by D. R. Rosier
“Other benefits to an implant?”
Ann said, “Well, it can appear to create visual holograms of anything that isn’t really there. It inserts the image or overlays it on what your eyes see. So, in the shopping example, you can shop online for a dress, and have that system give you a three-dimensional view of what you’d look like without even going into a store. While working on the bridge, you can view several screens at once, or combine them into one of your design. You can watch entertainment programs anywhere, or interface with a camera to see who’s at your door when you’re in the sonic shower. You could view diagnostic reports, without looking down at a screen on a device. Look up someone’s contact information if you forget their name without it being awkward. It can also interface with weapons to aid in aiming.”
Well, I didn’t need the latter one, I never missed what I aimed at, but that all sounded good. I also knew Earth was already flirting with that tech and calling it AR, or Augmented Reality, though obviously, it wasn’t nearly as capable yet, not to mention the goofy looking computer glasses.
“Why doesn’t everyone use it?”
Ann said, “Personal preference, some find it too distracting and prefer a physical device rather than a virtual one.”
That probably wouldn’t be an issue for me, my spatial awareness and training meant I already took in more than the average person at all times. Of course, now all I needed to do was get hired.
“How much do clothes cost?”
Ann replied, “A ship uniform or suit runs between two and five credits. Civilian clothes are one to two credits. If you work aboard a ship, you won’t have to worry about it. Most ships have small fabricators just in case something comes up. My advice is not to worry about it yet, you must wear a ship’s uniform or suit when in space, in case of life support failure.”
“How much do ships cost?”
Ann said, “The smallest, a scout sized vessel with FTL would cost around a hundred thousand credits. It would also cost about that much to run it and maintain it each year. Destroyers are about half a million. Cruisers and larger ships run into the millions of credits.”
I grabbed a glass of water, and took a seat to wait as I considered my change of fortune. I’d only been a slave for two days. The downside of course was that they must have records of me, if they ever took me again, I’d be spaced, not re-enslaved. I couldn’t afford to be caught by the Stolavii ever again.
The door chimed a little over an hour later. I didn’t feel neglected, I figured if Vik was a captain of his own military ship, he’d probably been debriefed on his adventure by some higher ups, I’d be the lower priority. I got up and walked over to the door, and opened it.
Rilok said shortly, “Follow me.”
I smiled and wondered if he was like this with everyone. An ass I mean.
“Lead the way.”
He grunted and turned, and I followed him down the corridor. The Isyth ship was nicer than the Stolavii ship. The corridors were still unadorned, but instead of some metal they were some kind of non-metallic composite. They were also bright, and off white. The floor was also carpeted in dark gray, the same gray in the black and gray ship suit Rilok wore. I couldn’t help but notice, that there were no access ports anywhere that I could see, just a display near every door. Perhaps since the A.I. handled all the repairs, it was an enclosed secondary system that only small repair bots could access.
He led me into a small conference room, and stood against the wall. Vik was seated at the table, as was Telidur.
Vik said, “Take a seat.”
I sat across from him, the chair was comfortably soft but supporting.
Vik evaluated me for a moment, and it was hard not to smile at the handsome well-built blue alien, but I managed it.
He said, “Let me tell you a little about us and our ship. I’m Captain Vik of the Isyth cruiser Scythe. The Scythe is a cruiser class design much like the ship you were on with a few major differences. She’s also on detached duty, and is not part of a fleet. What we do is stick our nose into things, and see what, if anything, tries to bite it off. Our primary mission right now, is to figure out what the Stolavii are doing with all the humans they’re enslaving. Not all of them end up as ship’s crew.
“Lieutenant commander Rilok is my second in command, he also holds the bridge position of navigation and operations. Outside the ship, he guards my back. Lieutenant Telidur is our pilot. If we can come to an agreement, you will in effect be joining the military, have the rank of Jr. Lieutenant, and be taught what you need to know to control the weapons systems, both external and internal. You can resign at any time from the military, and at that point any weapons would be confiscated before you left us.
