“No, that would kill them. We cool them to slow their metabolism. We tube feed, catheterise and wipe them. Or rather, the bots do. We anaesthetise them for the journey and insert them into the Ragtime Dreamstate.”

Campion takes them to an occupied pod. There are red indicator lights on the outside. The pod has no window, but a large monitor takes up space outside. Campion punches in an override and they look in.

“Obviously, we lock the pods. Passengers are exposed and vulnerable,” says Campion.

“Who has authorisation to enter the pods once occupied?” asks Fin.

“Me. The Captain, the original captain. The rescue robots can override anything in the event of a catastrophic event.”

“Could I open it from the outside?” asks Fin.

“Try it.”

“Salvo’s much stronger.”

“Salvo can try it.”

“I’ve seen the specs, Captain. I don’t need to try,” says Salvo.

“Can we see the ones in which the occupants were killed?” says Fin.

They look at five. There is nothing remarkable about the pods. Clean. Empty, save inert medbots. The doors have not been damaged.

“May we see the bodies, Captain?” asks Salvo.

Like any large spacecraft, the Ragtime has several refrigerators, some truly huge. Campion had ordered a makeshift morgue and, from the looks of it, the bots improvised by merging smaller spaces. The body parts have not been assembled, just stored in the most convenient positions. It seems disrespectful to Fin, but these are not reflective beings. They do as they’re told, to whatever extent subtlety is added to their instructions. Campion instructs the Ragtime to construct paper-polymer surgical gloves and masks for Salvo and Fin using their observed dimensions. Artificials can’t get diseases, but they can store pathogens like any object, and the protection is for Campion, Fin and the hundreds of sleeping passengers.

“How do we do this?” asks Fin.

“Start with the heads,” says Salvo. “Arrange them on the floor tiles. As many as you can find.”

“You know what you are doing?” asks Campion.

“This is why I was sent,” says Salvo.

“All right. I’ll leave you to it. I can spare two mobile med units. Will that suffice?” Campion is on the way out of the door as if she is not really listening for the response.

“For now,” says Salvo.

“How will we reach you if we need to?” says Fin.

Campion points to the floating orb. “Speak to these. The Ragtime will not respond to your voices as it does not know you. The Captain would have learned, but this… anyway. Yes.”

The work turns bloody quickly as the ice melts from Fin’s and Salvo’s body heat. The bots arrive and station themselves where Campion stood before, and Salvo’s IFC syncs with theirs. His eyes glaze over and Fin looks away. He digs out the head of a green-haired teenager that seems frozen solid, the kid’s mouth open in a silent agony.

Salvo