Gall Force Fan Fiction ❯ The Day After ❯ Sisters ( Chapter 8 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: Frederick_Herrio 
Anime/Manga: Gall Force Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Action / Adventure / Romance / Sci-fi | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 09.02.2004 | Pages: 6 | Words: 6.7K | Visits: 500 | Status: Completed
Anime/Manga: Gall Force Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Action / Adventure / Romance / Sci-fi | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 09.02.2004 | Pages: 6 | Words: 6.7K | Visits: 500 | Status: Completed
Gall Force: The Day After
By Fred Herriot
gorgo@kwangju.net
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Edited by E.B. Kushnir
kush1@iaw.on.ca
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"In Flanders Fields" written by Captain John McCrae, CAMC (1916)
**** **** ****
Based on the "Gall Force" series created by MOVIC.
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PART EIGHT - SISTERS
"Class, we have two new students joining us," the teacher announces.
Amy and Miti bow to the class. They are now in the Grade 10 class at Lunenburg Secondary Vocational School. "An honour to meet you," the former announces. "I'm Amy Clark."
"I'm Matilda Anderson," the latter adds. "My friends call me 'Miti.' Pleased to meet you."
The other students nod as the teacher directs the two Solnoids to their desks. After identification had been procured thanks to Lisa Tanner, the Solnoids of high school age...in essence, just Amy and Miti...were sent to school. Shildy took charge of Amy while Miti became Eluza's responsibility. Fortunately, the school was used to having its nominal roll changed in mid-term; thanks to the collapse of the fisheries industry, families were moving out of the area for more prospective job markets in central Canada. Having students arrive, even supposed orphans, was a refreshing change.
For the other Solnoids, life began to shift as they sought out new job opportunities in western Nova Scotia. Spea, Patty and Rabby secured work as park rangers in nearby Kejimkujik National Park. Eluza, with her experience on Malthus' oceans, began working at the Bedford Oceanographic Institute in Dartmouth. Shildy, Mal and Catty teamed together to form Starleaf Computer Services, a computer program de-bugging service. And Lufy, whose piloting skills won her a civilian pilot's license in the proverbial blink of an eye, began work as an auxiliary rescue pilot for the Canadian Coast Guard, taking Lunenburg as her post station.
A month passed. Communication was slow with the other Solnoid groups in North America since they only had the Internet to work with and the only ones controlling other stations were Catty's sisters. This was necessary, Barbara Scott warned Catty over the Net one day. "You have to learn to survive on your own. You can't always depend on us for help. Believe me, sister, this is the best way to learn about life on Earth." The other Solnoids, long used to being on their own, took such a suggestion in stride.
* * *
"Hey, Dave, can I talk to you for a moment?" Amy comes up to Dave as he gets out of his car after a day of classes.
"Sure, Amy, what's the problem?" he stares quizzically at her.
The Solnoid slips her arm around his as they take a walk down to the beach. "I was wondering," she stares at him. "Would it be socially acceptable for us to start...dating?"
Dave catches himself from falling over in shock. He was a first-year student at Dalhousie in mathematics. "What the heck brought that on?!" he stares at her.
"Some of the boys at school are starting to stare at me," Amy lightly smiles, finding her cheeks heating.
"Oh? Is that all they're doing?"
"No," she sighs. "Oh, Mother, this is so confusing! They say things like, 'Hey, good looking! What's cooking?' Sometimes, they even touch me back here," she pats her backside.
"Understandable," he shakes his head. "They're scouting you out."
"For what? Mating purposes?"
"Potentially," he nods, sitting down on a rock. "I mean, our bodies mature much faster than our minds. Sex is genetically driven. They probably don't fully understand what they're doing, or if they do, they don't care. Some men on Earth are like that, I hate to say. In their eyes, you're very desirable...and, I must add, available."
"So how can I insinuate that I'm not available?" she muses. "I mean, the boys who try to go after Miti wind up in the nurse's station right afterward. I'm not an Attacker, remember."