“The Scythe is somewhat of an experiment, we are not just the bridge crew, we are the only crew. The rest of the ship including combat droids to deal with intruders, is controlled by the main artificial assistant, Jillintara. Any questions?”
Me, alone, onboard with three hot blue males? Where do I sign? Even if one was a bit of an asshole, that still left two to make a connection with. I just hoped there was no rules against fraternization, or I’d be wearing out the vibe I planned to purchase as soon as possible. A girl had needs, and I had a pretty high libido, more so than most healthy nineteen-year-old women. Still, I wouldn’t be easy, but I didn’t imagine it would take much effort on Vik’s part to get me in bed. I already liked him, and our chemistry made my body sing. Hopefully, it wasn’t one sided, but it was impossible to tell.
“How is it possible to have a command crew of three, four if you add me. No one can work all the time.”
Vik nodded, “Jillintara can control the entire ship under most conditions, and we will work one shift together. If an emergency comes up, we’ll be summoned to the bridge. Even at two hundred gravities of acceleration, space is big, and there’s always plenty of time to react before battle is joined. That’s what makes it an experiment of sorts. You’ll also be required to purchase the interface implant for data access and visual overlay, so you can be aware of the ship’s status at all times, from anywhere if there is an emergency. It will even work off ship. The system has worked pretty well so far, but Jillintara has been challenged as the weapons officer, as well as controlling everything else when in battle. Which is why I want to hire you.”
I wasn’t naïve enough to think that was the only reason. I’d demonstrated competence, and the ability to meet a challenge, but there were probably a lot of people already in the military who would love a posting like this. Maybe it had to do with their mission? I was a human after all, maybe that would come in handy at some point?
“I’m interested, how much does it pay?”
He said, “Most military of that rank earn fifteen thousand credits a year, add five thousand for bridge work, and another five for the hazards of our mission. I’m willing to pay you thirty thousand a year, instead of the normal twenty-five. I’ll also pay you a signing bonus of five hundred credits which will bind you to serve at least one year, you’ll need to purchase the interface, weapons, a ship suit, and then you’ll have plenty left over for other things. I suggest you hold onto most of it, until you get paid at the end of the first month.”
“That’s acceptable. Where do I sign.”
Vik laughed, “You just did. Recorded verbal agreement. My assistant should be transferring the terms as stated along with the five hundred credits. It will take us two days to reach our ship at the refit yard, which should be ready for re-deployment when we get there. Order what you want today, and it will be waiting on the ship when we get there. Rilok will take you to the med-lab, where you can get the interface installed, ten credits will automatically be deducted on insertion. After insertion, it will take ten minutes or so for it to interface with your visual and auditory senses.”
“Understood.”
Vik smiled and said, “Welcome to the team.”
“Thank you, sir.”
Rilok sighed, “Come along lieutenant
.”
The rank startled me, but I smiled again and got up from the table…
Chapter Nine
The virtual interface was far more distracting than I’d expected, but I was sure my brain would get used to it.
My spatial awareness could catalog a room with a glance, fill in the details of people and movements using my other senses, and I could swear there was even a sixth sense type of thing going on with it at times. Well, the point was, my brain was extremely aware that the video screen and interface I was looking at wasn’t really in the room, which was distracting.
I’d adapt.
I ordered the ship suit, and several weapons which brought my credit balance down to two hundred eighty-three credits. Specifically, I bought a hand plasma weapon, simply because it had a secondary non-lethal setting, and for one other reason. I also brought a plasma rifle which was the equivalent of a sniper class weapon, I wasn’t sure if I’d ever need it, but I was an assassin, and I wanted it.
