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    The Variable Man
    The Variable Man
    The Variable Man
    Ebook107 pages1 hour

    The Variable Man

    By Philip K. Dick

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    About this ebook

    Dive into a thrilling adventure through space and time with The Variable Man, a captivating tale of humanity's struggle against a powerful and corrupt alien empire.

    From the legendary author, Philip K. Dick, who brought you unforgettable stories that inspired cinematic masterpieces like Blade Runner, Total Recall, and Minority Report, comes a timeless and extraordinary journey that explores the true potential of the human spirit.

    Set in a future where mankind has reached the stars but remains confined by the Centauran Empire, an ancient regime that stifles their expansion, The Variable Man follows the story of Thomas Cole-- a repairman from 1913, thrown into an unimaginable future by a freak accident. Discover how this "unknown variable" confounds futuristic calculative machines and turns the tide in an interstellar cold war. The human race faces insurmountable odds as they attempt to harness the power of Icarus, a faster-than-light (FTL) device that could either become their ultimate weapon or lead to their downfall. Unravel the mystery behind Cole's uncanny ability to sense and repair machines, and join him as he races against time to save humanity.

    A breathtaking fusion of science fiction, space travel, and military intrigue, The Variable Man is an electrifying short story that will leave you questioning the limits of technology and the indomitable resilience of mankind. Immerse yourself in a world filled with tension, twists, and turns. Can Cole overcome the challenges of his extraordinary situation and alter the course of history?

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRead Books Ltd.
    Release dateJan 18, 2016
    ISBN9781473379589
    Author

    Philip K. Dick

    Over a writing career that spanned three decades, PHILIP K. DICK (1928–1982) published 36 science fiction novels and 121 short stories in which he explored the essence of what makes man human and the dangers of centralized power. Toward the end of his life, his work turned to deeply personal, metaphysical questions concerning the nature of God. Eleven novels and short stories have been adapted to film, notably Blade Runner (based on Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?), Total Recall, Minority Report, and A Scanner Darkly, as well as television's The Man in the High Castle. The recipient of critical acclaim and numerous awards throughout his career, including the Hugo and John W. Campbell awards, Dick was inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame in 2005, and between 2007 and 2009, the Library of America published a selection of his novels in three volumes. His work has been translated into more than twenty-five languages.

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      Book preview

      The Variable Man - Philip K. Dick

      1.png

      THE VARIABLE MAN

      BY PHILIP K. DICK

      ILLUSTRATED BY EBEL

      Copyright © 2013 Read Books Ltd.

      This book is copyright and may not be

      reproduced or copied in any way without

      the express permission of the publisher in writing

      British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

      A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

      Philip K. Dick

      Philip Kindred Dick was born on December 16 1928, in Chicago, Illinois. The death of his twin sister, Jane, six weeks after their birth profoundly affected the writer in later life and is said to account for the recurring theme of the ‘phantom twin’ in many of his works.  

      Dick and his family moved to the Bay Area of San Francisco when he was young, and later on to Washington DC following his parents divorce. Dick attended Elementary school and then a Quaker school before the family moved back to California. It was around this time that Dick began to take an active interest in the science fiction genre, reading his first magazine ‘Stirring Science Stories’, at age twelve.

      Dick attended High School in Berkeley, California, where he and fellow science fiction author Ursula K.Le Guin were members of the same graduating class (1947) but were unknown to each other at the time. After graduation, he briefly attended the University of California in Berkeley, taking classes in History, Psychology, Philosophy, and Zoology. Through his studies in Philosophy, he came to believe that existence is based on internal perceptions which do not necessarily correspond to external reality; he described himself as an acosmic pantheist, believing in the universe only as an extension of God. Dick ultimately concluded the world is not entirely real and there is no way to confirm whether what we see is truly there at all. This question from his early studies persisted as a theme in many of his novels.

      Dick married five times between 1959 and 1973, and had three children. He sold his first story in 1951 and from that point on he wrote full-time, selling his first novel in 1955. The 1950s were a difficult and impoverished time for Dick. He once said We couldn’t even pay the late fees on a library book. He published almost exclusively works of science fiction, but was said to covet a career in mainstream American literature.  