"True," Dave reaches into his pocket, pulling out a small velvet-lined case. Inside was a simple gold band with two hearts intertwined etched in the metal. Taking it out, he slips it on her finger. "Here. For you."
"Me?" Amy gasps. "Oh, thank you! Um...does this mean that we're now boyfriend-girlfriend?"
"If that's what you want," he nods. "Don't go bragging around that you're seeing a university student. Although we're just three years apart in age, you're still below sixteen, and being...intimate with someone below that age is, even for one like myself, not seen as kosher."
"We're not intimate," Amy shrugs. "In truth, we're just good friends who might like to pursue something in the future. Besides, I'm an intelligence officer. I know when to keep my mouth shut."
Both laugh, then stare at each other. They drift into each other's arms, their lips warmly caressing. "For the first time, I feel so safe," Amy stares out into the Atlantic. "Yet, I can't seem to put out of my mind the third Attacker credo."
"What's that?"
"'Nothing ever comes without cost.'"
Dave sighs. "Smart advice. It's the way of life on this planet, I'm afraid."
"Yeah, it is, isn't it?" Amy nods.
* * *
"Hey, Amy, looking good!" Beth laughs as the Solnoid walks up to the school's front door the next morning. "Why the change?"
Amy smiles. She had finally let her hair down, switching to more baggier clothing to try to deter the boys from coming after her. "Oh, I felt it was time for a change," she smiles.
"Oh, my God!!!" Alice, another of Amy's classmates, gasps on seeing the small band on her new friend's finger. "Is that what I think it is?!"
"Yep," Amy smiles. "My boyfriend gave it to me!"
Both girls squeal. "You creep!!" Beth snaps. "You never told us anything about him!"
"Hey, I only just met you a couple of weeks ago," Amy reminds her. "Besides, we're really just good friends. Maybe in the future."
"How old?!" Alice looks concerned.
Amy hesitates. Dave had warned her about some social stigma if word got around that a minor was dating a university student, even a freshman. "Um...well..."
"He's not grade twelve," Alice smiles, play-punching Amy in the arm. "Smart girl!"
"Well, he's first-year," Amy shrugs. "Dalhousie."
"Oh, you little devil," Beth laughs. "Good choice. Besides, most of the boys in this place are SO immature."
"I wish I could get my hands on one," Alice looks to the ceiling as they walk into class. "At least, they can try to understand me."
"True, true," Amy nods.
"My, Miss Clark, a change in style?" the teacher hums as he stares at her.
"I felt it was necessary, sir," Amy blushes.
Several boys stare at her. They are quick to see the small band on Amy's finger, realizing what that could be stating. Disappointment appears on their faces as they return to work. I guess this really works, Amy giggles as she finds her seat.
Suddenly, there is a crash outside. Everyone turns to see a grade twelve student being rammed against a locker by Miti, who has one fist cocked back to strike. "Look, you, I don't know how much it'll take for you to get the message, but I am NOT going to be one of your dates!!" the young Attacker threateningly growls. "Got me?!!"
The teacher sighs as he steps into the hallway. "Trying to sew your wild oats, Mister Parker?" he stares at the senior.
"Um...I...uh, gee, sir..." the hapless student stammers.
"Let him go, Miss Anderson," the teacher turns to Miti. "I think he's had enough."
"He better have," Miti snarls, "or I'll make sure of it after school!"
The senior hastily retreats as the Solnoid turns to the class. "Miti, when are we going to learn to control that temper of yours?" the teacher softly inquires.
Miti looks contrite. "I do try, sir. It's difficult at times, especially when I'm surrounded by people like him."
"True, true," he nods. "Sometimes I believe your nerves are as sharp as that dagger you wear on your cheek. Have you ever thought of taking it off?"
Miti blinks, then sadly looks at him. "No, not yet. I mean, I would if I'm ordered to, but this..." she touches it, "...reminds me of a past I'm still trying to come to grips with."
"So I see," he nods. "Head to class, Miti."
"Sir," she bows, then walks in.
