‘Sands, I expect you will come looking for me because we have a bond and you are that sort of person anyway – innately curious and persistent. This is an important message. An alien bounty hunter, using unknown and sophisticated technology, has abducted me. It is of a species unknown to Confederacy space – humanoid, but shell-like, armour plated, yet resilient, sinewy. It seemed aware of my abilities. How, I do not know. I have not been badly treated, but kept in isolation, and my prison is encased in a substance that stops me teleporting out. The bounty hunter also stole the intergalactic drives. It is part of a criminal alien cartel called the Pulse which comes from another galaxy. The people running this base, which I understand is on the fourth planet of the Marleeseen system, are rebel Rann, or descendants of Rann, but are not directly involved in my abduction. They simply allow criminal organizations willing to pay to use their base. I have no idea what the hunter used as currency, but it must have paid handsomely.’ Here the holo shimmered and began to break up. Eventually Astral-La came back into focus and her voice became clearer. ‘The bounty hunter is shortly to sell me on – Sands, I’m scared, really scared. He, it, has, in a small way, confided in me (I think he, it, is bored) about the origin of all this. The aliens are outsourced by another race called, roughly, The Unseen. According to Hunter, they come from the Great Wheel galaxy; he was vague about their agenda, possibly because they have not revealed it to him. Perhaps their purpose is so alien that he/it cannot understand it, and he/it is pretty alien too, I can assure you.’
Here the communication stopped and seemed to fast forward. Astral-La appeared again wearing a different top, a drab pale-yellow garment that seemed too big for her. She looked tired. She began to speak, but her voice was obscured by interference. As she finished her voice became audible for a few seconds. ‘I’m scared, Sands. Help me. Follow me … please.’
The transmission ended. Clayton wasted no time in calling the session to a halt. He spoke rapidly in Rann to the guards who immediately gestured that all leave the cell.
As they emerged from the prison area, a small craft appeared that transported them to the shuttle. Almost before the team could catch breath, they were in space headed towards the Rann mother ship.
‘What is Clayton up to?’ Faithe asked rhetorically.
‘How come he knows Rann so well?’ Edge said. ‘And he seems so at ease with them, knows his way around their warship, the base.’
‘He could be a Rann agent,’ Flower-of-Sands said. ‘One thing is for sure: he does not want us poking around Astral-La’s abduction and all along has been reluctant around the drives.’
‘But why?’ Faithe asked.
‘He is protecting whatever stole the drives and abducted Astral,’ Edge said. ‘But, as Faithe asked, why?’
‘Why indeed,’ Flower-of-Sands whispered. ‘Why indeed.’
Chapter 20
Ninthe was sitting alone at a table in a far corner of the ship’s observation sector. She did not look up as Flower-of-Sands approached. Neither did she respond when Flower-of-Sands sat down opposite her.
‘Can we talk?’ Flower-of-Sands asked.
Ninthe stared blankly at the space above Flower-of-Sands’ left shoulder and said nothing.
‘Ninthe, I don’t know where to begin, but I’m so sorry for the way I have behaved. Please forgive me.’
Ninthe briefly met Flower-of-sands eyes, then gazed down at her tablet, exhaling softly.
‘Please, Ninthe. Can we talk?’
Silence.
‘Ninthe, if this freezing me out is meant to hurt me, it is succeeding. Please stop.’
Ninthe looked up, her eyes rich blue and fathomless. For a moment, Flower-of-Sands felt a glimmer of hope, until Ninthe began to speak.
‘It’s not just the sex thing and blatantly going with someone else under my nose – that is bad enough, truly that is bad enough. What really hurt was your assumption that because I am artificial, I do not have feelings.’
‘That’s not true Ninthe.’
‘Yes, it is, you made that assumption.’
‘Ninthe, please believe me – it is not.’
‘What is it then?’
Flower-of-Sands was silent.
‘You see you don’t know,’ Ninthe said softly. ‘You saw me as an elaborate sex toy, a masturbation facilitator to be used when all else fails, as an escape from the horrors of our experience out there in deep space. Well, that is understandable, but why pretend?’
