Bouncing Off the Moon

by David Gerrold

  "Your Honor, I've just been notified that Lethe-Corp wishes to drop its interest—"

  "Your Honor, Vancouver Design is no longer interested in pursuing—"

  "Your Honor, Canadian Interplanetary—"

  "Valada Legal Aptitudes—"

  When they were through, all of the corporate claims of ownership had been removed from play.

  Cavanaugh looked flustered—and appalled. He turned to the monkey. The monkey opened its eyes. It stood up respectfully.

  "Just one question," said the judge. "Is there anything else in your bag of tricks?"

  "Actually, quite a bit," said the monkey.

  "You could have done this at the beginning, couldn't you?"

  "Yes, Your Honor, I could have."

  "Then why didn't you? We could have saved a lot of time."

  "Because this was Plan B."

  "Plan B?"

  "Forgive me a moment of immodesty, but I wanted to argue the issue of sentience. I already knew there was little chance of winning the case under existing Covenant guidelines, so your eventual ruling was unsurprising. Were I sitting on the bench, I would have proceeded with the same caution. And the idea tickles me that someday there could be a lethetic intelligence engine sitting at that same bench, and having to rule against its own sentience, until such time as another agency decides that it's all right to rule otherwise. As good an idea as the Covenant is, Your Honor, there are situations where the legal slip zones are held in place by the inertia of the past.

  "This hearing provided the chance to have these arguments be made a part of the public record. Referring back to your original question, you gave me the opportunity to demonstrate that it is possible to challenge the law without having to break it. I'm very grateful for that because it represents the opportunity for future challenges. And I thank you for that, Your Honor."

  NEW BEGINNINGS

  After that, there was nothing left for the judge to do but pound his gavel. And then there was a lot of shouting and hugging and back-slapping. People were calling my name and Douglas's name and HARLIE's name. Everyone wanted to talk to us. But Douglas was talking to Mickey, and the two of them were grinning at each other, and that was good news. And Mom and Dad were kissing each other and everybody else. Bobby was hugging me and the monkey was dancing on the table and everybody looked happy.

  What it meant, was that we were free to go—anywhere we wanted.

  And we could, because all of a sudden we had bids from every colony agency on Luna. They were scrolling up the screen of Douglas's display like a stock ticker. We knew why; they all wanted us to bring the monkey to their world. A lethetic intelligence engine would be the single most valuable tool for managing resources and creating a healthy and self-sufficient civilization.

  But it didn't matter where we went. Anywhere would be okay—as long as we were all together.

  The monkey jumped into my lap and looked into my eyes. "Thank you, Charles," it said. "For trusting me."

  "Thank you," I said. "For putting us back together."

  "I didn't do that. You guys did. Because that's what you always wanted."

  There was more to say, but the noise in the courtroom was getting out of control. "Come on," said Dad, herding us toward the door. "Let's get out of here. I have an idea—"

  "No, Dad," Douglas interrupted. "This time it's our turn to have the good idea."

  Scan Notes:

  [02 sep 2010—scanned for #ebooks]

  [11 sep 2010—proofed by ECS (Escaped Chicken Spirits)]

  Table of Contents

  BOARDING

  RUDE AWAKENINGS

  FALLING

  FLOATING

  CHANGES

  CARGO

  CHOICES

  MONKEYS

  FINAL APPROACH

  BOUNCE-DOWN

  STEPPING OUT

  WUNDERSTORM

  A WALK IN THE DARK

  CLIMBING THE WALL

  TO THE TOP

  SUMMIT

  IN CONTROL

  GETTING DOWN

  END OF THE LINE

  A HUNCH

  PAYING INTENTION

  REFLECTIONS

  RUN IN THE SUN

  THE DARK SIDE OF THE LOON

  CHANGES

  ALL ABOARD

  BELIEVING

  TAKE THE A-TRAIN

  MONKEY BUSINESS

  CHARLES

  WONDERLAND STATION

  BREAD-AND-BUTTER ISSUES

  PERFORMANCES

  AT THE MOUNTAINS OF MADNESS

  THE LONG AND WINDING ROAD

  THE FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE

  HIT THE SHOWERS

  COUSINS

  FIRE AND ICE

  DOWN THE TUBES

  ZOMBIES

  IN COURT

  PROCEEDINGS

  HARLIE

  DECISIONS

  MOM AND DAD

  MONKEY BUSINESS

  DEMONSTRATION

  ARGUMENTS

  MORE ARGUMENTS

  FINAL ARGUMENTS

  NINE POINTS OF THE LAW

  NEW BEGINNINGS

  Scan Notes: