Doctor Who_ The Also People - Ben Aaronovitch [92]
The egg divides, divides again and keeps on dividing until a colony of one hundred and fifteen cells have formed into a blastocyst. Satisfied that the colony will not be injurious to the body, the ever-watchful auto-immune system gives the blastocyst the thumbs-up for further development.
A chemical messenger is released into the bloodstream that will give Dep a slight feeling of euphoria for the next two hours or so. The rest, as they say, is biology.
Dep hangs in the bedfield with her face against Chris's chest, listening to the slow comforting rhythm of his heart. Now that it is too late she is suddenly struck by the enormity of what she has done, of the crime she is intending to commit. She has stolen the blueprint of his life and taken it into herself. Taken what uniquely belongs to Chris, his individuality, and on a whim made him less than what he was.
But what made it a true crime in the eyes of the people, one that could earn Dep social isolation for the rest of a miserable life, is that she has no intention of ever telling him.
SaRa!qava called while Bernice was having her morning fight with the suspensor pool. The call was announced with a discreet little chime that was on to its ninth repetition before Bernice realized it was the phone. She tried to twist around but only succeeded in getting her feet higher than her head. 'Hello,' she called.
A full-size hologram of saRa!qava rezzed up in the corner of the bathroom. 'Good morning, Benny. Do you always bathe in that position?'
'Absolutely,' said Bernice. 'I find that having the blood rushing to my head first thing in the morning helps me wake up.'
The daylight quality hologram wandered around the bathroom, peering curiously through the bedroom door and laughing at the fittings. 'This place is so old,' she said. Bernice watched in amazement as the holographic projection of saRa!qava started rummaging through the bottles on the bathroom shelf. 'I think you should try some of this,' said saRa!qava, holding up a plastic squeezy bottle. 'It's microgravity soap.'
Bernice let her fingers brush against saRa!qava's as she took the soap – she felt skin. 'How are you doing this?' she asked.
'Your House is using its manipulation fields to create a textured shape that matches my projection,' said saRa!qava. 'I can derez and go image only if it annoys you.'
'Doesn't annoy me,' said Bernice. 'And since you're feeling so solid you can come over here and turn me the right way up.'
SaRa!qava stepped over and, catching hold of Bernice's leg, flipped her into an upright position. 'Much better,' said Bernice.
'I don't know why you bother with this thing,' said saRa!qava. 'Why don't you just get House to replace it? Get something a bit more fashionable like a wobble bath.'
'I like a challenge,' said Bernice, unwilling to admit that it had never occurred to her that she might be able to change the bloody thing. 'I try never to admit defeat when dealing with strange technology.'
'I thought you might want to come shopping this morning,' said saRa!qava.
'I'm not sure I'd be very good company,' admitted Bernice.
'I like a challenge,' said saRa!qava.
'Feeling better?' asked the Doctor as Roz came down for breakfast.
'Why is everyone always so concerned with my health?' she snapped. 'You'd think I was planning to croak or something.' There was a bunch of flowers jammed into a vase on the balcony table, great garish purple and orange blooms on slender stalks. In her weakened condition it