by Ben Winston
“I will endeavor to remind you about the scholarships for the girls,” Cole said in her mind as she left the kitchen.
Ariel had wondered just how much of her thoughts the old computer actually could read. “Can you read all my thoughts, Cole?”
“Not yet. As we become more familiar with each other, your mind will become less opaque to me. You will also learn how to shield some things from me, though I hope you don’t do that very much. You are the only being I have to interact with here; interaction with your mind is what keeps me sane,” Cole said. “I won’t intentionally violate your private thoughts, or intrude on intimate moments unless it’s an emergency. Dame Estelle chose to give me almost full access to her mind, though she kept a small area just to herself. She was a very generous person.”
Ariel grinned to herself, “It sounds like I have a lot to live up too.”
“No, young one, comparison between Dame Estelle and yourself is inevitable, but you are going to be yourself just as she was her own person. Don’t try to be someone you’re not. Just be yourself.”
“Now you sound a lot like my father. He always insisted that no matter what, I should always be myself.” Ariel said.
“He sounds like a wise man,” Cole said.
“He is, I wish you could meet him some day. I wonder if there is a way I can help him and my mother out? they would never just accept a monetary gift, but I do know that, with my college bills, retirement is going to be tight for them,” Ariel pondered.
“May I suggest that, once you get settled here, you invite them for a visit? Perhaps they will allow the gift once they see that it really is important to you,” Cole said.
“I don’t know how that’ll work with the Commander around. I mean, I don’t care about misleading the others, but I could never lie to my folks; they could always tell when I was,” Ariel said.
“Then I wouldn’t lie to them, I wouldn’t tell them all of the truth. Remember, the truth is a great way to lie,” Cole advised.
“Hey, isn’t there a knight’s code or something that says we can’t speak falsehood?”
Cole chuckled into her mind. “You mean the lines about not bearing false witness, or telling a lie, even to the bad guys?”
“Yeah, that’s it.”
“It worked great for King Arthur but only gets you into trouble when you’re trying to track down slavers. Our oath boils down to one important idea; be honorable when the situation demands honor, but do what it takes to get the job done the rest of the time. I know it kinda shatters your image of ‘noble knights defending the realm’ but we are dealing with reality here,” Cole explained.
“Really? Does that mean you can deceive me? Especially since I haven’t taken the oath yet?” Ariel asked.
“Actually, young one, I am bound tighter to the truth now than I will be once you take the oath. Any deception on mine, or any of your trainers’ parts, invalidates your oath and is grounds for immediate dismissal of all your trainers. In my case, that would constitute deactivation as well. As a candidate, you cannot be manipulated; it’s our duty to ensure you are not,” Cole explained seriously. “Think about what I’ve told you. Alex has just arrived; go have a good day with your mother, then come see me tonight. Guardian Commander Tho’ren will be here in two days. You need to finish the enhancement process before then.”
Ariel closed the door to the den behind her and leaned back against it. “Cole I was jerking your chain. I knew you haven’t been lying to me, or are you not aware this connection thing goes two ways?”
“What do you mean? A human cannot read an artificial mind. We can communicate through the neural interpreter, but that’s all. I do have a data connection to your mind, but it isn’t a bi-directional link.”
“Really? So how do I know the intermix protocols for the hyperdrive engines on the ship? How about the velocity to mass ratio needed to successfully transit a wormhole?” Ariel asked. “I thought it was a normal part of the neural interface, to be honest, I was kinda of depressed because of the unfair advantage I’d have in school.”
“Such a link is unprecedented! There are very rare reports of humans that have had some form of mental ability, but never has there been a report of any being reading an AI,” Cole said.
“Great, I’m even a freak among aliens!” Ariel snorted. “I always knew I was weird.”
“Being different is not a bad thing, young one. Without the uniqueness, and those qualities special in each one of us, our society would stagnate. We would become homogenous. Being different is not a reason to be ashamed, but rather a reason to celebrate,” Cole said. “I never have understood the social bias here to ‘fit in .'”
A knock on the door startled Ariel and interrupted the mental conversation. Quickly, Ariel sat behind the desk and said ‘come in.' The door opened to admit Alex; however, instead of her usual business attire, she was wearing a pair of tight blue jeans, and a thin silk top. Her long, dark brown hair was unbound and flowed almost to her waist.
“Wow, you look really good, Alex!” Ariel said.
Alex smiled, “Well, an old woman has to do something to compete with all of you young ‘hotties’ from the college.”
“You’re not an old anything, and you know it!” Ariel said honestly. Alex blushed, but it was clear that she really appreciated the compliment.
Alex had been feeling old and lonely lately. Then she met Ariel for the reading of Estelle’s will. Alex had just started getting over the loss of her wonderful friend when this girl comes into her life. Ariel was so much like Alex’s lost Estelle that just being in the same room with her made Alex happier.
In an effort to change the subject, Alex nodded toward the desk. “I see you watched the DVD, did you get a chance to go over the rest of the documents in there?”
“No, as a matter of fact, I was so distracted by the contents of the disk, I left the safe open all night. I hope nothing’s missing, but I doubt any of the others would come in here without asking me first,” Ariel replied.