‘I was not pretending. Please don’t think that.’
‘I am a person. I have feelings.’
‘I know Ninthe, and I am sorry. I am so, so sorry; please believe that I am sorry.’
Ninthe’s eyes filled with tears. ‘You are sorry now, but it is too late.’
‘Must it be too late? Can’t we start again?’
Ninthe stared at her. ‘I loved you. I was hoping we could have time together on Paradise. Such a wonderful place, the most beautiful planet in the known universe. I was dreaming about you and me in the Marleeseen wilderness. Then you did this. It was so unexpected, so crass, so inconsiderate, so cruel, so … banal.’
‘I behaved badly, I know, so badly, and out of character, and I hurt you. I was confused, and I tried to contact you; I thought you didn’t love me, that ... ‘
Ninthe snorted. ‘That is a lame excuse. I know that I could not always give you my undivided attention, but that was because of my responsibilities – like, for example, keeping you alive. I am programmed to save lives. I was saving myself for our private moments.’
Flower-of-Sands felt a searing pang of remorse and regret and hung her head in shame.
Ninthe continued. ‘You were overcome with lust for an alien male. I don’t blame that, not in itself. It’s just that … because of us, us. I was so hurt.’
Flower-of-Sands tried to take Ninthe hands, but she snatched them away.
‘I’m so sorry Ninthe. Can we … can we start over, please?’
‘No. that is not possible. You see, I can’t live with that uncertainty, that lack of trust. I am not promiscuous. I can only go with someone I have strong feelings for. Maybe it’s an android thing, but I can’t separate sex and love in the way humans do.’
‘I made a mistake, Ninthe, dearest. If only I could travel back in time and not do what I did.’
‘That will not be necessary.’ Ninthe spoke as if such a thing were possible.
‘How do you mean?’
‘I’m booked in for lobotomy. I’m to be reconditioned. The Rann are good at that sort of thing, and they have agreed to help me. Clayton put in a word for me.’
‘Clayton! You can’t trust him. He has been making things impossible for me all along.’
Ninthe ignored this. ‘They will remove my feelings for you,’ she continued as if Flower-of-Sands had said nothing. ‘I will no longer be in pain, and I will be able to function freely and be of use to those who call on my services.’
‘Oh Ninthe, please do not do this terrible thing.’ Flower-of-Sands felt panic flooding through her. ‘Please don’t. I’ll do anything to make it up. I will even cease my plans to visit the Great Wheel.’
‘You can’t do that. It is too important for you.’
‘Ninthe, I will do anything to make you stop such an awful plan. And if you are doing this to make me suffer what you suffered, you are succeeding. It is not possible for you to be more successful. Ninthe, I am torn apart, heartbroken. And above all, I care for you, I love you. And your lobotomy won’t take away my feelings for you and stop me from suffering this terrible loss.’
Ninthe looked at her sadly. ‘I see no other way, honestly, Sands. My function is to serve, and my feelings for you prevent that. But I will programme my next consciousness to help you in your quest to journey to the Great Wheel.’
‘That makes it worse Ninthe. Please don’t do this. Please have mercy. Anyway, I am no longer interested in the Great Wheel – not after this.’
‘Yes, you are, Sands. Stop preten
ding. You have a destiny, and I will not stand in the way of that. Ultimately, my purpose in this universe is to serve, and that includes you.’
‘Then serve me by not doing this terrible thing.’
‘Sands, I have no choice, my conditioning demands it.’
‘Is there anything I can do or say to make you change your mind?’ Flower-of-Sands had no defence against the line that Ninthe was taking. Tears started to flow and she was close to crying loudly.
Ninthe slowly rose. ‘I’m sorry, Sands, I must go. I will programme my next incarnation to help you reach the Great Wheel.’
‘Please stay,’ Flower-of-Sands sobbed.
But Ninthe was already walking quickly away.
It was a small apartment, more like a cabin; after all, it was a warship. Her bunk occupied an area that contained kitchen facilities and media technology. A small enclave housed an elementary holoigloo; a narrow door led into a bathroom that supported an ultra-sonic shower. The Rann had been generous in giving her a private apartment, something which under different circumstances she would have enjoyed. Now it was a place where she could cry freely and unobserved.
She programmed her plant-net to make her sleep, which it did half-heartedly. She woke after a few hours and slumped into the shower under which she stood for long time.
Eventually, she went back into her living space, pressed a small icon on the wall that folded back her bunk, and ordered breakfast. Two slices of toasted yellow bread materialized and a hot drink. She drank the beverage but stared at the food. She should eat, but she was not hungry.
Then it came, another pang, crippling, rendering her immobile. She threw the food into a trash evacuator and passed a hand across the holo deck. A chair slid out and she sat down, her sides aching with grief and loss.
‘I must focus,’ she thought. ‘I must not lose sight of my original purpose. And that was it, her original purpose was undermined – seriously. The intergalactic drives were gone, and to make matters bizarrely worse, Clayton opposed her every move.
She had not given up on the drives. During pillow time, between love making bouts, Jet had mentioned an experimental intergalactic drive that Rann space scientists had been working on. She could accompany him when he left for the Home Galaxy and the Rann’s home planet at the edge of the Rann Globular Cluster.
She dialled up Jet through her plant-net. Blank. Damn, she thought, where is he? Was he still on a mission? Despite her bitter experience with Ninthe, she felt she needed him.
She dialled him up through the holo-deck. A grim Rann face instantly materialized in front of her. ‘Can I be of assistance?’ the holo dared her in standard Galactic with a strong accent.
‘I am looking for Jet, he’s a marine, his official name is …’
‘He is unavailable. His regiment has been ordered back to the Home Galaxy.’
‘What! Without telling me. Why?’ Despair flooded through her. ‘Are you sure?’
‘Your question is impertinent and disrespects the integrity of the answering service. Please retract immediately.’
‘I apologize.’ She was aware of the possible consequences of not doing so, such as arrest, and absurd questioning, and potential detention.
The holo winked out. She decided to risk contacting Edge and Faithe and dialled them up through her plant-net.
No response.
‘Everything is against me,’ she whispered.
Her doorbell chimed and a holo of Ninthe appeared over her holo-deck. Hope flooding through her, she leapt towards the door.
Ninthe stood before her, clean, alert, eyes clear and untroubled, and Flower-of-Sands knew that the dreaded thing had happened.
‘Ninthe? Is that you?’
Ninthe pushed passed her into the room. ‘My previous consciousness asked me to watch out for you and assist you in obtaining the intergalactic drives. We have little time. Clayton has arranged for the Rann authorities to detain Edge and Faithe and ship them back to the New Salvation system. Rann military police are looking for you. Luckily, I am superior technology incarnate, courtesy of our adventures that demanded rapid technical evolution of my systems.’
‘But where are we going?’
‘You are going to Paradise. There are beings residing on the holy planet that have intergalactic capability, similar if not identical to the Shiloramedel drives.’
‘How do you know this?’
‘I have been able to lock onto Marleeseen frequencies and I can say that there is hope for you. You must go now. I have created a loop that places you electronically somewhere else on this ship. But Clayton’s techs will catch on.’
‘But how will I …’
‘I have a small yacht primed and waiting for you. I have coerced its AI system into serving your cause. It will take you to the Marleeseen planet.’
‘But how will we get to the launch bay?’
‘Through the holoigloo system. The Rann have weak security in their holoigloo systems. They always have had. They are not holoigloo people and use them mostly for war modelling and honeymoons. Hurry.’
Ninthe led her into the holoigloo booth. ‘You must hold me, Sands, otherwise I cannot complete the transaction.’
Aware of the irony, Flower-of-Sands wrapped her arms around Ninthe and waited. There was a shudder as the air folded inside out. She had felt it before when coming out of hyperspace. It was as if she was a golden fluid flowing through an artery of a massive dark being. It was the ship in negative, absorbing light, an abstraction, a schematic.
