Lifeline

“They did not end up there by chance, Mr. Brahms. My guess is that they have undergone some sort of suspended animation or hibernation.”

He had walked along the rows of glass coffins, studying the masklike faces of the Soviets. He noted the coolness of the chambers, the flush of life that seemed to remain on their faces. No, they couldn’t be dead. These preparations were too elaborate. It spoke of some great plan, some experiment. How had the Soviets done all this, and so quickly—within a few weeks of the War?

Unless they had been working on it all along.

“I cannot understand, though, why they did not leave prominent messages in all languages in every corridor, directing me where to go. This process must have taken some time.”

Brahms frowned, thinking. “Unless the one body you found was a guardian of some sort—a monitor to watch over them, so they wouldn’t need to leave any kind of signs. It sounds strange to leave only one person awake out of all those others.”

On the larger-than-life holotank image, Brahms wore an expression of childlike delight. “Ramis, this is all … astonishing. I’m very proud of you.”

Ramis wasn’t sure he was glad to receive Brahms’s pride.

“Did you try to revive one of them?”

“Sir?” Ramis nearly lost his grip on the chair, startled by the audacity of the question. “Mr. Brahms, I cannot read the Russian words on any of the controls. It appears to be very complicated equipment.”

“Yes, but on the tape you broadcast I saw a hand-lettered sign on the infirmary wall. It seemed to be in several different languages. Maybe the man you found knew he was dying, so he left instructions.” His eyes had a distant look. “Though if he had time to do that, why didn’t he just revive one of the others?”

Ramis swallowed, not knowing what to say. He remembered seeing the sign, but everything else had so shocked him that he had paid it little attention. He hadn’t considered that he should do anything drastic.

“No, sir, I did not try. I was not sure of the instructions.”

The director tapped his fingers together, masking a slight scowl of disappointment. He stared down at something out of the holotank’s view, apparently recalling part of Ramis’s tape. “Come now, Ramis, these are simple instructions—pushing a few selected buttons and monitoring some numbers. Do you realize how important that discovery could be? It is vital for us to learn if their suspended animation process actually works. Perhaps we can adapt it for our own survival.”

Ramis’s face must have shown a puzzled expression. Brahms put on a mask of exaggerated patience. “The Soviets have found a way to survive, apparently even without any supplies from Earth. They can just lie back and wait until someone comes to rescue them. Now, if you could revive them, and they could share their knowledge, you could single-handedly eliminate the need for any further RIFs aboard Orbitech 1”

Ramis kept eye contact, even under the penetrating stare of the director. He had thought the wall-kelp had already removed any need for further RIFs. Or was Brahms just looking for an excuse? He tried to make his position firm.

“Perhaps I have not described it clearly enough, Mr. Brahms. The hibernation apparatus appears to be extremely complicated. I cannot understand any of the other writings left here. Perhaps they are emergency procedures. I cannot read the Russian—not even the alphabet. What if something goes wrong with the process?”

Brahms seemed to quash a flare of anger. “Ramis … Ramis, you underestimate yourself. Just look at what you’ve done already—you Jumped all the way over there and you figured out how to open the emergency hatch by yourself, without being able to read any Russian.”

He paused, as if trying to remember what else Ramis had described. “You worked the lift-shaft elevator, you explored the whole station.”

His voice softened. “Now, think about it. If the Soviets were going to put themselves completely under suspended animation, waiting for someone—someone like yourself, Ramis—to come find them, don’t you think they would make it simple and obvious how to go about reviving them? They can’t be sure that whoever finds them will know. It must be straightforward.”

“A person’s life would be at stake if I fail.”

“I trust your abilities, Ramis. I want you to go and look again. Maybe you missed something. It’s very important that you try.”

Ramis started to lose his patience with the director. “Is Karen there?” he asked.

Brahms frowned, as if wondering about the point of the question. “Dr. Langelier? Don’t worry. I’ve already informed her that you attached her weavewire according to plan. It seems to be a success.”