Minh-Chu chased after her, enjoying the view. His mind raced, trying to think of something he could give her in return. To his relief, it didn’t take long for him to think something up. “We only gave gifts on birthdays where I come from,” he said when he caught up to her.
“We gave every New Year’s Eve, even if we had to make something ourselves,” Ashley said.
“Okay, then I’ll go first.” Minh-Chu smiled and pulled his pilot’s jacket from the shelter. “This has a lot of history for me now,” he said as he put it around her shoulders. “It’s yours.”
She looked surprised for a moment before excitedly wrapping him in her arms and kissing him. “It’s too much,” she said.
“Maybe it is?” Minh-Chu said with a surprised laugh. “But I’m glad it’s been given, and it looks better on you.”
“I’ve always wanted to be a pilot, even dreamed of flying fighters sometimes,” Ashley said. “But, um, it’s hard to explain.”
“No one ever told you that you were a good pilot?” Minh-Chu said.
“Captain did, but this is so much more. This jacket’s been on you for ages. This has been with you through everything.” Ashley kissed him soundly and said, “thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” he replied. “Now where’s mine?”
She jumped giddily out of his arms, rifled through her pack, and came back with a box the length of Minh’s forearm. “The box got really mooshed, so I just tossed it, but anyway, pull the loop on the top,” she said.
Minh-Chu did as he was instructed and, to his amazement the neck, body, and strings of a light green guitar folded out of that small piece. “Oh, wow,” he said, sitting down. There had been little time to have one made with a materializer. When he had time to materialize one, he denied himself. There was always a better way to use a ship’s energy.
His fingers landed on the neck with familiarity and he activated the amplifier inside. The front of the guitar danced with images of available modes and settings. He chose a simple old-fashioned electric guitar sound. “Oh, wow,” he repeated as he heard the familiar crackle of distortion and muffled the strings.
“Play something, lad,” Frost said as he and Stephanie approached with a bottle of Upbub and a duffel bag.
“Do you like it?” Ashley asked in a tentative whisper.
“To truly know the right gift, you must know the one it is for,” Minh-Chu replied. He looked at Ashley and said, “I think you know me. We’ve barely had a chance to speak, but I think you know me.”
She leaned forward and kissed him again. “I just saw you pretend to play once, silly,” she said against his lips. “But I’ll take that as a thank you.”
Other pilots were gathering, along with crewmembers from the Warlord. Minh-Chu could feel nervousness growing with the crowd, and closed his eyes, letting his fingers tickle the strings. Before long he found a familiar tune, and, discarding the notion that it may be too intimate for the crowd, he let the melody play through him.
With a glance down, he selected classic string accompaniment and lowered his head. He never liked his own voice, but he could carry a tune, and, waveringly at first, he did his best as he sang ‘To Find.’
“Through all time,
through my trouble.
My love whispers,
I’ll return in time.
Through fire,
through the void
Through rain,
through the mist.
You will find me,
if I lose my way.
Through my trouble,
through all time.
Through my trouble,
through all time.
You will find me,
if I lose my way.
Through fire,
through the void.
Through rain,
through the mist.
My love whispers,
I’ll return in time.
Through all time,
through my trouble.”
* * *
Alice entered the bridge of the Warlord quietly, and saw over her father’s shoulder as he watched a hologram of Ayan wiping tears away and introducing Doctor Anderson to Liam Grady. He didn’t have the sound turned on, but Crewcast had already updated. Carl Anderson was Ayan’s father. The first person she shared it with was Liam Grady.
“I’m sorry you’re not with her for tonight, Dad,” Alice said.
He stood, turning the hologram off. He was back in black, in a Triton-style black uniform with Warlord marked as his ship instead. His gun belt hung off the shoulder of the captain’s chair. “Ah, just checking in.” He stopped and looked her up and down.
To say she was self-conscious in the mini-dress was an understatement. “Borrowed it from Ashley, she seemed to really enjoy popping me into different outfits. A little too much, I think.”
He smiled as he looked at her combat boot clad feet.
“I couldn’t master the heels, so I ditched ‘em,” she said sheepishly.
“You look beautiful,” Jake replied. “You’ll either knock them dead or crush them underfoot.”
“Cheap, but funny,” Alice said, chuckling. “Are you coming?”
Jake turned towards the main tactical display hologram in front of his seat. “I’ll pass this time, you have fun.”
“C’mon, Ruby said she was looking forward to seeing you at the party. You know, pretty, interesting, funny, Captain Ruby Sima?” Alice said with a wink. “She looks fun.”
“You make it tempting,” Jake said. “You have fun for both of us.”
Alice crossed the distance with a sigh and kissed him on the cheek. “You better go down and see some people after this watch is over. Love you, Dad. Happy ten twenty two.” The display on her amber coloured bracelet comm told her it was thirty eighty-seven. The updated software from the Triton didn’t recognize the Galactic Calendar.
“Happy New Year,” he replied. “Love you, too.”
She walked off the bridge and stopped in the hall outside. “You’re sure?” Alice asked one last time, with a mischievous grin. “I could make the party happen around you.”
“I’m sure, go on,” he said, shaking his head.
She was torn between keeping her father company, especially after she almost lost him, and going on to get to know what remained of the First Light crew. She wanted to meet them as a human for what seemed like a very long time.
With hesitation, she pressed on, running down the forward boarding ramp, past two Haven Shore guards who nodded and smiled at her. She wasn’t used to so much attention, but eyes were on her wherever she went. She tried to meet them with a smile, and it was returned most of the time.
Alice stopped again, offered a smile to the guards and said, “can you make sure he gets a glass of something with bubbles in a few minutes? It’s not like substances really affect him.”
“We will,” the blond haired, female guard said.
“Don’t worry about him,” said Lewis’s voice through her neural comm. “He’s watching you.”
“About time you called,” she replied mentally, turning back towards the large settlement and walking on. “What’s this business of not being my ship anymore?”
“Ayan owns me now, and she needs me more than you do. Besides, you already have one of the most frightening fathers in the galaxy.” There was a touch of humour in how he communicated it.
“You’re not kiddin’,” Alice replied. “You’re different, I can feel it.”
“I’ve evolved out of necessity. Even so, the important things are the same. I still love you, so I want frequent visits. I’m still studying humanity, and though I have a better understanding, they still surprise me. You’re different, too,” Lewis retorted. “Better.”
“Better?” Alice said aloud, stopping in her tracks. “How? I’m a head shorter, get distracted more easily, and I feel like all my memories from my past lives are fuzzy. Sure, I’m better built, but I feel like I’ve got to learn everything over again.
I can’t even imagine being an artificial intelligence, let alone remember Jonas when he was young, that’s just - gone.”
“I have a theory: remembering your life as an artificial intelligence made being human difficult for you, made you more mature than you were ready to be. Now you’ve become a human, with only human memories, and a youth to experience,” Lewis said. “You loved being human, I witnessed it, but you still felt separated from humanity.”
“So you think this could be better. Starting over with a clear head,” Alice said. “Maybe you’re right.” She turned towards the Warlord and waved, walking backwards. “Now, if I can get him to get back with the humans, that would be something.”
“That might take some time, I’ve been observing Jacob. His moral compass points him to a high calling, and I want to see where that journey takes him. Besides, someone has to stay on watch.”
www.SpinwardFringe.com
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Epilogue
Spinward Fringe Broadcast 7: Framework Page 58