They sat down right there in the entry lounge, and Anailu went about resetting their security so they would own themselves. The system was designed to require a “person” to be set as the owner, and of course it didn't recognize the u-shabti as valid people for that purpose. That stumped Anailu. But Diamond showed her how to get around it by manually creating a “Non-Imperial Person,” which didn't require any Imperial ID data.
That set Anailu thinking. She looked up from the screen at Diamond and Snow. “What's up with those names? 'Diamond Snow' and 'Velvet Snow'? Those are like–“
Diamond interrupted, rolling her eyes, “Yes, we know. That's what our first owner came up with.”
“Well, do you want to change them now? There's no reason why you can't.”
Snow considered, then shrugged. “I don't have any ideas right now. Do you have any suggestions, Anailu?”
“Me? No, I'm terrible at coming up with names.”
Diamond interjected. “We can just leave them as they are, for now. Once you finish, we can change them whenever we like. For now, you can keep calling me 'Diamond.'”
Snow nodded. “I know you know me as Snow, but you can call me 'Velvet.' I just use Snow as a callsign because it's cooler.”
Anailu finished the process. The last part was removing the collars. When that was done, Anailu checked again. “Are you sure you haven't changed your minds about staying? It's your decision.”
Diamond looked at Velvet and then replied, “We'll stay.”
“Then, welcome aboard!”
They discussed what skills Velvet and Diamond could contribute as members of the crew. Both Velvet and Diamond had a pretty broad range of abilities, since they had been designed as general companions for very wealthy people. They could each perform household tasks such as cooking, cleaning, managing households, and assisting with planning social events; serving as a maid, butler, or secretary; basic maintenance and piloting of airships; speaking, reading, writing, and translating all the languages commonly spoken in the Empire; self-maintenance; and performing first aid on the fifteen most common sentient species in the Empire.
Anailu considered what sort of help she could use. At least at first, she didn't plan to give them access to any of the core systems – especially Diamond, with her cracking skills. However, there were plenty of shipboard tasks that she'd been doing herself that she would be happy to give up.
One of the inconsistencies of Imperial law was that even though u-shabti weren't considered people, even a shabti bot could still get a starship crew rating. It was a weird middle ground where the bot was fulfilling crew duties, but for some purposes, it was considered part of the ship's equipment.
If you loaded a skill module for a particular model of bot, that shabti could immediately become an expert in whatever the module covered: accounting, pottery, hand-to-hand combat, covert operations. If Anailu was willing to spend the money, she could even buy modules that covered starship crew ratings. But, they were expensive, and for Diamond and Velvet, they'd have to be shipped all the way from the Core. Their manufacturer didn't have a branch office in the Rim.
If you didn't have a module, then shabti could learn knowledge and skills the same way as humans – by studying and practicing. Technically, it was very different, but the process took about the same time and effort as a human would require.
That was another reason most people preferred simpler, cheaper, purpose-built bots to the more flexible shabti bots.
From what she'd seen of Velvet's flying in StellaTactics, Anailu already knew what she wanted her to do – pilot the ship. Velvet was happy to start studying for her pilot rating. She already knew how to fly, but there were plenty of Imperial regulations that she had to learn before she could pass the test.
Diamond was a self-taught expert with computers, but that wasn't a skill that Anailu expected to need regularly. Since part of that skill was breaking into computers, it wasn't prudent to publicize it. When they saw she didn't have any simple, menial bots aboard, Diamond volunteered to do cleaning and other housekeeping tasks. That seemed like a good start, and Diamond claimed to enjoy it. She also started studying for an “able spacer” rating, but she didn't seem very enthusiastic about it.
Anailu did ask both of her new crew to wear clothes, even when they weren't on duty. “I know your private bits are artificial, but I would still be disturbed by you two walking around the ship with them hanging out.”
Diamond replied, “That's OK, Anailu. The whole reason we're here is that we refused to be defined by those components and what they mean to humans. We won't display ourselves casually.”
Chapter 30: Tournament
Anailu had immediately had another small expense. When Velvet had belonged to Mr. Fun, she had been using a StellaTactics subscription and equipment paid for by him. Apparently, he'd gotten them for an employee who had quickly lost interest. The employee first let Velvet use it because she was bored, and the rest, as they say, was history.
So Anailu bought her a new StellaTactics account. There were many different ways to access StellaTactics, all the way down to a simple interface on a comm. The preferred equipment for first-person operation was a dedicated holodeck with included stick, throttle, and foot controls. This StellaTactics “deck” could be used for flying ships, manning gunnery stations, or tactical command. It was also tamper-resistant to minimize cheating. Most factions required their players to use dedicated, sealed StellaTactics decks.
They installed Velvet's new deck in her cabin. While simple bots did not need sleep, most shabti or u-shabti did need regular daily rest and recovery periods to correct errors and clean up their artificial brains. They also needed to recharge, though they could also do that while awake. Diamond and Velvet were content with doing that anywhere they wouldn't be disturbed. They were OK with the spaces designated for bot recharging in both the workshop and the laundry, but Anailu wouldn't accept that. She wanted her friends to have their own cabins. They said they wanted to stay together, so they had compromised by sharing the First Mate's cabin, across the hall from Anailu's cabin.
