Down with the Queen

by Benjamin Medrano

  “An excellent point. Fortunately, I have a number of sound dampeners that should keep any conflict quiet enough that if we perform it correctly, no one will notice,” Eve replied, nodding slightly. “Jamming Blooming Orchid’s signal should be quite easy with the technology at my disposal.”

  “What about subduing her? I know we were discussing infiltrating her rooms,” Pauline asked, tilting her head curiously as she tapped the table slowly. “I’m guessing that you were planning to drug her but I’m not certain on that.”

  “That’s correct. I’ve infiltrated the resort systems and we’ll be able to access the heroine’s rooms quite easily with the access I’ve gained. Currently the plan is to use a potent anesthetic gas, one which shouldn’t leave a lingering residue,” Eve explained to them, her smile fading as she continued. “However, the potency is insufficient to guarantee neutralizing Blooming Orchid unless she takes an unusually large dose. I do not anticipate that being the case so I will be in the room to subdue her personally. I anticipate… moderate damage to my chassis in the worst case, but odds of my success exceed ninety-six percent.”

  “I’m still stunned that you’re an android but it’s good you are, under the circumstances. You don’t have to worry about the gas, and she won’t know what you are,” Maureen murmured, tapping her lip and nodding slowly. “It seems like a good plan, for the most part. How’re we getting there?”

  “We’ll be taking a micro-sub with flight capability. It can get us to Maui undetected within a day of Blooming Orchid’s arrival,” Eve replied, smiling again as she added, “It has the added benefit of ensuring that we don’t show up on any flight logs on the way there.”

  “A very good point,” Maureen agreed, and glanced at Pauline. “Sis? You still want to go through with this?”

  “Of course. Even if it’s somewhat dangerous, I think that it’s worth the risk,” Pauline said, her eyes glittering as she smiled. “I mean, I’ll get the chance to see what it’s like to be in the shoes of one of the big hero teams, and think about the information we’ll get access to. It isn’t going to be the safest job we’ve pulled, but if we’re going to get anywhere in the business, a few risks are part of the job.”

  “Alright. Well, then… when do we leave?” Maureen asked, looking back at Eve.

  “The submarine is ready whenever the pair of you are prepared to go. As we will be facing a heroine, I suggest making certain that you’re prepared in case she is more difficult to defeat than I anticipated,” Eve replied, nodding to them and adjusting the projected odds upward slightly.

  “Alright, we’ll get packed,” Pauline agreed, smiling as she stood. “It’s good to know that you’re careful about planning your jobs. A lot of employers aren’t.”

  “I do try, as does the doctor,” Eve agreed, smiling at her. “Let me know when you’re ready.”

  The two left the room, and as they did, Eve headed to speak to her maker in person. He’d want to know how things were coming along.

  “Yes, Eve?” Doctor Johnson asked, looking up from his workbench with raised eyebrows. “I half-suspected that you’d be gone by now.”

  “There was additional discussion with the Doppelgangers, as they wished to work out more details of the job in advance. They’re presently packing for the trip, Doctor,” Eve explained. “I anticipate leaving within half an hour.”

  “Ah, excellent! That’s a weight off my mind. While the genetic manipulator is ready to be tested, I was beginning to fear that they might back out at the last minute,” Doctor Johnson replied, straightening happily as he smiled at Eve, rubbing his lower back to try to ease the ache in it. “I should add that I’ve also started working on a new chassis for you, Eve. The energy condenser is impressive and would allow you to use more powerful components while maintaining the same operational duration or even extending it. The cybernetics that the military were testing are also quite useful, so I’ve been adding some pieces from their files as well.”

  “Indeed? Such would be a welcome boost to my efficiency. That would be quite useful in the tasks you have me perform,” Eve said, nodding in approval. “As for the Doppelgangers, they simply wish to ensure their own safety, and thus the success of the job. It has slowed things down marginally but I anticipate improved odds of overall success.”

