by A. J. Ross
She looked around. She was in the same room where their discussion had taken place. She looked towards the door and wondered how many armed guards he would have stationed outside. She sighed. She should have been more patient. Her reckless and emotional response would make it much harder for her to escape in the future.
The first thing she needed to do was learn everything she could about her guards. To her advantage, they didn’t know much about humans. She could use this information and leverage her human traits against Kayorian ignorance. She thought about the perception of the human female in the Milky Way Galaxy; weak and emotional. She had spent her life trying to escape the shadow her human status cast upon her, but now it was time for her to embrace it. Perhaps her earlier reaction would even work to her advantage. If the Kayorians dismissed her as emotional and irrational, they would also likely minimize her intelligence and capability within their own minds, inadvertently creating a level playing field where she could easily conquer them.
She knew she would not survive another failed attempt at anything. Her next move would have to be the last. She felt an unwavering sense of logic take over her thoughts as she narrowed down all the things that needed to take place for her escape, into just a few. Three to be exact. She really only needed three things. An ally, a performance, and a weapon.
Lincoln stepped onto Continent B again. Kiina’s words played over in his mind. “Find the man called Lawreiis. Ask for his help. Do whatever he commands.” Lincoln had never heard of this person before, and he wondered why. If this man was the military strategist on Graiis who could help him to carry out his mission, why hadn’t Shang mentioned him?
Shang was in his usual space, surrounded by floating neon green, orange, and red computer displays of mathematics, measurements, blueprints and their 3-D renderings. When he saw Lincoln, he paused the program and minimized it. “You’re back,” he said. “I guess this means you have a plan for how to kill Rahilius?”
Lincoln rubbed the back of his neck. “Not exactly,” he admitted. “But I know someone who does. Or rather I know of someone who does. Someone here.”
“Here?” Shang furrowed his brow. “Who have you talked to?”
“I’ve never met him. I just have a name. I was hoping you could show me who he is?”
“What’s his name?”
“Lawreiis?”
“Lawreiis?” Again his brow furrowed. “As in The Lawreiis?”
Lincoln shrugged his shoulders, “I guess.” Shang's reaction was not what he expected. He wondered if he had gotten it wrong? “What is it?” he asked cautiously. “What’s the problem?”
Shang was flustered, and he stared at Lincoln blankly. “Someone told you to come to the Lawreiis?”
Lincoln huffed impatiently. He had clearly misunderstood something, and that in itself was frustrating. As to what the problem was, Shang seemed reluctant to explain to him, which only furthered his frustration. He gathered himself. “Can you just show me where he is?” he asked.
“Not he,” Shang replied. “It. And yes, I’ll take you there.”
Lincoln followed Shang down several sterile, bright white, well-lit halls. He used his badge to unlock the door to a small white room. Inside there was a small table, chair, mirror, and several garment pegs along the wall, and another door at the opposite side.
“Where are we?” Lincoln asked.
“I’m going to leave you alone now,” Shang replied. “You have to take off every piece of clothing you have on. The Lawreiis won’t see you if you're dressed. When you finish undressing, go through that door.” He pointed to the one at the opposite end of the room. “When you go in there, there are two circles on the front board. Put your hands in them.”
There were so many questions running through Lincoln’s mind, “And then what?” he asked.
Shang shrugged his shoulders, “I’m not 100% sure of how it works, but if it wants to talk to you then you’ll hear it.”
“What?” Lincoln asked again, but Shang had already left the room. He sighed. He was starting to feel like everyone around him was speaking in riddles.
He began to slowly undress, piece by piece, hanging his clothing on the pegs against the wall. Once he was naked, he took a deep breath and pushed the door open. It was like stepping inside of a computer. The room was large, square, and full of circuits and wires lining the walls, along with several other mechanics he didn’t recognize. The entire room was relatively dark besides a long bar light in the front. Below the light, Lincoln saw the two circles Shang had mentioned. He put a hand in each circle and waited.
