I checked the kitchen, wondering if there would be food there. Naoko’s body was mostly organic, so that meant she’d need to eat. Right? Plus, the ship would have other crew.
It was stocked, but I didn’t even recognize most of the food options. I decided to play it safe, and just grab a couple of ration bars. At fifteen hundred calories each that would make a good start on rebuilding my body’s depleted energy reserves.
Naoko must have been taking a really long shower, because she still hadn’t shown up by the time I finished. Well, there was only one hatch left to try, on the far side of the lounge from where I’d come in. Sure enough, the room it led to had to be the bridge. There were three big acceleration couches surrounded by control panels mounted on servos, and the walls and ceiling were all one big viewscreen showing the ship’s surroundings.
“Good morning, Alice,” a soothing androgynous voice said. “This is the Speedy Exit’s autopilot AI. Are you prepared for liftoff?”
An AI? Sweet! I’d never met one of those before.
“You bet I am, Speedy Exit. How about you?”
“Preflight checklist is eighty-seven percent complete. All critical engineering systems are operating normally, and fuel levels are at one hundred and seventy-five percent.”
“How can the fuel tanks be more than a hundred percent full?” I asked curiously.
“The Speedy Exit mounts external drop tanks,” the AI explained. “Would you like to sit, Alice? You are authorized to use one of the observer positions.”
“Oh, um, sure.”
A wall panel towards the back of the bridge opened, and another seat folded out of it. This one wasn’t as big, and it didn’t have any control panels around it. But I’d be able to look out the main viewscreen, and that was more than I would have dared ask for.
I realized I was smiling so wide it made my cheeks hurt. I was going into space! Something about that thought just felt so right.
Dawn was breaking over the spaceport. Here and there I could see teams of bots working around the other shuttles, tirelessly moving an endless procession of giant cargo containers. A cloud of steam rose from the far side of the field, where a big cargo shuttle must have just landed. I was sorry I’d missed seeing that, but there was a sleek little ship gliding past us. Maybe they were getting ready to take off?
A ground car with flashing lights mounted on top curved around the moving ship, and floated towards us. The port proctors? Yes, there were two dryads in uniforms visible through the windshield. What were they doing?
“Alice, I’m receiving a com call from that patrol vehicle,” the autopilot said. “Do you wish to reply?”
“No,” I said hastily. “Ask Naoko what to do, and don’t tell anyone that I’m here.”
“You have good instincts,” came Naoko’s voice from the open hatch.
She stepped into the bridge, and I felt my jaw drop. Instead of clothes, she’d changed into a suit of what had to be powered combat armor. It fit her so perfectly that her amazing figure was still pretty obvious, but practically every inch of her was covered in gleaming armor. She’d even put on a helmet, although it left her face uncovered.
She smiled at my expression.
“My captain likes it when I demonstrate that I’m not just decorative,” she told me. “Are you space rated?”
“I don’t even know what that means.”
“Can you survive in a vacuum, dear?”
“Oh! Um, sort of? I think I’m supposed to end up that way, but a lot of my features haven’t grown in yet. Right now vacuum would kill most of my organic parts, but I think I’d still be alive if you got me to a medical bay. Why, are you expecting a problem?”
“No, Alice, but it’s best to be prepared for the unexpected. Please stay in your seat while we’re in flight. It will protect you if anything does go wrong.”
“Alright, sure. What about the proctors?”
The car had reached the shuttle while we were talking, and now a pair of dryads in black law enforcement uniforms were climbing out. Neither of them looked happy.
“I suppose I should see what they want,” Naoko reluctantly conceded. “Computer, set up a com filter to hide Alice Long, and then answer their call.”
“Done,” the autopilot said.
Naoko settled herself in one of the control seats, and a com window opened on the main screen in front of her. An annoyed dryad’s face filled the view.
“Finally! Speedy Exit, this is Proctor Lena of the Faith’s Door Port Authority. We’ve received information that you’ve been seen in the company of a wanted fugitive.”
Naoko was definitely programmed for acting. Her astonished expression was a work of art.
“A fugitive? How terrible! Does this dangerous individual have a name, or perhaps a face?”
A secondary window opened, showing a set of pictures from the orphanage. They had a good close-up of my face, and of course a rotating 3D model from my last medical scan.
Darn. They must have a computer scanning through drone footage from the port, or something. But why were they bothering? I never thought they’d go to that much trouble to find me.
“Her name is Alice Long. She’s believed to be unstable and quite dangerous, Miss Sokol.”
“Ah, yes, I do recall seeing her in the port,” Naoko mused. “I’m afraid I have no clue as to her current whereabouts, but I’m sure she’ll turn up soon enough. It’s hardly a large enough town for a fugitive to remain at large for long.”
The proctor frowned suspiciously. “What business did she have with you?”
“She was seeking employment. Sadly, I had to tell her that my ship is not currently hiring.”
The other proctor had been fiddling with a datapad during the conversation. Now she poked the one that was talking to Naoko, and showed her something.
The scowl deepened.
“I see. Miss Sokol, we have camera footage showing you walking down Conservation Lane with the fugitive barely an hour ago. I’m going to have to ask you to open up so we can verify that she isn’t on board.”
“Do you have a search warrant for the Speedy Exit, proctor?” Naoko said evenly.
“Felicity is a proper communitarian world, not one of your individualist hellholes,” the proctor exclaimed. “I don’t need a ‘warrant’.”
“Proctor, the Square Deal is an independent commercial vessel operating under the auspices of the Free Trader Accords. As specified in article four, sections six through twelve, planetary authorities may freely inspect goods and persons entering or leaving a trade vessel but may not board the vessel itself without a warrant issued by the local Merchant’s Association representative. If you have not obtained such a warrant, I fear that I must regretfully decline your request.”
“Now see here, you jumped up sexbot! I am an officer of the law, and you will obey my instructions or I’ll have you scrapped. Abort your launch countdown and open the hatch!”
Naoko sniffed. “Do you think I’m some sort of bot, proctor? I am a personal companion android, and my only loyalty is to Captain Sokol. I have orders to return this shuttle on schedule, and I intend to carry them out. Now I suggest you clear the pad, because I launch in four minutes.”