25. All I Have To Do Is Dream
Susan woke up from a tormented sleep with a jerk. Her entire cell seemed to be moving, accelerating swiftly downwards, with a faint humming noise of distant machinery. A small red light was strobing on and off, and she could see metal walls flickering by through a small window.
"Hey!" she called out, clinging nervously to her bed. "What's going on?"
There was no reply of course, and she hadn't really expected one. Why was the cell moving, and where was it taking her? It wasn't a total surprise that it could move—the one that imprisoned Nancy Archer had, after all, and considering that this was the same basic design, it made sense. But why were they moving this cell now, after all this time?
Before she had time to wonder, it suddenly stopped, and the main door slowly lifted open. Susan quickly grabbed her sheet and wrapped it around her. To her surprise, she found herself facing a large, well-lit chamber, filled with strange devices of various sizes. There were a number of scientists and technicians fussing around them, adjusting controls, checking readouts, and looking at clipboards and tablets.
"He—hello? Anyone? Why am I here?" Susan called out, carefully getting to her feet. "Hello?"
"Ginormica, stand still. Remain where you are," someone called up.
"Uh, where's Dr von Loeb?"
"Busy," the same woman said. "As are we all. George! Did you fix that bug in the nine hundredth line of coding?"
Susan sighed and stood quite still, her arms wrapped around her, looking at all the tiny people and the array of strange devices, some of which dwarfed even her. Was this all Vaalbaran, she wondered. It certainly didn't look remotely like anything from Earth. But then it didn't look as smooth and advanced as the stuff she'd seen on Gallaxhar's ship or the other Panthalassan ships. More like a mix, she decided. Maybe this was some of the new technology the aliens were sharing with humans. It… it probably wasn't going to make things better for her, she suddenly realized.
"Lie down and remove that sheet, Ginormica," came von Loeb's voice, interrupting her thoughts.
"What the hell is going on?" she asked, feeling both scared, and angry at the man who made her scared.
"What do you mean?"
"What is this place? What's all this stuff? Why aren't I being taken to the medbay?"
He shrugged. "It's more convenient for conveying you here. Especially if you become uncooperative. And you're going to be spending a lot of time here from now on. Get used to it."
"What?" she gasped. "Why? What do you want from me?"
"Quiet, Ginormica. We have a lot to get done. Now remove your sheet and lie down on that platform."
"Not naked again? When will you bunch of perverts be satisfied? What about my rights?"
"Rights? You stand there, a murderous monster, and presume to lecture me about rights? You're not even legally considered human any more! If you don't comply, we'll tranq you and strip you anyway."
"Not… human?" Susan staggered back, her heel landing on a console and flattening it to the ground.
"Tranq her!" von Loeb yelled. "Now!"
"No! No! Wait! Please!" Susan shouted, holding up her hands, fear on her face. "That was an accident! I didn't mean it! Honest!"
The doctor made a quick gesture, and the tranquilizer crew stood down. Shaking with anger and humiliation, Susan slowly undid her sheet and slipped it off as she quickly lay down, trying futilely to cover herself.
"Now cooperate," von Loeb said. "We're on a tight schedule here. This might sting a little, or probably a lot, so hold still, or else we'll need to use the restraints again…."
Susan sat hunched up in a corner of her cell, sobbing. It had been a horrible day, the worst ever. Nothing but endless tests and probes, during which she was had been paraded and humiliated in front of dozens of scientist and officials, who all treated her like a piece of meat. Many of the tests had been very unpleasant as well, with various pipes and tubes inserted down her throat and her nose. Then there were the ones when she had had various electrodes placed over her body and been subjected to electrical shocks. Some of those had been very painful.
And not once had anyone even so much as explained what the tests were for. That was so frustrating. It was like they were doing it deliberately to punish her, torture her.
"Jacques," she sobbed. "Why aren't you here? Please… help me. I don't want this any more. I want to go home…."
The Hang In There poster, still on the inner wall, caught her eye. One corner had got a bit ripped, and it was slightly loose. She was suddenly reminded of the cell she had broken into while exploring the base months ago, when she had discovered Cockroach's appalling history. The tattered, faded remnants of a similar poster that had been the sole source of comfort to Nancy Archer in her final, fear-filled months. And now the same thing was happening to her, she realized with a hideous clarity. Now it was her being subjected to the same painful, humiliating testing. Now it was her being treated as nothing more than a log of wood to be poked and prodded to learn more about how she worked.