The teacher sighs, then smiles. Some would have seen Miti as a potential problem student, certainly someone which should be sent for psychiatric counselling. Yet matched to that phenomenal temper of hers was a sense of discipline which had been lacking in many students. Miti and Amy were quite a refreshing change from the normal local boys and girls. Teaching students suddenly seemed like fun again. He chuckles as he walks back into class...
* * *
Outside the school, relaxing on a high-performance motorcycle, a young woman stares through a set of binoculars into the windows of the school, having witnessed Miti's altercation with the other student. The woman chuckles as she lowers the binoculars, then secures a part of sunglasses over gold eyes. "Pure Attacker, that one," she laughs, scooping her curly blonde locks in a motorcycle helmet, then mounts her machine. "We'll need her."
Starting the engine, she drives off...
* * *
These programs are so simple, Catty muses to herself as she works away on her computer, debugging a tables program for a company in Michigan who wanted to get it on the shareware market as fast as they could. In just a week, Starleaf Computer Services had already begun to amass multiple business transactions as the three Solnoids put their expertise...and Catty's unique abilities...to work. Fortunately, the Terrans were still some distance away from achieving the Solnoids' level of computer expertise, but they were progressing at even a faster rate than Catty calculated. Perhaps the packet she had helped sent to Earth three million years before would not be needed. Finding herself yawning...like organic Solnoids, her body needed oxygen to keep her internal systems working at peak efficiency...Catty stops as she memorizes the alterations, then leans back.
"Something's missing," she muses. What could it be? She had friends, a job, a way of keeping herself sustained as best as she could. Correction; she had found ways to keep herself physically intact. Mental and emotional health were a whole different matter. What could she be lacking? She had friends, a purpose in life. Was there anything more she needed? Catty hums as she calls back the program to continue work. Perhaps she needed some time to contemplate this matter before drawing conclusions.
"How's it coming?" Mal inquires as she walks inside.
"Quite good, actually," Catty does not look up from her work as the engineer sits beside her. "Terrans are remarkably astute when it comes to computer software. I believe their imagination helps them conceive of things when rational analysis fails them."
"I've noticed that," Mal hums. "Catty, you know more about the Species Unification Project than me. Do you think this is what the people controlling Mission 21 and Project: Exodermus had in mind for the third race?"
"No, I do not believe so," Catty shakes her head, stopping work. "To be honest with you, I don't believe the Species Unification Project was responsible for the race native to this world."
"What?!" Mal gasps. "What does that mean?"
"Mal, when we first explored this world, we discovered that there were highly advanced primate-like beings already in existence here," the android stares at her. "In my opinion, they eventually evolved into the current sentient race we are now striving to become a part of."
The dark-hued woman looks down. "Then my sister's sacrifice was for nothing."
"I did not say that," Catty shakes her head. "Mal, perhaps at best, Rumy and Patty's son contributed, even if it was just their DNA in the food chain, to the evolution of Terran-type humans. And besides, even if we did not conceive of the Species Unification Project, Earth would have become a battleground eventually. Look what happened when Shildy, I and the others had to destroy DAMIA."
"That's true," Mal sighs. "I...I guess we're all trying to come to grips with all that we've lost. It's so hard at times. I wonder if all the sacrifices, all the death, actually meant something."
"I believe so," Catty points to herself. "Earth was here waiting for us to come to it, with a sentient race capable of dealing with us. While I mourn the fact that we had no homeworld of our own to return to, I feel happy that those who were responsible have paid the supreme penalty for their crimes against us and the Paranoid."
"I wish I had your certainty, Catty."
"I understand."
Shildy peeks in. "Catty, e-mail."
"Thank you," the android stands, walking out of the room.
* * *
Lufy looks at the cenotaph, a simple dark grey obelisk emblazoned with a simple phrase: LEST WE FORGET. Below it was a listing of names, which constituted the war dead of Lunenburg and the area in three conflicts, marked with dates: 1914-1918, 1939-1945 and 1950-1953.
