Europa

by Robert Mills

  In the early days of the colony these towers were built by the government to provide information about the environment on the surface, but later many were erected by commercial companies who used them for restaurants, hotels and other recreational purposes. Later still, a number were erected to provide luxury accommodation for the new rich of the Europa colonies and it became the ultimate symbol of wealth and power to live in an apartment above the surface of the moon, accessed by its own personal high speed lift.

  We were all expected to attend an orientation course, specially designed for new colonists. This covered everything we needed to know about life on Europa. We were supplied with a number of apps for our wrist tablets that we would need during our day-to-day lives, including one which allowed us to summon an ATV when the need arose. We soon discovered that there were enough of them in service to ensure that no one had to wait long for one to arrive.

  As soon as the course was over Marvin and I went to inspect the new offices and workshops of the Piper Robot Maintenance Company. The facilities were newer and larger than those that Marvin had left behind on Earth and he was clearly more than satisfied with them. Liv was to help out as an administrative assistant at first, while Marvin hired staff, and I got to grips with organising the office. I hadn’t previously spent so much time in Liv’s company and found her to be a very agreeable colleague. Since my own wife was 900 million kilometres away on Earth and we’d been apart for six weeks by then, I must admit to having lusted after Liv during this period, but I wouldn’t have acted on my desires at that time. I realised that I couldn’t afford to do anything that might jeopardise my relationship with Marvin and in any case I believed in faithfulness in marriage.

  It was during this period that I ran into Mike Sinha again. He was working in the sales department of a large robotics company and we met when Marvin and I went there to arrange a supply of parts for their robots. He was clearly pleased to see me and I arranged to meet him for dinner the following week. During the meal he told me about a project that their R and D department was working on. “We’ve got a groundbreaking sex robot project,” he said, with a knowing grin.

  “What!” I said. “You’re not serious.”

  “Oh yes I am. The ones we’re working on aren’t available on the market as yet, but less sophisticated sex robots have been available some time. Frankly though, they’re little better than automated inflatable dolls.”

  “Surely you can’t really make them life-like can you?”

  “They’re getting pretty realistic. Human simulation presents a lot of different challenges. Probably the greatest breakthrough so far has been the development of pseudo-human skin.”

  “How’s that made?” I asked.

  “Well, the epithelium and associated subcutaneous tissue are produced in tissue culture and then modified in some way that I don’t really understand. Then they’re attached to an artificial membrane matrix that supplies the living tissue with oxygen and energy requirements. This in turn is moulded to a preformed body shape that incorporates a heating system that simulates body temperature. It’s really neat. Another original feature is the female response control system.”

  “What’s that exactly?”

  “Well, you don’t want a partner which just lies there and thinks of Europa, do you?” I shook my head. “The robot is capable of a range of movements that need to occur in response to the appropriate stimulus. It can also generate the sort of sounds that women make when they’re having sex. There has to be a control system that makes all this happen. The guys working on the project are known as the ‘moaning and thrashing’ department.”

  “It’d be funny if you got it wrong,” I said. “The owner might tickle the robot’s tits and get a clip round the ear.”

  He laughed. “I suppose it could happen,” he said, “but it’s unlikely with the sort of foolproof control systems these guys design.”

  “Is there a male version?” I asked.

  “Yes. Actually there are two, straight and gay. Of course, the challenges faced when creating the control systems are different. For example, the arousal monitor is a tough nut to crack.”

  “How come?

  “Well, most guys have difficulty working out when their partner is ready for penetration, and it’s even more difficult for a robot. Current models are supplied with a remote control unit so that the owner can pick his or her moment, but in the future the robot will be able to work it out for itself by recognising the appropriate signs.”

  “Amazing,” I said. “Who buys these things?”

  “People with money who aren’t keen on human contact but still want the pleasures of the flesh. There are plenty of individuals nowadays who prefer their own company. Some experts think it’s the next stage in evolution. Then there are people who have a relationship but are experiencing a ‘libido mismatch’ with their partner. It means they get extra without threatening the pair bond.”

  After that evening we met regularly for a while, but when Meena arrived on Europa I lost touch with him. I don’t know if he ever got transferred back to Earth, but I rather doubt it.

  Once our company was up and running, I think I learned the ropes more quickly than even Marvin had expected and before long was able to act independently in some areas of the business. Marvin and I worked closely together for much of the time in those early months and I couldn’t have wished for a better workmate and employer. Indeed, I look back on those days as some of the happiest of my life.

  As soon as our son, Richmond, was old enough Meena made the journey to Europa and we were reunited. She was thrilled with our new accommodation and clearly enjoyed being the mother of a young child. It took us a while to master the technique for microgravity sex, but before long we became fairly proficient at it.

  Chapter Sixteen

  As the business prospered I became more financially secure and I had the added pleasure of coming home to my son, Richmond, as well as my devoted wife. Meena seemed happier at home with the baby than she had been at work and our relationship improved. She’d become a willing but undemanding lover, so my previous misgivings about this aspect of our relationship had been unfounded.