      In addition to 44 published novels, Dick wrote an estimated 121 short stories, most of which appeared in science fiction magazines during his lifetime. Dick passed away in hospital after suffering a number of strokes, unaware of the acclaim much of his work would go on to receive. After his death, many of his stories made the transition to the big screen, with blockbuster films such as Blade Runner, Total Recall and Minority Report being based on his works.

      Dick is now considered to be one of the most influential science fiction writers of the 20th century.

      THE VARIABLE MAN

      I

      He fixed things—clocks, refrigerators, vidsenders and destinies. But he had no business in the future, where the calculators could not handle him. He was Earth’s only hope—and its sure failure!

        Security Commissioner Reinhart rapidly climbed the front steps and entered the Council building. Council guards stepped quickly aside and he entered the familiar place of great whirring machines. His thin face rapt, eyes alight with emotion, Reinhart gazed intently up at the central SRB computer, studying its reading.

      Straight gain for the last quarter, observed Kaplan, the lab organizer. He grinned proudly, as if personally responsible. Not bad, Commissioner.

      We’re catching up to them, Reinhart retorted. But too damn slowly. We must finally go over—and soon.

      Kaplan was in a talkative mood. We design new offensive weapons, they counter with improved defenses. And nothing is actually made! Continual improvement, but neither we nor Centaurus can stop designing long enough to stabilize for production.

      It will end, Reinhart stated coldly, as soon as Terra turns out a weapon for which Centaurus can build no defense.

      Every weapon has a defense. Design and discord. Immediate obsolescence. Nothing lasts long enough to—

      "What we count on is the lag, Reinhart broke in, annoyed. His hard gray eyes bored into the lab organizer and Kaplan slunk back. The time lag between our offensive design and their counter development. The lag varies. He waved impatiently toward the massed banks of SRB machines. As you well know."

      At this moment, 9:30 AM, May 7, 2136, the statistical ratio on the SRB machines stood at 21-17 on the Centauran side of the ledger. All facts considered, the odds favored a successful repulsion by Proxima Centaurus of a Terran military attack. The ratio was based on the total information known to the SRB machines, on a gestalt of the vast flow of data that poured in endlessly from all sectors of the Sol and Centaurus systems.

      21-17 on the Centauran side. But a month ago it had been 24-18 in the enemy’s favor. Things were improving, slowly but steadily. Centaurus, older and less virile than Terra, was unable to match Terra’s rate of technocratic advance. Terra was pulling ahead.

      If we went to war now, Reinhart said thoughtfully, we would lose. We’re not far enough along to risk an overt attack. A harsh, ruthless glow twisted across his handsome features, distorting them into a stern mask. But the odds are moving in our favor. Our offensive designs   are gradually gaining on their defenses.

      Let’s hope the war comes soon, Kaplan agreed. We’re all on edge. This damn waiting….

      The war would come soon. Reinhart knew it intuitively. The air was full of tension, the elan. He left the SRB rooms and hurried down the corridor to his own elaborately guarded office in the Security wing. It wouldn’t be long. He could practically feel the hot breath of destiny on his neck—for him a pleasant feeling. His thin lips set in a humorless smile, showing an even line of white teeth against his tanned skin. It made him feel good, all right. He’d been working at it a long time.

      First contact, a hundred years earlier, had ignited instant conflict between Proxima Centauran outposts and exploring Terran raiders. Flash fights, sudden eruptions of fire and energy beams.

      And then the long, dreary years of inaction between enemies where contact required years of travel, even at nearly the speed of light. The two systems were evenly matched. Screen against screen. Warship against power station. The Centauran Empire surrounded Terra, an iron ring that couldn’t be broken, rusty and corroded as it was. Radical new weapons had to be conceived, if Terra was to break out.

      Through the windows of his office, Reinhart could see endless buildings and streets, Terrans hurrying back and forth. Bright specks that were commute ships, little eggs that carried businessmen and white-collar workers around. The huge transport tubes that shot masses of workmen to factories and labor camps from their housing units. All these people, waiting to break out. Waiting for the day.

      Reinhart snapped on his vidscreen, the confidential channel. Give me Military Designs, he ordered sharply.

      He sat tense, his wiry body taut, as the vidscreen warmed into life. Abruptly he was facing the hulking image of Peter Sherikov, director of the vast network of labs under the Ural Mountains.

      Sherikov’s great bearded features hardened as he recognized Reinhart. His bushy black eyebrows pulled up in a sullen line. "What do you want? You know I’m busy. We have too much work

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