He immediately began to feel slight tingling sensations all over his body. So subtle at first he thought it was his imagination. The intensity increased. Electrical currents made their way through his skin, muscles, bones, and into his nerves. He felt an awakening and opening of his senses. It was euphoric, and Lincoln felt as if his whole body had transcended. He felt like he was floating although his feet never left the ground.
The bliss held him captive only for a moment, then it was gone. It was gone. He stood motionless, with his hands still in the circles. What happened? What was happening?
Nothing. The room was cold and silent. Should I say, or do something? he wondered. He was still confused about the fact that the Lawreiis was a machine and not a person as Kiina had described. He began to feel doubtful and irritable. Was Shang mocking him, or was Kiina?
He waited for almost ten minutes. He stood there until the crisp cool air had covered his naked body with goosebumps. His heart sank. Whatever had happened to his body minutes ago was over, and he still didn’t have any idea about how to get to Kayora. Slowly he removed his hands from the circles on the wall. He walked over to the door and left the room. His arms were heavy as he dressed himself. He was angry. Confused.
Exiting the white room, he and Shang's eyes met. Lincoln didn’t have to ask for an explanation. Shang was prepared. “The Lawreiis never talks to people,” he said regretfully. “It only communicates with the Grii. I would have told you, but you wouldn’t have believed me anyway. It’s unlike any other technology. When the Grii go to it, it reads their request without them ever making a sound. It was designed that way since the Grii originally didn’t speak audible language. It reads the neurons firing in the brain, and is able to discern your request and measure it against your capability of carrying out whatever instructions the Lawreiis may give. If it doesn’t think you can accomplish what you’re asking for, it doesn’t respond. So, for us as people, this is difficult because the Lawreiis measures emotional stability. It can see your fear, lack of conviction, and uncertainty. It never speaks to people.” He sighed. “I’m sorry, man.”
Lincoln slowly made his way home. He tried his best to enjoy the warm sun resting on the top of his head and shoulders as he walked. The cool air blowing through his hair and the leaves of the trees. He fought hard to clear his mind of the failed experience with the Lawreiis. He had no answers. No way to connect what Shang had said about it, with what Kiina had instructed him to do. Why would she send him to talk to a machine she must have known would not talk to a human? He was puzzled.
He felt a strong sense of rejection. He wondered if other people had attempted to communicate with the machine. Shang said the machine reads your capability. Did that mean the Lawreiis saw him as incapable of rescuing Braii? Perhaps he had gone in with too much emotion. Too much anxiety, uncertainty, or fear. That’s it. He knew how to get the Lawreiis to address him. It was simply a matter of purging his emotion, drowning his fear and strengthening his conviction. The next time, he’d be ready.
But there was still the matter of the ship. Who had sent it back to Kayora? As he walked along, he began to have a sinking feeling in his stomach as he passed by Penny’s house. He took off running toward it. When he reached the porch, he pounded on the door. “Penny,” he shouted. “Penny, open up.”
Penny snatched her door open. “What’s wrong with -?” She froze when she saw Lincoln.
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“It was you,” he uttered in a low tone. “You sent that ship back to Kayora.”
Guilt filled Penny’s eyes confirming Lincoln’s accusations before she even had a chance to answer. “I didn’t know,” she said apologetically.
Her response enraged him, and he began to shout. “What do you mean you didn’t know? What didn’t you know, Penny? That Grisian would be murdered? That Rahiius would declare war on Graiis? That I would find out it was you? That you, using my clearance makes me responsible for this war, and anyone who dies because of it? WHAT DIDN’T YOU KNOW, PENNY? Which part?” He grabbed Penny by her arms and slammed her back against the wall. She shrieked. By that time tears were flowing in steady streams down both her cheeks.
“I’m so sorry,” she whispered. Her shoulders slouched, and her bottom lip trembled. “Please . . . I didn’t mean for this to happen.”