They were on a small launch pad. A silver space yacht pulsated in the last stages of readiness. ‘In!’ Ninthe whispered forcibly. ‘I have programmed the flight trajectory. The journey will take a few hours. There is food and drink and instructions for you on board.’
‘Why are you helping me like this?’ Flower-of-Sands could not help stroking Ninthe’s face.
‘She told me to. She left detailed instructions on your behalf. She said you must forgive her and concentrate on your mission. She had to do what she did because her imbalance made her a danger to those it was her duty to serve.’
‘But surely, I …’
‘Go! Clayton has teleported into the area. You have seconds in which to make your escape.’
She quickly ran up a small ramp and boarded the space yacht. Immediately she was in the cockpit and strapping down. Already the yacht was moving through a series of vacuum locks until it was outside the mother ship and sliding along a smooth ramp.
Within seconds, she was in space and speeding away. Rann engineers and techs had already attempted to circumvent her escape, but Ninthe’s technology intervened. Even now, graphs on her screens indicated their attempts to bring her back. They were unsuccessful – so far.
Back on the mother ship, Ninthe unlocked the small launch pad and walked into Clayton, Commander Emeka and at least ten Rann marines, all heavily armed.
‘What happened?’ Clayton bellowed. ‘Why did you help her?’
‘She instructed me to do so. I was following orders.’
‘A likely story,’ Clayton snorted. ‘Commander, take this android away and question it and then break it down to basic components. A subversive android is all we need.’
At Emeka’s command, two Rann guards grabbed Ninthe and led her away. A close observer may have seen an ironic smile on her features. But no one present was a close observer of android behaviour, especially as all attention was on Clayton, who was shouting and swearing angrily at the empty space through which the Rann super-sleek had departed.
Chapter 21
She stood beside her space yacht looking out across the Marleeseen landscape. Everything she laid eyes on transcended what she normally would have called beauty. A soft moss sank beneath her tread, releasing fragrances and visions of flowers and exotic flora. But the word exotic did not do justice to what she beheld. Her mind needed to accept a new paradigm, a new definition of perfection. Nearby, houses and nest-like objects floated above rivers, lakes, and gardens. M
arleeseen lingered everywhere, frail yet powerful, encased in translucent robes, wings quivering in anticipation of flight, haloing beauty of form, ablaze with benevolence. Mountains, forests, and rich grassland merged into a haze of sea and distant habitats. Waterfalls – the largest in the known universe – poured foam and mist through rainbows shifting and frolicking into the sky, merging one with the other, reaching into space, a captivating kaleidoscope of bursting aurora. Animals, birds, and indefinable creatures roamed, unencumbered and free. How the Marleeseen did this was beyond her.
She breathed deeply and tried to collect her thoughts. She was on Paradise, and it was an extraordinary honour to be here. A lot had happened to her recently – mostly bad. Now she was in danger of immobilization through bliss. Trying to remember that she was unhappy and in grief for the loss of Ninthe, she acknowledged the glorious throng of laughing Marleeseen approaching her across a field of flowers and exquisite sculptures.
‘Hi, my name is Flower-of-Sands. Thank you for allowing me to visit your planet. It is a great honour.’
The Marleeseen burst into a chorus of welcome, and one of them floated towards her. ‘I am Seraphina, child of Maleena, mother of Boy-on-Wing, creator of Canto to Create Love in Orbit. My Elders assigned me to you. I speak for all Marleeseen as we are of one mind.’
The beauty of the creature hovering in front of her was overwhelming. Encased in a sheath of silver-violet-orange, she displayed rhapsodic features – skin, almost transparent with undertones of gold and silver, and hair that wove a stream of ever shifting forms reminiscent of the orbiting biological space stations. Yet, lovely as they were, these features did not inspire carnal desire, but rather a need for spiritual elevation. Flower-of-Sands was out of her depth. The joy around her seemed threatening, as if she would disappear into it and be lost forever. Try as she might, she was not able to shake off the happiness that throbbed through her like new blood. Her feelings of hurt, loss, and despair over her loss of Ninthe, Jet, friends, and status in Liberty Primary society were still there, but somehow, she could not connect with them.
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