Disclaimer: See Chapter 1
Beka exited the Maru the next morning after she showered, had breakfast and
changed; ready to face Dylan in the next staff meeting. The hatch to the Maru
opened and she walked out, only to be surprised to find Marcus standing there,
his hand on the hull of her ship.
"Can I help you?"
"He doesn't talk to me." Marcus didn't take his eyes off the hull.
"Who doesn't talk to you?"
"Your ship. He doesn't talk. Why is that?"
Beka leaned against the hatch, now closed, and tilted her head at him. "He's not
a sophisticated AI. He's just the ship's computer for a homemade ship."
"Mom is the ship, right?"
"Your mom is also a sentient being made for a Commonwealth Ship of the Line. Her
programming is very complicated. Gives me a headache just thinking about what it
took to make her."
"The basics aren't complicated. The Maru, with the right modifications, could
house an AI if you wanted it to." Marcus ran his hand down the hull, as if in
thought. "I looked into your personnel file."
Uh, oh. Beka crossed her arms. "And?"
"Your hair was different... Straight, reddish."
Whew. "Oh, my father had me implanted with nanobots." Beka shook her head,
causing the color to turn copper. "See?"
"Impressive. You're prettier that way." He smiled at her. It was Harper's smile,
almost childish. Beka smiled back and blushed slightly.
"Like I said, you got your mom's good taste."
Marcus turned back to the hull. "You said the ship was homemade."
"Yeah, dad and Uncle Sid put it together before I was born. Rafe and I used to
spend hours working on it because homemade ships need constant upgrades."
Dad. Ignatius Valentine. Uncle Sid. Former business partner of Ignatius
Valentine, currently head of a major trade corporation. No other mention of him
in Beka's file. Cross referencing with Rafe Valentine.
Oh. Marcus changed the subject. "Dad said he made mom here."
"Well he didn't make your mother... just the avatar. But he did use my ship and
some of my hair as a genetic sample to create her outer appearance."
"Does that mean we're... related?"
"No, your dad used his DNA to make yours. And I wasn't involved in your
programming. So no, we're not related."
Andromeda's hologram appeared before them on the hangar deck. "Marcus, Beka, the
staff meeting is about to begin. Marcus, are you ready to meet Tyr and Rev?"
"Yes."
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Tyr had not stopped laughing since it was explained to him who, and what, Marcus
was. Everyone in Dylan's office, especially Dylan, was growing more and more
irritated with his reaction.
"Are you finished, Mr. Anasazi?"
Tyr continued to laugh at the situation. When he was finally done, he looked at
Rommie and said, "You, and an unmodified mudfoot? Why if he were my child I'd
have him incinerated."
Rommie said, quite simply and with little emotion, "Coming from a man who was
born into a pride that, unless you find a mate, is now extinct, I don't think
you should talk."
Everyone watched as Tyr's face took on several different expressions. Included
were shock, guilt and embarrassment before finally settling in on anger. He
brought up his hand to Rommie.
"That's enough Mr. Anasazi!" Dylan stood between them, and Tyr brought down his
hand. "In the future, I'd suggest you not insult your crew members again. You
are dismissed."
Tyr seethed and headed for the door. He was about to say something when Dylan
cut him off.
"I said that's enough."
Tyr left. Rommie stood. "Under the protocols of the Commonwealth I should be put
in the brig for insulting a high level officer. Should I go now?"
Dylan rubbed his head with his hand. "No, sit down. In fact to be honest, I
would have done the same thing in your shoes."
Marcus looked confused. "But you're not the same shoe size."
Beka stifled a laugh and straightened. "It's an expression. Like the pot calling
the kettle black."
"Oh." Marcus spent a few seconds processing all meanings of the words pot and
kettle. Rev extended a clawed hand in his direction.
"May I be the first to welcome you on board the crew? I am Rev Bem." Marcus
hesitantly took his hand and shook it.
Magog: alien species of unknown origin, possibly from a cluster galaxy that is
currently dead. Known as an aggressive species, their reproductive habits
involve infesting other sentient hosts with larvae that grow and break out,
killing the host and creating anywhere from 3 to 15 Magog in the process. A
small amount of genetic material from the host is transported into each Magog
generation, making them more adaptable to any surrounding.
This Magog was wearing clothes. Marcus used the image of the clothing to
determine he was a monk, and most likely harmless. He continued to shake his
hand as he smiled.
"Can we sit and have this meeting now?" Dylan sighed. Everyone, including
Marcus, took their seats.
Dylan ran his hands through his hair again. "Okay, now we've all met Marcus,
Andromeda's alternate AI, I'd like to talk to everyone about training him and
possibly moving him out of the main AI matrix onto a matrix of his own."
Harper felt Rommie tense up and put his hand on her thigh to reassure her. "Uh,
Boss? He's not ready to be moved anytime soon. He's only been with us a week."
"I realize that Harper, but sooner or later he will become too taxing on
Andromeda's systems. I don't want her compromised when that happens."
"Boss, it's too soon to be talking about moving him. In his current form, he
only takes up about five percent of Rommie's overall systems resources. He's not
a science project to us, you know."
Beka straightened up and looked at Dylan. "Harper's right, he should not be
moved right now. How long will it take to train him?"
"Doll face, how long did it take to train you?"
Rommie pursed her lips. "I was installed with a full training program from the
Systems University. So in all honesty I do not know for sure. Marcus does learn
at the same rate that I do and that will be an advantage in assimilating some
programming, but he will need to train for things such as combat, holographic
projection, and basic human interaction. I'd say no more than a few weeks to a
few months. Dylan, I wasn't installed on the Andromeda until I was in existence
for a couple of years on another ship's mainframe. Should we move him this
quickly?"
