by Ryk Brown
“Welcome to the military pavilion,” a male voice greeted.
Nathan turned in the direction of the voice, finding a male android in a SilTek uniform smiling at him.
“My name is Bernard. You must be Captain Scott and Lieutenant Commander Nash. I was told to expect you. If you have any questions, I’d be happy to answer them.”
“Hi, Bernard,” Nathan replied. “What is this thing?” he asked, pointing toward the massive rotating display in the center of the pavilion.
“Impressive, isn’t it,” Bernard stated, almost bragging. “That’s our modular mobile tactical system. It’s capable of swapping out the service module in less than a minute. Missile launcher, ion cannon, plasma cannon, rail guns, rocket launchers, all manner of smart weapons and artillery, as well as anti-personnel modules, troop movers, sensor platforms…you name it, we have a module for it. The system allows for maximum flexibility to meet changing defense conditions, without the investment in dedicated mobility platforms. Imagine the flexibility…”
“How fast does the mobility platform travel?” Jessica wondered.
“Eighty kilometers per hour over smooth terrain, forty over rough terrain. Load the first few platforms with auto-graders and ground fusers, and you can create new roads at a rate of three kilometers per hour.”
“So, the mobility platform isn’t just for use by military modules, then,” Nathan surmised.
“The mobility platforms come in many different sizes and configurations,” Bernard explained, leading them toward another exhibit. “There are crawlers, wheeled platforms, hover platforms, just about every method of mobility you can imagine. And all of them come in a variety of sizes. Better yet, they are all manufactured using extremely precise, fully automated systems. This ensures that every unit operates exactly the same, meeting the same performance tolerances.”
“What are those?” Jessica wondered, pointing to a few ungainly looking vehicles.
“Those are automated garbage collector-compactors.”
“I’m confused,” Nathan admitted. “SilTek doesn’t have any roads. Don’t all of these things need roads, or at least open terrain, in order to operate?”
“These products aren’t designed for use on SilTek,” Bernard explained. “They are for use on other worlds.”
“What does SilTek use to collect garbage?” Jessica wondered.
“All garbage on SilTek is compacted at the source and then transported, through an automated underground collection network, to centralized facilities where it is broken down into its base elements, where it is then reintegrated into society.”
“One hundred percent recycling,” Jessica realized. “Nice.”
“I can think of a few worlds who could use that technology,” Nathan chuckled.
“I would love to know which worlds,” Bernard said. “I could forward their names to our sales department.”
“I was joking,” Nathan told him. “Sort of…”
“This is all very impressive, but do you make any offensive weapons?” Jessica asked.
“SilTek does not create, or sell, offensive weapons,” Bernard assured her. “We do not promote the use of military force in lieu of diplomacy.”
“Some would say that military conflict is a form of diplomacy,” Nathan countered.
“A bad form, yes.”
“There are times when force is the only option,” Jessica added.
“I would not know,” Bernard replied. “The use of physical or military force is contrary to my programming.”
“Good to know,” Jessica said.
“What about automated manufacturing?” Nathan asked. “Do you have fabricators that can be fed designs and raw materials, which will then produce the parts needed to assemble into a larger product?”
“SilTek offers entire lines of automated fabrication and manufacturing, requiring no human participation, and can produce complex items with great precision and speed,” Bernard bragged. “They are on display in pavilion three.”
“Can you take us there?” Nathan asked.
“It would be my pleasure, Captain,” Bernard replied enthusiastically. “If you’ll please follow me.”
“What kind of company doesn’t make offensive weapons?” Jessica muttered to Nathan under her breath as they followed Bernard.
“I don’t care,” Nathan replied. “Especially if they can sell us a system that can make weapons for us, faster than we can already make them. Can you imagine being able to manufacture shield-penetrating jump missiles in our cargo bay, automatically, twenty-four seven? What does it take the factories on Rogen now, about a week? What if they could do it in hours?”
“Now who’s getting their hopes up?” Jessica countered as they transitioned to the next pavilion.
This time, it was Nathan’s jaw that dropped. “Holy shit.”
“Welcome to the automated manufacturing pavilion, where we showcase the latest in high-speed, high-precision, high-tech fabrication and manufacturing systems,” Bernard greeted as if introducing the next act in a variety show.
Nathan looked over to Jessica, grinning from ear to ear. “Vlad would shit his pants.”
* * *
The black transport vehicle descended smoothly from its cruising altitude toward the rolling hills below.
“Do you see a hotel?” Jessica wondered, scanning the hillsides.
“Nothing but residences,” Nathan replied. “Nice ones, but no hotels.”
“Pilot, where are we going?” Jessica asked the automated transport.
