Upload

by Chris Gladstone

  "I'm okay, now."

  "I'm a bit worried about air leaks from Jack's suit. We need to get back to pressurised air, fast. What would you suggest, Julian?"

  "I've checked the panel's schematics, and it shows severe damage. Could you verify, please, Dad?" Julian said.

  "Okay." I guided Jack over to the far wall housing the wrecked panel and eased him down into a sitting position. I described everything in detail for Julian. When I'd finished, I stood next to Jack in silence as the seconds ticked by. To me, it appeared hopeless.

  Chapter 38

  Julian finally agreed, the door panel was beyond repair. "Okay, we'll have to go to Plan B. Can I assume Jack's air level is the same as yours, Dad? I can see your readout, but I can't check Jack's because of the com failure."

  "Yes, at least I hope so." I was still worrying about hairline cracks in Jack's visor, a slow leak from a minute puncture in his suit or damage to his breathing unit.

  I checked my HUD screen; it had reverted to the default display. Julian had turned off the now useless door panel schematic. I had around two hours supply left.

  "I can start re-pressurising in ten minutes, Dad. It will only take an hour and ten, so you're still well covered air-wise. Once it's complete, you can come out and change into new, fully gassed suits. After that, it's just a matter of air locking through two sections to the next one with a lift."

  He'd made it sound simple. I just hoped everything went to plan. I bent over Jack; still sitting with his back against the wall. I lightly tapped his shoulder. He held his thumb up.

  We'd discussed changing our suits before leaving section ten but had decided we had enough of a safety margin to get back to our section.

  I think exhaustion had got the better of us. It wasn't just a simple matter of putting on a new suit. Because they were for emergency use, protocol dictated the depleted ones had to be reconnected and set up for re-gassing—so they were ready for the next person to use. In hindsight, I would be feeling a lot more comfortable now if we'd made the effort.

  I squatted down and got Jack to bend forward. I methodically checked for damage to his breathing unit, again. Although superficially it appeared intact, it failed to assuage my doubts.

  I had kept the gen com on, distracting myself by listening to Julian and Tiani chatting. They sounded so normal. It allayed any doubts about the success of the uploading. They were still very much Julian and Tiani; Julian gently teasing Tiani, and Tiani accepting the bait.

  I think I must have drifted off to sleep because I woke with a start to hear Julian say "Dad? Are you okay?" He sounded worried.

  "Sorry, I think I just took a little nap." I suddenly realised I had an incredible thirst, and a mouth like parchment.

  "The pressurisation is complete, so you can start re-pressurising the airlock."

  With a monumental effort, I pushed myself to my feet. My thoughts were clouded, muzzy and slightly confused. The air in my suit had become stifling and breathing it like inhaling thick treacle. The stench of my own stale sweat sent a wave of nausea through me, and the heat in my suit reminded me of being in a sauna. My profuse sweating had caused the inside of my visor to mist up. I staggered over to the undamaged console. For a moment, I couldn't remember what I was supposed to be doing. I concentrated. Pressurise––pressurise the airlock. I pressed the button. Nothing happened. I pressed again, this time more firmly; still nothing. Great Zarking Universe, not again.

  "Julian?" Overcome by dizziness, I slid to the floor.

  "Disappointing, but I'm on it. Just give me a few seconds, and I'll see if I can activate it from here."

  He sounded so hopeful, but my thoughts spiralled down into despair.

  "Okay…Just let me try…Oh…" He swore, muttered something incoherent then trailed off into silence.

  My thoughts raced along with my heart. In spite of sitting down, the room began to spin and I thought I was going to faint.

  "Dad," Tiani this time, "Julian thinks the explosion must have created a power surge that fried all the internal airlock circuits. It would explain why everything is dead. But don't worry, he has a plan." Her tone of voice was buoyant and full of hope. A monumental effort to fake it, for my sake?

  "What?" I croaked. I hadn't meant to snap at her. Right at that moment, a gigantic wave of despair hit me. Is this how it ends? We run out of air in this is Zarking, bloody airlock?

  "Dad, I'm on it." Julian was back. "Here's the plan. I'm going to come up the emergency stairs. Once inside, I'll rig the computer to your airlock door panel, bypass the safety mechanism, and then I'll be able to get the door open. Okay?" He sounded so positive.