  By 2163 the company had grown considerably and the staff had increased in number accordingly. I was flattered and delighted when Marvin offered me the chance to become a partner rather than an employee.

  Meena was thrilled. “I’m so pleased for you, darling,” she said. “Perhaps now we can buy a bigger apartment like Marvin and Liv.”

  They’d moved the previous year to an apartment in an observation tower and Meena’s eyes had nearly popped out of her head when she first saw it.

  “Steady on,” I said. “I’ll have to use our savings to invest in the company. That’s part of the deal. We’ll have to wait a bit longer.”

  “We can’t afford to wait too long,” she said. “I’m going to have another baby.”

  Now it was my turn to congratulate her. As I hugged Meena I felt that my joy was complete. I had a great business opportunity and a loving family. What more could I ask for?

  By the time my daughter Charlet was born, we had managed to buy a new apartment, not too far from Marvin and Liv’s home. It was smaller than theirs and Meena pointed out that the observation tower on which it sat was not nearly as nice as theirs, but at least we had adequate accommodation for our growing family. I had to borrow a large sum of money to buy the property, but judged that I would be well able to pay off the loan, given my new prospects. My first year as a partner in the new company of Piper and Shaw was a profitable one and Meena was able to furnish our new home in the manner she thought was appropriate to our new station in life. There was only one dark cloud in our otherwise clear sky: Marvin and Liv remained childless.

  Nonetheless, I believe that we all found happiness during those early years on Europa and none of us had any idea that it wouldn’t last. During the ti
me when I’d agonised over whether I should marry Meena, I’d given a lot of thought to the relationship that we could enjoy with Marvin and Liv and, as I’d hoped, the four of us became closer than ever. If you’d asked me then if I’d been right to marry Meena, despite my misgivings, I would have said that I’d been foolish to worry and should probably have proposed to her earlier. I might even have added a fatuous comment about ‘commitment phobia’ or some such psychobabble.

  Three years after the establishment of Piper and Shaw Robot Maintenance, Marvin suggested that we holiday together in Miami, Europa, which was on the other side of the moon in the North American sector. We rented a hotel suite that would accommodate the four of us and the two children. It was extremely spacious and had its own terrace with a swimming pool. By the time we arrived it was early evening and Meena ordered dinner for the children immediately. Liv volunteered to help supervise the meal, so Marvin opened a bottle of the local Cabernet Sauvignon and we settled ourselves beside the pool.

  I was tired following the journey, but pleased to be away from the trials and tribulations of the office. I sipped my wine and looked out towards the far side of the cave in which the city had been built. It was during the phase of the Jovian day when the massive lights are gradually turned down to simulate dusk on Earth but we could still see the city stretching away from us into the distance. Not far off a group of observation towers rose majestically above the surrounding buildings and disappeared into the cluster of lights above.

  I was feeling relaxed and cheerful. It was not just that I was on holiday with my family and my dearest friends, but also because it appeared to me at that moment that my professional life had turned out amazingly well after a rather shaky start. I was very conscious that I owed much of my success to Marvin, but I also had the satisfaction of knowing that I had made a valuable contribution to the development of the company.

  I raised my glass. “Here’s to you, Marvin, you’ve done so much for me and I know I can never repay you adequately.”

  “Don’t be daft, Symon,” he said. “It’s been teamwork all the way through. You and I are a good team, always have been.” He looked reflective. “I’ve been thinking a lot recently about what we’ve accomplished and how well we’ve done and I have to say I don’t think things can get much better.”

  “Who would have thought the two of us would end up in business together?” I mused.

  “It’s hard to predict the future,” said Marvin. “I’d never expected to end up halfway across the solar system, but here we are. I must say that I don’t regret the move. Earth has got too crowded. Out here you can breathe freely, even if the gas you inhale is not strictly speaking air.”

  “You’re right,” I said. “Things have worked out well for us both. I suppose the truth is that sometimes you have to make bold decisions if you are to better yourself. My problem has always been that I’m too cautious. Without your encouragement I would never have made this move.”

  At that moment Liv appeared at the door. “The children are getting ready for bed,” she said, “and dinner’s arrived; I thought we might eat out here.” I can remember looking at her as she stood in the doorway with her hair tied back and the sleeves of her blouse rolled up to reveal the pale skin of her forearms and thinking what a lucky man my cousin was. I felt a stirring of desire, but quickly suppressed it. Liv was and would always be Marvin’s wife.

  The following morning we rose late and had a leisurely breakfast. Marvin proposed an expedition to one of Miami’s shopping malls and I was all in favour of the idea. The children wanted to swim instead and Meena said that she would stay behind with them, but Liv said that she was tired and would be happy to stay in her place, so Meena, Marvin and I set off, leaving the others behind.

