sinclair_furie

Well, I've edited it! Fun, eh?
I've added some description, made it more coherent etc, so I you read the new version if you haven't read the old one. It's what I've given Paul. :P

“Farewell for Now”

Somewhere in the Albans sector, the private yacht Rycon was cruising. She was traveling quite slowly, and her destination impossible to guess given the seemingly arbitrary course corrections, but cruising she was. Designed to hold up to sixty souls, she boasted simulated gravity for the lodging and dining areas and one of the finest shipboard computers available to a civilian ship. At present, however, she was at one thirtieth her capacity, holding exactly two persons. Most included Kieran in this headcount because he required all the sustenance a human did. Together with Taike, he made up the entirety of the Rycon’s crew of twelve years.

Onboard the Rycon, breakfast was served. A dim glow illuminated the room and revealed its only inhabitant, sitting alone at the table. She, on the other hand, still wasn't up. He waited for twenty minutes in silence, and finally came to a decision. His mental circuitry processed it in less than a second but that was an eternity for a humaniform. He stood up, fought what was inside him, and slowly walked to her cabin.

Kieran courteously waited outside the door and came to that inevitable conclusion. He knew what he would find inside and what she would say and how he would have to reply. He had been dreading this moment since the day twelve years ago he had escaped with Taike in his arms, then an orphan in grave danger. Pausing for a few seconds to confirm his decision was the only viable one, he knocked and slowly opened the door.

Awake as he had expected. In fact, she was sitting upright on her bed, lost in thought. She barely looked up as he walked in. “Took you long enough to notice I was missing,” she said

Raising his eyebrows and leaning against the doorframe, he replied, “I assumed you slept late.”

“I didn’t.” Silence. “Of course you knew that didn’t you, Kieran?” She shifted to face him. He continued to watch her intently and she found herself wondering, not for the first time, what exactly went on behind those icy blue eyes. Sometimes she doubted what her ‘ractive tutors told her, that he felt no emotion. At times like this he seemed complex beyond comprehension. “Well,” she continued, “I came to an understanding when I woke up this morning. I am slowly going insane on Rycon with you.” She put a sardonic emphasis on “slowly.”

He nodded. “The nearest star system has several planets of interest. Lysthea, I think, will be the one you prefer. 80% water coverage, once a society of aristocrats, now ridiculously wealthy, and with enough culture and intrigue to satisfy you.”

She narrowed her eyes with suspicion. Twelve years it had been, twelve long years of just the two of them and the ‘ractive tutors on the shipboard computer. “Well aren’t you going to object?” She paused, a new idea coming to her in her bitterness. “Can you even refuse my requests, Kieran? Did they program you with that much free will?

Smiling, he replied, “I am sure anyone would have a hard time refusing you, Taike.”

She grinned back wickedly, too jubilant to care. “Alright.” She laughed in disbelief. “Let’s go.”

“Now, would you grace my breakfast with your beauty and undeniable wit?”

Impulsively, she pulled her self out of bed and hugged him. He returned her embrace. “Thank you,” she said, dangling her arms around his neck. It reminded him of when she had been younger, and happier. But something about the smile had changed; it was her eyes, and they told him that the crucial time was nearing.

Breakfast they had in silence, though Taike was bubbling with excitement. She kept pausing, as if commend on his abrupt decision, but seemed to lose the words. On the other hand, Kieran ate quickly and revealed nothing of the memories that were coursing through his brain. He was organic in every sense of the word- the vast majority of detectors would swear him to be a true human. But in place of human irrationality he had a prevailing logic and strict adherence to his orders, and in place of the human brain he had something far, far better. Still, just like Taike, he wondered sometimes. For surely the loss he felt whenever he looked at Taike went beyond resignation at compromising her situation.

The course correction was anti-climatic. Soon they decelerated to non-relativistic speeds and Kieran sent a relay to the Lysthean landing authorities, requesting permission on behalf of the Lady Tarayne. That was the safest alias for his young mistress, and the one he knew she would chose.

The reply came while she was reading up on Lysthea. They had permission to land at the seaside port city of Helia, but would the Lady give the governor the honor of a short video conference when they moved into orbit? Taike impatiently signaled her assent and resumed her research.

"Kieran," she called from the display. "You're in trouble. Humaniforms are required to wear the red armband on Lysthea." He glanced at her briefly, half smiling.

"Don't worry. They won't be able to tell me from the real thing." He looked down, pensive, and walked away.

He wasn’t sure why the Lysthean law struck him as ironic. Many of the wealthier, more xenophobic colonies required the distinguishing mark. ‘As if they are weapons,’ he recalled her father telling him. ‘As if you are somehow less deserving, less real than a human being.’ He mulled on this for a while as he packed for the both of them and returned to the control room

“Have you chosen which alias you will adopt?” he asked.

“I shall be Lady Tarayne, daughter of a rich but obscure noble of the planet Menay. They will treat me with all the deference they would give a rich Albans merchant, but with none of the curiosity they display towards their own high society.” She glanced at him, eyebrows raised and smiled smugly. “They shall never know I’m lying.”

Something about her manner made him snap. Somewhere among the thousands of circuits and synaptic connections, a command was overridden and he found himself free to speak.

“And what shall I be?” he demanded. “Your pilot? Your friend? Your lover?”

