by Dave Bara
“I am Amanda,” she said back to him. “And this is not a station, Senator Renwick. The Kali is a space vessel.”
“A vessel? So you were trapped in the Void as well?” he asked.
“No,” she replied. “The Kali was designed to traverse the Void.”
“Traverse the Void? I didn’t think that was possible.” He crossed his arms again. “Alright then, another question. Who built this vessel?”
“The Kali was built by the Trans-Earth Commonwealth,” Amanda said.
“I knew it was yours!’ exclaimed Makera. Renwick looked to her and gave her a ‘not now’ look. Makera crossed her arms, imitating his stance. He dropped his hands to his sides in response.
“Amanda, the Trans-Earth Commonwealth has not existed for over a century and a half. It was succeeded by the Terran Unity after the Void came and consumed half the Commonwealth worlds. If you were built by humans, why don’t you know this?” he said.
Amanda blinked and looked over the group. “You are not the relief team?” she asked again.
“No,” replied Renwick again. Amanda hesitated, actually blinking this time.
“This requires more analysis,” she said, then abruptly turned and walked away from them and back to the main console where she stood, unmoving, her eyes open.
Makera stepped up to Renwick. “Now what?” she said.
“Hell if I know,” he replied. He turned to the group behind him.
“Let’s spread out, try and survey the ship. See if you can find any sources of food, water, any kind of additional supplies other than what we already have,” he said. Poul and Myra made their way about the deck as Renwick turned back to Makera.
“We still don’t know what this ship is here for, Renwick. Do you think it was wise not to have led the android on?” she said.
He looked over his shoulder. “You mean tell her... it, that we are the relief team?”
“Yes.”
“I thought of it. But quite frankly we know so little about this ship that I didn’t want to put us in a position where we might have to perform some tasks we are incapable of. Who knows. She might then decide to vaporize us,” he said.
“She might do that anyway.”
“That’s a risk, I admit it,” he said. He looked to Amanda again. She was still standing at the console, unmoving. “Let’s get the others back here.”
They all came together in front of the massive lifter door.
“Any luck?” asked Renwick. Poul nodded.
“Myra found a water fountain, and what looks like a galley, but we couldn’t find any food in it,” he said. “There’s also multiple sleeping quarters, enough for what looks like a couple of dozen crew.”
“I tried communicating with the other androids,” chimed in Myra. “I counted just the two, one male, one female. They are human-looking in general appearance, but none of them would speak to me.”
“Perhaps they’re incapable,” said Makera.
“More likely they’re not allowed to talk to us until Amanda decides what to do with us,” responded Renwick.
“Do you think that’s what they’re doing?” asked Myra. “Trying to decide what to do with us?” Renwick put his hands on her shoulders to reassure the young woman.
“Perhaps, or just trying to figure out their next strategy. She did say they had been in an accident. But I don’t think we have to worry. If this ship was indeed built by humans, I doubt they would harm us,” Renwick said. Myra seemed to take comfort in this, then edged closer to Rand again.
“At any rate, there’s four of us, three of them. And we have the pistol,” said Makera. Renwick put a finger to his lips.
“Let’s not share any information we don’t have to,” he said.
“Your weapon was neutralized when you came aboard, Senator,” came Amanda’s voice from the console area. “You have no worries. The Kali and her crew were designed to serve humans, not harm them.” They all turned at the sound of her voice but by the time they did she had returned to her stoic pose.
“It’s confirmed she can multi-task,” deadpanned Makera. Renwick gave her an annoyed look and then pulled Rand aside.
“Poul, please take the others back to the sleeping quarters and get them settled in. It looks like we could be in this for the long haul. Ambassador Makera and I will try and sort out the situation with the head android, uh, I mean with Amanda,” he said. Rand nodded and then led Myra away. Renwick turned to Makera.
“There’s only one source of answers on this ship,” he said, motioning towards Amanda. “And that’s her.”
“Agreed,” she said. They both walked up to their android host. As they approached Renwick couldn’t help but notice what a well-constructed ‘woman’ the android was. Whomever had designed her had given her a unique and beautiful face, and she was indistinguishable from a human woman in her outside appearance. He admired her very feminine form and figure, then tried to put those distracting thoughts out of his mind and focus.
“You wish to speak with me as to our intent, Senator?” Amanda said preemptively as they approached.
“Yes,” replied Renwick. “That and we wish to know more about the mission of the Kali, how you ended up here, and about the accident.”
“I am not allowed to give out that information if you are not either a member of the crew or the relief team,” she said plainly. Renwick tried a different tack.
“But surely Captain Yan must have left instructions as to what to do in the event of passengers coming aboard, or left some open logs we can access?”
Amanda turned from her console for the first time and looked directly at Renwick, fully engaging with him. “You would have to ask the Captain for that permission directly,” she said.
Renwick nodded. “So I’ve gathered.” He turned to Makera.
“Dead end,” she said.
“If only I could talk to this Captain Yan,” he said to Makera.
“You may speak with her,” said Amanda. Renwick turned back to the android.
“I thought you said she left to send a relief team?”
“She did, but you can access her stored persona via the terminal room,” said Amanda in a matter-of-fact tone.
“Stored persona?” said Renwick. Makera touched his arm and took over the conversation.
“Amanda, where is this terminal room?” she said. At this, another of the androids, the male, approached them.
“Thorne will take you,” said Amanda. “The Captain has full authority to grant you access to all relevant information about the Kali and its mission.” With that Thorne started moving away. Renwick looked to Makera as they followed the male android.
“This just keeps getting weirder,” he said.
THORNE, THE ANDROID that had originally greeted them at the ship, didn’t say anything when they got to the terminal room, but he made it clear through his hand motions that only Renwick could enter.
“I’ll see how the others are getting on,” said Makera as she turned and left. Thorne escorted Renwick to a pedestal in the middle of a clean, white-paneled room, then exited, the door shutting silently behind him. On the pedestal was the impression of a human right hand. Renwick reached out and touched the pedestal, matching his hand to the impression. The room immediately lit up with a red glow. Streams of color, like a flow of water, came out of the pedestal to touch every corner of the room. Renwick thought he understood what he was seeing. Streams of data, potential pathways of information, touching tiny multi-colored blocks all over the room. The walls themselves must be data storage ports, he thought. There was a dim sound of energy, like the hum of the robot on the landing deck, but his senses couldn’t quite capture the tone or form. After a few moments of this communion, not knowing what else to do, he asked his question.
“May I speak with Captain Yan?” he said aloud. The blocks of light in the room began to glow in multi-colored hues, the red glow of the room fading as a rainbow of light particles coming from every inch of the room flowed thr
ough and around him, then coalesced on a central platform in front of him.
Within a few seconds a distinctive shape took form, a human shape. A few seconds later and a layer of clothing was added, identical to the android Amanda but tailored to the young woman who now stood before him. The room was returned to its natural white glow as he stared, unbelieving, at a petite woman of Asian descent, with dark hair and eyes. She crossed her arms.
“Who the hell are you?” she demanded in a surprisingly loud voice. Renwick was taken aback.
“I... I’m... Senator Tam Renwick of the Terran Unity. Captain Yan, I presume?” he said once he had recovered his bearings.
“Captain Tanitha Yan of the Commonwealth ship Kali,” she said forcefully. “What the hell is the Terran Unity?”
Renwick took in a deep breath. This explanation could be delicate, and he was unsure if he was talking to an android, or possibly a hologram, and if so, how much historic programming it might have. “Captain, this may take some adjustment time for you,” started Renwick. “Let me ask you, what year is it?”
“What year?” Yan said, as if annoyed by the question. After not answering for a second, she finally relented. “It’s the year 5762 of the New Common Era, of course. Why are you asking?” she snapped, then held up her hand to him. “Wait, how much time has passed?”
Renwick spread his hands. “Since when?” he asked.
“Since I.. oh God,” she said, a look of worry crossing her face. “You’re not the relief team, are you?”
Renwick, tired of answering that question, merely shook his head no. Captain Yan put one hand to her forehead and rubbed it, a very human gesture of frustration for a construct of light and electronic impulses.
“Then it means I’ve failed,” she said forlornly.
“Failed in what?” he asked.
“In getting the scoop repaired,” she seemed crestfallen at this realization. “What year did you say this was?” she asked. Now she seemed confused.
Renwick did some quick math in his head. “We stopped measuring the years in NCE with the formation of the Unity, so it’s year 133 of Unity time... NCE time stopped in 5923... so that would make this-”
“The year 6056 in my time,” Yan cut in. “Two-hundred and ninety-four years since my mission. So what am I? A hologram, android? Or a Printed Man?” she demanded of him.
That last reference hit a nerve in Renwick, but he didn’t know why. He shook the feeling off and tried to be understanding of Yan’s emotional distress. “Amanda said you were a ‘stored persona’, whatever that means,” he said honestly. Yan nodded.
“That makes sense, I must have backed myself up before I left. Glad to hear Amanda’s still functioning. Of course, this also means that in real life I’m long dead...” she trailed off. Renwick crossed his arms.
“I’m still very confused,” he said. “What is the Kali?”
Yan looked at him. “I would have thought she’d be a museum piece by now,” she said, then she eyed Renwick suspiciously. “How do I know you aren’t a spy for one of the Merchant Syndicates?” she said.
Renwick searched his mind for the archaic reference. It came to him that the Merchant Syndicates were star systems that had banded together to control and profit from commodities and technology trading in the old days, before the Void. “I assure you Captain, the Merchant Networks are long dead,” he replied.
“Oh really? How?” she demanded.
“They were consumed by the Void,” he said. “Long ago, I assure you.”
She sized him up once again, then seemed to make a decision about trusting him. “To answer your question, Senator, the Kali is a test bed. A ship designed around a single potential stealth technology,” she said. Renwick took in a deep breath.
“Stealth technology? You mean like a weapon?” Then a realization of what she was saying hit him. “You mean, the Void...” now he trailed off.
“I don’t know anything about this Void of yours,” said Yan. “But three hundred years ago I led a mission to test a new weapon, a defensive weapon-”
“And the test failed,” finished Renwick. “So you went for help, but you never made it back, because the weapon could never be stopped. Captain, your weapon, this ship...” he paused as the reality of the situation became clear to him. “The Void has been spreading for three centuries, Captain Yan. It’s consumed more than a hundred human worlds, what you knew as the Trans-Earth Commonwealth, and countless others in the Gataan and Raelen Empires.”
“No. Not the Kali,” said Yan, shaking her head in denial. “I shut her down when the scoop malfunctioned. The emitter station wasn’t supposed to go online until three days after we finished our test. But only after we’d finished.” Yan started pacing around the room.
“What is it?” asked Renwick. Yan reacted with visceral anger.
“They must have used the goddamned thing without waiting for our test results! The bastards! Oh, God, the emitter! It’s been running wild, unregulated. A weapon that was meant to avoid war, it’s destroyed us all,” Yan said. She started for the door of the terminal room. “We’ve got to get to the emitter station, and stop it.”
“We?” said Renwick as he followed her to the door. “But you’re just a hologram, or an android, or whatever.”
Captain Yan hit the control button to open the door, then pivoted and knocked Renwick to the deck with a hard right cross to the jaw.
“Well, at least we’ve established I’m not a hologram,” she said, then she stormed out the door towards the command deck.
5.
When Renwick arrived back on the command deck, rubbing his aching jaw, he found Captain Yan working feverishly over the console that Amanda had been stationed at. The female android was standing behind her, observing.
“What the hell are you doing? And what was that for?” said the Senator.
“To prove a point,” said Yan, “and to let you know I may be a construct, but I’m still a human being.”
“You’ve completely lost me again,” he said. Yan stood up to face him.
“I’m a Printed Man, or woman as the case may be. A clone constructed from my base DNA file and stored in the Kali’s database for the last three hundred years, give or take. At least, that’s what Amanda has verified to me,” she said, then turned back to the console.
“I’ve never heard of such a thing,” said Renwick, looking to Amanda. Amanda returned his gaze by looked him up and down, but said nothing.
“What are you doing?” asked Renwick as Yan’s hands flashed feverishly over the console, touching symbols and shapes and diagrams with lightning speed.
“I’m trying to re-fire the engines,” she said. Renwick tried to keep up with her movements, but found he couldn’t, she was too fast.
“Apparently being a Printed Woman has its advantages,” he said.
“You got that right,” she replied. Renwick noted that Yan did indeed seem to be a fully constructed entity of her own, not merely a two-dimensional reflection of her former personage. This intrigued him.
“So, about this whole Printed Woman thing-” he started in again as he watched Yan’s hands perform their rapid-fire miracle over the console.
“’Printed Man’ is the typical vernacular,” Amanda interjected. “What you would simply refer to as a clone, probably. Donor data is downloaded into a repository at the atomic level, stored as photons, then with the proper equipment the photon particles are repolarized and reassembled into their original atomic particle matrix. The same person comes out as goes in. But it takes significant power and a 3D printer like what the Kali has to do a reassembly as complex as a human being.”
“We don’t have anything like that technology, even today,” said Renwick. Yan looked over at him briefly.
“I doubt that. Perhaps you were just never told about it, but it exists,” said Yan.
“It all sounds pretty fanciful to me,” replied Renwick. Amanda spoke up again at this.
“Yet you travel through hy
per-dimensional space at your ease. Through dimensions that we can calculate and manipulate, even if you can’t stay there because you lack the proper frequencies to inhabit them. Your world is full of technological miracles, Senator. Perhaps you’ve lost some of them to the crisis of the Void, but they still exist, and they’re real,” she said, almost in an argumentative tone with Renwick.
“But I’m a solid,” he said, slapping his side. “I have mass, and form.”
“Do you? What are you made of? At the most basic level you are a series of atoms drawn together by an electro-magnetic energy field of some kind you call ‘life’, but you’re not a solid. If I were small enough I could fly right through you.”
Renwick got frustrated, growing tired of the dialogue with the android. “This is all very fascinating, but the fact remains that I am a man, you’re an android and Captain Yan here is a clone of some kind, and I’m entrusting my future and the future of my crew to both of you, at least at this point,” he said. Amanda said nothing.
“All of which is simply a way of telling you to never forget that in my own mind I’m still a person, and if you treat me as such, and we should get along fine. There,” Yan said, her hands ceasing their frantic movements. “That should do it.”
“The engines?” he said. She turned to him.
“They should be ready in a few hours. Perhaps this is a good time for me to meet the rest of your crew.”
Renwick clasped his hands behind his back, contemplating her. “Perhaps it is.”
AFTER THE INTRODUCTIONS Captain Yan was gracious enough to explain the workings of the food dispensers.
“They respond on voice command. You simply say “chicken sandwich” or the like, and if it’s in the ship’s data stores, it reproduces the item from basic organic building blocks and delivers the item here.” The nearest synthesizer hummed to life for a few seconds and then chimed. Yan reached in and took the item out, two slices of bread stuffed with some kind of unfamiliar meat. “See?” she said, then took a bite and shrugged. “Not bad after three centuries, wanna try?”
