Descendant Machine

Gareth L. Powell Descendant Machine Continuance - Book #2 ISBN: 9781789094329, 9781789094312 Kindle / ASIN: B0B6B4Y8VN Genre: Science Fiction Goodreads Rating: Paperback, 336 pages Published: 2023 From the award-winning author comes a gripping, fast-paced and fascinating science fiction adventure. Vividly imagined and sharply written, fans of Ann Leckie and Becky Chambers will be engrossed. When Nicola Mafalda’s scout ship comes under attack, she’s left deeply traumatised by the drastic action it takes to keep her alive. Months later, when an old flame comes to her for help, she realises she has to find a way to forgive both the ship and her former lover. Reckless elements are attempting to reactivate a giant machine that has lain dormant for thousands of years. To stop them, Nicola and her crew will have to put aside their differences, sneak aboard a vast alien megaship, and try to stay alive long enough to prevent galactic devastation. 2023 - ePub verification and revisions by zardox GARETH L. POWELL DESCENDANT MACHINE A CONTINUANCE NOVEL TITAN BOOKS Descendant Machine Print edition ISBN: 9781789094312 E-book edition ISBN: 9781789094329 Published by Titan Books A division of Titan Publishing Group Ltd 144 Southwark Street, London SE1 0UP www.titanbooks.com First edition: April 2023 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead (except for satirical purposes), is entirely coincidental. Copyright © 2023 Gareth L. Powell. All Rights Reserved. Gareth L. Powell asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser. A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library. For Dianne CONTENTS Cover Introduction Prologue: Betting the Farm on a Hunch PART ONE: SURFING THE INVISIBLE GRADIENT A Thing or Two About Survivor’s Guilt Keeping their Deities at Arm’s Length The Grand Mechanism Within Acceptable Parameters Wincing in Anticipation A Puddle of Attitude Assuming Room Temperature More Important than Gold Stars The Cronus Cluster Flamboyant Elegance Universal Consciousness, Telekinesis, or Even God Quiet and Prickly Gunmetal Ghost Ass-first into the Darkness Meat Speeds Weird Parasites Perilous Proximity Beetle-like Sheen Side-splash Swiss Cheese Allergic-to-Seafood Target Acquisition Frogs Could Swim General Aulco’s Ass Phantom Body Syndrome Road to Nowhere A Fuck-ton of Ifs The Last Temptation of Orlando Walden PART TWO: ON A PITCH-DARK SEA Vacuum Decay One Should Never Discuss Matters of Importance Without Tea Battered but Essentially Intact Like Rain Softly Guidance System Ain’t No Whale Like a String Quartet Maximum Visibility A Satisfying Series of Small Explosions A Fair Fight Primal Fear of Nonexistence Above Me, the Pitiless Stars Serving Science Living in Trees San Diego Sunset Blue Fists Clenched Amorphous Killing Machines Eye of the Storm Bigger on the Inside All the Water Gets In Absolute Philistine An Arrow Looping Back on Itself God-sized Brain Fearsome Stellar Engines Conclusion Acknowledgements About the Author Also by Gareth L. Powell “The dance is always danced above the hollow place, above the terrible abyss.” URSULA K. LE GUIN INTRODUCTION TO: COUNCIL OF SHIPS INVESTIGATIVE SUBCOMMITTEE FROM: VANGUARD SCOUT SHIP FRONTIER CHIC DATE: 03/09/125 NEW COMMON ERA RE: INCIDENT #43675-A My esteemed colleagues and members of the Council, I understand many of you may be confused or angry about recent occurrences in the Jzat system, and I can’t say I blame you. I’m not particularly happy about it all myself. But, as I was there when everything went sideways, it has fallen to me to explain the events that led up to the death of the Rav’nah Abelisk and the reactivation of the Grand Mechanism. After consideration, and having reviewed all the available evidence, I have decided to present my report to you in the form of a fictionalised narrative. In doing so, I hope to convey a deeper sense of the emotions and thought processes of those involved, as well as communicate the enormity of what we faced more effectively than I ever could through the mere recitation of data. This has enabled me to devote a chapter to each of the most significant turning points, and the reasoning behind each decision. In compiling this account, I have drawn upon my own experience; the testimony of my navigator, Nicola Mafalda; and the letters sent from the scientific protégé, Orlando Walden, to his lover, Ramona Tyrell—as well as the journals, communications or recollections of several of the other major participants, where available. To help you keep track of whose testimony you are reading at any given moment, I have included the name of the narrator beneath the title of each chapter. Although I have striven to ensure the accuracy of this account, I have inevitably made some aesthetic and literary choices in my presentation. For instance, although highly educated, impeccably dressed and well spoken, Ms Mafalda tends to employ profanity for both emphasis and punctuation. Indeed, when infuriated or intoxicated, she has a remarkable talent for fitting multiple instances of the word ‘fuck’ into almost every sentence she utters. So, in the interests of clarity, I have taken the liberty of excising most of these curses, sparing only enough to give an authentic flavour of her speech. I have also omitted the more intimate and sexually explicit passages from Mr Walden’s communiques, as well as whole sections that slowed the pace of the narrative and consisted entirely of snarky comments about other physicists. Additionally, I have employed the occasional stylistic flourish, to make the whole thing more engaging to read. I know humans often find it easier to