'Congratulations,' said Alex. 'Thanks.' I was feeling pretty good. 'Doc, take us to the nearest spaceport.' 'Very good, Chase,' said the AI. 'Rendel is about an hour away.' Alex nodded. 'Yes,' he said. 'Good. We should be able to get clear before anybody notices Krestoff's missing.' 'What do you have?' I said, looking at the package. 'This? It's the Churchill.'
'I should have realized.' 'Absolutely correct,' said Alex. 'You should.'
Fortunately, Miranda was in the sky that night. Over Rimway it would have been scarcely visible. But in the wide-open spaces above Salud Afar, the planet glittered and sparkled. When we settled on course for Rendel I couldn't help noticing that Miranda could have performed the function of a guide. It lay almost dead ahead. In the cabin, I have to admit we were gloating. Well, actually, I did most of the gloating. I'd laid out Krestoff's muscle with one swing, and Alex was talking with Samuels. Yes, they told us, they'd have the Belle-Marie ready to go when we got there. So we sat and talked and felt good about ourselves. 'First thing we're going to do,' said Alex, 'is go out to the asteroid.' 'Why?' I said. 'You'll see.' I hated it when he got like that. 'It's really Wexler, isn't it?' I said. 'Sure. You saw the way she reacted.' I was sitting with my head resting on the back of the seat, thinking how glad I'd be to get on board the Belle-Marie , where I'd be safely out of the reach of the CSS and of Mikel Wexler, hero of the Revolution. While I was sitting wrapped up in my happy thoughts, I noticed that Miranda had vanished from the sky. That didn't alarm me, because it probably meant only that there were some clouds ahead. One of the complications that ensues from a starless sky is that you can never tell whether it's a clear night or not. Unless they were accompanied by lightning, storms after dark had a tendency to sneak up on you. It had been about a half hour since we'd left the plateau. Below us there were only occasional lights, a cluster of streetlamps, now and then a ground vehicle. I don't know why I twisted around in my seat, but I did. And I saw Miranda. Behind us. We were headed back the way we'd come. I caught Alex's eye, let him know something was wrong, and put my finger to my lips. I wasn't familiar with the vehicle we were riding, but these things all have an AI shutoff. 'It's to your left,' said Doc. 'Open the green panel.' That shook me. But he was right. I opened it and there was the disconnect. 'How'd you know?' 'It's all in the body language, Chase. How did you know?' 'Miranda.'
'Oh. Well, there was nothing I could do about that.'
I touched the toggle. 'I'm going to shut you down, Doc.'
'It won't work.'
I tried it, pulled it into the position marked DISCONNECT AI.
'Chase, this is what is known as a special situation.'
'You're taking us back?' asked Alex.
'Of course. I suggest you sit back and allow this special situation to run its course. It will be best for everyone.'
The notion that earth and sea are solid is an illusion. It is a trick played upon us by our monkey brains. In reality it's not like that at all. This sofa here, for example, is mostly empty space. Ninety-nine percent empty space. So I say to you now and forever, we are fortunate that we do not know the real world. Were we to confront the world as it actually is, we would have nowhere to sit.
- Nightwalk
'We've got the guns,' I said. Alex was looking out the window, trying to see what the ground looked like. 'No. We don't know that we have them all. Anyhow, once we land on the plateau, we'll be stuck there again.' 'What do you suggest?' 'Can we disable it?' 'I've already tried.' 'I mean the skimmer.' 'You want me to crash it?' 'I'm open to a better idea.' There was storage space behind the backseat. I opened it, but it was empty. 'Have to use the scrambler,' I said. 'That is not a good idea,' said Doc. 'Then turn control over to me.'
'I'm not able to do that.'
I took out the weapon, went digging through the cockpit until I found the hardware that housed Doc. I checked to be sure the scrambler was on paralysis mode, aimed it at the hardware, and pulled the trigger. 'Doc?'
'I'm still here.'
'I'm not surprised.' I found a lightning icon that provided a setting to shut off the aircraft's power. 'What do you think?' I asked. Alex looked down at the ground. 'Leave it on.' 'Unless you want to go back, or jump, it's all we have.' 'We'd lose antigrav, too, right?' 'We've got wings. We might be able to glide in.' He thought about it for a long minute. 'Doc,' I said, 'can you take us lower?'
'Negative, Chase. My instructions will not allow me to do that.'
'I assume these instructions take effect if you are hijacked?'
'That is correct.'
'You can't pretend otherwise, I guess?'
'No. I would do it if I could.'
'Okay,' said Alex. 'Kill the power.' 'Doc,' I said, 'if I shut down the power, will I still be able to control the flaps and rudder?'
'I can arrange that.'
'Do it. Let me know when it's done.'
'It's done, Chase.'
'Okay.' I pushed a finger against the pad below the lightning icon. 'Doc, are you sure you can't help us?'
'Chase, I would if I could.'
'Okay.'
'I'd really prefer you not do this.'
'Me, too.'
'Before you act, be aware that we are in rugged country. Chances of survival are not good even if you don't die in the crash.'
'I know, Doc. Thanks.' I pressed. The lights in the cabin flicked off. Doc's lamps went out. The engine died. And I had my weight back. We began slicing down.
Antigrav generators are usually equipped with an auxiliary power source. I tried to restart it. Unfortunately, somebody hadn't maintained it. I got a few burps out of it, enough to slow our descent. Then it died again. The real problem wasn't even the lack of power so much as the fact I couldn't see the ground. Couldn't see anything. We could have been about to touch down, or about to fly into a mountain. We could have been in somebody's basement. I wrestled with the yoke, fought the wind, started doing profanities, looked for lights somewhere. Anywhere . Where was Callistra now that I needed her? The problem with antigrav vehicles is that they don't carry enough wing and tail to allow you to glide properly if the engines fail. I had wings, but they weren't very good at keeping us aloft. 'Chase-' said Alex. 'Doing the best I can.' 'I see lights.' 'Where?' 'Over to the left.' They were not moving. Houses, probably. I started to turn. Started breathing again. They were important because they let me know more or less where the ground was. We swung to port in a long, slow curve. My angle on the lights was changing, of course. They were rising as we went down. Then they vanished. Alex grunted. 'What happened?' 'Mountain.' I pushed the yoke right and held my breath until they reappeared. Coming fast. I wanted to bank toward them, to keep them in sight, but I was afraid of the mountain. Had no idea where the damned thing was. So I kept straight on. They passed off the port side, and I was headed back into the night. 'I'd guess we'll be down in about two minutes,' I said. 'Okay.' It was a long, quiet run, with only the sound of the wind against the wings. Then we blasted into something. I was thrown hard against my harness. There was a rush of fresh air. Then darkness took me.
*** 