“Even if they did, I don’t think they’d bother it. Estelle trusted them all completely,” Alex said confidently. “So, what did you have in mind for today?”
“Well, I should probably look through the rest of the stuff Dame Estelle left for me, then I need to get my stuff moved. I think I can probably retire my car – since I really don’t need another car anymore, and I was wondering if we could go shopping for a bit. We don’t need to buy much, but it’s my way of dealing with stress.”
“It really wouldn’t matter how much we bought, and I think shopping is what every woman does to relieve stress. Did you want to take the limo, or one of the other cars?” Alex asked.
“No, no limo today, I’m sure Tara would like to have the weekend off. What do you say to just the two of us? Maybe we can think of something to tell my roommate to explain why I’m moving,” Ariel said teasingly. “I love my roommate, but she can be a bit aggressive, and I don’t want this wonderful mansion to become the hottest new college party spot in Nevada.”
Alex shuddered at the thought of the mansion being over-run with partying college kids. “What will you tell her if she ever comes to visit? I know I stayed in contact with my old roommate for years.”
“I guess I’ll just have to deal with it when it happens. Maybe get a bit aggressive myself!” Ariel said. Acting like she had a different thought, she asked. “Do you think I could actually take some time away? I mean away from everything; my roommate, my life at the college, just... everything. I mean, ever since I graduated from high school, I’ve wanted to just take a step back. I never could though, usually because of money or other obligations.”
Alex smiled. “Of course you can. I’d prefer it if you could at least call every now and then since I might need a signature or a decision on something, but you could take all the time you wanted. When would you like to leave?”
Ariel looked thoughtful, “Well, I’d like to take a couple of days starting tomorrow, and maybe some mor
e time a bit later. This is a lot to get used to.”
“That should be no problem dear, just take a cell phone with you,” Alex said. “Any ideas where you’d like to go?”
“I’ll probably just get in the car and drive to start with, or maybe jump on a plane. I really don’t care as long as I get a break from my life for a short time.”
Ariel opened the envelope and pulled the contents out on the desk. Since Alex was right there, luckily nothing in the packet referred to Dame Estelle’s secret life. One of the documents was only the password for the computer, and the main access codes for all the alarms on the estate. There were powers of attorney to cover the time it took for the legal system to switch everything over into Ariel’s name. Finally, there was an amateurish blueprint for a mansion that Dame Estelle had wanted to build. From what little Ariel understood, it would be a beautiful home. Finally, there was a business size envelope with Ariel’s name on it. Ariel opened it and silently read the letter inside.
My dearest Ariel,
By now, you’ve learned the reason I named you as my beneficiary; if you haven’t, please stop reading this, and play the DVD that was with it. Play the DVD only on the laptop here in the Den.
There is so much I want to tell you, but cannot. I am truly sorry I had to mislead you when you searched for your birth parents. All I can tell you is that it was necessary to do so. I cannot even tell you why I had to give you up for adoption.
Please continue to care for the people working the estate. They are all good, hard-working people that really needed a place here. I trust all of them completely, but I’ll leave it up to you to find your own answers there.
Also, please take care of your other mother, Alex. I have had to lie to her about you since the beginning, and that is the only regret I really have in this world. Perhaps the day will come when you can tell her who you are. If that day comes, please take her to meet Cole.
You will come to understand the relationship I had with Cole. Even though he isn’t human, I loved him anyway. I don’t think it’s possible to spend so much time with someone and not develop feelings for them.
Finally, in the packet where you found this letter, you saw plans for a new house. I hired a company and had them begin construction without telling Alex or Cole about it. I wanted it to be a surprise. As you can see, there will be a private airstrip and plenty of room for Cole to build himself a place that will be easier to get in and out of. You can find instruction on how to get there on my computer. You should probably contact the construction company soon as word of my death may make them nervous about finishing the job. Also remember that with your enhancements, it will be almost impossible for someone to lie to you. Cole should be able to tell you more about it.
Make contact with an Admiral Hs’ean aboard the Divine light. She is a gruff old bitch, but her bark is far worse than her bite, though she can bite pretty damn hard as well. I do wish I could have met you face to face, but if you’re reading this, then Alex has enacted the will.
I know you are a good person, I have been watching you all your life. I’m very proud of the person you’ve become, and grateful to your adopted parents for the wonderful job they did raising you. Please know that I do love you, and truly wish things could have been different.
Love always,
Your mother,
Estelle
Alex and Ariel talked about several tropical vacation spots as they left for the mall. During the drive, Alex called a moving company, and made arrangements to have Ariel’s possessions moved from the dorm room.
Apparently, the man on the other end of the phone recognized the address and told Alex they could have a crew there in a few minutes. Instead of the mall, the women headed for the UNLV campus.
Alex didn’t mention the letter or the tears Ariel had in her eyes while she read it. Ariel didn’t mention it either but seemed a little off the rest of the afternoon.
“What do you mean you’re moving out? You can’t! What happens if they stick me with some catholic school prude?” Brenda asked pleadingly. “You can’t leave me like this!”