The other reason for the hand weapon, was to disguise the fact I was now the proud owner of my own palm insert plasma ball generator. I also knew a bit more how it worked, because it seemed too much like magic at first, I’d done some research. Dimensional technology could build tiny portals from one spot to another. The tiny device was expensive, seventy-five credits, because it also came with a much larger base station which would be installed on the ship. All the small thing did, was act as a receiver, and it created the fields required to hold and then direct the plasma toward a chosen target via the AR interface. Most, if not all of the energy was also generated at the base station, and transferred. The bio-electric interface would never be enough energy to open a dimensional portal, even a microscopic one, but it was enough to maintain the quantum paired connection with the base station so that it could open a portal and send energy and plasma to power the palm weapon, no matter where I was in the universe. It was… still cool, even now that I understood it better.
The ship suit was one of the more expensive kinds as well. I’d discovered the blue force field around the captain and others which had saved them from Plasma was integrated into the suit, which was charged from body heat. The idea was not to get hit at all though, the shield was only effective against a few blasts before it would need to recharge again.
Of course, I didn’t have any of it yet, I had to stay in the ship suit I had on until I arrived on our ship, so I could change into the black and gray colored uniform. It would all be waiting for me.
Last but certainly not least, I ordered a device to… take the edge off so to speak?
Unfortunately, if I ever quit and went home, I couldn’t take any of it with me. Well, maybe the space age vibrator, but not the weapons. Which was why education was one of my goals. I’d found out education was probably one of the most expensive things out there outside of buying a ship. Houses cost less credits. Each course cost about five thousand credits. I wanted one for quantum physics, dimensional physics, wormhole physics, fabrication technology and design, and artificial intelligence and security.
Those five courses would not only teach me the underlying principles of all the alien technologies, but also how to design and create them.
That was almost a year’s salary, which I supposed wasn’t too bad. I could take one course every two months. Besides my curiosity on how everything worked, there was also the point that if I ever went back to earth I’d have the knowledge and ability to build my own ship, and my own plasma ball palm insert. I still wasn’t sure if I ever wanted to go back, so the former reason was still reason enough for me.
I’d be able to design my own weapons, ships, and other things. If I was really going to live two thousand years, there was no point in putting any limits on my ambition in this empire. But… that was for the future, for now I worked for Vik, probably for many years if I didn’t get myself killed. It would take me at least ten years to save enough to pay for my education, buy a ship, and enough materials, power, and fuel to get it home, and that’s if I saved two thirds of my salary every month for that purpose. I didn’t think that would be too difficult.
Who knew, maybe after ten years I’d never want to leave at all?
Oh, good news, no rules against twisting the sheets with my captain. I just wasn’t sure yet how to seduce him into chasing me until I caught him, he was an alien after all.
“Lori?” a pleasant female voice asked.
“Yes?” I asked curiously.
She said, “This is Jillintara, can’t wait to meet you and Ann. I’m sending the weapon systems data and knowledge, along with a tutorial to Ann. It will also include the ships schematics. She can download it to your mind, so you’ll be set when you get here. It’ll be nice not being the only female on board.”
Wow, her voice was complex, and had real emotion to it. I imagined she was far more advanced than Ann, I might have to reevaluate my thoughts on artificial assistants. I supposed she had to be sentient with a will, if she could independently control the ship, she’d have to be.
“Thanks, I’m looking forward to it.”
She laughed at my dubiousness, “Don’t worry, you’ll get used to me. I also have a physical avatar, just to warn you. I bet they didn’t tell you that.”
“No, they didn’t.”
She said, “I’ve been given some data on you and read the mission reports. If you’re interested, I’d love to spar with you, and get acquainted with your world’s fighting techniques.”
“I’d love that, I need to do that anyway on occasion, to keep in peak form.”
She scoffed, “On Earth maybe, but your health nanites will take care of that for you now. Though, I suppose it might make a difference in mental preparedness.”
