The Outer Worlds: Book One of the Epherian Chronicles Read Online Free PDF Page B

QUALITY
SERVICE’
    ‘ Are they paying you to say that?’ He waited for an answer, but
the elevator didn’t reply. ‘I thought so. Take me to Thompson
Vega.’
    ‘ REQUEST ACCEPTED. PLEASE TRANSFER TWO TRADE GUILD
CREDITS.’
    Michael took
his Guild Credit Transfer Device (commonly known as a GCTD) from
his belt bag. The GCTD was a small handheld device with a glowing
sensory keypad. Such devices were very common throughout the entire
galaxy and almost everyone carried a GCTD. The Trade Guild credit
was the universally accepted galactic currency because the Trade
Guild had been endorsed by the Epherian Empire. The Trade Guild had
been in the currency business since the time shortly after the
arrival of humanity in the Triangulum Galaxy.
    GCTDs were
also impossible to hack and once they were assigned to an
individual they could never be transferred to another person. There
were no confirmed incidents of anyone being able to break the
encryption of a GCTD. The Trade Guild had been at the forefront of
computer technology for centuries. The guild’s encryption
technology was extremely advanced. A common myth which circulated
throughout the galaxy was that part of the GCTD actually existed in
a different spacial dimension, so any attempt to reverse engineer
the GCTD was bound to fail unless the means to access extra spacial
dimensions was also available to the engineer. Knowledge of
extradimensional technology was beyond the capability of most
electronic engineers.
    The GCTD
beeped and two credits were instantly transferred. The elevator
began to move, and twenty seconds later the door slid open.
Directly ahead was the entrance to Sunorder Cava Corporation.
    Michael sighed
and shook his head. ‘Elevator, what are you doing? I told you to
take me to Thompson Vega.’
    ‘ I AM NOT PROGRAMMED TO ACCEPT ILLOGICAL REQUESTS,’ said the
elevator.
    ‘ You mean that you’re programmed to take me where I don’t want
to go, or rather, where your owner will be paid a commission.’
Michael drew his plasma pistol and pointed it at the elevator’s
control console. ‘I don’t want to have to ask again. Take me to
Thompson Vega or I will take my two credits value out of
you.’
    ‘ REQUEST ACCEPTED.’ The door slid shut. About ten seconds later
the door reopened. Michael looked out on a very long and dim
corridor. For a moment he had second thoughts. Only a handful of
fluorescent lights lit the corridor and half the lights were
flickering. ‘LEVEL 114 AS REQUESTED.’
    Michael nodded
and pushed the hover trolley out into the corridor. The elevator
door closed behind him. He walked forward into the gloom. Solid
steel apartment doors lined the way. He continued along until he
reached door 331. A small panel on the apartment door read:
Thompson Vega, Robotic and Synthetic Organisms, Construction and
Repair. He looked around for a doorbell or console; there was a
speaker, but there didn’t seem to be a doorbell.
    ‘ Looks like I’ll have to knock,’ he muttered under his breath
as he reached out. A small hatch opened at the top and a thin
tentacle with a synthetic eye looked down at him. He drew his
plasma pistol and the eye quickly retreated inside and the hatch
closed.
    ‘… Does your android need repairs?…’ asked a voice from the
speaker.
    ‘ Yes,’ answered Michael. ‘What was the eye on the tentacle all
about?’
    ‘… Oh, that’s just one of my projects; don’t be concerned. You
can bring your android inside for me to have a closer look…’ said
the voice.
    An instant
later the apartment door slid open. Standing directly inside was a
short old man with long white hair and spectacles with crimson
lenses. In one hand he was carrying a metal pot and the tentacle
with the eye was curled up inside. In the other hand he was holding
a screen that was a picture of what the eye was seeing.
    ‘ My name is Thompson Vega. I specialise in the construction of
synthetic organisms.’
    ‘ I’m Captain Michael Cornelius of