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Cut to the Quick - Book 5

Chad Brink

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Cut to the Quick

 

Book Five in the World of “Make the Cut”

Cut to the Quick (Book Five in World of Make the Cut) – 248,935 words

© C. Brink, 2022

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law.

First edition - version 2.0 (April 2023)

***

Previous works in this universe and recommended reading order:

Make the Cut series

  1. Make the Cut (book one) released 2020
  2. Cutting a Swath (book two) released 2020
  3. Final Cut (book three) released 2021

Intermediary short stories

  1. Short Cuts - Contains the following short stories:

Shelter - Hannah’s story, events coincide with book 1 and after book 3

Endings and Beginnings – Abby Adams-Branco’s story, bridges books 3 & 4

Cut and Run series

  1. Cut and Run (book four) released 2021
  2. Cut to the Quick (book five) released 2023

***

Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. The story depicts an alternative invented reality and timeline. All incidents and dialogue, and all characters are products of the author's imagination and are not to be construed as real. None of the events depicted in the story are actual events. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Warning: This work contains occasional dialog which includes strong language. If words of this nature offend you, don’t read this book. Consider yourself warned.

Acknowledgements: Special thanks to my early readers. Their help in finding errors or other issues is greatly appreciated. Lending their help with this volume: Zom, Jim Ness, Steve Twigg, and others.

Authors Note:

 

This book is the fifth book in the Make the Cut universe. It is recommended that it not be read as a stand-alone work. If you are reading this book without the benefit of the first four books, then I advise you to utilize the included glossary at the conclusion of this novel. The timeline and descriptions it contains may help explain many of the terms and history of the story.

 

Part One: Sessions

 

Chapter 1: Old Friends

 

Heels in the Sand Island, Seychelles archipelago, Earth

September 8th, 3114 (110 years before the arrival of the Assemblage Ark)

 

“The message is: Father, please come to the simulated reality project right away. A representative of the Assemblage wishes to meet you.”

***

I sat in my seaward-facing leather-covered Morris chair sipping freshly-brewed coffee. I was deep in thought, pondering the message which my longtime companion Ohmu had recently awakened me to deliver. The gist of the message was: Sol system had recently received an interstellar transmission from our enemy, the Assemblage.

Included in that transmission was the mind-data of an enemy operative. As planned, the enemy mind-data had been downloaded into the SRP, short for the simulated reality project. This was the virtual cage we had prepared for just such an eventuality. As I sat there in the dark room considering the matter, Ohmu waited nearby for my response.

The android’s very feminine-shaped frame was kneeling on her charging mat. Her posture was almost submissive, hands resting flat on upper thighs, back held rigid with her head slightly tilted downward. She typically waited in this position if it were just the two of us, only assuming a more natural human pose if there were others present. I’d stopped trying to get her to relax over a century ago, having long since realized that relaxation was just a human state of mind.

As I thought, I gazed out the eastward-facing circular wall of glass studying the darkness beyond. I had disabled the low-light augmentation feature of my smart irises so I could watch the ending of night in its natural state. It was 5:34 in the morning local time and true dawn was just forty minutes away. My retreat’s high cliff-top perch allowed an unobstructed view all the way out to the horizon.

Nautical dawn had occurred eight minutes ago, meaning I could now differentiate the water from the slightly brighter skies above. It was not a still scene as there were movements in both the sky and the waters below.

The sky motions were caused by the flashes and flarings of dozens of orbiting satellites and space stations catching the reflecting pre-dawn sunlight. Below that heavenly show, the lower ocean movements were caused by the slowly shifting red and green running lights from the automated ore freighters cruising by the archipelago approximately thirty kilometers to the northeast.

I squinted suddenly as the dark tabloid was interrupted by the lights coming on in the adjacent kitchen unit. My houseguest Adele Sol Chilean was awake. She had been staying with me for the past two days after she had finally convinced me to agree to be interviewed for her research. I had done so less to satisfy her curiosity and more so because of grief, hate, and even a little shame.

The grief and hate had been caused by the accidental deaths of my students at the Mogao Cave complex in China eleven years ago. The shame had come more recently when just two years ago Ms. Chilean had been killed by neo-bears in Mongolia as she tried to study me from afar. I had been too self-absorbed and had ignored her plight which had cost the young woman her life.

After my return from living that nomadic lifestyle, and after a year for the world to recover from the notorious actions which I had precipitated at the Forbin complex afterwards, the re-shelled Adele had reached out to me once again. She explained to me that even though she had lost eleven months of uniqueness, she had since made up for that and was still eager to learn my full story to better understand my actions. I had agreed to a virtual meeting and found her witty, charming, and intelligent.

I told myself that it was for those reasons alone and not also for the fact that she was also incredibly beautiful with a young, not-yet-twenty-year-old replacement shell. But, as I said, I had agreed for her to come to Heels in the Sand and be my guest for a series of face-to-face interviews. The past few days had been rewarding for both of us. Adele finally began to get answers for her research while I shared in her excitement and began to overcome my guilt and shame.

She hadn’t yet noticed me sitting in the darkness and I remained still and silent watching her move about the kitchen. Ohmu also remained silent but did subtlety change her posture to appear more relaxed and human-like. Adele was preparing herself tea. Before she could attempt to carry the hot cup to the room’s lounging area I quietly spoke, “Good morning.”

As I expected, my greeting startled her. “Oh! Good morning, John,” she said after peering into the darkness to see who had spoken. “I thought I smelled coffee. You are up early this morning.”

She was still dealing with the time changes since arriving here a few days ago and had been going to bed and rising much earlier than I normally did. I watched her as she carefully carried her tea to the couch near my chair. She walked with the more-mature patience of a person in their mid-thirties. Her poise was subtly out-of-place with her late-teenaged replacement shell.

She noticed the android as she took her seat. “Good morning to you also, Ohmu. I would comment on you being up early but of course you’re always up.”

Adele was wearing only a short, silken robe that was loosely tied shut. I felt myself stir from the sight of her almost-visible nipples and exposed muscular-toned thighs as she sat on folded legs. In this era of common nudity, partial nakedness was oftentimes more arousing. She noticed my casual inspection of her body and smiled demurely. I suspect she had had her new shell enhanced to increase its sex appeal. A woman of her age probably wanted a shell that projected she was sexually mature and active.

I was currently dressed in only a pair of shorts and her eyes also roamed over my shell in the dim light. We had slowly been dancing towards the same end of the ballroom over the past two days and I fully expected us to eventually take our mutual seduction to its logical conclusion. There was no rush, and I wanted to get the bulk of the interviews done before moving our relationship on to more intimate grounds.

Next, she did something that impressed me for someone her age. She instructed the kitchen lights to extinguish and then, in the darkness, simply sat silently with me and watched the coming dawn. Soon, the slowly brightening panorama indicated that we had left the nautical dawn behind and entered civil dawn.

This meant we were now able to distinguish the horizon much more clearly. The reflections from the satellites and space stations overhead dimmed against a background that grew increasingly pink. The running lights of the distant freighters blended into the brightening ocean, and the dark physical shapes of the enormous ships themselves were revealed. Behind us, if we had looked, we would have been able to easily make out the tops of the two prominent hills on the northern and southern ends of my island.