Lincoln stared at her in disbelief for several seconds. Then the disbelief changed to disgust, and he released her. He could not bring himself to hurt her, nor could bear to look at her any longer. He turned and left, finally having solved the mystery of the ship.
He continued home, his face red and his heart racing from the adrenaline. The truth of his own words plagued him. There was going to be a war, and he was responsible. If lives were lost, it would be his fault. How could he have been so careless? Penny must have taken it from his house the night they argued about the council’s decision. He knew she was upset, but he never imagined she would be angry enough to betray him.
The next morning, he returned to the Lawreiis. He had convinced himself he could save Braii, and spent all night thinking up a plan. Considering every possible outcome, then combating it with a solution. He felt confident. He had to be confident, otherwise the Lawreiis would not give him what he needed.
When he walked into the research lab, Shang seemed surprised to see him. His eyes were full of questions he did not ask, and Lincoln didn’t volunteer any information. He went straight for the machine. This time he stood naked in front, placed both hands in the red circles and waited with just one thought in his mind. Saving Braii. Even if he couldn’t kill Rahilius, he could definitely save Braii. He focused on that, and that alone. He felt the slight tingling sensation he had felt the first time. He kept his mind focused, offering his thoughts to the Lawreiis. He understood it was reading him.
The tingling sensation pulsed through his body for several seconds, and then it was gone.
This time the reality hit him quickly. He had been rejected, again. The machine had examined him and concluded he was still incapable of doing what he needed to do. He left the room perplexed and hopeless. Maybe it was impossible. Maybe there was no way the Lawreiis would address a human. He knew he had enough conviction. He knew he was capable, even if the Lawreiis did not. Maybe there was another way to save Braii. Maybe he didn’t need the discriminatory machine to tell him whether or not he was strong enough to rescue his bride. His pride was hurt, and he decided in that moment he would figure it out on his own. He forced himself to ignore Kiinas words. She had sent him to the Lawreiis, knowing full well it would not speak to him.
When he walked out of the room, Shang raised his eyes from his computer screen, but did not speak. Lincoln took the seat opposite. “Tell me about the Lawreiis,” he asked. “When was it built?”
Shang sat up in his chair giving Lincoln his full attention. “Well, I told you most of what I know about it. Its origins are a little obscure. They say it’s half machine, half man. I don’t believe that though. If it were half man it would speak to men, right? Or it could just be an expression. I don’t know. I know it was built en route from Earth to Graiis, before all of us were born.”
“But how could it be half man?” Lincoln asked. “It’s a computer. Two completely different data systems.”
“That’s the thing. According to rumors, the Lawreiis is run by a human brain somehow fused with the AI.”
“Is that possible?” Lincoln asked rhetorically. He already knew the answer. He had learned not to underestimate the Grii. “Who’s brain?”
Shang shook his head. “I don’t know. It would have to have been a military weapons or aircraft engineer, but there were no names in the archives I was able to access.”
Lincoln sat back in his chair. He was thoughtful. Even somewhat hopeful. This information changed things. He didn’t know how yet, but he was sure it would be useful to him in one form or another.
He thanked Shang and went directly down to the archives. He tried to use his security clearance, but it had been downgraded to restricted access. He wasn’t surprised. In fact, he was expecting it. It didn’t matter anyway. His full clearance was the same or less than Shang’s, so if Shang hadn’t found anything, he probably wouldn’t have either.
He spent the afternoon thinking about the machine. The idea was fascinating with a hint of morbidity. Who would the Grii have used in such a way? Why not use the entire person? Maybe it was a desperate volunteer, someone who couldn’t physically make the journey. Maybe it was one out of the millions of people who had succumbed to the plagues and diseases that were slowly consuming mankind on Earth.
He focused on the sound coming from the living room. It was a gentle rhythmic squeaking. His mother must have been rocking in her chair. She only rocked in perfect rhythm when she was on the verge of slipping into anxiety. Sometimes she would become trapped for days or weeks, sometimes months.
Lincoln came to talk to her. He touched her leg, “Ma.”
She looked up at him and smiled eagerly. “Lincoln.” She pressed her palms on the arm rests to push herself up, but Lincoln held her down.
“Don’t get up,” he said. “I just want to ask you something.”
He sat on the floor in front of her with his forearms resting on his knees. “Will you tell me again about the day you left earth? What do you remember most?”
She looked at him curiously. It had been years since she last talked about that day, especially with Lincoln, who in the past never seemed interested. “I remember feeling desperate,” she said sweetly. “Your father and I had recently married. I couldn’t imagine leaving the planet without him. He was so handsome and intelligent. I literally got down on my knees and begged the guard to-”
Lincoln interrupted her, “Let him on the ship. The guard pitied you, and she cleared him to board.”
His mother nodded. “We were Lucky. Not too many others were though. There was so much mourning and suffering on that day. And that woman. I’ll never forget. There was a woman, she was a beautiful petite little woman who looked like her belly was about to burst. She was pregnant. I’d say seven months at least.”
Lincoln knew this story almost as well as he knew the one about his father. His mind ran ahead, filling in the details as his mother spoke. It was the story of his teacher, Mr. Arthur.
“The woman was a mess,” she continued. “Her face was covered in tears, and she kept hugging and kissing a very tall and handsome young man. He was crying too. But what stood out to me the most, was the man. He kept pushing her away from him and telling her to ‘go.’ She would come back to him, and he would get down on his knees and kiss her belly,” she sighed, “So many times. He would kiss her belly, and tell her to leave. They would argue between embraces and kisses. She was trying to stay with him, but he wouldn’t let her. He made her go. All I could think about was your father. How lucky we were to have both been allowed to board the ship when everyone else was separated.”
“Did anyone die on the way?” Lincoln asked.
“No,” she replied matter-of-factly. “Why would you ask that?”
Lincoln shook his head. “No reason. I was just wondering since it was such a long trip . . . ”
“Well, if someone did, they never told us. You could ask your teacher. He practically grew up on the transport. Maybe he would remember.”
Lincoln jumped up off of the ground. Why hadn’t he thought of that? Raymond was the only person who was born on
route from Earth to Graiis. If anyone knew, it would be him. Lincoln acquiesced. The last time he had spoken to Raymond they ended up fighting, and he hadn't seen or talked to him since.
As he made his way to the HLEC, he tried to devise a way to control the interaction; but even as he thought, he knew it was pointless. If he was to win Raymond over, his repentance needed to be much louder than his arrogance had been. He reached the council's office and took a seat outside the meeting room. He dared not come in. He dared not even knock. No matter how long it took, he needed to wait. Patience had never been his strength, and struggled to keep still. He would change positions frequently, from sitting slouched in a chair, to standing with his back against the wall with his hands shoved deep into his pockets. He would do this over and over again, beseeching the clock to move faster.
Just as he decided he couldn’t wait anymore, the door opened. The council members started to pour out from the office. Some of them looked at Lincoln with surprise in their eyes, others with disdain. He figured he was likely the cause of whatever problem the council had been discussing, so he didn’t take the hostility personally.
As expected, Raymond did not leave the office like everyone else. Lincoln walked in. “Raym-, Mr. Arthur.”
Raymond looked up with disappointment in his eyes at the very sound of Lincoln’s voice. “What is it?” he asked curtly.
The disappointment stung Lincoln because it was deserved. “I’m sorry,” he said softly. “About everything. You were right . . . about everything.” Tears started to fill his eyes and he confessed like a sinner who was no longer able to hide himself from the judgement of God. The only thing heavier than his shoulders was his heart. “I was selfish and stupid. When you told me we were going to send the ship back, I broke the rules. I told my friend Penny what you told me to do. I told her I would find a way to rescue the escapees. Then after you and I talked, I told her I had to send the ship back. She wouldn’t accept it. We argued and she left, but she . . . she had taken my clearance.”