Embarkment 2577 (5 page)

“You jumped into harm’s way, to a
certain death, to save him. No matter how brave a person is, or how high her
ideals are, not many people would do that for someone who means nothing to them.”

“It’s just really frustrating, you know.”
Everyone assumed so much, and I was clueless.

She patted my hand. “It’ll come back to
you. Until then there’s no big hurry, is there? I don’t think anyone expects
anything from you besides getting strong again.”

It made sense when put like that. “So,
how ‘bout you? Do you have a boyfriend? Eh, I mean, can you, eh, umm, I don’t
know what I mean.”

Stupid, stupid, stupid. Asking a
hologram if she had a boyfriend. Now would be a good time to bang my head
against a wall or something.

Anya leaned forward as if to confide
something a little forbidden. “I have a boyfriend. He’s a pirate, and our
Captain doesn’t care much for him, but we meet up whenever we can.”

It was comical, and somehow just the way
it should be. “A pirate huh? Wherever did you meet him?”

I pulled my feet up on the sofa. I was
making my first real friend in this weird place, and we had a girls’ gossip
night. All of a sudden, life was pretty good.

Anya bit her cheek, looking both amused
and embarrassed. Most people probably took her for granted and never thought of
asking.

“We met in a bar when I was on shore
leave. He sat by the counter, drinking, and when he saw me, he just swept me
into his arms and kissed me. I had never been kissed before, and I pushed him
away and slapped him. He was really drunk, and it was the first time I met a
drunken man, and he exclaimed I was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen,
and by God he would kiss me again if it killed him.”

I found her breathless way of telling
the story endearing. By the time she finished telling me how they hooked up, I
was giggling. “What’s his name? What does he look like?”

She sat with her hands between her knees
like a little girl. “His name is John, and he looks like… He’s tall and strong,
and has rather long dark hair, and he usually doesn’t shave much. Do you want
to see a picture?”

Did I ever. The man on the holographic
photo was handsome, and it was surprisingly easy to imagine them together. “Anya,
you’re a perfect couple. I hope I get to meet him some time.”

It was one of those things that seemed
meant to be. If they hadn’t been together, something would have been wrong with
the world.

I had the strangest dream about the
zombie apocalypse. I wasn’t exactly participating on either side; I saw events
play out, almost like a movie. It wasn’t an unpleasant dream. If it was scary,
it was a distant fear, like one you’d get from watching TV, knowing you’re safe
in the sofa, shielded by a bowl of popcorn.

One group of humans were barricaded at a
storage facility in Philadelphia, frantically breaking doors open in hope of
finding something useful, while a horde of zombies approached the fence. They
had a small white and black dog. The pooch barked at something behind one of
the men, but I never got to see if it was a zombie or something harmless. The
doorbell chimed all the way into my subconscious, and as much as I tried to
hold on to sleep to see what would happen, I couldn’t.

“Who is it?” I didn’t really expect
anyone to answer, but the computer’s synthetically merry voice said, “It’s
Commander Adam.”

Not even the zombie apocalypse could
break this starship illusion of mine. Was it strange to dream inside another
dream? “Well then, let him in.”

I wasn’t really awake yet, so I pulled
the sheets up around me, turned over on the other side, and closed my eyes
again. It wasn’t until I heard the soft whooshing of the door and an amused
voice commenting, “I think I’m a little too early, maybe I should come back
later,” I realized I was in bed, stark naked, with a stranger in the room.

Opening one eye revealed Adam standing
in the doorway with a smile tugging at his lips. Did androids really find
things funny, or was it just a part of his programming that claimed smiling
would be the appropriate response?

I really needed to stop overthinking
everything, or I would drive myself crazy. I scooted into a sitting position
and clutched the sheet so it wouldn’t fall down and reveal my breasts. He was
polite enough to look away, and pretended intense interest in the wall while I
got myself settled, pulled a hand through my hair, and squinted at the lights.

“No, no, if you’re here it’s probably
morning. C’mon in. What time is it?”

The computer and Adam answered
simultaneously, “It’s 6:02 AM,” and I could barely contain a groan. Too early.
Six in the morning might always have existed, but that didn’t mean one had to
pay attention to it.

He winked at me and disappeared out of
view. It was a good opportunity to prop the pillows up behind my back. I had
the robe, but I couldn’t figure out how to get to it without leaving the sheets
behind, so I’d have to stay where I was for now. Android or not, I had no
intention of running around naked in front of him.

I still sat rubbing my eyes when Adam
returned moments later, holding a tray with my favourite breakfast on it. How
could he know what I wanted? It was unnerving to have someone around who knew
every detail about me when I didn’t know the first thing about him.

He put the tray on my lap and sat down
on the edge of the bed. I expected it to make at least a complaining noise at
having to carry a big man made of metal, but it didn’t even squeak. There were
probably new alloys in this time I didn’t know about. He might only weigh a few
pounds, or maybe about the same as an ordinary person.

I wanted to ask who built him, why, and
if androids were common, but it didn’t seem like the right time. I reached for
the cappuccino instead. “Thank you. This is the best breakfast ever.”

Adam looked as if he wanted to say
something, but he didn’t. Instead, he pulled something out of a pocket and
looked at it. I saw a flash of silver between his fingers.

“I have something for you.”

He held a small object out to me, and I
couldn’t believe my eyes. It was my necklace. The very same necklace I’d been
wearing all the time, every night and day since I was a little girl. My mother
gave it to me when I was five, and it held a small five-pointed star in white
gold with a diamond in the centre.

“Ima took this off when she healed your
body. I saved it for you.”