Taken aback by the unprecedented display of emotion, she blinked and then recovered. She walked up to him, bronze skin flushed and replied coldly, “You shall be my humaniform.”

“That’s not what I meant,” he fired back automatically.

“Yes, it is. I want you to wear the armband, Kieran. The red one, the one that distinguishes between living human and non-living machine. And don’t tell me it’s for my own safety that you put up these pretenses. I want you to wear it, and you will wear it.” She crossed her arms and waited for the objections.

“Very well,” he replied. His face did not reveal the turmoil in his mind. “If that is your wish, I will wear it. Video contact with Lysthea space patrol in half an hour; I’ll go set it up now.” He sat down at the controls and silently began configuring the instruments for the introductory video conference.

Taike stared ahead in stony silence for a good half hour. Finally, she said quietly, “Why.”

She didn’t bother to clarify; she wanted to draw out his safer, non-human side. Kieran had been waiting for the question.

“Because I have to. Because you deserve at least this.”

She nodded and resumed her silence, waiting for the ship to close in. The crackling on the screen indicated they were there, and Taike quickly switched on the screen to begin communications.

The face of the governor filled the display. He was surprisingly young- thirty five, Kieran would estimate. He smiled at Taike and greeted her. “Welcome, Lady Tarayne. That’s quite a ship you’ve got there!”

Smiling shyly, Taike replied, “I told my father I wanted to see the famed Albans sector. He was concerned for my safety so he sent me in his best.”

Nodding, the governor continued, “I understand you will be bringing someone with you when you land?”

“Oh, no, just my humaniform,” Taike corrected. From there they moved to introductions. Taike was happy and animated, skillfully lying about her childhood on Menay. The proximity of a new world had freed her and she appeared in full bloom, charming the governor and lightening his heart.

Kieran had never seen her like this. On the ship with him she was always more subdued, more antagonistic and touchy, sometimes incapable of understanding the situation. But he had created her, really, taught her to be like this, through the lessons and the endless interactive tutors. He found an odd comfort in her newfound happiness, in her vibrancy and enthusiasm.

‘Keep her happy,’ the old man had told him. ‘You I can trust- should anything happen, keep her happy and keep her safe.’ Kieran shook himself mentally and exited the memory, returning his attention to the present-day Taike. He took the controls as she finished her conversation, sparkling with excitement.

Deceleration was bumpy but quick, and soon they were coasting. They landed on the water and slowly the Rycon made her way to the first port she had seen in more than a decade. The ship was docked with a dainty bump near the door. Light flooded in from the port city of Helia as the doorway opened; in the distance Taike could hear the hustle and bustle of everyday life. She stepped out before him, taking in her first sight of a foreign world. He stepped up formally, offered her his arm and they made their way slowly down the stairs to where the governor was waiting to greet them. She had been on the Rycon for too long.

The stairway was black and enclosed by a clear chamber: through it Kieran observed other docked spaceships and the waves gently lapping the shore. Helia was a green, elegant city. White buildings dotted the streets; roads, avenues and boulevards coexisted in organized harmony. Kieran noted several pedestrian areas, cobbled paths and gleaming statues revealing the wealth of the Helian state. Taike absorbed everything with wide eyes, excited by the novelty of Lysthea. Had she remembered it, she would have found her home world a pale comparison to the splendor of this jewel of a city.

Frowning when he saw Kieran, the governor greeted them. “Welcome, Lady Tarayne! You are even lovelier in person.” He shook their hands, and then leaned towards Taike. “Forgive me, but is this your pilot? I thought you were only bringing your humaniform.”

Taike smiled and replied, “Yes, this is my humaniform Kieran. He’s an Auren model.” That was as close to the truth as it would get, anyway.

“Ah,” the governor replied, glancing at the armband Kieran had donned. He gave her his arm and they started walking out, Kieran following. “Well, milady, I was contemplating inviting you to the Noble’s quarter,” he told her as they left the dock, “but you’ll have to leave your humaniform in the maintenance area. We only permit human servants inside.”

Surprised, Taike replied graciously, “Certainly. I would be honored.”

As the walked, the governor related a bit of Helia’s history. “The Noble’s quarter is actually the only remnant of old Helia,” he explained. “Of course, we haven’t had any real nobles since Helia joined the federation some two hundred years ago, but the founding families still live here. But it’s mostly government and public buildings.” He looked nervously at Kieran, but the humaniform seemed lost in thought, staring at the trees the passed.

The Noble’s quarter entrance was a white arched door guarded by several security bots. After they were checked they entered into a waiting area of sorts.

“Well, milady, this is the maintenance area.” He paused, and started walking towards the door, leaving Taike alone with Kieran.

She smiled at Kieran and said, “This is farewell for now, Kieran. I’ll be staying in the sector for a while, but they’ll let you know when I return.” She paused, and continued more softly. “Thank you for bringing me here.”

He nodded, eyes sad, and kissed her on her cheek.

As she walked away, she took the governor’s arm, laughing and joking. Love and joy filled him and he mouthed, “Goodbye, Taike.” He knew from now he had no control over what happened to her, that this moment was the beginning of the end. From here on what he did would no longer matter- so he let go. Slowly, the governor and she disappeared into a sea of faces and colors. She did not look back.

His blank face showed no sign of his pain and anger.