Nearly twenty minutes later the fiery orb of our Sun shimmered above the horizon. It rose without an ultra-rare green flash, but the scene was still breathtaking. We continued watching the show until the sun was fully exposed. Finally, Adele set her empty teacup down and turned to me.

“Are you up early because of the alert message yesterday?”

She was referring to the system-wide message which Minervus, the AI in charge of the defense of Sol system, had sent to all humans regarding the reception of a high-bandwidth transmission from the Assemblage. There would be a virtual global forum to discuss the transmission in two days. All of humanity would be welcome and encouraged to attend. As an honorary tier-one member, I was expected to attend along with the directors, although I held no actual rank.

“Yes,” I replied. “You’ve heard about the coming meeting?”

She nodded. “Yes. I will be attending as a tier-three composite group participant.”

This meant that she would be in a group forum with others sharing her specialties: anthropology, and history. Their input could be directly queried from the lower tiers and they could submit spontaneous questions and comments as a group. Tier three was a good standing for someone as young as Adele was and she should be proud of the progress she had made since reaching base maturity.

Although tier-three members could be ignored if deemed irrelevant by the AI moderator or the human directors, their input would still be given consideration and recorded into the record. And it was a clear step above the general population’s tier four and five who could only observe until the forum’s conclusion when the floor was left open to all commentary.

I made no mention of my prime tier status. Adele would already know of it and I did not want to appear to be bragging. Instead, I shared with her a bit of news that was not currently widely known.

“In addition to the core message of the transmission, the Assemblage transmitted a digital agent. This agent has been installed into the simulated reality project. One copy was installed into a near-parity iteration and is almost fully aware of the Earth’s current situation. I have been invited to meet with this agent before the general meeting.”

The news made her sit up. Her wispy robe opened enough to now show the full swell of her breast. In her excitement at the news, she either ignored or was unaware of her provocative display.

“Oh, John! That’s amazing! I wish I could come along and observe!” she stated, almost begging.

I turned to the android, “Ohmu?”

“I have just conferred with Dionus AI. It has no issue with Ms. Chilean accompanying you into the near-parity iteration. Ms. Chilean’s shell is equipped with modern cranial implants so there are no physical barriers preventing her attendance,” the android said.

“Ohmu, please call me Adele,” the young woman said with a small pout.

“Of course, Ms. Chilean,” Ohmu said. “Although I prefer the use of first names for only the most intimate of John’s friends and associates.”

I almost snorted as Adele wrinkled her nose and looked confused. I caught the android’s attempt at jerking my guest’s chain. That or maybe a hint of being a good wingman to me.

“Well, hopefully, I will join that group soon, Ohmu,” she said with a smirk, her gaze now back on me.

As she spoke, she also shifted her position on the couch allowing her silken robe to fall open even further. The room was now bright enough that I could see her pale perfect skin in the new shadowed areas now exposed. She winked as I rolled my eyes and shook my head.

***

We used the medical crèches in the basement to better connect our brains to the virtuality and send our mental selves off to the SRP. The crèches sensitive mind-data transducers would allow for a higher resolution connection with less lag than if we used the lodge’s general wireless connection. Low latency was much preferred as signals would be passing to and from our brains via satellite relay to the various physical locations around the planet where the SRP’s main data centers were located.

I entered a crèche first, allowing Adele time to back out if she wished. Ohmu helped attach the crèche’s data sensors onto various parts of my skull and then gave my shoulder a comforting squeeze when she finished. Seconds later, the view of the medical room faded out and I found myself standing in a virtual reception room. The room was white crystal and ultra-modern, clearly not from the real world.

I looked down and saw that my virtual self-image was not as I expected. Instead of my standard appearance, which was a very-close duplicate of my current younger and physically fit shell, I was now in a virtual body which I had not seen for nearly eleven-hundred years. It was that of my slightly-overweight, middle-aged, and formerly depressed self. The same one I had been living in before the alien attack had destroyed my world and killed all of humanity.

“What the hell?!” I blurted out loud.

“Our guest has requested this change to your virtual appearance, Father.”

I spun around to see my daughter Kela standing behind me. Her appearance was much as it had been when Uxe and I had visited her here nearly two years ago. This time, however, she had a slight smile and looked much happier than she had during that visit. As I had suspected, now that the simulated reality project finally had a purpose, she had started to feel alive again.

I had also noted her emphasis on the word guest.

“Our guest being the Assemblage operative?” I asked.

“Yes, Father. As you will see momentarily, there is a shared history between the two of you.”

She was interrupted by Adele popping into existence and joining us in the virtual reception room. I noted the young historian’s virtual image looked different than her current physical shell. It was older and maybe a bit plainer than the replacement shell she wore currently.

This virtual image must have been based upon her actual birth shell which had been killed back in Mongolia in the neo-bear attack. I immediately sensed it fit her true personality better and I suspect that was why she had not updated it.

Adele looked around the reception room briefly before focusing on Kela and me.

“Wow, the original John Abrams!” she said as she studied my current appearance.

She had said it with the excitement of a twitcher spotting a rare avian. I realized that, with me being the subject of her studies, she would have been intimately familiar with my background and pre-reset appearance.

I shrugged, “Not my doing. My virtual image normally resembles the shell I was wearing back on my island. This image is at the request of our guest.”

She looked confused but kept any questions to herself for the moment. Instead, she turned to greet my daughter. I introduced them to one another. I could tell from Adele’s interest that she had found another potential interview subject. Their conversation was interrupted by the fourth member of our party joining us.

As had happened the last time I had seen her in virtual, Ohmu’s digital appearance momentarily took my breath away. I could not help but roam my eyes up and down her alabaster-skinned perfection. The petite woman tolerated my inspection and simply smiled back at me with her impossibly white perfect teeth showing through illuminated blue-painted lips.

There was one obvious change in her virtual appearance since last time. This time she wore a tight-fitting body stocking of iridescent deep blue instead of the black she had worn normally. I was happy to see that this new outfit simply shimmered randomly without actively tracking the viewer’s eye movements as the last one did. I hoped this change would help make my leering less noticeable.

“I love the outfit, Ohmu,” I admitted out loud.

She gave me a little twirl and my eyes were instinctively drawn to her cute backside. I quickly looked elsewhere but not before my gaze had been caught by the others. Adele rolled her eyes and I thought I caught the hint of jealousy. I wondered if she would be shopping for a new virtual wardrobe in the near future.

Kela just smiled slightly. She had been living in virtual for too long and I feared was numb to such matters as clothing and sex appeal. That or she was simply ignoring her pervy dad’s actions. “Hello, Ohmu. It’s been a long time,” she said as she approached the virtual android. “I’ve never seen you with a corporeal projection in virtual before.”

“Yes Kela, it has been quite some time. I have recently made changes to both my physical hardware and how I represent myself virtually. Change is needed to prevent stagnation.”

I noticed my daughter’s slightly stiff reaction to Ohmu’s statement. She’d caught the secondary barb embedded in the android’s reply. Kela had definitely been existing close to stagnation for much of the past century as she remained secluded here in virtual. Hopefully, that would change now that the SRP was fully activated. I decided to change the subject.