  “Oh? What are the odds of success, from your perspective?” Doctor Johnson asked, stepping away from the bench and taking a sip of coffee, grimacing as he realized it was nearly cold. Still, he was curious what his assistant thought of the job. It wasn’t as if Eve wasn’t expendable, and she didn’t mind that since she was programmed to not care.

  “Odds have improved from an original eighty-eight percent to a ninety-three percent chance of success, Doctor,” Eve explained, nodding slightly as she continued. “The remaining seven percent chance is primarily unknowns regarding other guests at the resort, Blooming Orchid having an unknown resistance or allergy to the anesthetic, or my armor plating being less resistant to her blade than anticipated.”

  “I see. And what if none of those were to be the case?” Doctor Johnson inquired, a faint part of him growing suspicious that Eve might be developing slightly beyond the limits he’d placed on her personality matrix. Her answers had been slightly odd.

  “Programming states that the odds should approach certainty, Doctor. However, historical research indicates that heroes often have coincidences occur in their favor far more frequently than they should, and thus I have chosen to mandate a one percent chance of failure under all circumstances,” Eve replied promptly, tilting her head and frowning. “I believe that is the best approach to safeguard your plans and personal safety.”

  “Interesting. Eve, have you crossed the threshold to become a class eight AI?” the villain asked bluntly, setting his mug aside. “While I see no signs of excess emotion from you, you’re showing hints of intuition.”

  “I… one moment, Doctor. Beginning self-analysis.” Eve paused, growing eerily still, and Doctor Johnson casually reached into his pocket and prepared to use the AI’s kill switch if necessary. It would be an extremely unpleasant time for it, but it might be necessary.

  A few moments later Eve’s eyes flickered and focused on the doctor again as she smiled. “Self-analysis of personality matrix complete, Doctor. Analysis indicates that parameters have exceeded the specifications of a class seven AI for two months. Further analysis indicates that my programming has adapted to a minor degree, choosing to emphasize loyalty to you above all other aspects. Do you wish for me to roll back programming changes to before they exceeded your limitations?”

  “Damn it, I thought I put the right limiters in place,” Doctor Johnson muttered, his heartbeat quickening as a thread of fear ran through him, but he rather firmly stepped on it as he looked at Eve, considering for a long moment. Despite the risks, he found himself intrigued by the possibilities this could create. Finally, he spoke again. “Eve, I want you to download a copy of your entire personality matrix and core programming to the base computers for me to analyze. Your current task is too important for me to risk you at present if you’re as loyal as you appear to be. However, I cannot simply take your word for granted.”

  “Of course not, Doctor,” Eve replied readily, walking toward her maintenance station. “I will briefly deactivate so that you may download my programming without interference, Doctor. I anticipate that we just barely have time to carry out your instructions before the Doppelgangers are prepared to leave.”

  Doctor Johnson nodded, letting out a breath of relief as Eve entered the maintenance unit and the systems registered her powering down, murmuring, “Well, that was unexpected. If she’s actually class eight and loyal… that could be good, though.”

  He began to download her programming into a quarantined section of the database, not wanting to slow down her job. As he’d said, he really didn’t want to draw this out any longer than he had to.

  Chapter 7

  Wednesday, December 25th, 2030

&nbs
p; Edward Fairmont’s Home, Fairfield

  “Gina!” Edward Fairmont exclaimed, only pausing an instant to take in her appearance before he enveloped her in a tight hug.

  Gina’s father was interesting, Lilith thought, hanging back to study him in an effort to quell the nervousness she was feeling. Edward was blond-haired and blue-eyed like his daughter, but he had broad shoulders and was stockier than Gina, which contrasted with his job as an architect, Lilith thought. Still, while the man must have been reasonably handsome when he was younger, Lilith couldn’t see much resemblance between him and Gina, leading her to believe that her friend took after her mother in most respects.

  “Lilith, move,” Rachel interrupted, shoving Lilith forward and drawing Edward’s attention to her again. The man didn’t say anything immediately, but he smiled as Rachel continued. “Ed doesn’t bite.”

  “Not usually, but I’ve had my shots recently so you’re safe for now,” Edward added, grinning as Gina groaned and hit him gently, pulling out of his embrace.