Susan curled up into a ball on the floor and began wailing softly, suddenly sure of her fate. One day soon, she knew, it would be her bleached, giant bones lying on the lab table, forgotten in the darkness. Because of her power, the power that evil men craved for themselves.
A few days later, during which time Susan barely stirred from her curled-up position in one corner of the giant pentagonal main chamber, she once more found herself being taken into the depths of the base, down to the new experimental laboratory.
Her heart pounding in fear, she watched the door rise up, flooding her cell with unwelcome light. She scrunched up against the far wall, but knew it was no use: the wall began pushing her out, and there was simply nowhere to get purchase, even assuming she was strong enough to resist the motors. Her feet scrabbling on the slick floor, she was pushed out into the lab and lay there, slumped on the floor, blinking against the glare, too depressed and afraid to even raise her head, let alone stand.
"Right, Ginormica. Get changed into this," von Loeb called.
Susan didn't bother moving as her eyes filled with more tears.
"Ginormica! Pay attention!" he shouted. "Put on your quantonium skin!"
Susan looked over at him for the first time, seeing a technician pushing a cart carrying her alien catsuit. "Huh? My quantonium skin? Why?"
"More tests."
"Why? Why more tests? What can you possibly hope to learn?" Susan whimpered. "Why do you have to do this? Please? Please, can't you just tell me?" She could feel a few tears dribbling down her cheek, and wiped them away.
The physician sighed, his expression softening slightly. "If you must know, we're trying to synthesize quantonium."
"Synthesize it?" Susan gasped. "How?"
"That's why we need all these tests—we don't know," he said with thinly disguised impatience.
"But… but why?"
"Why? One of the most powerful energy sources in the universe, that's why! Think what this will mean to the power of the United States, of Earth! With our new allies, we can spread democracy to the galaxy!"
"Are you insane?" Susan whispered, unable to believe her ears.
He ignored her. "Now hurry up. We have some government observers here today, as well as a representative of the Vaalbarans. Don't keep them waiting."
Susan looked around, but she couldn't see anyone who looked like a government official. She realized they were probably looking on from some of the many observation portals around the huge laboratory, hidden behind the one-way glass windows.
Susan picked up the thin fabric. At least she would not have to be naked, for once. That was an improvement. With luck, she thought, maybe the tests would end soon. With luck….
"I don't suppose you're going to give me anywhere to change," she said.
"Just get on with it," von Loeb ordered.
Susan made a face, glaring around at some of the observation ports behind which these government officials might be. "Well, I guess they are going to be observers today," she muttered, briefly tempted to give them a scare by punching through some of the nearer windows. But the ever-present tranquilizer guns aimed at her were powerful arguments not to get too carried away. So she crouched down as best she could and quickly removed her clothes before slipping into the suit. It always amazed her how easy it was to get on, despite its skin-tight nature. It just seemed to slither up her body, the seams automatically fastening.
"Now step into this," von Loeb ordered, gesturing a massive black cylinder nearly sixty feet high, out of which hundreds of fine transparent tubes were projecting from all parts, connected in turn by glowing wires to a large piece of machinery with strange writing on it.
"What is that?" Susan asked.
"A new type of scanner."
"You've put me in about a dozen different scanners now!" she said. "Why so many?"
"Testing," von Loeb told her. "Scans of your freakish body. More data."
"Yeah, sure," Susan muttered. But she had no choice. She never did, if she ever hoped to be treated as human again. As the technicians drew back to give her plenty of room, she carefully stepped around the smaller pieces of machinery and stepped inside the device. There was a loud hum and the doors started sliding shut, meeting in the middle with a loud clang and plunging the interior into pitch blackness.
"I can't see!" she called out, but there was no response. Then she saw a pale blue light blinking off to one side. It was joined by another, and another, and soon Susan felt as if she was floating in amongst the stars. It was quite beautiful in a way, she admitted. Her suit was starting to glow softly as well, to her surprise. Then the lights began to grow steadily brighter, and soon Susan was forced to shut her eyes against the glare. A low-pitched hum also grew in intensity, and then she felt a slight stabbing feeling in her side. She brushed her hand down, but there was nothing there. Then another, stronger. There was still nothing actually touching her. But the stabbing pains still increased, and in a moment it was like she was being attacked by hundreds of tiny hot needles, all over her body.
"Stop!" she called out. "Stop! It hurts! Stop!"
There was no response, and the pain still increased. Susan was writhing in agony, screaming out, and then a wave of pain greater than any before swept over her, making her gasp. Susan pounded on the doors, trying to attract attention.
"Remain still!" came a voice.
"Stop! Stop!" she screamed. "Please!"
But the lights kept geeting brighter, the hum louder, almost painful in her ears, and the pain grew so intense it was like having her skin ripped off. She would die if she stayed in here. Unable to bear the agony, she smashed her fists against the doors. The tight fit meant it was hard to get much power behind her blow, but the second punch broke them open, and she stumbled out, gasping and hugging herself as the machine powered down in a shower of sparks.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" von Loeb yelled up at her. "How dare you damage the equipment!"
Susan glared down at the white-coated scientist. "Didn't you hear me? That thing hurts!"
"A bit of pain won't kill you," he retorted.
"A bit of pain?" Susan spat back, finally losing her temper. "A bit! You fucking try it, you sick bastard! I'll show you pain!" she roared, her voice bellowing around the chamber. Several technicians scattered, and von Loeb retreated behind a nearby desk as the echoes died down.
"Calm yourself, or we'll have to drug you," he shouted back.
"We cannot continue this experiment at present," came a smooth baritone voice over the speakers. "Repair the device and recommence at the earliest possible opportunity."
"Understood, Mr Ambassador," von Loeb called out. He looked up at Susan. "Get back to your cell. I shall report your actions to General Meihem, and he will determine a suitable punishment."
"Punishment!" Susan gasped, standing over the physician, her fist clenched. "You goddamn little shit!"
"Get back to your cell!" von Loeb shouted. "Now! Before you make things worse for yourself!"
Susan took a deep breath, and let her shoulders slump. There was nothing she could do, not without unleashing the monster inside. Which she could never do again. She had so much power… and was so powerless. Without a word, she turned and headed back to her cell, the door clanging shut behind her, and letting it take her back up to the normal monster containment level while she collapsed on the floor, weeping quietly.
"I want to see you, von Loeb," came the voice from the speaker.
The specialist swallowed hard, and glanced around. Some of the higher technicians glanced at him in sympathy, but quickly looked away again, busying themselves with their work. He took a deep breath and squared his shoulders, then headed into the door that led to the official observation chamber. After climbing the steps to the VIP observation lounge, he knocked softly on the door.
"You may enter," came a low melodious voice.
Pushing open the door, von Loeb entered the large room. One wall was dominated by a huge window, overlooking the gigantic chamber below, and standing by it was a tall alien with multiple tentacles for legs and a great domed head, holding a tall glass of some purple liquid, inside which something was slowly moving.
"What happened?" the alien asked, not looking around.
"We failed, Ambassador. At least… at least on our initial run."
"I will not tolerate failure. Do you understand? There is too much at stake here!"
"Yes, sir. The Secretary made that very clear, sir."
"Well? Why didn't it work?"
"We… we can't get a lock on her quantonium, sir. None. We know it's there—obviously—but we can't lock onto it. We ramped the power up to dangerous levels, and still nothing."
"Nothing… except a very expensive piece of machinery was seriously damaged," the alien said, finally turning its four eyes on the slim man. "I will not tolerate many more delays, and nor will your leaders. Why was the subject not restrained or drugged?"
"We… we did not realise the process would cause so much pain, sir."
"A minor side effect. You were aware it would not be pleasant."
"Yes, sir. Unfortunately, not realising how painful the process would be, or how much the subject would resist… or, well, how strong she was… we… failed to take, uh, precautions."
"Mind that you do next time! Use a paralytic to keep her docile if you have to! Whatever it takes, Doctor!"
"Uh, Mr Ambassador? How… how much more painful… er, is it likely to get?"
"Pain? What do I care about pain! If you only knew the pain that… that creature has caused!"
"Uh, yes, sir. It… we will find a way. I promise."
"You better, human. This is becoming intolerable. I will find out why it failed, and then I shall extract that quantonium… with extreme prejudice! I want it all—every last drop!"
"Why haven't you submitted the second testing report, Cockroach?"
The mutant scientist remained bent over his desk, sketching a diagram, ignoring the man in black who stood before him.
"Answer me, man! The Ambassador will not be kept waiting a third time!"
Cockroach laid down his pen and raised his huge amber eyes, staring at the man in front of him. "Oh, it's you, Selfridge," he said wearily, rubbing his smooth head. "I have… I have been busy. What time is it? Tuesday?"