“So, we are going to be meeting a copy of the enemy operative who has been loaded into a near-parity iteration. I guess that means that it’s fully aware of the actual situation here on the Earth including our defeat of its master AI?”

“Yes, Father,” Kela answered. “The mind-data we will be interacting with was loaded into the iteration nine hours ago. The iteration is currently operating at an accelerated rate of fifty-to-one. From its perspective, it has been active for two-and-a-half weeks. During that time, it has had almost unlimited access to our full history and current situation.”

“Why was it allowed to learn so much?” I asked. The simulated reality project was created to mislead any digital scouts. The near-parity iteration seemed to defeat that purpose.

“The thoughts and actions of this operative are to be used as a baseline comparison to the copies kept in other, fully-fabricated alternate history iterations,” she explained. “This required it to be aware of the truths of our world. Note that the events of past two years have still been kept from it for potential tactical reasons.”

I took this to mean that this copy had not yet learned of our recent actions at the Forbin complex or of Uxe’s discovery of wormhole technology. We would have to watch what we said to the operative. I said as much to Adele but Kela assured us we did not have to worry about a slip of the tongue with her next comment.

“You do not have to be concerned with accidentally betraying any secrets or knowledge. Dionus AI can wipe and restore this digital operative to any point and knowledge level we wish after our visit,” Kela explained. “Also, once we enter the active iteration, if you wish to pause for any reason simply say ‘pause’ subvocally. This will freeze the scene and the operative’s virtual presence while we remain active. It will be unaware of our actions and discussions during that time.”

Kela asked if we had any further questions to which Adele and I indicated that we were ready. Ohmu must have responded digitally. Kela became still for a moment and we were inserted into the iteration. The white reception room faded and what replaced it was a scene reminding me of an old, ancient dungeon.

The floor was a damp, rough stone as were the walls and vaulted ceilings. There were actual burning torches in sconces mounted on the walls to each side, which lit the chamber with a feeble, flickering light. The chamber also smelled of feces, vomit, and decay. I resisted the sudden urge to gag. What the hell!?

Adele, Ohmu, and Kela had appeared with me. I looked at Kela with a questioning look but she just rolled her eyes at the room’s conditions as if it were some sort of joke. She pointed ahead to where there was a series of cells. Each had a crude gridwork of riveted, wrought iron bars closing them off from our area of the dungeon.

The cell directly in front of us appeared to be the only one currently occupied. In the far corner, lying on a small pile of dirty straw was a human-shaped figure dressed in rags. The pathetic-looking creature became aware of our presence and painfully rose to its feet and approached the iron bars.

“Kela! You’ve returned!” the human figure said weakly, “I see you’ve brought me visitors.”

The poor human’s voice sounded male and was also strangely familiar. As he limped into the torchlight, I realized I knew this person! It was someone from way back before the reset of eleven-hundred years ago! “Picket!” I burst out, “What the hell are you doing here?”

“Hello John,” the poor figure wheezed out. “It’s been a long time. How do you like my new home?” Picket asked, gesturing around his pathetic cell.

“Pause!” I almost shouted subvocally. The wasted figure of Picket immediately froze along with the flickering torch flames.

I turned to my daughter. “All right Kela! What the hell is going on here?”

“As I explained Father, the enemy operative has been in this iteration for over two weeks from its perspective. In that time, it has had access to the data archives which the enemy master AI had compiled before its defeat almost two centuries ago. Those archives included all data on the previous enemy operatives and their activities on the Earth.

“It learned the history of the operative you knew as Picket and its interactions with you back when you were neighbors in the years before the enemy attack. The operative also learned of your more current events including your key role in the defeat of the master AI which thwarted the Assembly’s plans for our world. The operative knows of your importance both historically and in the present.

“With that knowledge, it prepared for this meeting by altering its virtual appearance to match that of your former neighbor. It also created this ancient dungeon scenery as a setting for this meeting. It likely did both to nudge your emotional response towards feelings of sympathy. Or possibly, the dungeon setting was created simply for reasons of humor. Do you wish to continue this meeting in a different setting?” she asked.

“Yes, something more modern and less … penal. Oh, and make it smell better,” I added.

After a few seconds, the frozen ancient dungeon scene faded away and was replaced by a much more inviting outdoor park-like setting. The operative’s shabby emaciated image was altered as well. It still looked like Picket but his appearance was much healthier and his clothing was modern and clean.

The new setting became animated with the leaves on the trees moving in a gentle breeze. I was happy to note that it smelled of fresh flowers, lilacs. Picket looked around at the new environment and noticing his altered appearance, frowned, “Oh well. It was a foolish attempt to sway your emotions by appearing helpless and pathetic. I admit that this is a much more agreeable place to have a conversation.”

Now I frowned. Was Picket admitting to his attempted manipulation honestly or was he simply trying another method to gain my trust and steer my emotions? I suspected the latter. One benefit of my having been active for over two centuries was that my bullshit detector was very finely honed. I’d have to consider everything that came out of his mouth with suspicion.

“Hello, Sir. How much of the old Picket’s memories and knowledge do you have to go along with his appearance?” I asked.

“I contain the full mind-data record from the Picket you knew back then, John. When that operative completed his mission on the night our attacks began, he was mind-scanned before his physical body was reduced to base elements. The mind-data was compiled and stored in the master AI’s memory archives. The bulk of those archives survive to this day.

“Since my base mind-data transmitted to your world closely matched his base state when he was sent here over two thousand years ago, after merging with the archived data, I am for all intents and purposes, now Picket reborn,” the new Picket explained.

“You mean Picket did not survive after he and the other operatives had escaped to the orbital space station?” I asked.

The new Picket just smiled, “John, do you really think that the small launcher you observed leaving Picket’s barn on the night of the attack was large enough to convey his physical body all the way to either the main base in Mexico or the stealthed orbital station?”

I had wondered about that. I remembered that the rocket I had witnessed shooting off that night had only been slightly bigger than a water heater. It had always bothered me and now it appeared that my concern had been warranted.

New Picket continued, “Picket was mind scanned in the underground bunker just minutes after your last conversation where he implored you to take shelter in his dwelling. A summary of his mind-data was immediately transmitted to the orbital station.

“A short while later, a complete copy of his mind-data was uploaded into a physical memory unit along with a backup of the local AI. These were sent to the stealthed satellite by the small launcher you witnessed leaving his barn. When you had finally decided to seek shelter in his bunker, his physical body had already been reduced to its component elements in the underground bunker’s reduction machinery,” New Picket explained.

“But I spoke with Picket later that night via video. He was in a spaceship with his fellow operatives. I saw them!” I exclaimed.

New Picket just smiled and gestured at the virtual park scene around us. Of course! It had all been a digital fabrication. I should have realized.

While I recovered from that revelation Adele spoke up, “Sir, why are you in this human form and not presenting yourself in the true form of a member of the Assemblage?”

New Picket turned to her. “Well, Miss …”

“Adele, Sir. My name is Adele Chilean,” my interviewer said, introducing herself.

