous or complex, which help us maintain peace, law and order. Central Strategic Command finds itself in a proud and lonely, and often a difficult, position, in that we must plan in detail every aspect of the missions mounted under our aegis; be assured, my friends, that the largest electronic computer system remaining to us has processed the plan of action you are about to embark upon and has minimized hazard, maximized efficiency, in pursuit of that old goal of the greatest good of the greatest number. We have forged the plan of action and we have complete and unswerving faith in your ability to carry it out.
We have given you the tools and we know you can finish the job. Without your support and that of others like you, Central Strategic Command would at this moment in time be helpless against the rising seas of anarchy. Cit_graaaak_ -- “
He froze with the graaaak . He flickered, and so did his desk.
“—zens, the Central Strategic Command and the Special Force in its entirety salutes you. We know you will not fail. Go on to victory!
“Thank you for your attention.” The thing on the dais bowed very formally and sat down. Birch tried to get some applause going, and even squeezed some dregs from Patel and a slow-clapping Wui. I heard Ellan say something to Ngabe about a power load test. After that graaaak and flicker ... I should have guessed it when we got in here without having our nostrils fluoroscoped and fillings removed for security inspection. Taggart didn’t waste his time giving pep talks even to dynamite projects like Tunnel. Taggart simply had himself holographed, and more fool you if you thought it was the real thing. Now the image had settled back as before, the drumming fingers in an endless loop, synchronizing with the fading thud thud thud somewhere behind my temples. Hell , I realized—
Rossa whispered it to me first. “I do really think he could have managed a personalized holo for something as important as we’re supposed to be. That has to be an all-purpose speech for whipping up enthusiasm anywhere, anytime, any mission.” A tiny snort that might have been a giggle choked off at birth. “Graaaak!”
I nodded hard and fast to show I’d thought that far too, but wished I hadn’t as the thud thud thud slipped into phase with the nods and my head told me it wanted to fall off. Every time I talked to Rossa I felt more and more that we were some sort of conspirators ... well, the system was screwing us, or was going to, for the greatest good of everybody except us (thanks for that line, Marshal). Maybe some conspiring would be a good idea if we could find anything to conspire about in this damnable fog of plotting.
More physical checkups followed. We were weighed and measured again while Ngabe grumbled some of the same grumbles. This time his medic/6 was about, fetching and carrying anything Ngabe wanted, but not apparently allowed to do anything of the work. He was a dim-looking man with small eyes, and when standing still he hummed something I couldn’t quite hear. We never got to know his name.
The midday meal was another glass of water. My stomach felt as though they’d connected it via one of their little MT gates to a supply of
He said: “Citizens. It is a great honor to address you today on the eve of yet another of the difficult and often dangerous missions by means of which the UN Special Force maintains order in Europe and environs. I will not detain you long. I merely wish, on behalf of the Central Strategic Command group which I have the honor to lead, to express our warm appreciation for the constant dedication and commitment with which you, and other members of both the civil and military arms of the Force as it stands today, have carried out and will continue to carry out the necessary tasks, no matter how hazardous or complex, which help us maintain peace, law and order. Central Strategic Command finds itself in a proud and lonely, and often a difficult, position, in that we must plan in detail every aspect of the missions mounted under our aegis; be assured, my friends, that the largest electronic computer system remaining to us has processed the plan of action you are about to embark upon and has minimized hazard, maximized efficiency, in pursuit of that old goal of the greatest good of the greatest number. We have forged the plan of action and we have complete and unswerving faith in your ability to carry it out.
We have given you the tools and we know you can finish the job. Without your support and that of others like you, Central Strategic Command would at this moment in time be helpless against the rising seas of anarchy. Cit_graaaak_ -- “
He froze with the graaaak . He flickered, and so did his desk.
“—zens, the Central Strategic Command and the Special Force in its entirety salutes you. We know you will not fail. Go on to victory!
“Thank you for your attention.” The thing on the dais bowed very formally and sat down. Birch tried to get some applause going, and even squeezed some dregs from Patel and a slow-clapping Wui. I heard Ellan say something to Ngabe about a power load test. After that graaaak and flicker ... I should have guessed it when we got in here without having our nostrils fluoroscoped and fillings removed for security inspection. Taggart didn’t waste his time giving pep talks even to dynamite projects like Tunnel. Taggart simply had himself holographed, and more fool you if you thought it was the real thing. Now the image had settled back as before, the drumming fingers in an endless loop, synchronizing with the fading thud thud thud somewhere behind my temples. Hell , I realized—
Rossa whispered it to me first. “I do really think he could have managed a personalized holo for something as important as we’re supposed to be. That has to be an all-purpose speech for whipping up enthusiasm anywhere, anytime, any mission.” A tiny snort that might have been a giggle choked off at birth. “Graaaak!”
I nodded hard and fast to show I’d thought that far too, but wished I hadn’t as the thud thud thud slipped into phase with the nods and my head told me it wanted to fall off. Every time I talked to Rossa I felt more and more that we were some sort of conspirators ... well, the system was screwing us, or was going to, for the greatest good of everybody except us (thanks for that line, Marshal). Maybe some conspiring would be a good idea if we could find anything to conspire about in this damnable fog of plotting.
More physical checkups followed. We were weighed and measured again while Ngabe grumbled some of the same grumbles. This time his medic/6 was about, fetching and carrying anything Ngabe wanted, but not apparently allowed to do anything of the work. He was a dim-looking man with small eyes, and when standing still he hummed something I couldn’t quite hear. We never got to know his name.
The midday meal was another glass of water. My stomach felt as though they’d connected it via one of their little MT gates to a supply of
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