Every Canadian town and city had at least one of these, a memorial to the nation's war dead. While the casualties were miniscule compared to the losses the Solnoid suffered, they were still remembered, both in places like this and at the branches of the Royal Canadian Legion, the national veterans' organization. Reaching into her jacket, she pulls out a folded piece of paper. On it is a poem:
"In Flanders Fields, the poppies grow
Beneath the crosses, row on row
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
"We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders Fields.
"Take up our quarrel with the Foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The Torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die,
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders Fields."
Lufy stares at the cenotaph. She had read a little of the wars Canada had been involved in, especially the one which blazed when the immortal poem was written. The First World War, with its miserable existence in the trenches, stunned her. At least war in space was clean. No bodies to bury when they were vaporized into ashes or exploded when exposed to hard vacuum. In France and Flanders during those four horrid years, bodies atop bodies were heaped in metres-thick muck, mostly bulldozed down by machine guns. Very few times did the Solnoids face such levels of butchery. Ground combat had been avoided by both sides, although they were equipped for it in case it came. What could a ground base do when you could call in a squadron of battleships to wipe them out from the safety of high orbit? Fortunately, Earth had not progressed to THAT stage yet. Lufy wondered if when that time came, would her adopted people be emotionally ready to take on that sort of power.
"You know, Remembrance Day is still a couple of months away," a voice calls out.
Lufy spins around to see a blonde-haired woman, her eyes behind sunglasses, walk up to her. She was about Catty's height and build, dressed in a leather biker's jumpsuit. "So? Can't I visit a memorial?"
The woman reaches up to her glasses, tilting them to reveal gold eyes. "It's a free country," she answers...in Solnoid.
Lufy blinks. "Shit, you're a...!"
The woman replaces her glasses, then holds out her hand. "Barbara Scott. A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Group Leader. I was in the Eighth Expeditionary Forces, but we were on different ships."
Lufy shakes the stranger's hand. Sure enough, she felt the powerful, unyielding grip marking Barbara as an android. "You look so different now," she shakes her head.
"We all made cosmetic changes to ourselves when we came to Earth," Barbara smiles. "It would not do if people who look like Caucasians wound up living in Asia or Africa, for instance. Further, the lavender hair would make people stare even here in Canada. How are you doing?"
"Oh, getting by," the Attacker shrugs, then notices Barbara's motorcycle. "Shit, nice machine you got there."
"Thanks, I built it myself," the android beams, the pride of having created something automatically not meant for destruction shining through her eyes. "It's a modified Harley-Davidson. They're about the best type of bikes available here."
"I'd like to get one," Lufy smiles. "Whenever I have to go to the Coast Guard station, I have to get my boyfriend to take me in his car."
"Oh, so you're with a potential mate," Barbara nods. "That's wonderful. At least you're finding it easy to adjust."
"Well, there still are problems," Lufy sighs. "We're finding it hard sometimes to reconcile our past with our present. After all, very few people on Earth could ever conceive of what we've just been through."
"True," Barbara nods. "In fact, that's a problem with a lot of people who came from Sigma Narse."
"How are they handling it?" Lufy looks curious.
"Sometimes, they're incapable of handing it, to be honest with you," Barbara fires her a warning stare.
The Attacker tenses. "You spent a lot of time with my people. I can tell what that look means. As Eluza's boyfriend would say it, something's definitely not kosher."
"At least you're getting the cultural idioms right," the intelligence officer giggles. "Yes, you are right. Something is not right here. That's the reason we're working to keep your presence on Earth a secret."
"What?! Why?!"
"I can't fully answer that at present," Barbara looks frustrated. "To be honest with you, I don't fully understand the scope of the problem, which if you know Catty, would gall us. I can tell you that there are many who would have felt happy if you and the 'Starleaf' crew had perished in space."
Lufy feels the heat of anger rise in her cheeks. "What for?!! We did our damn job!!!"
"Lufy, there are those who see Mother as a traitor to the cause," Barbara emphasizes. "That means anyone who associated with Mother...including yourself and your friends from the Lorelei Fleet...are also seen as suspect."
"Because we wanted the war to end?!" Lufy exclaims. "Barbara, in the name of the Mother, what nonsense is that?!!"