“SilTek maintains a number of luxury guest residences. You have been assigned to the one at Two Four Seven Five Bora Creek Way, in the district of Etimone. We will arrive in two minutes.”
“Are all these homes guest residences?” Nathan wondered.
“No, there are only two guest residences in the Etimone district. The remainder of residences are occupied by citizens of SilTek.”
As the transport closed on its destination, the view of the residences below improved, revealing all of their features and landscaping.
“Wow,” Nathan exclaimed softly. “These places are amazing. Does everyone on SilTek live like this?”
“These are upper-level homes,” the automated pilot replied. “However, mid and lower-level homes have many of the same amenities shared among them.”
“It looks like every one of these has a pool, hot tub, and some sort of athletic court,” Jessica realized.
“Please prepare for landing.”
Nathan peered out the window as their transport continued its descent. “That one must be ours.”
“It’s huge,” Jessica exclaimed.
“It is approximately four thousand square meters,” the automated pilot reported.
The hum of the transport’s gravity-lift systems increased as it slowed its rate of descent. Ten seconds later, the transport executed another perfect landing.
“Welcome to your residence,” the pilot announced. “Your bags have already been delivered. This transport will remain on the pad, available to you whenever you need it.”
The door on the transport opened, and Nathan climbed out, pausing to take in the landscape. The entire property was surrounded by an assortment of trees, all of which were expertly chosen for their color, shape, and size, all complementing one another. There were flowering bushes along the perimeter, mixed in with ornate little planters full of flowers. Nathan slowly rotated around, noticing that he could not see a single neighboring residence. “This is unbelievable. It’s even nicer than our family estate in Vancouver.”
“I keep forgetting that you grew up with a silver spoon in your mouth,” Jessica commented as she climbed out of the transport.
“It was stainless steel,” Nathan corrected, heading toward the front door.
“Our house was more like a collection of
add-ons, but it was walking distance from the beach,” Jessica commented as they followed the winding path leading to the front door. “This place must require an army of landscapers.”
As they approached the main entrance, the double doors swung open automatically. “Welcome, Captain,” a voice greeted as he entered.
Nathan looked around for the source of the voice, but found no one. “Tell me you heard that,” he said, looking at Jessica.
“Heard what?” she joked.
“I am the residence’s automated systems interface,” the voice continued.
“Now I know you heard that,” Nathan insisted.
“Is that a male or a female?” Jessica wondered.
“My voice has been designed as genderless,” the voice explained. “All residences on SilTek have an artificial intelligence as a system interface. I control all automated service and maintenance systems throughout the residence and property. If you need anything, feel free to ask.”
“What do we call you?” Nathan wondered.
“My default name is Ory. However, you can assign any name you wish.”
“Ory is fine with me,” Nathan said, looking to Jessica.
“Fine with me too.”
“This home has four bedrooms, each with its own bath, and a fully automated kitchen with a personal chef. If you wish to conduct business from home, there is a dedicated office space complete with virtual reality communications systems. For entertainment, there is a game room, an outdoor activities court, pool, and hot tub, as well as a system of trails that winds its way throughout the district.”
“Which bedroom do you want?” Nathan asked Jessica.
“Doesn’t matter to me,” she replied.
“Captain Scott, you have been assigned to bedroom number four, which is the last door down the corridor to your right,” Ory explained. “Lieutenant Commander Nash has been assigned bedroom number three, directly adjacent. Your bags have already been delivered, and your closets have been stocked with appropriately sized clothing, with outfits for every conceivable activity while on SilTek.”
“Thank you, Ory,” Nathan replied.
“You are quite welcome. If you require anything, again, please ask.”
“Ory? Do you know when we are scheduled to meet with Missus Batista again?” Nathan wondered.
“Your next meeting with Ariana Batista is scheduled for tomorrow at fourteen hundred hours. Would you like me to give you a reminder tomorrow, prior to your appointment?”
“Thanks, that won’t be necessary.”
“Holy crap!” Jessica yelled from her bedroom.
Nathan ran into bedroom three and found Jessica rummaging through a large walk-in closet, stocked with women’s clothing. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing!” she laughed.
“Why did you yell?”
“I haven’t had a wardrobe like this since…well, ever!” she exclaimed as she stripped off her uniform. “Hell, I haven’t owned a dress in years!” She pulled a sleek, black dress off the rack, pulling it on over her head and sliding it down over her body. “What do you think?” she asked, turning to face Nathan.
Nathan smiled. “Brings back memories.”
* * *
By the time they had left the restaurant, the sun had set, and the sky had taken on an eerie pale blue from its primary moon, with tinges of red from its smaller, secondary one.
The center of their district was just as Ory had described it, with lots of shops and restaurants on the first floors, and service businesses and offices on the upper levels. It had taken them only fifteen minutes, at a medium-paced walk, to make the journey from the residence, and, now, after tasting numerous Tekan delicacies, they were glad to have the chance to walk some of it off.