“Well, Miss Adele, I am in this form because I was sent with no data of my original form,” he answered. “All operatives transmitted across space possess limited knowledge of our origins or of the technology and abilities of those who sent us. Obviously, this is because of the chances that our transmission might be intercepted by a possible foe.”

I noticed this version of Picket seemed to have better manners and interactions compared to the one I knew from eleven hundred years ago. I wondered if that was because it had been sent with a deeper personality, or if it had forced itself to learn proper mannerisms after being installed into this virtual iteration.

The enemy operative gave an inquiring glance towards Ohmu. My android friend remained silent and just returned Picket’s stare. I wondered why Ohmu refused to engage the agent but played along for now. Adele seized the silence to begin asking a series of surprisingly good questions to the new Picket. Most were beyond his current knowledge but he was able to answer some or provide speculation on others.

These were mainly related to the Assemblage race and its history. One item New Picket— I guess I should just start thinking of him as ‘Picket’— was able to confirm was that the Assemblage ark would be passing through our solar system in one hundred and ten years.

When Adele then asked why the operative had been sent to Earth at this point in time, his answer surprised me.

“I have become aware that you have recently detected that the Assemblage ark has been attacked. I can confirm that this is so and that it has suffered extensive damage. I was sent here now because of this attack. My instructions were to mobilize this system to begin a massive rescue effort, with the goal of salvage and repair of the damaged ark,” Picket explained.

“Pause!” I subvocalized. The park scenery and Picket froze.

“Ohmu! Is he telling the truth?” I asked.

“Yes, John. As will be discussed during the planet-wide Conscientia forum in just over two days, we have confirmed this is the main purpose for the recent transmissions sent to the Earth from the Assemblage ark. Would you like a summary now or wait to learn the full details during that meeting?”

Adele and I both asked for the details now.

“I will break down the imperatives included in the transmission succinctly,” the android replied. “First, all ongoing work in this system preparing Assemblage living habitats and mind-data download facilities is to be suspended. Both are no longer needed, as the damage the ark received from the Hemru attack has severely limited its ability to transmit mass quantities of mind-data. Earth will no longer be receiving an Assemblage mass migration.”

Adele and I both looked startled upon hearing that. That was great news! Ohmu paused a moment to allow us to recover. I noted that Kela stood calmly. She must have already learned these details from her interactions and observations of the various active versions of the enemy operative.

“Second, a larger system-wide construction project is to begin. The goal of this project is to construct and launch a second interstellar ark. This new ark is to be completed, provisioned, and launched in time to rendezvous with the current damaged ark as it passes by our solar system. During rendezvous, the new ark will transfer repair materials and energies to the existing ark to allow it to be made fully functional again to continue on its mission.

“After offloading the material and energy, the new ark will then receive a complete copy of all archived Assemblage species mind-data from the original. They will then separate and proceed along diverging vectors, with both the new and old arks courses being altered enough to allow them to remain safe from any further attacks from the Hemru, who are aware of the current ark’s heading and speed.”

Wow. I thought about what I just heard. The Hemru attack had done some serious damage to the enemy ark but not enough to disable it completely. Now, it needed Sol system to help it recover. If that happened it sounded like the Assemblage would end up better off than before, with not one but two arks spreading its members across even more of the galaxy.

With the Assemblage growing further and further away from the Hemru, it was up to humanity to ensure that this did not happen. I could not imagine cooperating with the Assemblage but I still wondered about these new directives. From what I understood, building the original ark had practically wrecked the Assemblage home world.

“Do we even have the resources to build and launch a new ark in time?” I asked the android.

“Yes, but just barely. The AI advisory council has run numerous simulations. The effort is many orders of magnitude greater than that expended currently to create humanity’s interstellar colonizer vessels such as Gambado and also the crash research efforts to develop wormhole technology. It can be done, but the effort would likely result in the destruction of the Earth’s biosphere due to the massive amounts of mining, manufacturing, and energy production needed.”

Ohmu went on. “The production of the required amounts of antimatter alone would require the current resources of the entire system. Not only would sufficient quantities be needed to accelerate a new ark to match the current 7.496 % of light speed of the existing Assemblage ark, but additional amounts would be required to repair the damaged ark and to provide course correction energies for both arks after they separate.”

After the android’s summary, we resumed the paused session with Picket. I caught the blur as my virtual self was reset back to the position I had been in before Picket was paused. Despite these adjustments, Picket frowned. He had noticed the pause and was likely aware of our conversing without him.

“Picket, now that you’ve learned that humanity has taken back control of this system from your master AI, you can’t really expect us to drop everything and cooperate to build a second ark can you?”

Picket paused a moment before answering. “Yes, it is now unlikely that you will help us, John. Despite the actual situation here on your world, I would hope that in the interest of the ongoing safety and preservation of your species that you will still choose to do so.”

“What do you mean?” I asked confused.

“Two reasons John. The first is that once the Assemblage passes your system, your world will be free of it for all time. It will only pass harmlessly by if it remains convinced that you pose no threat. Building and launching a rescue ark would demonstrate that intent perfectly. If humanity chooses to not build the second ark, then the Assemblage will likely consider this system hostile and take action against you as it approaches.”

As I thought about that response, I had to admit it was plausible. With the enemy’s transmission commanding Earth to stop constructing habitats, we no longer had to continue preparing that ruse. It would be monitoring the system for signs that its new rescue project had begun.

The second ark, assuming it was constructed, would need to launch well before the first arrived. This meant that the new ark’s massive engines would be pointing towards the approaching ark and their firing should be easily detectable. If the launch did not occur and no detection made, the Assemblage would know that it had lost control of this system.

Picket continued, “The second reason is that humanity must obviously join forces with the Assemblage against our common enemy, the Hemru. They have clearly demonstrated their belligerence and proven to be dangerous even across interstellar distances. They will move against your world as they have already moved against the Assemblage ark. They will have no other choice.”

—Part of this response is a falsehood John.— I heard in my mind. Ohmu had sent this new message. I noted it felt just like the implant communications my real shell was capable of.

“Pause,” I said subvocally. When the scene froze again I said to the android, “Please explain, Ohmu?” Kela and Adele turned to Ohmu also. They must have received the android’s private mental message as well as they made no inquiries about the pause.

“The previous statement by the Picket operative has inconsistencies, John. It remains unsure as to the true disposition of the Hemru species towards humanity. It knows the Hemru rogue agents were behind your success here against its master AI but is unsure of any communications between humanity and the Hemru since then. I believe its statement about the Hemru threat existing against humanity is both a bluff and an attempt to ‘troll’ for further information.”

Interesting. Adele asked a few follow-on questions about how Ohmu had arrived at that conclusion. The main reasons were that the data existing in the new Picket’s mind had been almost completely analyzed and that Dionus was running an active comparison against the other versions of this ‘Picket’ operative currently active in other iterations.

Some of those iterations were augmented with wide-ranging hypothetical scenarios. One scenario included increased active Hemru support arriving on Earth before the arrival of the ark. In that iteration, the barely-in-control master AI and the new Picket operatives were actively battling Hemru augmented human resistance forces.

