Vandar
Winterfair
In which Hakan sees a thing that he cannot have seen.
The first published description of an autodoc in action, and one of the more detailed explanations of what it is an autodoc actually does.
The autodoc’s analysis indicates that Miri caught a bit of the MemStim that felled sig’Alda, which presumably explains why she’s been reliving Klamath all the way to the ship. (Not that it needs a memory drug for a gravely injured person to be reliving a past trauma, but it might otherwise have been a bit of coincidence that she was reliving precisely that one.)
It probably says something about sig’Alda that he didn’t bother to hide the footprint trail from his ship. Even given an out-of-the-way location, it might have been better tradecraft to make it less easy for someone to stumble across if they happened to be passing. I have a nasty suspicion that he didn’t bother because he figured any local who found the ship would be done in by the security system, and as far as he was concerned that was a satisfactory state of affairs.
While re-reading that part, I was wondering if part of what happend at Klamath was due to a weather machine (like that one Jethri had) going haywire.
If I recall correctly, what happened at Klamath was indeed artificially helped along, though not by anything so exotic as an Old Tech weather machine. It’ll be a while before we get to the short story with the details, though.
PA: an autodoc in action
It seemed odd to me that initially the autodoc description says the clear hatch cycled open. I believe this is the only suggestion that the autodoc would have a hatch that is entirely clear. Later, after it accepts Miri and starts giving read-outs, it ends with the observation window opaqued but that sounds as if the remainder of the hatch were already opaque. How do you visualize this sequence?
The way I visualise it: The hatch is clear when the machine is not in operation. When the hatch is closed and the machine started, the hatch goes opaque except for the observation window. When the machine really gets down to business (which may involve activity that would be uncomfortable to watch, even knowing it’s doing the patient good), the observation hatch goes opaque too.
Admittedly, that middle step is not explicitly mentioned in the narration.