The Russians are Coming!

[jackie pattison]

I found myself in a building on a planet that clearly wasn't my own. There was a force that could tell if there was an extra person in the building. It weighed the building a bit like the self service checkout conveyor belts you see in super markets these days. This one 'knew' I was an extra body and started trying to find me. I was in a square room and this 'force' started crowding in on me. I couldn't see it but it was making the floor undulate and edging me into a corner. I managed to leave that room and was talking to some woman. She pointed out two lady cleaners leaning on their brooms chatting. She told me there were not people - they were sentient robots and when I listened they were talking Russian. Announcements were made on the tannoy in Russian and I was incredulous that we were now expected to understand Russian.