"Yes, it is nonsense, insane nonsense given our present situation," Barbara nods. "Further, another despised target of these people is your friend Rabby."
"Rabby?!!" Lufy growls. "You pass it on, Barbara: anyone who even THINKS of laying a finger on Rabby is dead!! I'll kill them with my bare hands!! I care for that woman like she was my own sister!! Hell, we're all a big family when you think about it!!"
"Some do not subscribe to your ideas, I'm afraid," the android sighs. "They blame Rabby for losing Chaos, for deliberately destroying it for 'questionable' reasons."
The Attacker is stunned. "What shit is that?!!"
"I can't say," Barbara shakes her head. "But be on your guard...all of you. Lisa is coming down to brief Catty herself. But I know of you, I know your reputation. I know that when the chips are down, you'll stand for what's right. We'll need you, Lufy, if the worst happens."
"We'll be here," Lufy nods, then grips Barbara's hand. "Count on us."
"We do," Barbara nods, then mounts her machine.
Watching the intelligence officer drive off, Lufy remains in place, then looks back to the cenotaph. "Take up our quarrel with the foe," the Attacker whispers the petition of the dead in McCrae's poem. It was a charge to continue the fight, to fight for what was right and proper. If there were people out there who believed that they could go ahead and involve her new homeworld, her new people, in fighting a war that was long done and finished, then she WOULD take up the quarrel with them...
...and make them regret they survived Sigma Narse!
* * *
Catty relaxes, waiting at the arrival terminal of Halifax International Airport. She had come her herself; the first thing she had obtained when she got her identification was a driver's license. Now with a car, a second-hand machine she had personally upgraded to NASCAR standards, she could go anywhere she wanted. In fact, she was tempted at times to take a day or three and drive around her new home. Shildy and Mal had urged her to do so. "Just because you're an android doesn't mean that you shouldn't explore," her old friend had reminded her. But exploration would have to wait. For the first time in a while, she was about to meet family.
The Catty androids had always shared a unique bond. Not only were they physical and mental duplicates of a younger Catty Nebulart, but they were the most unique beings Malthus had ever seen. Not even the cyborg soldiers who came into commission near the end of the Paranoid war could compare to them. Because they had to be alone to perform their mission, they cherished every chance they got to meet, to compare notes. Catty had wept when Barbara had told her that eighty-six of their kind, out of ten thousand, were still alive. Now, with the war done and they now able to direct their own lives, the chances were good that they would become a true family in the most literal sense of the term.
"Hey, good looking, what's cooking?!" a voice ventures.
At first annoyed that it could be a male heckler admiring her, Catty blinks. That was a woman's voice. She spins around to see a dark-haired woman her height, dressed in a leather miniskirt, a tank top and various pendants and bracelets, sunglasses covering her eyes. "Hey, gorgeous," the woman purrs, slipping her glasses down to reveal very beautiful gold eyes, "...care to give me a lift, say to Halifax? I've got a nice room reserved."
Catty tries her best not to laugh. Her sister always had a weird sense of humour. She wondered if that had been a glitch in her programming or a byproduct of her time with the Rangers. "Why not? Hop in," she opens the door.
Lisa chuckles as she slides inside, throwing her small overnight bag in the back as Catty slides into the driver's seat. Closing the tinted windows, the latter reaches up to slip off her contacts. "Thanks for getting me these, Lisa. I wish there was some way we could alter our eyes naturally. Wearing these things makes my eyes itch."
"Well, nothing in the way of cybergenetic equipment survived when Malthus blew up," Lisa sighs, reaching over to run her hand along Catty's leg. "Changing hair colour was easy enough, even skin colour and eye socket structure for the ones who went to Asia or Africa, but the eyes themselves are a whole different matter."
Catty looks at her playfully. "Well, c'mon, sweetheart," she drawls in a perfect Humphrey Bogart imitation. "Kiss me."
Lisa purrs as they kiss. "The best expression Terrans have to say 'I love you,'" she smiles. "C'mon! Let's get to Halifax. I want to relax. Travelling by atmospheric jet can be a drag, even for our kind."