  We strolled among the shops and enjoyed a simple lunch in a small restaurant. The meal was washed down with a half-decent bottle of Europan Sauvignon Blanc. Meena, as usual, drank little and so Marvin and I were quite mellow by the end of the meal and in no mood to be hurried. However, Meena was restless and wanted to get moving.

  “I’m worried about the children,” she said pointedly. “They are our responsibility, you know.”

  “Relax, darling, they’ll be fine,” I said. “This is our holiday too and I for one intend to enjoy it.” She gave me one of her withering looks, but I was unmoved. When we’d finished the wine we wandered round some more shops and bought a few items before heading back to the hotel late in the afternoon.

  “Poor Liv will be bored,” complained Meena as we were walking back to the car. “She’s not used to children.” I was beside Marvin and saw a pained expression pass fleetingly across his face, but he said nothing.

  When we got back I was first into our suite and went out to the terrace to see how Liv and the children were getting on. Richmond and Charlet were splashing happily in the pool, under the watchful eye of Liv. She was on a sunlounger with the back upright, wearing a swimsuit. At first she didn’t see me and as I moved closer I could see that she was crying.

  I called, “We’re back,” and she quickly wiped her eyes with her hand and rose to greet me. “I hope you haven’t been bored,” I said, deliberately ignoring what I’d observed. “We’ve been away longer than we intended.”

  “We’ve been fine,” said Liv, smiling broadly. “We’ve had a great time, haven’t we, children?”

  “Aunty Liv got us a lovely lunch,” enthused Richmond, “and we had ice cream.” Charlet’s smiling face provided corroborative evidence.

  By now we’d been joined by Marvin and Meena, and the children ran to their mother, still dripping wet, to tell her about their day. Liv was fighting back the tears and Marvin noticed this at once and led her hurriedly to their room. I think it was then that I began to realise just how important having a child was to Liv and the strain it was placing on their marriage. Marvin wouldn’t or couldn’t discuss it with me at that time and I didn’t feel that it was right to raise the matter myself.

  By dinnertime Liv had regained her composure and we enjoyed a relaxed meal on the terrace after the children had been put to bed. Meena was in a nostalgic mood and she and Liv regaled us with stories from their school days. Marvin and I made a point of laughing heartily at the conclusion of each anecdote. It was late when we finally retired to bed but I lay awake for some time, unable to drop off to sleep. I reflected on the events of the day and wished that there was something I could do to relieve my friends’ distress.

  The holiday was a great success, at least in my estimations. Marvin was always a considerate husband, but it seemed to me that he was being even more attentive than usual. When we visited another shopping mall we passed a jeweller’s shop and Marvin insisted that we went in and he bought Liv a heavy gold chain. When we were alone later, Meena chided me for not matching my cousin’s generosity. I wanted to explain that the gift was his way of trying to make up for the fact that he hadn’t been able to give her what she really wanted, but I didn’t think that Meena would understand. Perhaps I was unfair to her in thinking this, but the truth was that I didn’t want to share my insight into our friends’ unhappiness with her. I’m not sure why this was. Perhaps I thought that her response would be inappropriate and that her attempts to comfort Liv would only make things worse.

  Chapter Seventeen

  The success of Piper and Shaw was, I believe, the result of the complementary talents that Marvin and I possessed. Marvin had an excellent grasp of the technical aspects of the business and a knack of reaching agreements with customers that were in our favour. He found the day-to-day running of the company tedious and this was the area where my natural organisational skills came into their own. Marvin was frequently away for days at a time on business and it was left to me to keep things ticking over smoothly in the office and workshops. There were times when I was envious of his trips away, but I recognised the importance of my role and the considerable benefits to my family and I th
at accrued from our success. When the company was at its most profitable, I was earning more money than I’d ever thought was possible.

  It was therefore something of a surprise when Marvin suggested that I accompany him on a visit to another Jovian moon, Ganymede. It wasn’t considered suitable for the establishment of a colony like that on Europa but the crust contains important minerals, including iron and magnesium, and ammonia which is in great demands in the Jovian system for making fertiliser. A substantial and highly automated mining operation had been established there and inevitably that meant that there were a great many robots to be maintained.

  Meena raised no objections to my going along and the flights were duly booked. I found myself looking forward to the trip with eager anticipation. This was my first flight on the Jovian Shuttle. The ship we travelled on back then was small and slow by modern standards, but for me it was an exciting experience. We had a fine view of the mountainous surface of Ganymede as we approached, so different to the smooth, icy surface of our home. The spaceport was small, as visitors were few and only went there on business.

  Radiation levels on Ganymede are lower than those on Europa but nonetheless protective suits must be worn by anyone working outside in the open. There are no easily accessible caves, so all the buildings are on the surface, as they are on Callisto, but their construction includes a thick layer of radiation-proof material. Mining in this environment presents significant challenges, but technology had been developed to overcome these, including specialised robots.