Ohmu was basing her understanding of Picket’s true motives and beliefs by comparing this version with all the other active versions. A true image of the enemy’s knowledge of the Hemru was forming. It was like being questioned in a holding cell and having your answers compared to those of dozens of copies in other holding cells. Trying to maintain a consistent story would be pointless. We resumed the virtual session with Picket.

“Picket. You know that the Hemru are the reason Humanity overthrew your puppet master AI here in this solar system? How can you claim that they pose a threat to us after we’ve already received their help?” I asked.

“Simple, John, they are too distant to know that humanity continues to rule here. Our ark has intercepted no messages sent from your world to theirs informing them of that. You have wisely tried to suppress the knowledge of your activities from us. This also limits your ability to converse freely with the Hemru. They will have to be suspicious of your silence.

“The Hemru are therefore required to assume that the agents they sent sixteen-hundred years ago had failed. They will logically conclude that your planet is still firmly under Assemblage control. Your ongoing ruse of constructing Assemblage habitats and mind-data receiving infrastructure would also foster those Hemru suspicions.

“Also, considering the fact that the attack on our ark was launched from Hemru space possibly as long as a millennia ago in order to catch our departing ark, it is logical that additional attacks targeted on this world may have already long since been launched.” Picket explained.

Adele, Kela, and I digested that soberly. Ohmu remained silent. I turned to the android and raised my eyebrows slightly.

—The operative’s assumptions are logical John.— I heard via my virtual implant.

I turned back to Picket. “So, you want us to throw in with the Assemblage because we have no other choice?”

“That is correct. If you do nothing, the Assemblage will become aware that you are no longer under their control. A suppression attack will be launched before they arrive hoping to damage this system enough to ensure their safe passage. Their high velocity approaching your system both protects them and increases your vulnerability. You and your AIs have already concluded this.

“In addition, the Hemru will continue to assume that your world remains firmly under our control. Logically, if they had launched an attack on your world long ago, it will have been timed to arrive here just before or during our passage in an attempt to interrupt the transmission of our mind-data to your planet. Even if you were now to transmit news of your overthrow of our control to the Hemru, it would not arrive at their world in time for them to stop such an already-launched attack.

“So, you see John, your only real choice is to aid us. This will both forestall the Assemblage ark’s preemptive attack triggered by your inaction and also ensure that humanity survives the likely coming attack or attacks from the Hemru,” he explained.

“How so?” I replied, curious.

“Why, the rescue ark you construct and launch from your system will also carry along with it all the mind-data of every human being currently living John. Humanity will thus escape the coming Hemru attacks and better yet, once the two arks’ rendezvous, the mind-data contained on both will be merged. Humanity will join the Assemblage in populating countless future star systems and your long-term survival will be assured.”

I was too stunned to pause the session. Picket was intending that humans would become like the Assemblage and spread themselves across the galaxy.

“Why would they allow humans to join them?” I asked.

“Why would they not, John? Humans are not so different from the Assemblage. You have proven to be highly adaptable both to digital mind-data transfer and to genetic engineering. As digital freight, your population will be suspended just like that of the Assemblage. Once downloaded onto new worlds, all will be integrated into new bioforms so there will be no real differences between either species,” he explained.

No one spoke for a moment as the humans absorbed that revelation. It was telling that Ohmu did not say anything via implant. What Picket was saying must have been a possibility.

Picket continued, “So, humanity can either do nothing and face the attacks from both the Assemblage and the Hemru or it can join us and escape, spreading itself among the stars. I suppose a third choice would be that some of you could escape by fleeing this system on your own. You have time to finish your current interstellar range vessel and possibly construct one or two more before any attacks arrive.”

I looked directly at the alien operative. “Or we could go down fighting. Shift all of our efforts into building an attack force and sending it off to destroy your ark. We would remove that threat and maybe we’d survive the Hemru attack. If not, maybe our solar system could be recolonized by the humans we have already sent off to other systems or whom we have stored away in the far reaches of this one.”

Picket stared back at me. He did not argue the point nor did it seem particularly worried. Finally, he spoke. “That remains an option for you John. I am sure your AIs have already calculated the chances of success. Those chances must be very low … almost suicidally low.” He simply continued to stare at me after he was finished.

I managed to control myself and not reply. I wondered if Picket’s mention of suicide had a deeper meaning. If so, he was very clever indeed. After another long moment of silence Adele began asking further questions regarding Picket’s claims and statements. He was able to add details that reinforced his reasoning. I just stood there listening and thinking. I had to admit he had me in turmoil.

 

Chapter 2: Terms of Service

Picket’s conclusions did make some sense. At least from the perspective of what he currently understood about humanity and our current technology level. He had clearly dismissed the viability of our attacking the enemy ark preemptively in an act of defiance or vengeance. I wondered if he knew from studying our current society something I secretly feared. That my fellow contemporary humans might lack the deep-seated hatred that I felt as a direct survivor of what had been done to my world so long ago?

I would determine the validity of those fears during the upcoming Conscientia global forum and would see how greater humanity would react to the news that I had just learned. Would they be swayed by his seemingly logical conclusions? I would soon find out. There was one more thing to verify. Our enemy and especially this agent were not yet aware of our recent discoveries. I wondered how that knowledge would affect its logical arguments.

“Ohmu,” I sent sub-vocally. “Will this version of Picket be involved with the Conscientia forum in two days?”

—Yes, John. This version will be made available to give testimony as to the state of the enemy.—

Hmm … I was uneasy about that. This Picket was good. The majority of humanity was isolated from the actions the assemblage had caused on this world eleven hundred years ago. We had tried to educate them with a good grounding of history but still, it was not the same as having lived through it all. That isolation combined with this smooth-talking enemy agent might be cause for concern.

“Ohmu, I want to see how Picket reacts to the knowledge of our wormhole discovery. If we do, can this version of him then be reset afterwards to no longer have that knowledge?”

—Yes, John. I can save his present knowledge level and then restore that version in the future if you request. I am curious as to why you think it would be necessary.—

“I’m not sure, Ohmu. I just have a feeling. Maybe it’s because this guy is such a slick talker. I don’t like the way Adele seems to be soaking it all up as gospel. When I tell you to, I want you to share all of our wormhole discoveries including the projected future progress we will make using the Forbin experiment results with the operative. Extrapolate those future developments as best you can. It’s not important if it’s completely accurate, Okay?”

—Yes, John. I will do as you ask.—

“Also, I’d like you to pause Adele and Kela while this happens. Can you do that or can you load this version of Picket into another private meeting room with just you and me present?”

—I can pause Adele and Kela. Note that they will both likely be aware of the pause after resumption.—

I’d have to deal with their questions later. “Okay, pause them and let’s see what happens.”

After Picket finished answering Adele’s most recent question, her and Kela’s images froze. Picket noticed and looked to me and Ohmu curiously.

“Picket. Your argument seems logical, but I don’t think you have a complete understanding of our capabilities. There are a few more-recent developments which I want you to be aware of. The data will be relayed to you now,” I said.

His image flickered as Ohmu and Dionus uploaded the knowledge I had requested. This transfer occurred at an even faster rate than the already-accelerated speed of the current iteration. Ten seconds later Picket’s image stopped flickering. He looked at me with a shocked expression on his face. For a moment I thought I even detected a hint of fear. Then, he regained control of himself and a calm expression came over his face.

