Benedict 4 - the Devil's Eye by Jack McDevitt

Author:Jack McDevitt
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: Benedict, Interstellar travel, Antiquities, Alex (Fictitious character), Fiction, Science Fiction, &WORKING, Adventure, General, sf
ISBN: 9780441017850
Publisher: Penguin
Published: 2009-10-27T04:28:31+00:00

TWENTY-SIX

There are times when you must stand in the night with no place to put your feet.

- Love You to Death

Maybe Peifer had something. My father always said, if you're serious about getting somewhere, take a taxi. There was, of course, no way I could ride a taxi to a destination thirty-three light-years out. But I might be able to use one to get to the space station. Okay. Cabs will take you up to a couple of kilometers, but they aren't designed for high-altitude flights, let alone one that that would run out of the atmosphere altogether. But it was an option. I'd have to wait until the sun went down. Most people would think that, if you went up in the daytime, up to orbital altitudes, you'd freeze. But in fact, the sun would turn the taxi into an oven. So I waited until late afternoon. Then I went over to Central Mall and grabbed a sandwich and a fruit drink. And some dessert. Wasn't sure when I'd eat again. Afterward, I stopped by a general supply shop and got some tape. I went shopping for a plastene jacket and settled on one that looked almost airtight. It wasn't something I'd want to wear in public, particularly, garish green with a salacious dragon on the back. But it was exactly what I needed. Next stop was home furnishings. I browsed among the window curtains and bought a tieback, a soft strip of blue-green fabric that would have been perfect for my living room. I carried the jacket and the tape and the tieback to the roof and picked out my cab, a late-model Karaka that looked sturdy and well maintained. It waited patiently for me, and I climbed in. "Taxi," I said, "let's go fill up. I'm going to ask you to take me to Quahalla. And bring me back." Quahalla was halfway across the continent. "I have adequate fuel, ma'am," she said. "I get nervous about long trips. Humor me. Let's fill up anyhow. I'll be much more comfortable."

"As you wish, ma'am."

It takes next to no fuel to keep the antigrav unit running. The jets, of course, were another matter. So the plan was to leave them off. What I needed was to get to the right altitude and stay there. I wouldn't be able to go anywhere once I'd arrived. But that was okay.

"Where in Quahalla do you want to go?"

"I'm still deciding. I have several errands to run." "Very good." We pulled into a depot and filled the tank. The antigrav unit and the jets used the same fuel. I'd have liked to fill two or three extra tanks and put them in the cab, but I'd have no way of getting the fuel into the system. When we'd finished, we rode over to Kreitzel's Sea Sports and picked up an oxygen tank and a mask. Next I needed two blankets. When everything was on board, I asked the AI whether the taxi was safe at higher altitudes.

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