With Velvet's new deck and account set up, she proceeded to request a transfer of her profile from the old account. That would require an in-person visit by an investigator hired by the Locality. Velvet wasn't worried, but Anailu wasn't so sure.
“What if they figure out you're u-shabti? What if they figure out you're emancipated?”
“They don't care. I already went through this the first time. All they will be do is compare my model and serial number, and they might check that my deck hasn't been tampered with. It'll be OK!”
When the investigator arrived, it went pretty much the way Velvet said it would. Before he left, the investigator had an additional comment for Anailu though. “Just so you know, you should expect a bill for your assisted player fee.”
“What? I use a sealed deck, too! You can check it!”
He laughed. “Not your deck, your shabti. Using any bot in game incurs the assistive device fee for the account owner, since they can have faster reactions than any human. The shabti fee is largest, since they have the most sophisticated judgment.”
“Oh? Oh! No, I knew that. Sorry.”
“No problem. Good luck in the tournament, ma'am.”
“Thanks.”
He was speaking of the annual Doran Locality Battle Tournament. It was the tournament that Robert had mentioned months ago, when he'd first gotten Anailu back into StellaTactics.
A week after the investigator's visit to the Queen, the final preparations for the tournament began. The combat command staff of the Bear Claws came aboard the Queen for two days of practice. The combat command staff were the players who managed the overall strategy and support for the pilots fighting in battles. This was the first they'd learned of the Battle Command Center. Before this, only a few of the Bear Claws Council were in on the secret. They'd visited the Queen to practice with the BCC, since they would be commanding the battles.
&nbs
p; The actual tournament commenced immediately after the two days of practice. It started on Friday and ran continuously through the weekend at the Doran City Convention Center. Since all the participants had to be on-site to participate in the tournament, the Queen landed in a reserved space in the parking area. It was common enough for players to come in camper airships so their team would have “crash space” on site, but the Queen was bigger than any of them. As a player, you were allowed to leave the site, but if you were asleep in a hotel somewhere and missed out on a surprise attack, it was your own problem. Although the Queen was primarily there to provide the BCC, Bear Claws players were staying in her cabins as well using temporary quarters in her bays.
The Bear Claws were going into this tournament having won the last two years. That meant the other two factions would be gunning for them. It also meant they were going into the tournament at a disadvantage.
Each faction would start the tournament with a set number of points to spend to deploy all their ships, fighters, ground defenses, and any other tactical assets. Bigger ships and more effective ships cost more. Since StellaTactics tournaments were designed to maintain long-term balance between the factions, the previous winner was penalized by decreasing their available points. Since the Bear Claws had won two years in a row, they were going to start with a hefty points penalty.
Fortunately, non-tactical assets, such as the Queen's BCC, didn't cost points. Such facilities were de rigueur for the top factions in the Core, but due to the expense, neither of the other factions on Doran had such a sophisticated setup.
At the start of the tournament, the Bear Claws found themselves unexpectedly optimistic thanks to the BCC. They'd seen how useful it was during the two days of practice.
As the tournament progressed, they managed to hold their own and limit their losses, while hammering the other factions. Spectators and participants alike had their theories about why the Bear Claws were doing so well. Some thought it was their staff in their sophisticated BCC, but others thought it was due to their focus on small, maneuverable ships instead of heavy battlewagons. Still others thought it was due to an improvement in the quality of their pilots.
Whether it was one factor or all three, it made the difference as the Bear Claws ended the final battle of the tournament with just enough victory points to eke out their third straight tournament victory.
Winning gave their faction bragging rights for the next year. Unfortunately, it also meant their defeat in the next Doran tournament was all but assured. Their biggest reward took a few days to arrive: once the news of their victory got out, they got a tournament invitation from a faction on Escus, the Core World where Anailu had grown up.
This was exciting because it meant an opportunity to go up against elite StellaTactics players. The Bear Claws players who went would also be paid. In the Core Worlds, StellaTactics was popular enough that there was serious money involved. In addition, some of the factions had wealthy patrons. So, the tournaments were larger and more important. The participating factions routinely brought in “allies,” teams made up of expert players from factions in other Localities. For teams from the core, this might represent a good payday – there were teams that lived off their ally fees. Teams from the Rim, like the Bear Claws, wouldn't end up making much after paying for their round-trip passage to the core. Still, it was too good an opportunity to pass up.
The Bear Claws wanted to take the core of their best players, but some of the players they wanted had jobs, families, or other situations that kept them from accepting the invitation. Anailu would be free because the “Bear Claws Expeditionary Force” wasn't leaving until after the end of her contract with the Torrells.
She was pretty sure that she got invited because she was Velvet's “owner,” but she didn't mind. Ever since she'd freed the Snows, she'd been worrying about having enough money for her “Plan B.” Traveling to the Core for the tournament would save her the biggest part of her travel expenses. Afterward, she could just stay behind to look for the Dove parts.