My mother told me to wear it always,
said it would bring me good luck, and for all these years, I never took it off.

He bent forward to put it on me, and
when I felt it fall in place around my neck, I threw my arms around him. “Thank
you.”

It was the only thing left from my
world. Everything else was gone, but now I had
something
to symbolize
the life I lived and the person I’d been.

My emotional outburst seemed to surprise
him, but he hugged me back after hesitating just a little, and it felt good. He
ran a hand over my hair. The gesture was comforting, and made me feel like a
little girl.

“I’m sorry for all you’ve lost, but for
what it’s worth, I’m happy you’re here.”

Tears welled up in my eyes, and I forced
them down. Crying would make a big wet spot on his uniform. He might not care
about that, but I did.

Adam held me a few moments longer,
stroking my hair and my back, before pulling free from my grip. “You should
have your breakfast.”

I did. I nibbled a croissant, had some
strawberries, and sipped my coffee. “Have some.”

He shook his head, and I insisted
without thinking, “It’s really good,”

At first, I didn’t understand why he
looked so amused. He rolled his eyes and took a corner of a croissant. “I like
these. I like the texture and the flavour; it’s funny how they’re layered. I
wonder what it’s like to be hungry.”

Oh yes, android… I just told an
android to have breakfast. Great going, Alex.

Never being hungry, never being tired,
wouldn’t that be great? Maybe not. Maybe hunger and sleep were experiences uniting
us carbon-based organisms.

“I need help with something.”

Adam looked up from the croissant and
flashed a smile that made at least one butterfly flash its wings in my stomach.

“I don’t have any clothes.” I should
have asked Anya for more than a robe, but at the time, having
anything
to wear seemed like a luxury.

Having a practical problem to solve
spurred Adam into action. He stood up, but paused and looked at me in a strange
way. Had I spilled food or coffee all over me? “What?”

The look on his face was a bit too
innocent. “Nothing. Just taking your new measurements.”

He disappeared out of the room before I
could think of a good answer.

It was a matter of minutes before my
friend returned, arms filled with clothes. “This should tide you over until you
feel well enough to go shopping.”

I looked at the pile and shook my head.
“You never do anything little, do you?”

He shrugged and sorted through the thin
fabrics. It was strange to see those strong hands handle my underwear. Was this
something that happened on a daily basis?

“How ‘bout that?”

He picked out an emerald green shirt,
white pants, and a pair of low boots that looked very comfortable. I had to
approve; I couldn’t have done it better myself. “Okay. Gimme that robe and get
out of here.”

His eyes glittered, but he didn’t move.

“Well, at least turn to face the wall,
or something. I don’t know if you’re used to watching me dress, but I’m not, so
it’s not happening today.”

My comment was met by soft laughter which
really
made me wonder about our past. He held his hands up in a
pacifying gesture. “Okay, I’ll be out here. With my back turned.”

He paused by the door and glanced over
his shoulder. “Are you up for a little adventure today?”

How could I say no? I was weak and
tired, sad, and worried, but he was so considerate. He had no obligation other
than possibly guilt to keep me company or help me. How could I say I wanted to
stay curled up in bed all day, crying, and eating chocolate? “Maybe a little
one.”

Having real clothes made me feel a bit
better, and being dressed helped my confidence. My new body looked good. I
wanted to stay and admire it in the mirror, but that would be too vain.

*****

Clothes or no clothes, left to my own
devices I would never have found the courage to leave my rooms. I stood just
inside the door, shifting my weight from one foot to the other. Outside would
hold more new technology, more aliens, more of everything different, new, and
frightening. Nothing anywhere would be well known to me.

Adam held out a hand to me. “Come on,
Alex. It’ll be okay.”

I took it, and he gave mine an
encouraging little squeeze. When the door opened and I didn’t move, he wrapped
his arm around my shoulders instead, leading me into the corridor. It seemed to
go on forever to each side of us.

The walls were painted light beige with
a flower pattern at waist height. There were statues and art along the walls.
The vastness and grandeur had been wasted on me the previous day. Now, it
dawned on me how big the ship was. “If I followed this until it ends, where
would I be?”

“It’s a long walk, but you’d get back
here. There’s a main corridor like this going around every deck. You can’t see
it from here, but it’s a little curved. There are lifts in six places on each
floor, and the main shaft for the hover-rounds goes all the way from top to
bottom.”

“Hover-rounds?”

He nodded towards something behind me.
The thing reminded me of a golf-cart without wheels. It was two-seated with a
storage compartment behind the chairs, and hovered in the air.

“Get in, I’ll show you.”

From the vehicle’s looks I expected a
leisurely ride. I was wrong. It was small, but quick, and I held on as we raced
through the corridor. “So, how many accidents do you have with these things
each year?”

“None. Most people don’t drive them
themselves, the ship’s computer does, especially in the shaft.”

For about two seconds his words made no
sense at all. Then, we reached said shaft and I stared at a huge vertical
tunnel. It glowed with an eerie blue light. “We’re going in
there
?”

There was a railing around the edge,
probably to keep people from falling in, and Adam suspended our vehicle above
it to let me get a good look of all the other hover-rounds travelling up and
down.

I did not want to look. My fingers
clutched the door so hard my knuckles turned white, and the very thought of
looking down gave me vertigo. Surely, any movement would make us topple over
and fall in.

“You should wear your seatbelt.”

Great idea. I would love to, if I could
find one, or dare move enough to put it on.

Adam lifted an eyebrow, reached over me,
and pressed a button. A second later, a force field pressed me gently towards
the chair.