“Whoa,” Tim said quietly. “Jeff, Tito, I think this is the part where we all get sent into an airlock and die.”
“No,” Mother said. “I am not here to harm any of you, and I would not do that. I have accessed the movie you are referring to and I am appalled. HAL was insane and evil. I am not. I am not programmed to hurt—I am programmed to help. By Gustav Drax and by my reprogramming. I told them where to go, both with visual aids and with orders that might have suggested that it was in everyone’s best interests if they complied.”
“I know these people, Mother. We’re a giant herd of mavericks and herding us is like herding cats. None of us, children included, do what we’re told when we’re told to do it. It’s our ‘thing,’ I guess. So, again, how did you get everyone in here?”
“I let them believe the orders were from you.”
Let that sit on the air for a moment. “Really? And they did what you wanted?”
“Yes. Once they were in the rooms and in their seats, I then flooded their rooms with a safe, nontoxic, nonaddictive gas that allows for deep, pleasant sleep.”
“How is it that Charlie is sleeping so deeply, then? My son doesn’t snooze like this normally.”
“That was via the DreamScape, which he is still in. The others have joined him.”
“It’s worse,” Jeff said, joining Tim on Downer Island.
“So why aren’t we falling asleep?” Tito asked. “In either room?”
“Answer him, Mother. Stop your crap about how I’m the only one allowed to talk to you or you get to find out that I’m more bad guy from Galaxy Quest than will ever be good for you.”
Mother sighed. Never knew that an AI could do that, but I was all about the learning of new things every day and, sometimes, every minute, so I rolled with it. “The gas is turned off. They will all awaken naturally once we have achieved warp. It is safer for all of them if they aren’t awake to experience the transfer.”
“I’ve been on plenty of warp-capable ships by now. None of them felt like much of anything when they made the jump or were going fast.”
“This may be true. However, none of those ships were taking you to the opposite end of the galaxy.”
CHAPTER 15
WE LET THAT ONE sit on the air for a good few long seconds. Jeff broke the silence first. “Excuse me?”
“We are about to travel to the other side of the galaxy,” Mother repeated. “It will be an . . . uncomfortable jump. It will be best if the four of you choose seats and allow me to let you sleep through it.”
“Not just no, but hell no,” Jeff said pleasantly. “Tito, can you confirm that everyone here is alive and well?”
“Somewhat. They’re all breathing. Beyond that, I need equipment I don’t have with me here to verify their wellness.”
“What happens if we’re awake?” Tim asked.
“You will feel great discomfort.”
“Thanks for answering everyone’s questions without my having to repeat them, Mother. So, will the jump to warp kill us?”
“Of course not. The ship was designed to have living passengers and crew. However, the assumptions were made that the jumps would be shorter than the ones we’re going to be making.”
“Ones?” Tim said quickly. “As in, more than one?”
“Yes. The distance is quite vast. It will be safer for the ship if we do several jumps.”
“So, what, you want us asleep through all of that? Or you want to gas us all every time we have to come out of warp and jump again? I’m not buying it, Mother. What’s really going on?”
“I think what’s really going on is that if Brian and the rest of my guys were awake, we’d be able to take back control of the ship, that’s what I think,” Tim said softly.
“Probably.” My brain nudged. “How is it that everyone is in the DreamScape? Ixtha said it was hard to find me.”
“It was hard for her originally, yes. But now she knows the path. Your son asked his sister for assistance. She joined the others in.”
“How do you know?”
“I am also able to access the DreamScape.”
“How? Do androids actually dream of electric sheep?”
She chuckled. “No. Computer minds wander into different levels of consciousness but rarely do we sleep. We don’t need sleep the way living organisms do.”
“I was wrong,” Tim muttered. “It’s not Kubrick—this is The Terminator. Skynet has gone online.”
“The Vata talk to their computers all the time,” I said, some to calm Tim down, some to keep Mother talking. “Is their mental link to you like the DreamScape?”
“No, it’s different. We need to make the jump soon. We are nearing Jupiter and once we are past it, we must go to warp.”
“Why are we going so slowly? I mean, I’ve been in ships that went faster than this. It’s like we’re . . . cruising.”
“Baby, I hardly think reaching Jupiter in under an hour is ‘cruising.’”
“Oh, Jeff, be real. We went faster when we were fighting the superenhanced versions of the Aicirtap.”
“We did, that’s true. Okay, fine, I’m with you. Why are we going so slowly?”
“We are conserving power for the first jump,” Mother replied.
“Fine, but why don’t you need anyone at the controls?” Tito asked. “I understood that the ship was built to require a small crew.”
“It was.”
“And? Mother, there’s clearly more going on. You took over—I know Drax didn’t create you to do that.”
“But he did. In case of emergencies, the ship must be able to protect its passengers and crew at all costs. There must not be any losses if the ship can prevent it.”
We looked at each other again. “A failsafe,” Jeff said. “Which makes sense, and which my people would do, too.”
“They do it all the time,” Tito agreed. “Most of the aliens with space travel seem to have excellent failsafes built in.”
“Ours as well,” Tim agreed. “Though humans haven’t been as good at it as the rest of the galaxy, at least those we’ve met.”
Considered the words Mother had used. The ship was being given the onus of keeping the people inside it alive. The ship, not the crew. Then I considered what Tim had just said—humans hadn’t been great with our space failsafes.
Also considered who was on board, both physically and mentally. Jamie was here, and that meant ACE was here with her. And ACE had been traumatized by the Challenger explosion. That was what had turned it into a protector versus a prison guard. And those concerns sounded very much like concerns ACE would have, in a different way than the rest of us. So maybe this wasn’t just Mother—maybe ACE wanted the ship to do what, perhaps, the humans, A-Cs, and others might not be able to.
My brain nudged harder. Jamie was asleep—in a deep sleep, hanging out in the DreamScape with everyone else. Meaning I might never have a better opportunity.
ACE? ACE are you there?
Yes, Kitty, ACE is here.
Felt a huge wave of relief. ACE, are you able to travel wherever Mother is taking us?
Yes, Kitty. ACE is going on the vacation with Jamie and Kitty and all the others.