"Right," Catty starts the car...
* * *
A half-hour later, both androids walk into a downtown Halifax hotel. "First time I've been out this way," Lisa hums as she looks at the panoramic view of Halifax Harbour and the lights of Dartmouth beyond. "Lovely place you guys picked to put down."
"Lisa," Catty meows.
The brunette android turns to her sister. "Oh, Catty, it's so good to see you again," Lisa sighs as she walks over to sink herself in Catty's embrace.
"And you," Catty sniffs back tears, kissing Lisa's forehead. "I was prepared to die, prepared to lose all of you...but believe me, I'm so glad you survived."
"Ditto," Lisa sits down beside her. "We've got a lot to talk about."
"Trouble?"
"Somewhat," Lisa stands, then grabs the telephone and dials room service. "Hi! This is Lisa Tanner in Room Two-seventy-one. I'd like a bottle of your best house wine sent immediately up. I'm entertaining a guest." She nods. "Yes, we'll have dinner later. Put it on my tab. Thank you." She hangs up.
"We're celebrating, I take it," Catty muses.
"Damn right we are," Lisa stands. "After the wine comes, let's hop into the bathtub. Problem with being built with organic parts is that we sweat like normal people, and airliners don't come equipped with sonic showers."
"Okay," Catty giggles. "I think you want to make love to me."
"Is there a reason I shouldn't?"
"Lisa, we ARE sisters, remember?"
"So? You're still new here. You'll have to learn how to do it eventually. I did."
Catty rolls her eyes. Lisa always had that sort of odd twist in her mainframe. It was probably one of the reasons she liked her so much. The wine soon arrives, then both androids undress and lower themselves in the warm water of the bathtub. "Lisa, is it my imagination or are your breasts bigger?" Catty muses.
"I had them enlarged," Lisa sips her wine. "Some men on Earth like big boobs on a girl. And having sex with me is the ultimate in safe sex, remember?"
Catty snickers. "If organic Solnoids ever saw us, they would utterly go insane! Two androids being passionate with each other?"
"Mom built us to express emotion, remember?" Lisa reminds her.
"True," Catty sighs. "Oh, how is Mother?"
"She's okay," the brunette android nods. "She lives in New York City. I think Barbara told you. She works at the United Nations. Her public duty is that she's chief of staff to the Secretary-General. I've met him. He's a decent fellow."
"You said 'public' duty."
"Yeah," Lisa finishes the rest of her wine, then pours herself another glass. "Her private duty is that she is a special advisor to the Secretary-General and the Security Council on Solnoid-Terran affairs."
"So people in authority ARE aware of us!" Catty gasps.
"Hard to avoid the problem when fifteen thousand strange women appear out of nowhere with no explanation as to where we came from," Lisa shakes her head. "Mom felt that the best thing to do was to come clean about it right away. Believe me, most Terrans do value honesty."
"How did the UN take it?"
"They took it incredibly well," Lisa smiles. "Mom arrived with the first group that came in, about fifteen years ago. At that time, the UN had little in the way of real power; the Cold War between the States and the old USSR was still on and all that. So, the Security Council...the non-permanent members, that is...took a dare. They made arrangements for us to be integrated in society, to live normal lives as normal Terrans. We are genetically related, even if you don't believe that Patty's son and Rumy are the Adam and Eve of Judeo-Christian-Islamic legend."
"Was there a trade-off?"
"Somewhat," Lisa nods. "Mom realized that there was no way most Terrans could hack the idea, even now, of aliens. Introducing technology like AI, warp drive systems, the Starbuild technology and things like that would be a hell of a shock to most people... and there was the risk that someone would get the urge to play God. So, the Security Council arranged for the transfer of non-military knowledge. Miraclone and the rest of that, plus better space habitation systems for the time Space Station Freedom goes up, whenever NASA gets around to it."
"That's understandable," Catty nods. "But, you're insinuating that there is a problem."