Dylan looked directly at Rommie. "Normally I'd agree with you and say we wait.
But you're the only working Commonwealth ship out there we have. I'm looking out
for your well being."
Rommie frowned. She wanted Marcus to stay with her longer, and it was obvious to
everyone in the room. But she didn't want to compromise the safety of everyone
else on board. She sighed. "I see. Very well, when Harper and Marcus are ready
we'll get started. I have just one question. Where do you plan to move his AI?"
"I have one suggestion," said Beka.
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Harper went looking for Rommie after the staff meeting. He searched her usual
haunts - Command, Dylan's Office, Observation Lounge, her private quarters, but
no Rommie. When he asked her where her avatar was, all the hologram told her was
that she was in privacy mode and did not want to be disturbed.
Finally he checked the one place he figured she wouldn't go. His quarters.
He found her there sitting on the floor, one hand on a spare recharge unit, with
a tense frown on her face, eyes closed. Harper knelt down next to her. "I know
you're not charging. I don't have that unit plugged in unless you're here
overnight. Even then, only because I'm sick and Trance is away."
Rommie didn't respond, so Harper tried again. "Look, I know how you feel about
the kid, I feel the same way, but AI's start out as adults, right? Way I see it
you and he lucked out. You didn't have to go through puberty. I mean, talk about
the zits and the hormones and..."
"I was hoping I'd be able to keep him in here longer." Rommie took her hand from
the recharge unit and dropped her head in Harper's lap.
Harper played with her hair, curling some of it in his fingers. "Mothers can't
hold on to their kids forever. And he's not leaving, you know. It's only the
Maru. Even then not for a couple of months."
"Thank you for lying about how much of my resources he's taken."
"Hey, it's still within safety standards and what Dylan doesn't know won't hurt
him. Besides I think if Dylan tried to force you to let Marcus go any earlier
you'd use your internal defenses on him like you do with me."
"I only do that when I catch you tampering with me for your little pet
projects."
"Hey, I get most of them to work for your benefit."
Rommie looked up at Harper. "Like the brewery in Machine Shop 14 near the
slipcore? I'm sure Dylan would see the benefits if I..."
"Now, Doll, you promised."
"And you promised you'd have the minibots cleaning my hull this morning," Rommie
was smiling.
"Bitch, bitch, bitch, that's all you ever do. Besides, I've been busy. Much as I
love to admit it, but there's really is only one of me for the three of you.
Sometimes you can be a bit overwhelming."
Rommie's smile faded. "What if Beka chooses to leave permanently?"
"Not gonna happen. We're all family to her now. She treated me like family when
I was hired; she did the same with Rev and Trance. I know Beka, she'll mother
hen Marcus more than you do."
Rommie laughed at the image. Beka would be merciless to Marcus. She's seen the
way she treats the current Maru computer and he's not even sentient. Rommie
brushed her palm against Harper's calf, sending a small amount of electricity up
his leg. Harper let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding.
Harper shifted under Rommie's head. "Uh... last time you did that, we wound up
with Marcus, remember?"
"I can play that back like a recording if I wanted to."
Harper took her hand in this when she touched him a second time. "Rommie, you
don't have to... I mean I know you wanted a child but now that you have him..."
Harper sighed.
Rommie yanked her hand away with a frown. "I had a feeling this would have been
taken as just a sympathy offering."
"It wasn't?"
"No, it wasn't." Rommie sat back against the wall. "Why did you say yes if you
thought that?"
"Honest answer?"
"Honest answer."
Harper leaned against the wall and his shoulder touched Rommie's. "I guess I was
hoping I was wrong . And if I wasn't, I'd have given you something you wanted so
maybe you won't feel so alone when I'm gone. Besides, have I said no to you yet,
your Gorgeousness?"
Rommie smiled. No, he hasn't. Not once.
-------------------------
"OK honey, try it again."
Marcus executed the program. A hologram began to flicker in front of him but
soon lost lucidity and fizzled. Rommie shook her head at her son.
"Marcus, if you want us to transfer to the Maru, you'll need to learn how to
compartmentalize yourself at least into the avatar and the hologram. One version
of you can't do it all, even on a ship that small."
"I know, I know. It's just that it feels funny and hurts a bit."
Rommie leaned over and touched Marcus' cheek. "So is taking a breath in air to
some Castalians, but they still have to do it every once in a while. Now, try
again."
Marcus executed the program a second time. This time, a holographic image of
himself appeared. Both said in unison, "Is this better?"
"Much. Now, go locate someone on board and project the hologram to them."
Marcus furrowed his brow and used his mother's surveillance program to find his
father. Med. Deck 9. Concentrating, he filtered his hologram through to that
location.
His hologram appeared just in time to watch from behind Trance as his father put
something into his neural port with a wince. Trance was busy monitoring his
vital signs. "Ready," she said.
His father tried to put his hand straight through into his belly. It appeared as
if his fingers actually made it part of the way through. Curious, Marcus took a
look at the sensors and saw something moving inside his father's abdomen.
Several somethings were moving, to be exact. Whatever they were, one bit as
Harper tried to pull it out. Harper let go with a yelp of pain and doubled over.
"Trance?"
"No, they're still dormant. That was just a reflex reaction."
Marcus went to his father and tried to touch him, only to have his hand go right
through him. "Dad?"
End. Ch. 3