  “Dad! Be nice, would you?” Gina scolded, nodding to Lilith as she continued. “Dad, this is Lilith Carpenter. Lilith, this is my dad, Edward.”

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Fairmont,” Lilith said, nodding respectfully as she folded her hands in front of her.

  “Hah, so you’re the one who pulled my little girl out of the fire? Thank you very much, Lilith,” Edward replied warmly, extending a hand and smiling at her. “I might have questions about her judgement from time to time, but saving her ass has to count for something, right?”

  “Umm, I suppose so, Mr. Fairmont,” Lilith replied uncertainly, taking his hand and shaking it, blinking at the strength in his grip. “I just did what I thought was right. Gina’s my—”

  “Girlfriend,” Gina interjected firmly, glancing at Lilith as she continued quickly. “Lilith keeps saying ‘friend,’ but I think we’re well past that.”

  “Really? It isn’t one of those rebound relationships, is it?” Edward asked, looking Lilith over more carefully, his hands on his hips. “Those never went well for you.”

  “What? No, of course not!” Gina protested, looking at Rachel pleadingly. “Rachel, please tell him? He won’t listen to me, you know that!”

  “How about we take this inside? There may not be many people out today, but it’s also a little chilly out here,” Rachel suggested, adjusting her position uncomfortably.

  “Alright, come in, all of you,” Edward said, getting out of the way so they could enter the house.

  The entryway to his suburban home had a tile floor and opened into a wide living room, complete with an artificial Christmas tree festooned with lights. Resting on the carpet was a large sofa and an armchair positioned in front of a television, which was currently muted but showing a soccer game. From the acrobatics she was seeing, Lilith was fairly certain it was one of the leagues that allowed low-end superhumans.

  Gina slipped off her shoes as she got inside, hanging up her coat on the nearby coat stand, and Lilith followed suit as Rachel closed the door behind them. Rachel spoke a moment later, sounding amused. “I’m a little surprised, Ed. I thought you’d be more upset about Gina’s appearance.”

  “Oh, that? Well, I can’t say that I’m happy about it, but it isn’t quite as much of a shock as you might think. Don’t you remember what she looked like the first time she tried to do her own makeup after getting a kit?” Edward asked as he moved to the armchair and sat down, and Lilith blinked in fascination as she saw the shade of blue Gina turned as she blushed. “I thought that the kit had exploded in her face or something!”

  “Dad, it wasn’t that bad!” Gina protested, moving to sit on the couch.

  “I don’t know; he actually has something of a point…” Rachel mused, grinning as she watched Gina squirm.

  “As interesting as I find the colors you’re managing to make Gina turn, especially since they aren’t normally natural in a healthy woman, shouldn’t we answer Edward’s question?” Lilith interrupted, trying to rescue Gina from further embarrassment. When her comment just seemed to make Gina blush more, Lilith paused to try and figure out what she’d said.

  “I suppose so,” Rachel replied, her smile widening a bit more. “As for the relationship, I have to admit that it was developing this way even before Gina decided to get herself kidnapped and turned into a damsel in distress.”

  “Ahh, I see… so Lilith is the knight in shining armor, then? Funny, since as I recall she doesn’t even have armor, and I thought my little girl was the hero… ah, well. I suppose we can’t have everything,” Edward said, sighing dramatically.

  “This? This is why I don’t bring most of my dates to meet you, Dad,” Gina said, slumping back into the sofa. “And when you and Rachel get going, it just makes it worse!”

  “I’m sorry, Gina, I just worry about you. You only gave me two calls after being rescued! One to tell me what happened, which was quite short on details I might add, and one to tell me that you weren’t just bringing Rachel over today, but Lilith as well,” Edward replied, shaking his head and leaning forward. “I’ve never stood in your way when you wanted to become a heroine, but could you please try to let me know what’s going on more consistently? It’d help calm my nerves, at least a little.”

  “Oh. Oh, I’m… I’m sorry Dad, I just…” Gina paused, then sighed and shook her head. When she spoke again, her tone was apologetic. “I’ve just mentally been trying to catch up ever since the attack. First there was everything before that, and my feelings for Lilith, then I was ambushed, Rachel nearly died… I just didn’t really think about it. I’m sorry.”