"Unfortunately so," Lisa looks depressed. "We did our best to try to make everyone feel comfortable here. Most have adjusted quite well. How are yours doing, anyway?"
"They're okay. All have boyfriends, more or less."
"That's good," Lisa nods. "But, there are the few malcontents. Mother, that's more than understandable after the shit we just went through."
"What sort of malcontents?"
"Well, to begin with, when Mother arrived, she organized an umbrella organization by which we could all fall back on in times of trouble. We called it the Chaos Foundation, after our name for the Moon. It has UN backing, can't be touched by the Big Five..."
"The US, Russia, China, Britain and France," Catty emphasizes.
Lisa nods, "...and it has the power to take control if ever some of our people do get out of control. The UN took a great risk at that one, Catty. They would prefer to keep control over the whole house, but Mom was able to make them see the light."
"But there are those who are not satisfied with the present state of affairs," Catty muses.
"Exactly," Lisa nods. "Simply put, there are two groups starting to form. The first are the more peaceful lot. They believe that Solnoids have no place on Earth. They believe that Earth should be left to its natives and we should leave, go elsewhere to build a new Malthus."
"That sounds reasonable," Catty nods.
"Here's the catch," Lisa holds up a cautionary finger. "They want to resettle Chaos."
Catty blinks. "That's stupid! If the people of Earth watched their own moon reform into another planet, it would be sociologically devastating!!"
"Right," Lisa nods. "And these people don't like your friend Rabby. After all, she was willing to wreck Chaos to ensure that the Axis or the Central Guard could not get their hands on Patty's son."
"I see," the lavender-haired android shakes her head in total disgust. "Mother, for the utter life of me, I'll never understand the illogic some organics come up with! What else is there?!"
"The war-mongers."
"What?!! They're still around?!!"
"Afraid so," Lisa rolls her eyes to the ceiling. "Even though we have no spacecraft, we have no real idea where the Paranoid are, they still want to fight the war."
Catty nearly sinks into the water. "I'll drown myself and short-circuit."
"Not with me in the tub, you lazy ass!!" Lisa snaps.
Catty recovers herself. "How are these people like?"
"Vulgar, to say the least of it," the brunette android sneers. "The other sisters don't hang around them, so it's hard to keep track of them all. They hate Mom, consider her a traitor to the Solnoid people. Anyone associated with Mom, including a lot from the 'Starleaf,' would be targets. So would we. And they consider most Terrans lower than slime."
"Hypocrites, I take it?" Catty muses.
"Yep," Lisa groans. "They want to enslave male Terrans so they can grow a new race of warriors to go on fighting the Paranoid."
"In other words, they would gladly seize total power on this planet, subvert the nations and the UN and do with Earth as they please," Catty shakes her head. "Oh, why don't we make use of some of those chemical weapons the Americans are disposing of on them?"
"Some are tempted," Lisa sighs, finishing her wine. "C'mon, let's towel off."
The two androids rise, taking towels in hand and drying each other off. "So is there any hope of keeping a tight lid on them?" Catty inquires. "I'm sure the UN must be getting quite nervous now."
"They are," Lisa wraps a towel around herself. "Mom is trying to arrange some altering of personnel, moving the malcontents around, breaking them up and scattering them so they can't form into a cohesive unit. However, there's a problem. The Terrans have something called 'democracy.' The malcontents charge Mom with trying to become another Journey."
"In other words, Mother is losing control of the Foundation," Catty wraps a towel around herself.
"Unfortunately," Lisa nods, sitting on her bed. "It's going to blow sooner or later. All it needs is a good spark to set it off."
"And that could be anything," Catty muses. "So, why are you and Barbara trying to keep the presence of the 'Starleaf' crew a secret from the rest?"
"Simple," Lisa stares at her. "Catty, do you remember what people used to call the old 'Starleaf' crew?"
The lavender-haired android nods. "The Gallant Force. The conquerors of Chaos, the destroyers of the Axis."
"That's right," her brunette sister smiles. "All of us...all the Catty androids...believe the time's come for the Gallant Force to swing back into action. The potential's there. You see it yourself."