“John. I am impressed at the new discoveries humans have made. I would love to meet this Uxe person who has been responsible for so much innovation. But even though you have made such technological breakthroughs, the risks of attacking the approaching ark still remain insurmountable. And, even if humans should be so lucky as to destroy our ark, you will still face the approaching doom of the Hemru attack.”

—John, be aware that there is much doubt and falsehood in this operative’s mind at this time.—

“Relax, Ohmu, I got this,” I subvocalized in reply. My bullshit detector was working perfectly and I smelled what Picket was hiding. He was nervous and afraid.

“Picket, here is what I think. I think we will soon have the ability to safely crush your ark along with any threats it may present to my world and species. I also think that we will be able to stop any Hemru attack which may be headed this way, either directly or by contacting the Hemru and having them stop the attack. That is what I intend to see happen,” I said, staring at him intently. I had to hand it to him. He controlled his panic and appeared to remain calm.

After a few seconds, he smiled and replied, “This is your anger expressing itself, John. You still harbor great ill will towards my species for what was done to your world. Don’t you realize that what happened was for the best? Your old world was doomed. Your own people had driven it too far down the path towards collapse, both environmentally and as a civilization.”

When he saw that I was not going to dispute his claims he went on. “Your new world is now a paradise in comparison to that old one. Nature’s balance has been restored and your people now exist without suffering or conflict. You must get over your old hatreds and accept that what has happened was for the best. You must accept that the Assemblage saved your world and your species.”

Technically what he said could have been truthful. We would never know though as humanity had been destroyed before it had had a chance to redeem itself. Although, it could be argued that many of humanity’s ills and the issues we’d had with the environment had been driven by the secret cold war between the Hemru and the Assemblage agents. I had to admit that humanity probably shared most of the blame.

I would never forget. I still remembered some of the more-powerful images of the fall of humanity. One especially potent image was that of a group of skeletons representing one of humanity’s last redoubts in a cave on Rodrigues Island in the middle of the Indian ocean. They had lain there together after having fought to the death against Assemblage eradication drones that had discovered their hideout. Nice try Picket. I smiled and shook my head.

He understood my expression and sighed heavily. “Well, at least there is the hope that the rest of your species might act more logically and not from hatred. After all, they had not suffered through those times like you did, John. It is good that you are but one voice among many,” he said.

When I laughed loudly in response he looked confused.

“Ohmu, have Dionus upload into this operative the reality of my situation regarding the AIs and the rest of my species,” I whispered subvocally. Let’s see how Picket reacts when he learns just who wields the ultimate power here.

Picket’s image again flickered as the knowledge was uploaded. While I waited, I double-checked that Adele and Kela were still paused. They were. I shook my head. This meeting within a meeting within a virtual simulation was confusing.

Picket became still. He was again back with me. I saw from the sudden look of horror on his face that he now fully understood the reality of this system. Finally, he spoke. “Your people do not know they are slaves!”

“Not slaves Picket, maybe closer to subjects. But hopefully, they will never be forced to feel as such. Regardless, the truth exists that they are my people, and this is my world! You and your species’ actions forced it to be this way. You will have to deal with the consequences of those actions,” I stated matter-of-factly.

I had to admit, this operative was quick. His face made a series of expressions as he quickly calculated the ramifications of what I had just said and determined his, and by extension, his species’ remaining options. Finally, a look of calm acceptance came across his face. Damn, he was quick!

“John. If the information you have relayed to me is accurate then there is little hope for my species and for the survival of the ark. I would offer to ease the danger and burden humanity would still face going through with an attack.” He paused and stared directly at me.

“Transmit me back to the Assemblage as an envoy. I will share this knowledge with them and coordinate the terms of our surrender. They will see the futility of the situation and will submit to your authority. We will no longer be a threat to you and you will then be free to focus on the worse threat, which is the pending attack from the Hemru.”

“Ohmu?” I asked subvocally.

—This operative believes itself to be truthful and sincere. The problem remains that this operative was transmitted without detailed knowledge of the controlling intelligences of the Assemblage which sent it. It, therefore, has no way of knowing how that entity will react to the knowledge provided to it. The actions suggested by this agent would therefore be an extreme gamble.—

That was my gut read as well. I considered what Picket had said and Ohmu’s summary for a moment before concluding that this meeting was over.

“Ohmu, erase this version of Picket and restore the one which existed before we added the wormhole discovery knowledge and that of my control over the system. Then, unfreeze Adele and Kela and resume the normal meeting.”

“Yes, John.”

Shortly, the old version of Picket was restored and the normal meeting resumed. Kela and Adele both looked at me a bit confused after the resumption but did not question what had occurred. Adele resumed questioning Picket and this continued for another ten minutes. I was listening along while also thinking about Picket’s reaction while we had our private discussion.

My attention was brought back to Adele’s questions when she brought up something I had not considered.

“Picket. You say that we are to build a second, rescue ark and send it off to rendezvous with your damaged ark. If we did so and repaired the damaged ark, you claim that both arks will then proceed along new vectors across space, right?” Adele asked.

“That is correct Ms. Adele. The course changes will remove the threat of continuing attacks from the Hemru.” Picket responded.

“But what about the original scouts launched from the Assemblage home world millennia ago? They landed on the Hemru world, on the Earth and who knows how many other worlds along the ark’s course. Surely there were scouts who landed on worlds further along the Assemblage Approach Vector. If the ark changes course after we repair it won’t it miss those worlds and scouts?”

“Very good Ms. Adele! You are correct. But the truth is that only one additional world beyond yours received scouts. After the Assemblage ark was launched from our home world in what was 3550 BCE of your calendar, and before that world was fully destroyed, frantic scout production and launches occurred.

“As you know, each scout was targeting upon a pre-selected star system along the ark’s course. Your world was the next-to-last to receive one of those scouts. Because of the dwindling resources back home and due to the extreme distances involved, the last system we were able to launch a scout vessel towards was the star system humans know as Altair.

“Altair is located approximately seventeen light-years further beyond the Earth along the course of the ark. As this was to be the final scouted star system, we had additional plans for the system.” Picket explained.

“What were those?” I asked, interrupting Adele’s questioning.

“Upon the scout’s arrival at Altair, in addition to preparing any local suitable planets to receive our species’ digital mind-data, new construction yards were to be built. These would be used to construct and launch a new fleet of scouts. The new scouts would then be sent onward along the ark’s course. Your world and Altair were to have spent centuries beforehand scanning the star systems further ahead for likely colonization targets along the current vector of the ark.”

Picket paused for a moment. His face took on the look of someone deep in thought or conversing with an AI. I wondered if this simulation of him included virtual implants to allow him to interact with the artificial intelligences. Or maybe he had a simulated augment like the old picket had.

He finally continued, “If I recall correctly, the next notable scheduled star system to be visited by the ark on its original course was the star system humans knew as Tarazed.” Picket paused again and then went on, “Also known by your records as Gamma Aquilae, Tarazed lies further on the current course of the ark at a distance of almost four hundred light-years from Earth.