"Time you submitted the testing report. The prototype construction date is approaching, and the Prime Minister has been getting pressure from the Americans."
"It's these plans," Cockroach muttered. "Something doesn't make sense."
"You. You don't make sense."
"I am a mad scientist. I am not required to make sense," Cockroach stated with dignity. "No, it's these plans that are all up the spout. All up the spout. This physics… it just doesn't… it's insane. I can't…." He fixed his eyes on Selfridge's. "Tell the Ambassador that I am concerned about some… uh, discrepancies in the plans."
"What discrepancies?" the other man said, his lip curling scornfully.
"This quantonium cannon…. I don't understand how it can work the way these new plans say. I can't even tell where the quantonium would be stored, let alone how it would be drawn on as a source of power. In fact, this device looks more as if it extracts power instead."
"It's not your position to understand the theory," Selfridge said, his contempt clear. "It's your job to build it. Why haven't you?"
"Because this can't work!" Cockroach said. "It's a lunatic idea! Look! Look at these energy simulations! This thing requires a billion times more energy than it puts out, based on this chart!"
Selfridge shrugged. "You're probably reading it wrong. At any rate, the Ambassador wants the weapon ready on schedule. And the PM orders you to comply fully."
"I'm not doing a thing more until I understand it!" Cockroach shot back. "What if this doesn't work properly? We'd vaporize most of the Home Counties!"
"Test-firing will be done in space, aboard a Vaalbaran ship. So don't worry about England. Oh, you'll be on the ship, though, so I suggest you make sure it does in fact work properly." There was a pause, then Selfridge smiled slightly, his eyes remaining cold. "The Ambassador said you might want to take a look at this," he said, handing over a tablet. "He said it might provide you with some motivation."
"What in the name of Chandrasekhar's Limit are you talking about?" Cockroach asked. He took the tablet, which was showing a paused video clip with the words "Play Me" on the screen. Cockroach tapped the screen, restarting playback. Then he dropped the tablet on the desk and stood up, stumbling against his chair in horror.
"What... what is this?"
The man in black smiled. "I told you: motivation." Then his face grew hard and cold. "You have one week. Then her experiments might become… more unpleasant…."
Cockroach stared at the other man in fury and disgust until the whimpering sounds from the tablet video brought him back. He glanced down, seeing Susan stretched out naked, her arms and legs in restraints, and crying futilely as electrodes shot unknown amounts of energy through her body. Cockroach could hear every cry of agony, every sob, every plea for mercy. It was painful, very painful to hear, stirring up long-repressed memories of Nancy Archer and the evil man he had been. And even more painful because it was Susan, the sweet, innocent girl he loved, sobbing in torment and he was utterly powerless to help her.
Or was he? He was the greatest mind on the planet, and he would not ever let them win. His eyes narrowed, and he took a deep breath to control the visions of death and destruction and rage that filled his head. Controlling the rage within him, he focused on the idea of creating a small but potent bomb that, located in the right place, and with a remote only he could control, would be able to act as his own negotiating tactic in freeing Susan—so he could give this mysterious Ambassador some motivation of his own.
"I'll have something ready first thing tomorrow," he said, smiling at the man in black standing in front of him.
"Good. Oh, and you can keep the tablet. I'm sure you miss your freakish fiancée, freak."
The door slammed shut and Cockroach slumped in his chair, his antennae drooping over his face. On the desk lay the tablet, still playing its cruel video,
"Please, let me go…" he heard Susan moan, and shuddered. He let it run, despite the pain it was causing him, because he knew he had to—he knew someone had to hear her cries for help. The Ambassador had been right—it was motivation. Very powerful motivation.
Just not quite in the way originally intended….
"Hey, Doc," Susan whispered. She was sitting hunched up against a corner of her cell, tracing patterns on the metal walls with a two-foot finger. For several days now she had not even been allowed out of her cell—Meihem had been furious about her destruction of the machine, shouting at her for an hour at least before confining her to her cell, and even reducing her meals to plain oatmeal morning, noon, and night. A new machine had been quickly constructed, and this time she had been sedated each time. But while she could not move, she could still feel the pain, the agony, made even more unbearable by not even being able to scream. Each time it felt as if her body was being impaled by hundreds of tiny white-hot needles, seeking, probing for her quantonium.
She stretched out her arm and carefully touched the poster of the kitten in the tree, the only source of comfort Meihem had left her—even Pussy-Boots had been taken. It stared down at her, its eyes pleading.