  "Good plan if we had lots of time," I gasped. "I think I've run out of air…The temperature control…It's way too hot…We'll be out of air before you reach us."

  I heard Tiani's sharp intake of breath, followed by silence. Julian cleared his throat, "Hey, Dad. Don't panic," his voice, calm––reassuring. "Slow your breathing, you're hyperventilating. Your readout shows you have plenty of air. Your humidity and temperature controls have failed. Stay calm, Dad. I don't need air, so I can reach you in less than ten minutes."

  "It…should…work." A wave of pride and relief displaced my despair. Of course! sapioids didn't need air, and Julian could run forever without tiring. How could I have forgotten that?

  "I'm on my way now. We're going to have to switch you off, and because I'm not in a suit we're going to have to rely on the ship's mobile communicators. I'll need to give Tiani instructions for the fire doors. She'll let you know when I'm ready to open the airlock door. Love you, Dad." My com went dead; Julian had gone.

  Great Universe, please let this work. I crawled back over to Jack. I took his hand and gave it a squeeze, relieved when he squeezed back.

  In spite of slowing my breathing, I still had the overwhelming feeling of suffocation. My anxiety spiked yet again when I suddenly noticed moisture condensing on my faceplate. I imagined it trickling into my suit; my suit filling up, and myself drowning in my own sweat. I focused on my HUD display, only to discover my vital signs were missing. Either the system had failed or Julian had turned them off.

  I peered around in the eerie, red light, and my heart missed a beat––missed another and another. I panicked, and my heart started beating again––faster and faster. I could see the airlock walls shrinking in on us. Am I imagining it, or am I beginning to hallucinate? What the Zark's going on? I shook my head; the illusion remained. I closed my eyes but struggled to stay calm in the cloying blackness.

  To distract myself, I concentrated on Julian; pictured him running up the emergency stairs, pausing only for the fire door to slide open. The stairs were situated just outside the airlock of section one and ten at each end of the ship. These sections opened out into a hangar deck where two shuttles capable of holding 250 passengers were located. They could be used as lifeboats in the event of an emergency, but their main purpose was to transport people to planets once we reached our destination.

  When I noticed Jack's slumped body, panic rose in my throat. He wasn't breathing. I hurriedly shone the torch on him. Relief washed over me when I saw his chest rhythmically rising and falling. Just sleeping; I could relax. I began to drift in and out of consciousness. I let go and sank into oblivion.

  Chapter 39

  "Dad, wake up," the voice shouted in my ear.

  I jumped as my eyes snapped open, "I'm awake." I jerked upright. Where was I? My head swirled, so I laid down again. What had woken me up? "What's going on?"

  "Julian's outside the door now. I'll let you know when he's ready to open it."

  I knew that voice. Of course––my daughter, Tiani. Julian. Julian's outside the door. We were about to be rescued.

  "Okay, I'll wake Jack." I slowly rolled over on to all fours and, ignoring the dizziness, I reached up with one hand and tapped his leg. I still managed to startle him. He jumped and frantically grabbed my hand. I patted his leg again and he relaxed.

  "Okay, Da
d. Julian's ready to go. He says he thinks you will be safest if you are in one of the corners closest to the doors, so he wants you to move there now, okay?"

  "Okay, I'll let you know…when we're ready." I crawled on heavy arms and legs, guided Jack over to the left corner near the door and made him sit with his knees up against his chest. With a bit of trial and error, I got him to embrace his knees and rest his head on them. I gave his hand a reassuring pat, crawled over to the opposite corner, and assumed the same position.

  "Ready, Tiani. Tell Julian to be careful. He might get sucked into the airlock…He needs to hang on."

  "He said not to worry about him, he'll be okay."

  "Okay. Go!" I placed my head on my knees and gripped them tightly with my arms, waiting for the blast of air.

  "On the count of three; one, two, three," Tiani counted down, sounding slightly breathless.

  I braced. The door whooshed open. A mass of buffeting air slammed me sideways despite all my efforts.