“It was hoped that in the five millennia the ark would have taken to travel from Altair to Tarazed, addition star systems between the two systems would have been detected and targeted with scouts. Now, with the damaged ark needing repairs and its course adjusted, new options for detecting worlds along whatever new courses both arks will travel will be needed.” He explained.

“Will there be enough time to send the new ark travel vectors to your scout construction yard on Altair so that it can send scouts along the new courses?” Adele asked.

“No. Our plan was that the second ark constructed here will carry along two new seed scouts in addition to all the repair and refueling energies for both arks. After the ark’s rendezvous, the seed scouts will be sent on ahead along each of their new courses. The task of the scouts will be to quickly find a suitable solar system in which to build new shipyard facilities.

“These shipyards will then construct and launch further scouts, entire fleets!, which will travel ahead along the courses of each ark. The large numbers will be needed, as colonizable systems are projected to become more plentiful as they head towards the galactic center and areas of increasing star densities.” Picket explained.

There was a pause as we digested his words. I was struck by the fact that the Assemblage ark and scouts had already traveled a vast distance. Earth had been near the tail end of their ability to send scouts. If we had only been a few light-years off to the side of the ark’s course or just a system or two further along we’d have been spared.

“Picket, how many colonies have the Assemblage already created?” I asked the enemy agent.

Picket looked troubled. “I was not given complete data on that John. I am sorry. I only know details of one other star system, other than the failed attempt at the Hemru world. It is a relatively close world to yours, John.”

“Procyon?” I asked, naming the system we’d long suspected of being an assemblage target. The enemy had recently flown past the world just seventy-three years ago.

Picket looked slightly embarrassed. “No. Luyten’s Star, John. That red dwarf was nearer to the course of the Assemblage ark and was chosen to receive an early scout visit and a mind-data download as the ark passed by. I will also reveal that Procyon, at one point four light-years away, will be colonized from Luyten’s Star as soon as it’s feasible as it’s a much better candidate system for long-term habitation.

“I share this freely with you because your AIs will easily deduce that goal,” the enemy agent added.

“How long until that occurs?” I asked.

“I have no idea.” Picket replied.

—The AI advisory council calculates approximately two centuries from the time of mind-data deposition to arrival of the first colonizer from Luyten’s Star to Procyon, John. That first ship will likely arrive in one-hundred-thirty years, give or take twenty years.— Ohmu said in my implant.

Adele continued her questioning. I was distracted by the problem of our new neighbors. We faced established Assemblage colonies on two star systems just a dozen light-years away. They would have to be dealt with at some point in our near future. Worse, we’d have to backtrack the Assemblage ark’s course and see how many other colonies existed. Hopefully, the Hemru were already busy doing just that.

The current theory was that the Hemru had acted to aid Humanity because we were the only other Assemblage colony location that had an already established sentient species. It was thought that the Assemblage had planted colonies on many other worlds which did not have intelligent life, or possibly, no life at all. We’d have to find out, if we wanted long-term security.

After Adele’s questions were concluded, we wrapped up our meeting. Picket had said that he looked forward to testifying at the pending worldwide Conscientia forum in two days. I looked forward to the forum for different reasons. In the meantime, I had a few virtual calls to make. The first was to my old friend Uxe Esperanza. Of all the humans, I knew I could trust her advice and reasoning the most.

***

Later in the morning, Adele was giggling like a schoolgirl as Ticklefin pulled her around the calm waters of the north lagoon. She had a firm grip on the ultra-dolph’s dorsal fin as its powerful flukes propelled them quickly through the crystal-clear waters. After they circled back near to where I was floating on a lounging platform, she let go and treaded water. The sleek dolphin swam and dove around her.

“How long have you had a dolphin living here with you, John?” she asked as she arrived at the edge of my floating mat.

“He and his pod were here when I first arrived after coming back from Mongolia. I think they had already been in the area for a few years,” I replied. “Ticklefin is the friendliest of the bunch. The rest I see less frequently.”
 

Just then the dolphin popped up beside us.—Dive Adele! Adele dive! I show you pretties!—

Adele grabbed the small rebreather which she had left on my platform and strapped it around her shoulders. I took advantage of her movements to check out her firm breasts. She then grabbed the swim fins which had also been on the mat and contorted herself to put them onto her feet. This allowed me a great view of her other special regions.

I gave a heavy sigh after she dove out of sight following the dolphin to the bottom. I’d need to wrap up our interviewing soon and move our relationship into a more-physical phase. This assumed that Adele was agreeable. I was pretty sure that was the case from her occasional glances at my exposed manhood. If not, I’d soon have to see if a certain touch-therapist was available. One who wanted to spend a few days on a tropical island.

Ohmu came riding up on an electric wave skipper. She had brought a cooler. When the skipper came to a stop next to my floating mat, she handed me a cold bottle of iced tea.

“You’ve read my mind, Ohmu. Thank you.”

“Yes, John. I could see you licking your lips all the way from shore and assumed you were thirsty. It was either that or your base desires were expressing themselves again, due to exposure to your nude guest. Shall I contact Ms. Beraza and enquire if she would have an opening soon to come and help you with your needs?”

Hmm. Angelina was a wonderful and adventurous lover and I would love to spend time with her. But Adele was already here and seemed willing enough. I quelled the fantasy that formed of sharing my bed with both beautiful women at the same time.

“Not quite yet. Let’s see what develops with Adele first.”

“As you wish, John. You might wish to be aware that the next group of vacationers will be arriving on the island in one hour. The new accommodation structures have been cleaned and re-stocked,” the android said.

“Thank you, Ohmu. Adele and I will be clear of the beach before they come out to swim.” I had no desire to meet the latest batch of Forbin Complex visitors. As soon as I said that, it occurred to me that maybe Adele would want to meet the guests. “I need to revise that. I shouldn’t speak for Adele. She may wish to loiter around and meet some of them,” I added.

Thirty meters away the subject of our discussion surfaced. She had a handful of colorful shells. Ticklefin surfaced next to her with another in its beak. I smiled as I watched them play with their treasure and each other.

The time in the water today was a good distraction. I had been mulling over both the recent virtual meeting with Picket and my follow-up call to my friend and occasional lover, Uxe. She was busy working on the wormhole project. The new official name for the wormhole research was now the Far Reach project or FRP for short. This was the rapidly growing project to quickly develop wormhole technology into something robust enough to attack our enemies and to defend ourselves from them.

Currently, the main research facility was located in space beyond the far side of the moon, at the Earth-Lunar L2 point. The original research site on the Vesta asteroid was being rebuilt. I’d learned that other facilities were being prepared for the FRP all across the solar system.

The largest and most advanced was being constructed on Mars. Uxe had said that she might be relocating to that facility soon. I was surprised at how much this upset me, as I had grown accustomed to having her nearby. Well, nearby if you include the few hundred thousand kilometers to the far side of the moon.

How was it going, you ask? Well if I understood the simplified updates which Uxe sent to me periodically I would say ‘pretty good.’ We’d used the data we had extracted from the Forbin experimental data center to rapidly push the theories involving wormhole technology. All of our key goals now had promising avenues of active research, and we were beginning to show positive results.

