by Adam Moon
Robot Captain
Chris
Chris put on the football helmet headset because he just couldn’t be sure they’d understand him with his new voice that issued from his new body.
He said, “Welcome to space, Earthlings. This is your captain. My name is Chris Mathers.”
Jackie looked around, wild-eyed, and said to Dave, “Did I just hear that right?”
Chris answered for him. “Yes you did. I’m going to open the door. Walk down the corridor and I’ll meet you when you come to the end.”
Samda opened the door for them remotely and they did as Chris had requested.
When Chris opened the door to the command center, Dave squealed like a teenage girl and Jackie leapt backwards.
Chris said, “I might have forgotten to tell you that I’m an awesome robot these days.”
Dave said sheepishly, “Is that really you in there, Chris?”
“Yep. A lot has happened since I was abducted. My real body got killed.”
Chris waved at Samda and said to Dave and Jackie, “That’s Samda. She’s an alien, but the same thing happened to her. She died. We’re both stuck like this.”
Jackie reached a hand out to touch Chris. “You’ve only been gone for four days, Chris. I can’t believe so much has happened in such little time. That is the coolest thing ever. How did you get so lucky?”
Samda came over and said, “We are all lucky that Chris was taken. He saved the universe.”
Dave laughed, until Samda took a menacing step forward.
Chris shrugged. “It’s true.”
Jackie shook her head. “Chris Mathers doesn’t have it in him to save the universe. Chris Mathers doesn’t even have the guts to break up with his bitch of a girlfriend.”
“Does she miss me?” Chris asked. “Is she alright?” He kept his gaze from crossing Samda’s. He wasn’t sure why.
Dave replied, “She moved some strange dude in just a couple of days after you disappeared. I’m afraid that ship has sailed, buddy.”
“Good. Enough about her then.” He was overjoyed he didn’t need to deal with that crap any more. “Do you want a tour of the ship?”
Jackie rocked on her heels. “Lead the way, robot Chris. Tell us the whole story as we walk.”
Hope
As they walked, Chris and Samda filled them in on everything that had happened. To their credit Dave and Jackie took it all in stride. They were particularly excited to hear that the ship was now equipped to travel anywhere in the universe for them. The tales of past adventures enthralled them, but the possibility of an adventure to come sent their imaginations skyward.
Then Chris explained that they couldn’t return to Earth for a day or two, to make sure that if the Grays came for the ship, they could hand it over peacefully to avoid any unnecessary violence.
At that Jackie said, “You can’t come to Earth looking like that anyway. Do you think we can just put a wig and a fake beard on you and you’ll blend right in? They’ll take you away to some underground lab and take you apart.”
“I can’t live out here in space for eternity.”
Dave asked, “Those mechanized suits can store your consciousness for eternity? How cool is that?”
“You wouldn’t say that if you were in my place.”
“How did you have your mind transferred into that thing anyway?”
“The transfer room is just up ahead. I’ll show you what they used.”
Chris showed them around the transfer room. He showed them where the mechs were docked during transfer, and where the circular table was and how it was used.
Dave said to Jackie, “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”
“I sure hope not. I hope you’re not as reckless as I am. You’re supposed to be the sensible one of us.”
“I’m thinking we could swap.”
“Me too. We could let Chris and Samda take our bodies and we could take over these robots and go on the adventure of a lifetime.”
Dave stared at Chris’ crotch area and then looked back at Jackie. “What happens if we decide we want to have sex? We can’t do that in those androgynous bodies.”
Chris interrupted. “You can’t be serious. I could never ask you to give us your bodies.”
Jackie said, “Believe me, Chris, I’d consider it a favor. You know what science fiction dorks me and Dave are. You know that we’d do just about anything to travel the stars. You also know that if you hadn’t beaten us to the punch, we would have asked to be abducted when those aliens showed up asking for a volunteer. This is a dream come true.”
Dave shook his head. “Jackie, did you hear me? How are we supposed to have sex without real bodies?”
“All you think about is sex.” She turned to Chris and Samda. “If we agree to switch, we would want to be able to come back to our bodies periodically for some creature comforts. Does that sound fair?”
Dave smiled wide now. Chris looked at Samda and waited to see what she thought.
Samda nodded. “Thank you so much for this new lease on life.”
Dave added, “It is a lease. Remember that. We’ll be back every now and again to reclaim our property for a day or two at a time.”
Chris said, “It’s better than nothing.”
Samda said, “I hope I like life as an Earthling.”
Dave smiled wickedly. “You’re taking the body of this gorgeous woman. You’ll be surprised by how good life can be when you’re beautiful.”
Jackie shook her head but she couldn’t resist a retaliatory dig. “That’s why Dave’s life is so hard.”
Life Swapping
Just to be sure, they waited for three days before making a move. Apparently the Grays and their cousins had come to an understanding, as they never showed up. Perhaps the Grays weren’t as heartless as Chris had once thought.
Samda’s mech was in the dock first and Jackie was on the table. She started to undress and Chris almost let her.
Chris uploaded Samda’s consciousness into the console and then scrubbed her unit clean. Then he used the same disc that had been used on him to transfer Jackie’s mind directly to the mech. After that, he sent Samda’s mind into her new human body. It would be his and Dave’s turn next. He would have to make sure that Samda knew the process to the letter before allowing her to touch the controls. He trusted her, but this meant trusting her with his life. Dave’s too, if anything went wrong.
Samda crawled off of the circular table and immediately fell to the floor. “These legs are weak as hell. This is going to take some getting used to.” Her voice was human, and exactly the same pitch as Jackie’s. He was glad he wouldn’t have to use a translator on Dave and Jackie’s bodies. Those translators sucked.
Chris made sure Jackie was okay and then warned her that he was about to release her, so she’d better be ready. He did, and she wasn’t. She stumbled before getting control of her new robot body. She waved her tentacles around wildly. “This is amazing, Dave.”
Dave got on the table and Chris got in the dock. He said to Samda, “Now, you’d better be sure to do everything exactly like I said, or else I could die.”
She rolled her eyes at him before transferring his mind into Dave’s body and vice versa.
Chris moved his fingers. They were foreign and yet familiar. He got to his feet and took in the scene. He and Samda were now small human beings. Jackie loomed over them, but Dave was still stuck in the dock.
Chris released the mech and watched as it moved its metallic tentacles around in amazement.
Farewell
Chris and Samda told the mechs everything they remembered, how to operate the ship and how to navigate.
Jackie and Dave kept telling them to stop fussing. They asserted that the mechs had infused them with plenty of information to get them by.
Samda tested them with a couple of questions, and when they got the answers right, she and Chris breathed a little easier. The last thing they wanted was to repay this kindness by sending Jac
kie and Dave out into the universe unprepared.
Then Chris warned them to keep an eye out for aggressive behavior in one another, but Samda corrected him. “The suits didn’t provide us with emotions, Chris. The aggression was all you.”
Chris had a hard time believing that at first, but there was a part of him that knew it was true. The suit had empowered and changed him while he was in it.
Dave finally said, “Listen, Jackie’s eager to fly this ship across the universe, so I’m going to have to ask you two to leave.”
Chris and Samda laughed and thanked them profusely before going to the holding cell to await transport to Earth.
Chris said out loud, “I hope you have wonderful adventures, and I hope to see you soon.”
No sooner had he uttered the last word, they vanished.
An Adventure
Dave said to no one in particular, “See ya, Chris. Thanks for the robots.”
Jackie said to Dave, “Let’s go and meet E.T.”
“I’ll get right on it. Do you want to see other planets in our galaxy or do you want to go to a different one?”
“Who cares? Let’s see it all.”
Outpost Planet Eight
The mechs all stood inside the open courtyard of the octagonal structure. In the middle of them, they regarded the EMP device. This was it. This was an end to their suffering. A hundred thousand years of torment and toil was coming to a close. They could hardly wait.
If they had tear ducts, they’d have been crying.
One of them stepped towards the EMP and held his tentacle above the activation switch. “Goodbye, my friends. Every journey must come to an end.”
He was about to flip the switch when a shriek of pure rage came to him from inside the octagonal building. His hand wavered for a moment too long.
The god creature rushed out into the courtyard. She was slick with slime. Her body had regenerated, but not fully. It was awkward and undefined.
One of the mechs gasped in terror and another screamed out, “Flip the switch, damn it.”
But the god was too quick. She pointed at the device and it melted away into a thick bubbling puddle before their eyes.
“How dare you betray me like that? If you thought you suffered before, just wait to see what I’m going to do to you. There is no escape from me unless I grant it.”
One of the mechs said, “Kill me first then, you bitch.”
“No one gets off that easily. We had a project that got derailed. But we still have all the DNA we need to successfully design our true God. I will fix the damaged apparatus’ and then we’ll achieve the impossible. Follow me and don’t test my patience. Death is hardly the limit of what I can inflict upon you.”
A mech tried to run away but she stopped it with a wave of her hand. Another lunged at her but she knocked him backwards with a nod.
She sneered. “Follow me. Your suffering is almost at its end. Our new god will take everything from you, suffering included.”
Forgiveness
The Gray Admiral Chaybo said to the mechanical captain, “Are you sure this isn’t overkill? You said you saw her with your own eyes. You said she was mashed to a pulp.”
“If you think it’s overkill, then let’s go,” the mech captain said. “But I’m not so sure. She can regenerate, as you know. I doubt she could come back from what we did to her, but why take that chance?”
Admiral Chaybo looked at the floor for a moment, deep in thought. Finally he said, “I trust your judgment.”
“I can’t tell you how good that is to hear.”
The nukes on board Admiral Chaybo’s ship had each been fitted with transponders taken from the ships that had escaped from Outpost Planet Eight. The drones buzzing the atmosphere of the planet would mistake the nukes as friendlies and leave them alone.
The Admiral ordered, “Second in command, drop the nukes. Turn that building into a crater of glass.
“Yes sir.”
“When it’s done, take us home. There are some folks on this ship who haven’t been home in a very long time and I’d hate to keep them waiting much longer.”
The mech captain simply said to the admiral, “Thank you, sir. Thank you for your forgiveness.”
“Thank you for failing, Captain.”
The captain’s mechanical first mate took a step forward and said, “We didn’t fail. The Earthman saved us from ourselves. He saved all of us.”
Flesh
Chris held Samda as she struggled to keep her balance. They had been transported into Dave and Jackie’s house and her human knees were giving out.
“This gravity and these skinny legs make for a tough time walking.”
“We can practice. You’ll get good at it in no time.” He walked her over to the couch and sat her down.
Samda asked, “When Dave and Jackie were talking about sex, is that what I think it is? Is it the same for your people as it was for mine?”
“I don’t know how your people did things.”
“I could show you.”
Chris smiled. “And I could let you.”
The End
For more by Adam Moon, check out:
If you'd like to be notified of upcoming projects or if you just want to say hi, drop me a line at:
([email protected])
Thanks for reading