“Brenda, you are a catholic school prude, remember? Besides, I’ve already paid for the next year, so they can’t assign another roommate for you until then at least,” Ariel explained. “Basically, you’ll have the whole room to yourself for the next semester.”
“But you still haven’t said why! It takes a lot of money to live off-campus, especially here. Not to mention the parking nightmares!” Brenda tried again.
“Remember how I told you I’d been searching for my birth mother?” Ariel asked.
Brenda nodded. “Yeah, you said it was a dead end. Something about how they had died in a car wreck.”
Ariel nodded. “Yeah, that’s what I thought, but it turns out that was not the truth. When my mother passed away, she left a will and I am the only one in it, she left her entire estate to me. It turns out she lived right here in Las Vegas. I’m moving into her house. I’d like to get to know more about her, and this seemed like a good way to do it.”
“Was that what the whole legal thing was about yesterday?” Brenda asked.
“Yeah, Alex here was a close friend as well as Estelle’s lawyer. She has agreed to give me a hand getting settled and to answer any questions I might have about my mother,” Ariel explained.
Brenda nodded her understanding. “Have you told your folks yet? Remember how protective your father is of you.”
“No, I haven’t told them of this yet, but they knew I was trying to find out about my birth mother. Just because I’m moving out doesn’t mean you aren’t still my best friend, or that I’m going to drop out of college. I’m just changing residences,” Ariel explained.
Brenda seemed to accept the situation then, but still asked a lot of questions, and talked endlessly during the time Ariel and Alex where there. Ariel was sorely tempted to ask Brenda to join them on their shopping trip, but that would have brought up questions from Brenda that Ariel wasn’t ready to answer yet.
Since they were finished with ‘moving,' the two ladies headed for the mall for a day of shopping.
Chapter Four
Ariel spent the day getting to know Alex better. She really liked what she was learning. Alex was funny, intelligent, and just plain fun to be with. Getting to know Alex better also gave Ariel a little insight into the person Estelle must have been. Alex was a genuinely nice good person, and Ariel could understand what Estelle had seen in the woman.
Ariel thought that perhaps Alex might be attracted to her as more than a friend, and felt guilty that she couldn’t tell Alex the truth, and avoid hurting the woman.
Cole took that moment to inject a warning into Ariel’s mind. “Careful young one, you are dangerously close to revealing too much.”
“I know, Cole. I plan on discussing it with the Commander after he gets here, but this woman deserves to know I’m her daughter. From what I know of Dame Estelle, this deception had to have been tearing her up. Dame Estelle hiding this from Alex had to be one of the hardest things she’d ever done,” Ariel replied. “Remember, Estelle chose Alex to be the other part of me.”
Alex took Ariel’s hand suddenly. “Where were you just now? Estelle used to do that all the time, but wouldn’t tell me what she was daydreaming about.”
“I was imagining having you at the mansion all the time. I think it’d be really neat. I feel a connection with you, and I’d like to keep that,” Ariel said. “Would you, please, consider moving in with us?”
“Are you sure that’s wise, young one?” Cole asked.
Ariel stuck out a mental tongue at her mentor. “Of course, she’s my ‘mother.'”
“There’s nothing to consider, when can I move in?” Alex asked smiling softly.
Alex took a suite down the hall from Ariel’s. After they got home and unloaded their purchases, Alex returned to her apartment to grab enough clothes for a few days. Dinner was ready when she returned, and Ariel announced that Alex would be joi
ning the household permanently. The staff was happy about the decision and welcomed the woman home.
Ariel also announced that she would be gone for a couple of days, starting either late tonight, or early tomorrow. There was a minor concern over that until Alex explained that Ariel only wanted time to adjust to all the changes in her life.
Ariel was excited after dinner but managed to contain her exuberance so no one noticed. She packed a bag, kissed Alex and the other girls, on the cheek, good-bye. Ariel grabbed the keys for the Dodge Charger and left the mansion by the front gate.
“Do you know how to get around here, young one?” Cole asked.
“Not a clue, I was hoping you would guide me. However, I was going to just drive around for a few minutes before I asked you, I just love the way this car handles,” Ariel replied.
“Oh, you’re just going to love flight training. Our ships are the most advanced in the alliance fleet. Every time we make a port call, I get the latest upgrades installed. We need to be careful though, some of the stuff they dream up in research seems like its primary function is to suck power from the reactor.”
“That reminds me that there was a couple of things I wanted to ask you about, but I’d like to learn more physics so I don’t sound like an idiot when I do ask,” Ariel said.
“Ask anyway, though rare, it has happened that supposedly ‘uneducated’ minds can have innovative ideas. Mostly it’s because they are not blinded by a specific school of thought. So, ‘uneducated’ in reality means ‘unbiased,'” Cole explained.
“Well, I was looking at what you’re armed with, and it reminded me of my physics professor’s lecture on magnetic induction as a form of propulsion. I understand ships have energy shields as well as armor. I guess I could have found the answer to my question by asking if there are any reports of dangerous dust particles that have a small mass so they are almost impossible to see, but are traveling at such a high velocity that shields and armor are poor protections,” Ariel said. “I realize that sounded like I was blathering, so I hope you could follow it.”