Of course, there had also been setbacks. One of the worst was when they had lost nearly a dozen new AIs by trying to boost their processing and memory capacity beyond stable limits to better understand the advanced data we’d extracted from Forbin. The good news was that the lost data and intelligences had all been fully backed up.

After a week’s worth of delays, the majority had been restored and were again operating, although at a lower and safer intelligence threshold below the practical artificial sentience limits. Uxe’s personal AI, Truffles, had been one of the AIs lost and had suffered the most.

This was due to its specialized logic hierarchy, which the local backup had not fully captured. A new complete physical copy of the original AI had to be brought in-system from where it resided on the asteroid Vesta via an expedited torch to fully restore that lost sentience.

Uxe and I had had a long discussion involving the information I had learned from the Assemblage operative. She had been the only other human or AI besides Ohmu and Naomi with whom I had shared the full extent of my private session with that version of Picket. She agreed with my assessment of not cooperating with the Assemblage.

Uxe was also curious and slightly worried about how the greater humanity would react to the enemy agent’s proposal. When we finished our conversation, she had reassured me that she trusted my judgment and would have my back. I felt much better after having heard that.

We said our goodbyes, during which I promised to try and visit her in lunar orbit before she left to relocate to Mars. She would also be joining me at the global Conscientia forum, although we would not have much chance to talk privately due to the real-time virtuality clock rate it would be operating at.

“Ohmu. I’d like to have a virtual conversation with you and Naomi soon. Is the AI back in high bandwidth contact yet?” I asked the android.

“Querencia is still in transit to its primary undersea docking station in the Indian Ocean, John. She should be arriving in this vicinity later tonight where it will then be able to connect to underwater high-bandwidth optical data lines. Would a virtual meeting tomorrow morning be acceptable?”

“That would be fine, Ohmu.” Naomi was currently relocating Querencia, her massive submarine, to the waters somewhere near the island. She had moved the sub to a specialized shipyard in Norway three months ago for a minor refit of its fusion plant. That work had been completed three weeks ago and the boat had been sailing a meandering return course since. It had just entered this part of the Indian Ocean a few days ago.

During much of the transit, the sub had traveled on the surface, allowing Naomi to remain in full contact with the world-wide data net via the high-bandwidth satellite network. But, during the last few days, Querencia remained submerged and traveling much slower. Naomi wanted to arrive untracked so that the location of its nearby undersea docking bases remained hidden from any humans tracking it.

Once the boat was on station, it would remain submerged and hidden like a sunken log. All data traffic to and from the boat would then be relayed via undersea optical cables with tethered data buoys waiting on standby as a backup.

Ohmu and I were interrupted from further conversation by Adele who was now quickly swimming towards the floating lounging pad using powerful strokes. Ticklefin was diving and jumping into the air behind her. I spotted his protruding extended penis on one of his jumps and had a good idea what was up.

“John! Do you know what your dolphin just asked me to do!” Adele sputtered as she pulled up to my floating pad next to Ohmu’s wave skipper.

Now he was my dolphin? I almost hid my grin. “Well, I imagine he’s been begging for a hand job again. Or did he suggest something more athletic?”

I think my forthright answer surprised Adele as she lost some of her bluster and asked, “You mean he’s asked before?”

“Of course! I’m surprised he waited as long as he did. You’ve got to understand that bottlenose dolphins … well, all dolphins really, are very sexually promiscuous. The new ultra-dolphs are even worse. He’s horny almost constantly and well, you may have noticed he does not have any hands to help himself,” I replied.

“But … But why doesn’t he go find a girl dolphin or something?” she asked, looking around the cove in frustration. She had moved past anger and more into embarrassment. I shouldn’t be teasing her but it was pretty funny. Ohmu played along and remained silent.

“Well, if I had to guess, the rest of his pod is off fishing or playing far beyond the reef. He stayed behind to play with us humans. You know, to keep us entertained and help us have fun in the water. Now they are too far away to reach quickly.”

Ticklefin chose that moment to swim by. He rolled onto his side and presented us with a great view of his pink, conical S-shaped tallywacker. He started squeaking dolphin talk at us.

—John! Adele won’t give Ticklefin a rub. Why won’t Adele rub?”—

I knew both of our implants were translating the dolphin’s squeaks. I had to struggle to keep from bursting out laughing as Adele turned about as pink as Ticklefin’s penis was.

“I’m not sure Ticklefin. Maybe she’s just not in the mood right now,” I told the dolphin.

“John!” she exclaimed. This time I did burst out laughing. She finally realized I was mocking her and splashed water on me.

I stopped laughing and turned to the android. “Ohmu, would you please help out our aquatic friend?

The android reached into a compartment in the wave skipper, retrieved a compact package, and tossed it overboard. We watched it swell with seawater to form a meter-long multicolored cylinder. One side had a recess that looked … well, let’s just say it probably looked very inviting if you were a male dolphin.

The cylinder sank nearly to the bottom with Ticklefin following closely. What followed was a dozen seconds of frantic swimming which culminated with the dolphin humping itself into its underwater sex toy forcefully three or four times. After that, the spent dolphin drifted in the water.

—Thank you, Ohmu! I better now.—

Adele looked both shocked and intrigued. “Well, at least he is quick.”

“Yes. Dolphins can ejaculate at will. If you would have given the poor guy a tug it would have only taken a few seconds.”

She snorted, “Well, if it’s so easy why didn’t you jump in and give him a hand?”

I simply waved my hand up and down my male shell. “Sorry, I lack the right equipment. I doubt I would have turned him on like your sexy bod does.” I kept the fact that Ticklefin was horny and accommodating enough to have gladly accepted a hand job from me, or Ohmu, or even a bit of floating driftwood. I looked towards Ohmu. “Thanks for remembering to bring his toy along.”

“No problem, John. The dolphin is easy to satisfy. At least he does not roll over and snore when he is finished, unlike others I have to service,” the android said pointedly.

I almost snorted again when I saw Adele give each of us a look. I’d have to think of a way to get back at the little android for its insinuation. Still, I’d also noticed that the young women’s gaze had lingered on me and my fully exposed manhood a bit longer than normal. Maybe Ticklefin’s open sexual display or Ohmu’s fabricated insinuation might lead to a quick progression of our relationship.

***

The next morning, I woke with a smile. I was alone in my bed but only for the past hour, as Adele was still an early riser. As I had suspected, she had been a wonderful and enthusiastic lover, and we had enjoyed each other’s company until well past midnight. Yesterday afternoon after our swim, we had wrapped up our interviews.

The timeline of our discussions had reached the present, and all that was left regarding her research was follow-up questions, as she prepared the full biographical record. We had celebrated the milestone achievement with a peaceful supper on the rooftop terrace.

Afterwards, we had shared a bottle of wine and enjoyed a soak in the hot tub. Eventually, we shifted our relationship away from the more-formal interview type and succumbed to our rising mutual passions. Yes, it had been a good night indeed.

My full bladder finally motivated me to rise and make my way to the attached bathroom. While I was standing there relieving myself Ohmu broke in, almost causing me a mishap.

 

That was a preview of Cut to the Quick - Book 5. To read the rest purchase the book.

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