“You are a fine officer, Asimov. But I think this is to be my last mission. You must do the honourable thing by our allies.”
Officer Asimov took one last agonising look at his fallen comrade as the light faded from his eyes. Closing Petrov’s eyes, he wiped a tear away from his own, then tore himself away to check on the passenger. Petrov was right, the honour of Russia depended now on the actions of this young officer.
Asimov found his passenger unconscious and bleeding from a head wound. Glancing at a dial on the wall, he realised the air pressure was dropping fast. He would also lose consciousness unless he put on his helmet. Having done so, with some difficulty he managed to get one on his inert companion. Glancing around the Povorino one last time, he punched the emergency door release, which caused the door to violently disengage from the ship, along with an explosive rush as the final remnant of precious air disappeared into space.
Clambering out of the mutilated ship, dragging his useless sidekick along behind him, Asimov realised he had injured his leg and it was hurting badly. He could feel the combination of adrenaline and oxygen deprivation clouding his thoughts.
Clear of the Povorino, he tried to get his bearings. He spotted what he thought was the outline of the Moon Base on the horizon and laboriously headed for it. Unbeknownst to him, what he was actually aiming for was a robotic bulldozer, ceaselessly harvesting regolith. Asimov and his human cargo would never reach safety.
Vostochny Cosmodrome Medical Facility
“Standby for final cortex upload… computer, initiate upload.”
“Uploading….” replied the computer. After about two minutes it continued, “upload complete, doctor.”
“Please run quantum diagnostics.”
“Quantum cortex is online and running at maximum throughput,” replied the computer.
“Nurse, please reduce the isoflurane to 100 parts per million.”
“Affirmative, doctor.”
“He’s coming round. Please remove the bindings.”
“Yes of course.”
“Fifty parts per million, please nurse. Heart rate stabilising. Scan for signs of muscle apoptosis.”
“That’s a negative doctor, muscle activity normal.”
“Reduce to zero parts per million.”
“He’s going to open his eyes in a few seconds.”
“Quiet please, don’t crowd him. Commander Toropov, you should be the first person he sees. The rest of us will wait outside.”
The medical team removed the gas mask and disconnected some sensors from their patient, confident he was coming round normally, and left the room.
Commander Toropov quietly walked up to the bed until he was standing directly beside his friend.
He bent down and whispered gently, “Greetings, Comrade Hampton.”
20. Reckoning
Back at Spaceport West, Tiggy was conflicted. She believed every word that Alan had told her, incredible though it seemed, but who would believe her if she told anyone? Obviously, she should tell Susan. Susan trusted her and Tiggy counted her a close friend, an ally.
There really wasn’t any point putting it off, she would confront Susan straight away. Susan would then have to decide what to do with this information. Tiggy didn’t envy her that.
She wrote a brief message and sent it to Susan.
“Susan, we must meet, in private. I have something I’ve got to tell you face to face. Life and death type stuff.”
Susan replied within seconds, “Okay, come to my office in five minutes.”
Tiggy looked at the reply and then realised she didn’t want to meet Susan at her office. What if the government had wired it? And then there was the young assistant, perhaps he would be eavesdropping under instruction from Ralph.
“Sorry, Susan, can we meet at CostaBucks? I’ll explain everything when I see you.”
A few minutes later they rendezvoused at the coffee shop and found a booth in the corner where they would not be overheard.
“What’s all this about Tiggy, are you alright?”
“Yes, I’m fine, thank you. Although… a little disturbed by something Alan told me.”
“Alan? Is it about Commander Wilder?”
“Well, sort of. It’s more to do with the Prime Minister.”
Susan’s eyes narrowed. Subconsciously she had been preparing for this moment. She didn’t expect it to come from Alan, but she had been hoping for a breakthrough in her understanding of Ralph.
“I hadn’t considered Alan to be a source of political intrigue! Is he an undercover hack?” said Susan with a cheeky smile, not able to completely disguise her nervousness.
“I think it’s because Alan and Ralph have been through a surprisingly similar experience.”
“That sounds unlikely, but I’m all ears.”
“I’m not sure you’re going to like it,” said Tiggy as the enormity of the revelation began to overwhelm her.
“Spill the beans, Beauchamp!”
“Well, you know those Russian roboticists who created the version of Alan we met last week?”
“Yes.”
“They came from Vostochny, didn’t they?”
“They did. It’s one of the largest research establishments in the world. What of it?”
“Do you know what happens, as a matter of course, prior to all launches from that base?”
“Herrings for breakfast I imagine. Cut to the chase Tiggy!”
“They perform a very detailed scan of your brain. And I mean, down to the last neuron, synapse, dendrite and axon. They then archive all that information… as a contingency.”
Susan’s eyes were widening involuntarily. She was hoping and praying that Tiggy wasn’t about to say what she thought she was.
“Surely you’re not suggesting…?”
“I’m afraid I am Susan. The man you once knew as Ralph Hampton, isn’t alive anymore.”
QUANTUM CORTEX
The Quantum Cortex is the single most complex engineering feat known to man. By harnessing almost limitless processing power, it has been possible to accurately simulate the human brain in a computer chip the size of a postage stamp.
This has lead many cognitive specialists to speculate that there must be a huge amount of untapped potential still to be discovered in the actual human brain, since, in most cases, the real thing is considerably larger than a postage stamp.
Other, more politically correct, scientists have pointed out that in fact, brain size is irrelevant for determining intelligence. After all, the average female brain is 10% smaller than the corresponding male brain, and yet no-one, at least no-one with a government sponsored research fellowship, is suggesting women are less intelligent than men.
In all honesty, however, your average android is unlikely to come away with any prizes from the Brainiest Sentient Being Awards. Even the most sophisticated models are frequently baffled by simple human behaviours that children seem able to acquire from an early age. Such problematic behaviours are generally associated with the slippery concept of common sense.
Naturally, this state of affairs has lead to a growing feeling of inferiority and low self-esteem amongst the artificial automata community, a key response to which has been the creation of the self-help organisation Androids Anonymous, where robotic individuals can meet in a safe and friendly environment away from the derisive ridicule of their human overlords.
It can only be assumed the purpose of these meetings is to discuss particularly android issues and encourage one another in their attempts to become more lifelike, but, due to the secretive and exclusive nature of the organisation, it is difficult to know for sure.
Some undercover journalists, cunningly disguised as outdated robots, have, on occasion, managed to infiltrate these gatherings. Normally spotted and ejected within minutes, they all, without fail, report seeing androids sitting around on sofas watching daytime TV.
UK Guide to Space, 2025 Edition
“I can’t believe it Tiggy. I mean, it all
makes sense. His change of personality since his trip to the Moon, his emotional detachment, increasing paranoia, the mediscan report… but, I still can’t believe it’s not really him.”
“Of course, on one level it is still him. The quantum cortex version of his mind is supposedly a very high fidelity replica of the real thing. All those emotional changes you just mentioned were already latent in Ralph.”
“I just can’t believe the country is being run by an android though. Remember the scandal when the Commons Speaker was revealed to have a social media implant, and was live-tweeting PMQs?”
“Not a good moment.”
“This will be so much worse.”
“So, what are you going to do about it?”
“Well, I’ll have to confront him of course.”
“There’s something else you should bear in mind.”
“I’m not sure I can take much more, but go on!”
“According to Alan, Ralph may not be fully aware of what’s happened to him.”
“Are you telling me that Ralph Hampton is an android, but doesn’t know it?”
“It’s a distinct possibility, yes Susan.”
Spaceport West Page 13
