Slabscape : Reset by Baker S. Spencer

Author:Baker, S. Spencer [Baker, S. Spencer]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Publisher: Blip Books
Published: 2010-11-11T16:00:00+00:00

sixteen

Everyone was sitting around laughing except Dielle. He was propped up against a wall and wasn’t in a laughing mood. He considered himself lucky to be alive. It’s not everyone who falls off a three-kilometre-high mountain and lives to suffer the embarrassment of having people turn around every thirty seconds to look at him and laugh themselves silly. A looped recording of the local avalanche which had knocked him off the mountain showed him flapping his arms in mid-air in terrified desperation before the impact anticipators turned the Crunchfoam rigid, snapping him to attention. If Dielle hadn’t closed his eyes, certain he was going to plummet feet-first into the ground three thousand metres below, he would have seen the arms of the safety nets shoot out from the cliff-face, arresting his fall 2.7 metres below the ledge. The image zoomed into his face as his eyes opened wide and darted about in disbelief.

They especially liked that bit.

‘Yes, really fucking hilarious,’ said Dielle. ‘Can’t one of you bastards at least feed me another drink? How long before this stuff goes limp again?’

‘Could be any minute,’ said Fencer, trying hard to suppress a smile. ‘It’s still experimental. Hey, do you think you could have a word with your agent? The resort want to use the footage to promote how safe the place is. She’s apparently holding out for a sum that would mean we’ll have to turn round and go back for more cash.’

‘Good!’ said Dielle {[message to :: Kiki Tiger@pundechan Media: Under no circumstances is the recording of me falling off that mountain to be made public – please acknowledge]}

[[••]]

Dielle crumpled.

‘It’s worn off then,’ said Fencer cheerfully. ‘Good. Come and sit over here, I’ll introduce you to everyone.’

[[•]]

{[Deliver]}

[[‘Darling! You were fabulous! I haven’t laughed so much in cykes! I won’t do any deal before speaking to you – don’t worry! See you around six? Love!’]]

You won’t do any bloody deals at all, he thought grumpily. At least I didn’t shit myself. Then he remembered the colonic emties. Maybe he had – how would he know?

They were on a wooden deck overlooking a spectacular Alpine scene, drinking steaming cups of mulled wine. It was freezing cold outside but the localised temperature was mild. He took off the body suit and threw it onto a pile of clothes on the nearest table. The lodge wasn’t staffed yet, so everything was supplied via the kTables. He ordered another drink and sat down. Fencer introduced everyone, which wasn’t strictly necessary as Dielle had had plenty of time to ask Sis who they all were while he was doing his plank impersonation against the wall. Three of the guys were involved in environmental design and the fourth, who went by the name of Gentricycle Thalmus-Orang, did something interesting with mountain acoustics, but Dielle had had enough of mountains and had enquired no further.

Fencer pointed at each man in turn: ‘Geoff, Mate, Twopoint and Thal.’ They all raised their cups as Dielle collected his from the kTable.

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