John Brunner – Jagged Orbit

“So in that case let’s ask your miraculous desketary why my own computers have assured me that unlimited free Federal computer time won’t get rid of the interwhich has been plaguing my show recently,” Flamen said, and leaned back in his chair with a smug expression.

“I don’t think I quite understand that,” Reedeth said after a pause. “Ah. I don’t watch your show, I’m afraid. I’m always working when it comes on.”

“It’s perfectly straightforward,” Flamen said. “My show, and only my show, has been suffering ridiculous amounts of interference literally every day for months past, and it’s getting so bad people are switching off in droves. The Holocosmic engineers swear blind it’s nothing they can fix. I want to know whether to believe them, or whether I’m being sabotaged, or whether I’m going out of my mind and developing a persecution complex. It seems like a reasonable question to put to the computers in a mental hospital. Especially since my own equipment seems to have a blind spot on the suband it this moment strikes me that maybe if I am being sabotaged the sabotage extends to my computers at the office!” He was growing heated as he ended the tirade.

With a suspicious glance, as though prepared to agree with the suggestion of paranoia, Reedeth summarized the question for his desketary, and waited for the most probable answer: insufficient data.

It didn’t materialize. In its usual patronizing tone, the machine said, “Both Mr. Flamen and the Federal govcomputers lack the data to evaluate this prob

“Does that mean you have the data?” Reedeth said, confused.

“Yes.”

Flamen was looking equally astonished; it was obvious that he hadn’t expected to receive a serious reply to his query, but only meant to live up to the challenge imin Reedeth’s claims about his desketary. Since this had been the key element in persuading him to accept responsibility for Madison after his release, it was logical that he should put maximum pressure on it. He was torn between disappointment at not scoring against Reedeth, and genuine desire to learn the answer.

“So get it to answer the question for me!” he rapped at Reedeth.

“I’ll try,” the psychologist muttered, and put the problem to the machine. Promptly the mechanical voice responded.

“Mrs. Celia Prior Flamen possesses the ability to interwith electromagnetic radiations in the band used for three-vee transmissions, and this fact is not stored either at the offices of Matthew Flamen Inc. or at the Federal computation center at Oak Ridge. It was esupon her arrival at this hospital and has not subsequently been relayed to any other cybernetic sys

There was a stunned silence in the room. At length Flamen said faintly, “But. Reedeth, are your autoas crazy as your patients?”

“It certainly sounds like it,” Reedeth agreed. His cheeks had gone pale. “Unless. No, it’s absurd. But-”

“But what?” Conroy cut in with enthusiasm instead of the scorn they had expected.

Reluctantly Reedeth said, “Well, it is true, now that I come to think of it-there were a hell of a lot of breakin our internal comweb directly following Mrs. Flamen’s commitment. Remember, Harry?” He turned to Madison.

“Ah. Yes, doctor, that’s perfectly true,” the knee said in a depressed tone.

“Even so,” Reedeth said, appearing to regret his former reaction, “I don’t see how one could-”

“Jim!” Conroy interrupted. “Do you trust the autoyou work with here?”

“Damn it, I put exactly the same question to Ariadne the other day,” Reedeth sighed. “Prof, I literally don’t know! That was such an incredible-”

The comweb buzzed, and in the screen there apthe familiar face of Elias Mogshack, a smile parting his moustache from his beard, a cordial tone coloring the words he started to speak as the image of Reedeth appeared before him.

“Ah, Dr. Reedeth! I heard you were devotedly workout of normal hours to clear up some-”

And it stopped.

Silence.

Resuming, the voice was like a saw cutting into wet wood, the bite and rasp overlaid with a whine of petu”Aren’t you Xavier Conroy?”

Completely unperturbed, Conroy nodded. “Good afDr. Mogshack. It’s a long time since we had the pleasure-”

“What the hell are you doing in my hospital?”

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129

Leave a Reply 0

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *