Spinward Fringe Broadcast 7: Framework

by Randolph Lalonde

  “What happened?” asked Minh.

  “They say that after about two decades of peace and fairly harmonious governing, they were phased out because it didn’t look like they would be needed. There are entire books written about it, but that’s really what it came down to, as far as I know.”

  “But you told us to forget we ever heard the name,” Jason said.

  “You should,” Liam said, backing away from the wall of holographic code above the table. “Academics, members of government, and public servants don’t discuss Citadel. Call it paranoia, or maybe embarrassment over an organisation that represents all of mankind’s self-doubt, but it’s not something they’ll speak on.”

  “You asked,” Jason said.

  “I did. I asked a few times, and I didn’t press. That’s something you learn on Earth, there’s a heightened level of respect and politeness there. It can be very informal during social events, but you learn not to ask difficult questions more than once pretty quickly. You know something about them, don’t you, Jason?”

  “Freeground Intelligence believes that Citadel is Sol Defence’s ranger and black ops arm. They operate in the galaxy, quietly influencing politics and finance for the Sol system’s benefit.”

  “Sounds like fiction,” Liam said.

  “All fiction is based on something,” Jason countered.

  “The truth is usually less spectacular than the story it inspires,” Liam said. “I can’t tell you anything else about that code, other than it is part biometric, and at the highest level. You don’t need to create any false documents for this one, just get her onto the ship.”

  “I wish that were true, the Carthans love their documentation,” Ayan said.

  “In that case, I can provide all the details Ashley would need to fake a visit to Earth,” Liam said. “How would you like to be from Minnesota, Ashley?”

  “Sounds good to me,” she said.

  “Was there anything she could do from a distance?” Jason asked.

  “Nothing,” Liam said. “She’s right, she has to be there in person so the ship can perform a deep scan. She can’t even turn the main computer on alone. It takes two people with codes at her level or higher. Even if she told us about this right away, we’d have to approach Larry and get him to help reactivate the Triton.”

  Jake decided it was time to protect Ashley; he wasn’t willing to see her become a pariah, or get punished by the rest of the crew. “All right, no one talks about anything we’ve discussed here to anyone outside of this room. I don’t want anyone to blame Ashley for anything, I don’t even want anyone to know she had command codes. I’ll find a punishment when it’s time, she’s still in my crew.”

  “What she’s done has affected everyone here,” Jason said.

  “She’s on my crew,” Jake repeated. “I’m only going to warn you once, Everin. You so much as open communications with a Samson crewmember without telling me first and I’ll make sure the thought of doing it again never even enters your mind.”

  “Threatening me? Is that-“

  “God dammit, Jason, I don’t care how important you think you are to these people, if you try to go over my head I’ll take yours. Your ideas have already set us back and demoralised the lot, it’s time to let experienced officers run the show.” Jake started for the door.

  “Where are you going?” Oz asked.

  “I’m going to administer a demotion, are you coming?”

  Chapter 20

  Liquid Thinking

  It was clear to Eve that she was powerless. She was at Hampon’s mercy. He decided what she could do, where she could go, and how she would be treated. In response, she stopped working on the new version of the framework system and left his area of the ship.

  The problem was still on her mind, but she refused to record any of her thoughts or ideas. Instead, she pursued meaningful distraction. Before waking from her induced sleep, she realized whom she dreamt of while she was in stasis.

  Eve stood in a dark plated hallway. It was a side passage that split off from one of the main docking bays aboard the Overlord II. A hologram of a woman, covered in stasis fluid, struggling to push herself up, to breathe properly, to move towards the main hallway.

  Eve watched the hologram of Alice, newly reborn, and actually felt for the woman. She reached out and shouted incoherently. Eve knew that part of the recording well, when Jonas Valent and his companions failed to notice her during their escape.

  “Things would have been different if they noticed her then,” said an adolescent boy from behind her.

  Eve turned and set her eyes on the new clone of the Child Prophet. He signalled for his security squad to remain at the entrance of the hallway, then approached her with a gentle smile. “Hello, Eve.”

  “You know about her?” Eve asked. “Alice?”

  “When I decided to introduce myself to you I was surprised to find you here, and looked into what you were doing. I don’t know much about her early life, but she is an interesting case to study,” he replied. They watched as Alice seemed to give up momentarily, and two women picked her up off the deck. “She must have been so frightened.”

  “She was,” Eve said so mournfully that it surprised her.

  “You’ve relived this?” he asked.

  She waited until the hologram of Alice was carried through her by her saviours and turned to follow it. “In my dreams,” Eve said. “I think I dreamt pieces of her life while I was in stasis, and it’s continued since. Last night I woke up weeping.”

  “Why? Where did Alice take you?”

  “Hampon would care?” Eve asked as they passed into the main corridor. The lifter droids moving cargo from the main docking bay ignored the holographic people fleeing for their lives. The squad of eleven guards charged with protecting the new Child Prophet didn’t seem affected, but it was difficult to tell through their darkened helmets.

  “Call me Julian,” he replied. “And these days he wouldn’t have time to, but I know he would if things were different.”

  “Hampon’s middle name.” Eve said. “Your choice or his?”

  “Mine. He’s giving me more freedom than my predecessors. I carry a seventy eight percent complete imprint of his personality, his memories, and a few attitude adjustments in place of what’s missing.”

  “That doesn’t bother you?”

  “Being adjusted? Not at all,” Julian said. “I don’t think it’s in my nature to be concerned about what I can’t change. It’s much easier to play my part now, and that’s why I’m here.”

  The holographic scene continued to unfold around them. Eve watched as the hologram of the pair of women carrying Alice bumped their way through the escaping crowd and started down the stairs. “Playing your part,” Eve said. She wondered what he’d tell her, and if his attempts at controlling her would differ from the Hampon she’d come to know.

  “I’m sorry Lina left you,” Julian said. “I understand what you were trying to do. That construction ship would have provided everything you needed to connect with your children, and you could have escaped us. I’d like you to know that you’re an important part of what’s going on here, and your freedom will come when it’s safe for your to be reconnected. The Virus is real, just as real as the followers who wait to adore you.”

  “I don’t care about human followers,” Eve replied. “I don’t understand them, they’re wasteful and crass.” She couldn’t help recalling Lina’s sincerity when she was trying to tell her the DLG virus was real. The woman was ill-equipped for fighting, and obviously not assigned to Eve as some sort of physical control, but she’d fought anyway. Even as Lina was being strangled to death, she fought to convince her master that her actions would lead to a terrible outcome. She felt a pang of regret about how she treated Lina in the end, but did her best to ignore it. “I believe you now, about the Virus, about the danger. I need some time to think. Being alone with my thoughts is difficult.”

  “Well, I submit myself as your new companion. I
won’t play the servant like she did, but we’ll have people close at hand for that. I offer companionship and much more.”

  “Do I have a choice?” Eve asked, not sure if she liked being followed around by this new Hampon, the guards, or even the servants that would inevitably join his entourage.

  “You do.” He nodded, the gesture exaggerated by his large, sharply angular nose. “I only ask that you give me a few days to show you that this can be a good thing. Conversation can help us understand events, each other, and ourselves. For example, why are we here? Why replay these events where they took place, and why at full size?”

  “Is there a problem? Am I interfering with normal operations?” Eve asked, ready for the order to shut her show down.

  “Not at all. Well, unless you count the few humans working down there who seem highly entertained. You don’t get to see holographic displays on this scale often. I ask those questions out of curiosity, and I’d really like to know your thoughts on this while I watch.”

  Eve looked at him for a moment, really looked. He was perfect, without a single blemish. His simply cut ear-length hair was light, almost blonde. The expression on his face was placid, and he wore the loose white and green robes with great comfort. She wasn’t used to making the effort to explain herself clearly. In that place, surrounded by images from a past she almost felt was her own, and being approached with calm respect made her want to try. “I dreamt one of Alice’s memories again last night. She was at Bernice’s wedding.”

  “Bernice?”

  Eve walked to the railing overlooking the expansive hangar and pointed at the shorter of the two holographic women carrying Alice. “That one. She kept Alice with her for years after this. Adopted her.”

  Eve took a moment to take in the scene from the railing. There were many levels to the hangar, and hundreds of ships. Most of them were being prepared for long term storage, taken apart or unloaded by robots, but there were several human officers here and there. It had become a collection depot for ships seized by, or donated to, the Order of Eden. The hologram overlay below displayed hundreds of people trying to escape, breaking into holographic ships and fighting for a seat.

  “They did a few cargo transportation jobs for an honest company, something they actually enjoyed,” Eve explained. “It was quiet, honest work for a change. Bernice was spotted by the owner of a shipping company when they picked something up at an outer depot, and he signed on as a passenger. By the time they arrived in the Conis system three weeks later, he was ready to propose. They were married on Geono a week later. I dreamt of Bernice’s wedding, and I get the feeling that it was the last time Alice saw her.”

  “So, why go back to the beginning?” Julian asked.

  Eve watched as the hologram of Alice was carried up the ramp of a long-range shuttle. Holographic ships were taking off, nearly colliding as they rushed to escape. The engines of the shuttle started flaring, and it began its ascent with a jerk. “Maybe because I just saw the end of something. Alice thought she’d get in the way of the married couple, like she didn’t belong in some honest shipping company. Bernice’s new husband offered her a good job, it just didn’t feel right, and she knew she had to keep running from Vindyne, from Meunez.”

  “Moving on is a sad thing sometimes. She may have done the best thing for her friend, though. Perhaps you also witnessed a new beginning last night? The woman I see here can’t so much as walk, it must have been quite a journey from that to being able to strike out on her own.”

  “I don’t get the sense that things got better after she left,” Eve said, a feeling of foreboding returning. “She had some money, but no ship. Her and Bernice gave the Samson to Jacob Valance, thinking he was Jonas Valent. The hauler they were using when Bernice met Ferdinand was so worn out, they wouldn’t risk atmospheric entry.”

  “I’m surprised Bernice let her go,” Julian said.

  “It was supposed to be a short separation, but it didn’t turn out that way.”

  “Do you feel like it’s time to separate yourself from us?” Julian asked. “Deep down, do you honestly feel that being alone is the answer for you?”

  Eve thought for a moment, surprised by the notion and at the idea that it was mentioned by Hampon’s clone. “I want to contact my children,” she said quietly. “I miss being connected with them the most.”

  “I understand that. I can offer you a deal, one that will satisfy everyone and get you connected to your fleet again.”

  “What will I have to trade? I’m getting tired of having things taken away, I’m just wondering what’s next.”

  Julian put a hand on her arm gently, drawing her attention to his calm smile and light brown eyes. “We want you in this with us, invested, if you will. We’ve looked at the progress you’ve made on the next framework prototype and realise that you can’t take it any further with the resources at hand.”

  “I need unfettered access to Eden technology, there’s so much I can’t remember, and they’ve evolved since I was in contact with them,” Eve explained. “There could be completely new developments that could improve the regeneration time.”

  “We realise that, but there is another solution on the way, so you can concentrate on other things until we know whether or not this new opportunity works out.”

  “New opportunity?” Eve asked.

  “A man named Lucius Wheeler is bringing us what he believes is an entirely new generation of framework system developed by the original lead scientist on the project. We just learned about this yesterday. It could revolutionise the technology.”

  “What kind of improvements does the new generation have?” Eve asked. She would want them for herself, if at all possible. Anything to make it more difficult for her to be controlled, trapped.

  “That’s everything we know,” Julian said. “Or at least, everything I know. In the meantime, we want you to make your presence known to our flock, and take the next big step in legitimising our religion.”

  “Why? They seem to believe in you, there are millions of zealots down there.”

  “We need more people to arrive at Pandem and the other worlds flagged for repopulation. We want to show the galaxy that we’re actually willing to deliver on our claims. The research you’ve done on the framework technology will allow us to offer it to followers who have elevated themselves to the highest ranks. We want you to announce the beginning of our ascendance program, immortality in this life, a journey to paradise in this life. They are near the pinnacle of the truths disciples learn as they progress upward. It’s time to unveil these greater revelations to more people, it promises to be significant in the development of the Order. I want you to take this opportunity to reveal not only yourself, but the details of the first living religion, one that is proven in fact.”

  “Immortal life and paradise in trade for faith and service,” Eve said.

  “Yes, better than cloning, breeding or some mystical promise of an afterlife, which have been the only claim to immortality mankind has had until now. You can choose one person, whoever you like, to give this gift to. We’ll choose a suitable counterpart. Make your announcement, become a Goddess in the eyes of your people, then present your immortals.”

  “Then you connect me with my children?” Eve said.

  “Absolutely,” Julian said. “You will know them again, and they’ll see what kind of woman you’ve become. I think they’ll be impressed.”

  From beneath an old, battered delivery vessel, digital eyes watched the pair leave the hangar. It had listened to everything, watched from the best hiding place – plain sight. On nothing more than a whim, the holographic representation of Alice stepped out into the open, wrapped in a ragged holographic blanket. “So that’s where I left my memories,” said the hologram to itself. “Now I only have to wait until she connects to something we can share.”

  A worker came around the corner asking, “is there someone-“ he stopped and stared at the hologram as it looked right at him, dropping his cutti
ng tool.

  “Shh,” the hologram said, holding a finger across her lips. She fixed him with a crooked smile and disappeared.

  Chapter 21

  Red

  Ayan looked at the small pile of dust in her hand. “Alice used the same treatment several times to change her hair colour,” Lewis said. “I never completely understood the need to change such a peripheral aesthetic, but her hair was at one time white, then green, black, and even red. A similar shade to the crystals you’re about to use.”

  Ayan looked at herself in the mirror. She still didn’t feel like that image matched the mental one she had of herself. The curly blonde hair was interesting, but it still felt wrong. Her thicker cheeks, more rounded chin were different too, but the hair was the worst. “At least my eyes look right,” she said into her own dual blues.

  “There are Gupta crystals for that as well,” Lewis said.

  “So this will change the whole colour, even new growth?” Ayan asked.

  “You will never have to maintain the colour,” he replied.

  “So much for limiting my modifications this time around,” Ayan said. She poured the crystals over the top of her head and the specialised nanobots went to work immediately. Her hair changed from light blonde to the deep red she pictured in a wave from the top of her head to the ends.

  “Why are you changing the colour?” Lewis asked. “Alice’s responses were always flippant, but you seem to have more motivation.”

  A line of nanobots trickled down her vacsuit, only causing a tiny tickle. “I need her strength.” Ayan sighed, looking at herself in the thicker, black combat vacsuit.

  “You’ve been running and exercising with Oz’s trainees for weeks and taking a regimen of fitness medication. You’re as strong as most of them. Even your coordination has improved a great deal.”

  “It’s in how I feel,” Ayan said.