"Do you think the others are doing okay? Link and Bob? Insecto? Renee? I hope they're doing better than I am. Jacques… I'm not doing so well these days. They're always hurting me, making me suffer. Why do I have to suffer so much? Why do they hate me so? Is this because I was such a bad girl? I was, I know I was. I promise I'll never be like that again, so please…. Oh God, please don't let them hurt me any more. Please…."
She broke off, sobbing, but her tears did not last long. They never did, these days. She had cried too much already, and there was nothing more to give. There was nothing more they could do to her—all she could hope for now was that it wouldn't last too much longer. That eventually they would decide to kill her.
"I hope you're having a good time in London, my love. I've never been. I guess I never will now, either. Is it nice? You told me it rains a lot in England. I don't like the rain that much. I'm a California girl—I like sunny days. Mind you, Modesto gets really hot in summer. You like heat, right? I know Link does. He'd like it. Do you think he'd want to visit Modesto in July? Wouldn't that be nice? Maybe one day we could all have a Fourth of July barbeque together at my parents' place. Would you like that? I'm sure they'd love to have you. I'm sure they'd love you, just as much as I do. I'm sorry I never told them about us, I really am. I was weak—I was afraid of how they would react. Because I couldn't bear it if they didn't accept you. I… I couldn't…."
She sighed, running her fingers down the smooth steel, feeling its coolness. It was smooth and firm and so was Cockroach's body. She had run her fingers across his pecs and abs before, feeling the ridges and curves. He had not, as yet, done the same to her, even though she had offered, several times. He would just avert his eyes, his antennae vibrating stiffly, and say something about wedding nights and honeymoons and a gentleman's honour, and then Susan would kiss him lightly on the top of his head, and they would talk about their future together, or their honeymoon plans, or learn more about each other in long, rambling discussions that often ended well after midnight. Those were some of the happiest memories she had, and she clung to them, desperately.
Susan lifted her fingers off the wall and looked at them in the dim light, gently touching them with her other hand as if they belonged to someone else. Her quantonium ring had been taken, and she had been powerless to resist. But if she closed her eyes, she could still see its faint, comforting glow.
"Jacques…. I do miss you," she whispered. "I miss you so much. But you know, I can see you whenever I like. Whenever I close my eyes. Whenever I'm in my cell at night, I can see you. When I want you in my arms… whenever I want you, all I have to do is dream…. Dream, dream, dream, dreaaammm…."
Her brain was not working. It was… unclear. She was… where? What was going on? Was she still at home? No, of course not: she was in the monster containment facility. Where was Jacques? Where was… oh, that was right. Susan sighed. They were gone. They were all gone. She was alone. Alone… but where? Not in her cell, she could tell. But she couldn't check: her eyelids felt heavier than lead, and she was unable to open them. Or even move a muscle. She could hear a vague low humming, and seemed to be lying down somewhere.
Then she realized that some of the low, indistinct sounds by her left ear were actually voices.
"Can you believe the size of her? You sure we're safe?"
That was a young man. Susan tried to turn her head to look at him, but was unable to move.
"Sure." This time it was an older man, his voice a bit raspy. "She's been dosed with enough tranquilizer to knock out a herd of elephants. Pumped into her cell at night, y'see. And she's tied down with chains the size of my arm. So relax, already. This your first time up close with Ginormica? Impressive, ain't she?"
"She doesn't seem human."
"She's not. Not really. Half alien mutation."
Half alien mutation? Susan felt shocked and horrified, but was unable to respond. Helpless, she could only lie there… wherever she was. She wasn't in her cell, for some reason. It felt like she was moving. Just then she heard the sound of a massive door opening, then felt a cool breeze wash over her, ruffling her hair. Definitely moving, she thought. And now she was outside, probably in one of the massive caves the secret base was built in. Where was she going?
"This place is full of weird creatures," the older man said. "Now we even have a load of aliens here. You get used to it. So anyway, how're the experiments with the other subject going?"
"Slowly," the younger voice said. "It's proving remarkably hard to determine exactly what she is."
There was a short laugh. "She's a ghost, we know that."
"Yeah, but what's a ghost? That's the question we're trying to answer. How'd that happen to her? How can we recreate the effect?"
"Why do they care? I thought the idea was to control plants with that blue energy thingy, whatever it is. Like, just grow a crop of soldiers."
"The Vaalbarans are apparently more interested in her now. Seems she was an unintended side effect, and not one they've seen before."