“That was some dinner,” Nathan declared as he and Jessica walked along one of the many trails that wound through the woods separating the homes in their district.
“I think we pissed off the waiter with all of our questions.”
“I still haven’t figured out what that purple stuff was.”
“I’m guessing it was some kind of fish,” Jessica decided.
“Tasted more like a slug to me.”
“Eaten many slugs, have you?”
“The wine was good.”
“I can’t believe we went through two bottles,” Jessica giggled.
“Well, it’s not like we’re on call, or anything,” Nathan replied. “You know, this is the first time I’ve been able to forget about everything and just enjoy myself.”
“It’s also our first real date, you know,” Jessica pointed out.
“What? No…”
“Yeah…”
“But…”
“Doesn’t count,” Jessica insisted. “That was a one-night stand between strangers. I didn’t even know your name.”
“I suppose you’re right.”
“You ate a ton of that shellfish, you know.”
“Hey, it was delicious.”
“It’s also supposed to increase your libido.”
“Where’d you hear that?” Nathan wondered.
“I heard the older couple behind us talking about it,” Jessica explained. “Apparently, it led to their second child.”
“The people here seem nice,” Nathan commented, hoping to change the topic. “Very happy.”
“Too happy,” Jessica insisted.
“How can you be too happy?” Nathan wondered.
“I don’t trust people who are too happy.”
“You didn’t answer the question.”
“You can be too happy,” Jessica insisted. “Things need to go wrong once in a while or you don’t appreciate when they go right. Even worse, if you’re happy all the time and something does go wrong, it can be devastating.”
“You’re not making sense.”
“Yup. Too much happiness makes you weak.”
“You’re drunk.”
“Doesn’t mean I’m not right,” Jessica insisted. “You, sir, are a perfect example.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You were a spoiled, little rich boy with no responsibilities in the world,” she explained. “Getting all drunk because you didn’t like how daddy treated you.”
“Careful,” Nathan warned.
“No, no, no,” she defended, “it’s a good thing. You see, bad shit happened, and you became tougher. Hell, you’ve done incredible things. Unbelievable things, none of which you would’ve accomplished if bad stuff hadn’t happened to you. So you see, too much happiness is bad for you.”
“Who says I wasn’t happy during all that?” Nathan asked.
“Well, you were always moping around feeling sorry for yourself, for one.”
“Only in the beginning,” Nathan defended.
“More like the entire time,” Jessica insisted.
“It was a stressful period,” Nathan argued, “and I wasn’t trained for any of that.”
“But you stepped up and got it done,” Jessica pointed out, “and that’s my point.”
Nathan paused at the fork in the trails. “Which way was it?”
“Left.”
“Are you sure?”
“Nope.”
“Let’s go right,” Nathan decided, continuing on.
“You’re the captain, Captain.”
They walked silently for a moment, enjoying the glowing flora of SilTek.
“What about this time?” Nathan asked.
“This time?”
“You know, since you and Telles showed up and told me who I really was.”
“This time, you’re different,” Jessica said. “You were still a bit whiny in the beginning, but once you were transferred into this body…well…you’ve changed.”
“How?”
&nb
sp; “You’re more confident now,” she admitted.
“Really?”
“Don’t let it go to your head,” Jessica warned. “You still have your self-absorbed moments. They’re just few and far between.”
“Good to know.”
“You think faster now, as well,” Jessica added. “You even move faster. I used to be able to kick your ass with one hand tied behind my back.”
“And you need both hands now?” Nathan laughed.
“No, but at least I break a sweat now.”
“Well, you are getting older,” Nathan taunted.
“Technically, you’re older than I am,” Jessica defended.
“Technically, I’m not. Chronologically, I am.”
“That’s because you cheated,” Jessica said.
“Hey, it was your idea.” Nathan stopped at the next fork, a confused look on his face. “Didn’t we pass this fork a few minutes ago?”
“Some leader you are,” Jessica giggled, heading down the trail to the left. “I told you we should have gone left.”
“Fine, we go left,” Nathan agreed, following Jessica.
“Why did you do it?” Jessica asked.
“I honestly thought the trail to the right was the way home.”
“I mean, why did you agree to lead us this time?” Jessica clarified as she led them down the trail. “You could have just headed further out, found an area where they hadn’t yet heard of the jump drive, and made a fortune. That’s what your crew wanted to do.”
“That’s what Neli wanted to do,” Nathan replied. “Dalen didn’t much care, and Marcus and Josh were just babysitting me, probably under your orders.”
“Then why didn’t you?” she asked.
“Would you believe me if I said it felt like the right thing to do?”