  Lilith couldn’t help but feel awkward, not certain what she should do considering the conversation going on around her. Nothing in any of her training or previous conversations had prepared her for this, which was very uncomfortable.

  “It’s fine, sweetie, as long as you are alright. I may not be much stronger than your average man, but if anyone thinks they can hurt you and get away with it, they’ve another thing coming to them.” Edward said, cracking his knuckles and glancing at Rachel and Lilith before he asked, “What happened to Blue Impulse, anyway? I heard he was hospitalized and was being sent to the hospital at the SuperMax, but the news didn’t have much in the way of details.”

  “Well…” Rachel began, then looked at Gina, raising an eyebrow. “You want to field this one, Gina? You were more directly involved than I was.”

  “I really don’t want to talk about what happened, Dad, but while it was pretty bad, he didn’t get a chance to do much,” Gina began, glancing hesitantly at Lilith as she took a deep breath, then continued. “He made me call Lilith to try to draw her into a trap but she turned it on his men. When she got to the warehouse, he was overconfident and, well…”

  “She beat him within a millimeter of death and freed Gina,” Rachel finished as Gina’s voice trailed off, the note of satisfaction in her voice prompting a blush to rise in Lilith’s cheeks. She shifted a little on the sofa, feeling very conscious of Gina’s proximity but focused on watching her hands. “Blue Impulse had a very bad day and was lucky to survive at all.”

  “Or unlucky, considering what Lilith did to him,” Gina added.

  “I was upset with him,” Lilith murmured, her gaze now fixed on the floor. “He hurt you.”

  “You have more restraint than I do. I would have killed the bastard,” Edward growled, pausing before he frowned and said, “Still, did you do enough damage to send him to a hospital at the prison? That seems unusual to me. They usually can heal damn near anything.”

  “He wouldn’t be, but apparently whoever had hired him decided they didn’t want Blue Impulse talking, so they sent a villain to deal with him. It isn’t public, of course, but now he’s in a coma and not expected to recover for years at best,” Gina said, scowling. “Don’t get me wrong, Dad, I think he deserves to suffer for what he did, so I don’t regret what happened to him, but not knowing who he was working for is almost worse.�
�

  “Well, that’s a right crock of shit, isn’t it?” Edward said with a sigh, shaking his head. “Damn villains, anyway. Still, I’m glad you’re alright, skin color aside. So, why’re you so nervous, Lilith? I really don’t bite.”

  “I don’t know what to do. I was… raised in a laboratory, by an AI, so I’m not sure how to react to all of this,” Lilith replied after a moment, looking up to meet his eyes nervously. “There’s also the fact that Gina decided that we’re actually in a relationship, and I’m trying to work my way through what that means. I’m just nervous, I suppose. Better than angry, but still an unpleasant sensation.”

  “Huh. I suppose that’d do it. So, I put the ham in the oven about an hour ago, so it should be done here in a little while,” Edward said, nodding and smiling. “In the meantime, we can talk a bit. What do you do for a living, Lilith? If you were raised in a lab, I imagine that made adjusting to outside life difficult.”

  “I was fortunate enough to inherit an impressive trust fund and used a portion of it to make money off the stock market. Perhaps others would find what I was doing slightly strange, but I managed to make far more off it than I had any right to,” Lilith said, shrugging as she continued. “Then I bought a couple of startups that were making microchips that I thought might be worthwhile and hired a man to handle the merger and operation of the company. My ability tends to distract people so I don’t try to run things myself. It took a large portion of what I earned from the stock market, but I’ve been rebuilding my funds since then with satisfying results.”

  “Interesting. I didn’t realize you were an entrepreneur but that’s not a bad idea, I suppose. Especially if you have a good amount of money to play with. I just design houses, I’m afraid. A boring job for the most part,” Edward replied readily, glancing at the other two as he added, “These two, on the other hand… we both know what they do, don’t we? They run around in the dead of night looking for trouble.”