Spinward Fringe Broadcasts 1 and 2

by Randolph Lalonde

  “Ian Vale Market thanks you. Please enjoy your stay,” said the scratchy recording as the inner doors opened.

  To her surprise the crowd thinned out. Everyone had room to stretch once they were inside the courtyard. It was more like walking into a modern village market than anything. There were earthen islands with tall trees growing, some of the shops had separate buildings and she could even see that there were apartment blocks along the sides along with several larger stores. She eyed the Spacerwares Superstore at one end. “I'm glad we didn't take anyone else from the ship, it might have turned into a shopping expedition.”

  “There are some people aboard who I'll never take out here. Everything is marked up so high you wonder how they sell anything. Even public transit costs twenty credits per stop.”

  “That's not too bad.”

  “Not until you consider there are probably about fifteen stops between us and the ship.”

  “Okay, that's criminal.”

  “It is, but it keeps the crowds on the automated cars down.”

  “I could imagine. Where do you think we'll find Frost?”

  “You remember the jewellery recovery we did a couple years back?”

  “Yup, it was pretty easy, good work.”

  “Frost got us that gig, I'm assuming his contact is putting him up,” Jake explained as they walked towards one of the apartment buildings. They were built along the sides with a curve, giving the large oval market platform the look of a giant bowl.

  “I thought people didn't live in this section of the city.”

  “Most people don't, but this lady runs her business out of her rented space here. She's one of the richest criminals you'll ever meet face to face.”

  They came to the large entrance archway and it scanned the pair. “Please declare the occupant you wish to establish communications with,” requested the computer.

  “I'm looking for Nanna Gailman. My name is Jacob Valance and I'm here to pick up an associate.”

  They waited for several moments then the doors opened. “Please do not attempt to deviate from the designated path.” It said as they entered.

  There was no lobby, only a white hallway with gold scroll work all along the middle leading them directly to a lift. They walked inside and came out to what looked like the same thing. Just a plainly decorated hallway with no doors, only the lift doors behind and a corner ahead. “This is the strangest apartment building I've ever seen.”

  “Adaptive hallways. The building puts up barriers blocking us from anything but our destination.”

  “Ah, so it hides all the doors.”

  “It's probably closing off any space we don't need. There could be someone right beside us in this hallway but we'd never know. That is, unless we started tearing up the walls, this kind of guidance system normally isn't very thick.”

  They rounded the corner and saw a solitary door further down. It opened as soon as they stepped up to it.

  “Captain Valance, so good to see you!” Came the greeting from an ancient looking woman. She stepped up on her toes, giving him a hug and a peck on the cheek. “Who's your lovely friend?”

  “I'm Stephanie, his First Officer,” she introduced herself with a smile as the shorter woman gave her a big hug as well.

  “Good to meet you. Come on in.”

  They walked through a small entry room and into a tidy living space. There was a plush sofa for three, a loveseat and a couple of recliners, one of which looked older than their host. A large window overlooked the entire marketplace and had a door, indicating there was a small balcony.

  The atmospheric controls inside the apartment were set to simulate a cool breeze that was faintly scented with the fragrance of fresh green growth. The apartment was made for homely comfort, and as a great contrast to the outside, very little of it was modern.

  An old serving android stood beside Frost, where he sat nursing a cup of tea. “Hello Captain.”

  “I believe your friend here was growing tired of soap operas, tea and cakes. I cannot say his company has been all together disagreeable, however. He tells the most interesting stories with a little prodding.”

  Nanna sat down in the old recliner and took her cup and saucer from the end table. “What can Edward get for you and your First Officer?”

  “Nothing for us thank you,” Jake said as he sat down on the sofa. He was careful not to disturb the doilies on the headrest or arm.

  Stephanie followed his lead and sat down warily. She felt completely out of place, holding her rifle across her chest and trying not to disturb the neat surroundings.

  “I insist. He makes wonderful tea, or lemonade if you'd prefer something cold.”

  “I'll have a lemonade then,” Jake said with a smile.

  Nanna looked to Stephanie expectantly, and she was about to refuse but thought better of it. “I'll have the same.”

  The ancient android walked out of the room, shuffling its silver feet. There were flattened pathways across the dark brown carpet where he travelled in regular patterns to get around the room. Stephanie had only seen that model in pictures, it was grey and silver in colour with a bow tie and the lapels of a tuxedo painted on. It was made to have a human shape, but its rounded construction and reconfigurable face was sculpted to give it a luxurious look. Nanna had not added facial features but left the front of its oval shaped head bare and inexpressive. Stephanie found it a little eerie and couldn't help staring when it came back with two frosty glasses of lemonade on a tray a moment later. After she and Jake had their refreshments in hand it tucked the tray under its arm and moved to stand beside the sofa.

  “Now that we're all comfortable, I expect you'd like to discuss reclaiming your crewmate, who seems to suffer from poor judgement where friendships are concerned,” Nanna said before taking a sip of her tea. “It's a good thing he has better taste in employers.”

  “According to him I'm the only one who's willing to come get him,” Jake replied with an upraised eyebrow.

  “I could've called someone else,” Frost interjected quietly. “Aye, but I knew the road back to the Samson was shortest.”

  Nanna turned her head to look at him slowly. Her lips were drawn into a straight line. “We did talk about this, did we not Shamus? You will speak when spoken to and I won't suffer another uninvited word.”

  Frost flushed and simply nodded.

  “That's a good boy,” she smiled at him and turned her attention back to the Captain. “He's not as polite as I recall, but then we always remember people we choose to like in rosier shades. Don't you find memories become idealized over time Jacob?”

  “They do, but then you know I've always looked to the future more than the past.”

  “Yes, and that brings us again to the question, how does Shamus Frost serve your future? It seems you have a new First Officer, so he wasn't difficult to replace. She also looks more well acquainted with weaponry and has already proven more agreeable to me. With a little polish she might even look a little like Midred Grace.” Nanna recognized that the younger woman had no idea who she was talking about and went on. “She was a holomovie star well before your time, dear.”

  “I'll have to look her up,” Stephanie replied quietly with a smile.

  “You're right, Frost isn't the greatest First Officer I've ever had, in fact I didn't even pay him like one. He is a specialist with one of our ship systems. I haven't been able to replace him at that post yet.”

  “That explains it. He seems to think there is some kind of sentimental attachment as well. You never seemed like the type to me Captain.”

  “He's hard to forget once you get used to him.”

  “Now that I could imagine,” Nanna said with a little chuckle. “Well then, perhaps we should get on with it so I can have Edward clean Shamus' smell out of my home. It is very unfashionable for a woman of my station to address the issue of price, you understand.”

  “Then allow me to make a fair offer of five thousand United Core world Credits for y
our trouble,” Jake said after taking a sip of his lemonade.

  Nana held up one wrinkled finger and waggled it slowly back and forth a few times. “I credit you for trying, but I happen to know you have become quite famous. I do try and keep up with the local news you know.”

  Jake smiled at her and nodded. “Old habits die hard.”

  “That they do, but I must say I approve of your new ones,” Nanna commented. Keeping this woman on point was like trying to fight gravity. “You see out there? That monstrosity of a building blocking out the sunlight for more than half the day?” She said, pointing out the window to the Regent Galactic building. “It overshadows millions of us and though I sit in its presence it provides no benefit. I have communications services through them, but do their technicians arrive earlier than they would if I were on the other side of the planet? No, they make their merry way here in their own time, don't even know how to communicate with the building's artificial intelligence and they muck up my floors. Where they find mud on this planet I'll never know. Do you know I actually had to go down to the lobby and let one of them in the other week? They should go back to automated persons like Edward here. They might get stolen once in a while, but proper armaments would remedy that sure enough.” She sighed and looked to her guests. “I'm sure you're looking to be on your way, so I'm willing to entertain one more offer for this little man.”

  Jake handed his glass back to Edward, who accepted it and placed it on the tray. The ice rattled with a sweet tinkling sound as Stephanie put hers down beside it. “I can offer you fifty thousand, even though I could hire an expert to take his place for that price,” Jake said mildly.

  “That will be enough for my trouble, but only because you've done some damage to that lumbering behemoth of a company.”

  “Thank you Nanna. I'm afraid we have to be on our way. I'm sorry we can't stay longer.”

  “I understand, please do call if you're in the neighbourhood sometime.”

  “I will, thank you very much for your hospitality,” Jake said as he rose to his feet.

  Stephanie followed his lead. Frost looked to Nanna who nodded once. He stood and carefully put his cup and saucer on Edward's tray. The look of relief on his face was unlike any expression Stephanie had ever seen him make.

  Observations

  Alice could always find the spot. No matter which station she was docked on, what she was doing, she always noticed those places where you could quietly watch the masses make their way through a major intersection of pedestrian passageways. She leaned against the railing high above the broad gallery. There were four ramps leading down into the asteroid towards the public transportation systems and arches leading out of the large court at the sides. There were only two open levels above, she was looking down from the upper one.

  The idea of so many people in one place, so close together but so disconnected always amazed her, saddened her. She had never thought of it in her previous life. The emotions she had then were completely alien to what humans felt. It was impossible to feel anything the way she felt it before she became human, even harder to explain the difference. Humans had deeper emotions, and more importantly, they were much harder to control and ever present. There were no emotionless acts to most humans. Every place, every stretch of time, every experience had a feeling associated with it.

  Every person down there had their own unique perception of the simple experience they were having. From where she stood it looked like it should be a shared experience, but she knew one person would remember their passage through the intersection differently from the others. Everyone was within less than a meter of someone else, yet they were all so separate.

  There was a group of small children waiting to be led to one of the transit ramps by a pair of adults. They had stopped to make sure that everyone was accounted for. The children were all tied together on a stretchy red rope that was attached to an adult at each end.

  Her attention came to rest on a little girl who couldn't have been more than five years old. She had the same long brown hair and high cheekbones Alice did. She looked around with an expression of concern that didn't suit her age. “You there Lewis?” She thought through her communicator.

  “I am now.”

  “Patch into my eyepiece. Do you think I'd have looked like that if I were her age?”

  Lewis momentarily took control of her eyepiece, zoomed in, then released his command of the device. “She does look like a near match.”

  The youngster noticed Alice looking at her and hesitantly waved a little hand. Alice gave her a big smile and waved back. The little one was immediately all a titter, anxiously telling a little blond friend at her side about the stranger above as they were walked down into the mass transit tunnel.

  “I wish I had a childhood. There's so much I don't understand the way I ought to,” she thought as clearly as she could. Mental communication became muffled, distorted when there was too much emotion mixed in.

  “You consider Jonas your father,” Lewis replied, sounding a little uncertain of his response.

  “Yes, but in my early days he would reprogram a part of me, refine the code or remove it entirely when something wasn't working properly.”

  “Much like you refine me.”

  “I try not to Lewis. I'd rather you grow organically, learning from your experiences.”

  “You didn't?”

  “Well, after he was sure my personality matched what he wanted when he was seventeen he let me just watch his life happen and patch into the informational networks I had access to. I explored a lot of Freeground's databases back then, even though I wasn't supposed to have access to most of them.”

  “You were fortunate. Freeground has one of the largest closed networks in the known universe.”

  “I didn't think so. I didn't know what it meant to miss something. It wasn't in my early programming.”

  “Things didn't go well with Bruce, did they?”

  “I had a wonderful time, but now I don't think I could feel worse.”

  “Well, that's not confusing at all,” Lewis said sarcastically.

  “You sure you weren't listening in last night?”

  “I closed the channel when you made it plain my advice wasn't welcome. Besides, I thought you might want your privacy.”

  “We had a fantastic night together. When morning came I had to explain to him why I wasn't staying. He took it better than I expected him to,” she turned from the railing and started walking down the sloped tunnel that would lead her to the Clever Dream.

  “That's good.”

  “Maybe. I wish he would fight for me. Yell, do something about me leaving. He just looked, sounded sad and told me why he doesn't want me to go.”

  “Would it have stopped you from leaving if he fought harder?” Lewis asked gently.

  “No.”

  “Perhaps he knows you well enough to be aware of that and he didn't want to use the last of his time with you inefficiently.”

  “Just what every girl wants to hear,” she said, shaking her head and chuckling. A glance around the small landing bay told her she was alone. It was easy to look absolutely crazy while using a mental communicator, it felt like whoever you were talking to was right there beside you or just over your shoulder. A lot of people walked around looking like they were talking to themselves.

  “I would think that is the best response to that kind of situation.”

  “Sometimes women just like to know they're worth fighting for. We like a demonstration now and then even if there's nothing wrong and especially when it feels like everything is falling apart. It doesn't matter if it fixes anything or even changes our minds.”

  “I don't think Desmond Morris got to that. It's unlikely I'll ever understand. Oh, and the cargo was loaded last night. Two long term stasis pods and a sealed organic computer core. I used scanners and the cargo management bot to check the condition and ensure that everything is secure.”

  “Thank you Lewis, I don't know what I'
d do without you,” Alice said as she walked up the small one person fore gangway. She almost never used the main boarding ramp on the Clever Dream.

  She was in the cockpit getting ready for takeoff when Lewis asked her an unexpected question. “Alice, what is it like being human?”

  It was enough to make her stop everything she was doing. “Why do you ask?” Was all she could manage without leaving him hanging for minutes waiting for a response.

  “I have only been with you for a couple of years now, but in that time I have noticed that you have changed a great deal. After Bernice's wedding things started to get really interesting.”

  “How so?”

  “Your attachment to some things, your willingness to let others go much more easily. You become uneasy or alarmed by situations much less frequently. There were also times of extreme emotion. When comparing you to the various human archetypes versus artificial intelligence base personalities, it is much easier to assign one or more human archetypes.”

  “So, you think I'm becoming more human?”

  “Yes,” Lewis replied simply. It was unusual for him not to expand on his conversational points.

  Alice didn't know what to say. She remembered the instant before she committed herself to becoming human and began the painful transfer. She remembered feeling her connection with all the external networks, all known methods of perception slip away as she was transferred from the high speed data block. The inexplicable experience of a complete transformation of perception was a hazy but powerful memory. All at once she could hear, smell, taste, touch and see. Then came the emotions. They were completely different from the complex adaptive algorithms she had known as feelings, absolutely alien.