"So are they looking to create an army of ghosts? What are they gonna do—scare people to death?"
"Something about them being able to interact with electricity on an atomic or subatomic level, I guess. We're still doing experiments."
"Yup, same here."
"Damn she's huge. You keep her under like this all the time?"
"Mostly. She's been resisting a bit more, lately. It's safer to keep her quiet."
"Wish we could tranquilize other subject, the ghost—you just cannot get her to shut the fuck up. She spends all her time crying and weeping and moaning."
"Moaning? Well, she is a ghost…"
"No, not like that. Crying all the time like a little girl. Yeah, they say she is, or was, but still, it gets on your nerves. Says we're hurting her—like you can hurt a ghost!"
A ghost? Renee…. Susan's fogged mind started clearing. Yes, Renee. They must be talking about Renee. After all, who else was a ghost? But… wait… that meant Renee was here! In this base! She struggled against the drug, trying to clear her thoughts. Renee… was crying… weeping…. They were hurting her…she was in pain… suffering! The fog in Susan's mind suddenly lifted, and her eyes opened wide. Blinking against the sudden glare, she realised that she was lying on her back on a massive conveyer platform, which was taking her over a long bridge.
"Re… Renee…. Where… where is... she?" Susan got out, still heavily affected by the paralytic.
"Oh my god!" the younger man yelled. "She's awake!"
"Calm down, pal. Not for long. Get Miles on the horn. Tell him we need another dose, stat! Crap! Some idiot must have miscalculated!"
"At least she's still chained down..."
Susan tried to move her hand, but the younger man was right: there was something holding it back, beyond her drugged body. Something was wrapped around her forearm. She took a deep breath, and jerked her wrist up. The thick steel chain snapped with a noise like a cannon shot, and both men yelled in shock and fright. Furious, Susan rolled over and grabbed the younger one.
"I asked, where is Renee?" she shouted, snapping the chain around her other wrist and sitting up. "Take me to her! Or else!" She held the man over the edge of the bridge, high above the black depths of the cave.
He shrieked, grabbing at her fingers.
"Put him down! She's on Level S, the science department!" the other man yelled up. "But you can't get to her! You'll never make it!"
"Watch me!" Susan spat, letting the first man down safely, then kicking off the chains binding her feet. She stood up to her full fifty foot height, and looked around, getting her bearings, still feeling dizzy from the effects of the drug. "Renee! Hang in there! I'm coming for you!"
"You won't get far! They'll stop you!"
Susan looked down at the man, her face furious. "Let them try! I'll destroy this whole base if I have to!"
Then she thundered off, while the two men remained on the bridge, their faces pale. Then the older groped for his walkie-talkie, and switched it on with a trembling hand.
"This is Transporter One!" he cried. "Code Rampage! I repeat, Code Rampage! Ginormica's loose! And very, very angry!"
.
KNOWTES:
The title, of course, is taken from the 1958 hit song, "All I Have to Do is Dream," which I referenced in Love I Can Possess in a very dark way. Luckily things aren't quite as bad for Susan. Oh, and my personal headcanon, which I might get around to referencing, is that between her father and Cockroach, Susan has been exposed to a *lot* of fifties rock 'n' roll (a darn sight more than I have, at least). "When I want you in my arms… whenever I want you, all I have to do is dream…. Dream, dream, dream, dreaaammm…" are lyrics from the song.
I've resuscitated the "cell as lift" idea from the original movie—I referenced it in Love I Can Possess as well, when Susan discovers Nancy Archer's old cell.
Chandrasekhar's limit refers to the maximum mass of a stable white dwarf star: above that, when a star collapses, it turns into a neutron star or black hole. Below it, it remains a star, though a white dwarf (no, not Gimli). The Wikipedia article on the subject is a classic case of Wikipedia being written by experts for other experts.
Not too many notes here really. But things are going to change very rapidly. The first of three (?) major action sequences is coming up, each one bigger and better than the last (I hope).
And finally, much apologies for the major delay. I have been really busy in real life, and I don't mean I've been mucking about doing anything selfish like having a life or anything. It's all been dull work. Mostly. And there's a lot of action in this (upcoming) section, and it's been hard to write (action being something I have to really think about), and the chapter grew so long I had to split it in two. However, that means that the next chapter is already nearly complete, save for a few key scenes, so I can promise a quicker update next time. (And yes, I do know I said something similar before and it wasn't that rapid an update. But the spirit is willing, even if the writing is weak...)