  When it stopped, I saw Jack sprawled and unmoving on the floor. Julian shot through the door, scooped me up as though I weighed nothing, and carried me outside. He laid me down and with lightning speed removed my helmet.

  "Hey, Dad." He gently patted my face. "Just take slow deep breaths."

  He made to start removing my suit, but I flapped him away as I gulped in the cold, sweet air

  "Help…Jack…Julian," I croaked, my voice barely audible between gasps.

  "Okay, but get out of the suit before it cooks you." He raced back into the airlock and soon emerged carrying Jack. After lying him down, Julian ripped off his helmet. Jack, barely breathing, lay unconscious and unresponsive to Julian slapping his face. His blue-tinged lips were highlighted against his chalky face.

  "He needs oxygen," I said, in between breaths. "It's in the…" but Julian had already jumped up. He sprinted into the bathroom. In what seemed like seconds, he reappeared and raced over carrying two small respirator kits. Half in and out my suit, I managed to crawl over to Jack. I lifted his head as Julian knelt down and slipped the mask over Jack's face. He turned on the oxygen. While we waited, Julian peeled the rest of my suit away and fitted the other respirator over my face.

  I rolled over on my side and tried a gentle shaking, "Jack, Jack." Still no response.

  "Dad, lie down, otherwise you'll pass out. I can deal with it. I'll get him out of the suit so I can check for injuries."

  He ripped and peeled Jack's suit and began looking for signs of anything wrong.

  "There's nothing obvious apart from massive bruising. I'll get the blood pressure cuff from the medical kit." He dashed back to the bathroom. When he got to the door, he called over to me—just as I was attempting to sit up.

  "Stay down, Dad." He darted inside.

  I quickly laid down again, because my head swirled and stars peppered my vision. I don't think I could ever remember feeling so tired. All my limbs were stiff, and my whole body had turned to jelly. My sleep suit was drenched, my head pounded, and I had an intense thirst. I couldn't remember the last time Jack, or I, had had food or water.

  Julian came back and, kneeling down, wound the pressure cuff around Jack's arm. Before it had had time to inflate, Jack coughed, opened his eyes and fought to get up.

  "I'm alright," Jack rasped, coughing again, as he struggled up into a sitting position.

  "Stay still, Uncle Jack. I need to check your blood pressure."

  Julian and I watched as the blood pressure readout appeared.

  "What's the verdict, Julian?" Jack asked.

  "It's low, so don't get up." Julian removed the cuff and transferred it to my arm. "Now for yours, Dad." He deliberately turned the machine away from me, so that neither I nor Jack could see the readout.

  "Julian," I protested and reached for the machine.

  "Stay still!" He gently held my arm in place. The cuff slowly inflated, held, and then relaxed.

  "He's become quite bossy, hasn't he?" Jack quipped.

  "Yes, he sounds just like you, Jack." I looked at Julian. "Well, what's the readout?"

  "It's very low. You've got heat exhaustion bordering on heat stroke, Dad. I'll need to put you on a drip right away to get you rehydrated, fast."

  His expression held such concern and resolve, I knew there was no point in arguing. "What about Jack?"

  "Uncle Jack's not as dehydrated, so he'll be fine if he drinks a lot in the next couple of hours." He slipped the cuff from my arm and packed up the small machine. "Right. I'll carry you both over to the living quarters, so you can lie down on the bunks. I'll be back in a minute."

  Jack and I watched him race across the deck and disappear through the door.

  "How are you feeling, Jack?" I hoped like hell he wasn't feeling as bad as I did.

  "Like I've been stomped on all over by an elephant. My back's really sore. But not unexpected after being blown up and having an argument with the wall." He managed a weak grin. "What about you, Luke?"

  "Well, apart from the headache, nausea, weakness and extreme thirst––I feel great."

  Jack laughed but immediately started coughing. He reached up to take his mask off just as Julian reappeared.

  "Leave it, Uncle Jack," Julian ordered as he strode over to us.

  He bent, slipped one arm under my knees and the other under my arm, picked me up and carried me over to the living unit. After laying me on the bunk, he went back for Jack. He poured us both cups of water. He supported my head, as I drank slowly—savouring the icy, cold, fresh taste. After removing his mask, Jack sat up and guzzled the water down. He gave a resounding burp. We laughed.