Right, forgot about that little trick. Perfect health and fitness. No wonder the blue man group was sizzling hot. They didn’t have to work for those hard-muscled strong bodies. Damn, I needed a cold shower. I was starting to feel a little shallow, but in my defense, I’d been stuck with no options outside of one-night stands for a long time. I wasn’t sure what I wanted with any of them, and though I was attracted to Vik the most, I knew it was a shallow thing. My body wanted his. Unless he turned out to be a womanizing bastard, I saw no reason not to let it happen should the opportunity arise.
Part of it was also the surreal quality of my situation. I felt like hot and very well built blue alien men had to be me dreaming about one of those torrid romances I’d mentioned earlier. I shook my head and got back to the conversation.
“That second part is important. Lack of hesitation, and knowing my surroundings is important in a fight.”
Jillintara replied, “I’ll take your word for it. I can’t not pay attention, I also can’t be distracted, only too busy. The download is done, I’ll let you take care of that, and I’ll talk to you tomorrow night when you get home.”
Home? I wasn’t sure how I felt about that, except I was grateful for the warm welcome, and felt a little tightness in my chest. Was that stupid?
“Thanks, I’m looking forward to it, and to meeting you in person. I bet you’re blue, and beautiful. Can I call you Jill?”
Jillintara said, “I’d like that, if I can call you Lori. As far as the other, you’ll be the judge when you meet me tomorrow night. Talk to you later.”
“Goodbye.”
Had she sounded flustered at my beautiful comment? That was cute. An A.I. being self-conscious also told me she was a lot more human than Ann was. How did that work, were artificial assistants the slaves of the Empire, as opposed to the Stolavii having human slaves? I wasn’t sure how I felt about that, and it would be ridiculous for me to jump to conclusions. Whatever Jillintara was, she was obviously happy about it.
Ann said, “She disconnected, are you ready for the download?”
I put down the glass of water, and sat back in the chair so I wouldn’t fall out.
“Hit me.”
It wasn’t painful or pleasurable, but it was a rush, as the information floo
ded my mind. Missile types, of which there were three. Like the Stolavii ship, there were twelve missile launchers on a Isyth cruiser. The three types were nuclear, plasma warhead, and a plain old hardened projectile which was most often used for planetary bombardment or taking out asteroid installations. There were thirty-eight plasma weapons on an Isyth cruiser, compared to the forty-eight on a Stolavii cruiser, mostly because the Isyth cruiser was smaller.
It was still about a quarter mile long, just a little shorter, but it was much sleeker, and had twelve decks instead of sixteen. Despite that, the Isyth cruiser had more cargo carrying capacity for raw materials, mostly because the crew was limited to command crew, which meant far less cabins, less food needed in storage, smaller mess hall, and a whole lot more space for more cargo.
Both the bridge and engineering were in the center of the ship, and had primary, secondary, and tertiary systems for redundancy. I looked forward to getting there and finding out what we were going to do. I didn’t really feel like I owed the Earth anything, I’d been a virtual slave of my government after all, but it was slightly more motivating knowing I’d be working to figure out why so many humans were being abducted recently, and what the Stolavii were up to with all of them. I wasn’t mad at all humans after all, just the ones that had made me what I am and used me.
The download had also included the board controls, battle sensors, and countermeasures to fool enemy missiles like decoys, and an electronics package to spoof, and jam missile locks. There were also smaller less powerful laser systems on the ship, that shot down incoming missiles, which was called the point defense system. I ran a couple of simulations that Jillintara included, and I scored extremely high on reaction time, which wasn’t a surprise, but I scored a little low on tactics. Learning how to fight in space was a new experience, and would have a learning curve, but I’d catch on quickly enough with a little practice.
For the rest of that day, and the next, I tried to come to terms with the changes in my life, and the fact that I was now part of an alien empire’s military. Ironically, I was also free for the first time in nineteen years, and doing what I’d decided to do. Still, to say I was suffering from culture shock was an understatement. It all still felt just a bit surreal, but it was my life now, and I’d have to suck it up and come to terms…