Chapter 31: The End of the Bet
The Torrells had one last party for Anailu to support on the last weekend before the end of the contract. It was going to be a big one, big enough to require the Torrell airship, the Queen, and even a ship chartered from one of their competitors.
On the morning of the safari, Anailu was awoken by a call from one of the seedier characters she had met during her searches for the Queen's parts. He was a used parts dealer named Grotehl who was based in the town of Purport, on the east coast of the main continent. “I hope I didn't wake you, but just I got in some new parts this morning. As soon as I saw them, I thought of you.” His camera panned down to show a crate.
A crate full of Dove parts.
Anailu held onto her excitement for long enough to say, “I am. I'd like to stop by today to take a closer look.”
Grotehl was fine with that. She kept calm until she could finish the call. As soon as she disconnected, Anailu gave out a loud, “Woo-hooooo!” In her pajamas and bare feet, she went racing out into the hall. She ran up and down the hall from the forward lift to the lounge and back several times.
She needed to share this news with her friends! Was it worth waking them up for? Absolutely!
Since all all four of the crew cabins were going to be used by the Torrells on this safari, they were sharing a passenger cabin on the main deck.
She hurried down to their cabin, so excited that she was bouncing on her toes while she rode the elevator down. She pressed their door buzzer while simultaneously banging on the door. “Wake up! I've got news!”
Diamond opened the door with her recharging cable still plugged in. “Good morning, Captain.”
Anailu had asked them to call her by her first name, but they seemed determined to refer to her as “Captain” the first time they saw her every day.
Velvet was also standing and was disconnecting her cable from the wall, while looking toward the door. “Good morning, Captain. You're up early?”
“It's worth it to be up! I think I found the parts!”
Diamond hugged her while Velvet clapped. “Are we already on the way?”
Anailu paused. There was nothing stopping her from going right now. “No, but we're about to be!”
Anailu turned and headed back up to the bridge. As the engines went through their internal checks, she ran back to her cabin and changed into her shipsuit.
As she stepped out of the lift onto the bridge, the ship's proximity alert pinged. She checked the monitor, and saw a man standing next to a crate, waiting politely at the edge of her landing pad. She could see he was a spacer and a captain, wearing the uniform of one of the big mining corporations.
Shit, this is bad timing.
Anailu considered just flying off, but that would be incredibly rude. She decided to at least find out what he wanted.
As she came out of the main hatch, he approached the ramp. “Are you Captain Xindar?”
“Yes, what can I do for you?”
“I'm Captain Orville, of the bulk hauler Sirius Lion. Since I was coming over to the starport anyway, a mutual acquaintance asked me to bring you the winnings from your bet.”
For a moment, Anailu was confused. Then she realized it might have to do with a “Cutter wine” bet. The only such bet she knew of was the one she'd made with the barkeep of the “Black Mountain,” about finding her parts, but how could he have already heard about them? There was only one way to find out. She waved Captain Orville toward the entry. “Sure, come on in.”
He nodded and pushed his crate up the ramp and inside.
Anailu sealed the hatch behind him. Now that she thought about it, it wasn't likely be the barkeep's bet, just based on the travel time. If Orville flew from Pandibon, he would have had to leave an hour ago, and Anailu had just heard about Grotehl's parts herself. “So who is this from?”
“I'm here for Motul, the owner of the Black Mountain. He said you know each other, and you all had a bet b
etween you. That right?”
“Yes, but I don't understand...”
“He couldn't come himself because he's in the hospital. Last night, some thieves broke into his place and beat the crap out of him.”
“Is he alright?”
“He's hurt, but he's tough. The doc says he'll be OK.”
“What did the thieves want?”
“Well, they stole everything they could put their hands on. Heck, I even had to loan him this case of wine. Motul says he got a good look at the crooks, but he didn't recognize them. That means it probably wasn't anyone local, because he knows everyone that is a regular in Pandibon.”
“Why would somebody go to the trouble? It's just a little local bar!”
“I don't know, and I don't think Motul does either. Anyway, when I was visiting him in the hospital this morning, he told me you had won a bet, and he asked me to bring you your wine. Now, I don't know about the timing, but Motul promised me you didn't have anything to do with those robbers. I don't know you, but I hope he's right. Just remember that Motul's got a lot of friends out at the mines. If we find out who hurt him, they're gonna have a bad day.”
“Well, I won't cry if you find them. I only talked to Motul the one time, and he seemed like a good man. I don't know why he wanted you to bring me this today.” Anailu remembered the call from Grotehl. She needed to get moving. “I'm sorry to hurry you, but I've got an early appointment today.”
“Yeah, it seems like everyone is busy this morning. I won't hold you up any more, Captain Xindar.”
As soon as Captain Orville was outside, Anailu sealed the hatch behind him. Whatever was going on, she hoped there were some answers in the crate.
Chapter 32: From The Black Mountain
Anailu unlocked the crate and lifted the lid. The crate was pretty empty. As promised, there was a case of wine inside, with a datacard stuck to the top of it. Next to the case of wine was some sort of electronic components sealed in a dirt-encrusted protective bag.
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