  Jack watched as Julian expertly set up the drip he'd found in the medical kit.

  He checked my temperature––38.5°C. Julian declared it too high, so he rummaged in the fridge and found a cold pack. He wrapped it around the saline pack and stood holding it in place effortlessly.

  "I figured cooling the drip, combined with the evaporation from your saturated sleep suit, should be enough to cool you down, Dad." He grinned. "Being able to hold on for ever comes in handy, doesn't it?"

  "I'll remember next time I go rock climbing, Julian," Jack said, smiling. "Thanks for coming to our rescue." He frowned. "I'm puzzled. How the hell did you get up here so bloody fast?"

  "Up the stairs, Uncle Jack."

  "Really? …Of course, you don't need air." Jack coughed again.

  "That's right. I can see there are advantages in being a sapioid. I literally flew up the stairs with no effort at all. I could get used to this," Julian chuckled, looking pleased with himself.

  Perhaps I could explain his situation to him now, while he was enjoying his extra powers? What am I thinking? I'm not thinking, and I'm in no condition to have a sensible discussion about life as a machine. It could wait. I was too tired and exhausted, but the subject would have to be broached before Julian was put back to sleep—but not now, I told myself. I wished it was not ever.

  We all jumped as a piercing alarm sounded from Julian's chest.

  "Bloody hell, it's my communicator," Julian said, scrabbling to remove it from his pocket, "I forgot Tiani. She'll be frantic. He flicked the switch, "Hi Tiani, everything's fine, it all went like clockwork. Sorry, in the excitement I forgot about you," he said, in a relaxed, soothing voice.

  "Forgot? I thought you were all dead or something," Tiani shouted back.

  I reached across and grabbed the communicator from Julian, "Hi Tiani, we're all okay. Jack's BP is a bit low, and I'm being treated for heat exhaustion. You and Julian have done an amazing job figuring out how to rescue us and executing it so quickly. I'm really proud of you." I heard a sniff. "We have to wait for the drip to run through, and Jack and I will have something to eat before we make our way back, okay?"

  Jack, who was sitting up, leaned over and held his hand out. I shoved the communicator towards him.

  He took it and said, "I'm starving, so we'll let you know when we're on our way, Ti."

  "I'm still furious. E
xactly how long will it be before you're back?"

  Jack handed the communicator back to Julian.

  "Two to three hours. I'm really sorry, Ti, but I had to take care of the medical stuff before I did anything else. We'll see you later." He flicked the switch to off before Tiani had a chance to reply.

  "Let's eat," Jack said.

  "Seconded," I said.

  "Before you stand up, Jack, let's take your blood pressure." Julian wound the cuff around his arm, and we watched it inflate.

  "It's okay, Uncle Jack, but stand up slowly." He turned to me. "Stay where you are, Dad," he commanded. "I'll get you to sit up when the food is ready."

  Julian helped Jack to organise some food from the synthesiser in the kitchen. He came back with some soup for me, and Jack had what barely passed as a hamburger. Julian got me to sit up slowly and insisted on feeding me the soup himself. I still experienced a little giddiness, but the dreadful nausea had vanished.

  In spite of my exhaustion, while he was feeding me I could still see the longing for food in Julian's eyes. I remembered just in time to stop myself from telling him his current body was only temporary, and when he was transferred to his customised one he would be able to eat and drink.

  "Did you turn off my HUD display, Julian?" I asked in between sips.

  His face took on a slightly sheepish expression, "I wasn't game to tell you, Dad, but after your de-humidifier packed up your suit turned into a sauna. I thought you had enough to contend with. Your suit got up to 38°. If you'd stayed in there much longer you probably would have fried." Julian frowned. "Should I have told you, Dad?"

  "No. Julian. You made the right decision. I would have done the same for you." I smiled and patted his arm. His face lit up.

  Chapter 40

  While we were eating and after a heated discussion, we decided, for Tiani's sake, that Julian would carry us back to our deck. Jack and I would don suits, enabling him to take us down via the stairs. I insisted Julian take Jack first. Julian and I had to unite forces to get him to agree. Julian grinned. I think he was enjoying his new-found power.