Suddenly they were decelerating. And decelerating hard. Not enough to throw anyone around, but enough that Kaira had to stretch out a hand to grab something to hold onto. Azita broke off from her story, glancing at her husband in alarm. The children all looked scared.
“Don’t worry,” said Doug. “We just encountered another unit. It’s busy doing some repairs. We’ll slow down then get switched onto the track normally used for travelling in the opposite direction. It’s perfectly safe. The safety systems will ensure we can’t run into any machines coming the other way. Then, when we’re past the other unit, we’ll be shifted back onto the track heading the way we want to go. This happens a lot.”
Kaira studied him for a few moments, enough to decide he didn’t look any more concerned th