"I do," Catty smiles. "They will find this hard to take, I suspect. We want the war to end."
Lisa taps her on the shoulder. "There's an old belief here on Earth, sis. 'When evil rears its ugly head, good people must rise and fight.' You're right now with nine of the best."
"I am, aren't I?" Catty chuckles.
"We've already started making arrangements," Lisa continues. "All the surviving equipment which is still operational will be moved into Canada, close to were your friends can get their hands on it. My Rangers are ready to fight if they smell anything which hints of Journey's policies. When the malcontents make their move, we'll be ready to stop them."
"We'll be ready," her sister echoes.
A knock is heard. Lisa stands and walks over to the door. A waiter is there. "Here's your dinner, ma'am," he smiles.
She fetches her wallet, then pulls out a wad of bills. Catty blinks on seeing a couple fifty-dollar notes. "When you get off duty there, John," Lisa reads his nametag, her voice dropping to a seductive purr, "...come by and visit. My sister and I might want some company," she winks.
He shudders at her attention. "I'll...th-think about it," he stammers, then quickly retreats.
Catty moans on seeing that. "Oh, Lisa, you've got to get your circuits descrambled!"
Lisa laughs as she wheels the cart in, then lays down beside her sister. "Well, while we're waiting for John's libido to convince his mind that we're serious and safe," she hums, undoing Catty's towel, "...I think it's time that you got to learn what the joys of Sensualism are like."
"I might regret this," Catty threateningly growls.
Both androids laugh, then kiss, the towels dropping to the floor...
* * *
To be continued...
By Fred Herriot
gorgo@kwangju.net
**** **** ****
Edited by E.B. Kushnir
kush1@iaw.on.ca
**** **** ****
"In Flanders Fields" written by Captain John McCrae, CAMC (1916)
**** **** ****
Based on the "Gall Force" series created by MOVIC.
**** **** ****
PART EIGHT - SISTERS
"Class, we have two new students joining us," the teacher announces.
Amy and Miti bow to the class. They are now in the Grade 10 class at Lunenburg Secondary Vocational School. "An honour to meet you," the former announces. "I'm Amy Clark."
"I'm Matilda Anderson," the latter adds. "My friends call me 'Miti.' Pleased to meet you."
The other students nod as the teacher directs the two Solnoids to their desks. After identification had been procured thanks to Lisa Tanner, the Solnoids of high school age...in essence, just Amy and Miti...were sent to school. Shildy took charge of Amy while Miti became Eluza's responsibility. Fortunately, the school was used to having its nominal roll changed in mid-term; thanks to the collapse of the fisheries industry, families were moving out of the area for more prospective job markets in central Canada. Having students arrive, even supposed orphans, was a refreshing change.
For the other Solnoids, life began to shift as they sought out new job opportunities in western Nova Scotia. Spea, Patty and Rabby secured work as park rangers in nearby Kejimkujik National Park. Eluza, with her experience on Malthus' oceans, began working at the Bedford Oceanographic Institute in Dartmouth. Shildy, Mal and Catty teamed together to form Starleaf Computer Services, a computer program de-bugging service. And Lufy, whose piloting skills won her a civilian pilot's license in the proverbial blink of an eye, began work as an auxiliary rescue pilot for the Canadian Coast Guard, taking Lunenburg as her post station.
A month passed. Communication was slow with the other Solnoid groups in North America since they only had the Internet to work with and the only ones controlling other stations were Catty's sisters. This was necessary, Barbara Scott warned Catty over the Net one day. "You have to learn to survive on your own. You can't always depend on us for help. Believe me, sister, this is the best way to learn about life on Earth." The other Solnoids, long used to being on their own, took such a suggestion in stride.
* * *
"Hey, Dave, can I talk to you for a moment?" Amy comes up to Dave as he gets out of his car after a day of classes.
"Sure, Amy, what's the problem?" he stares quizzically at her.
The Solnoid slips her arm around his as they take a walk down to the beach. "I was wondering," she stares at him. "Would it be socially acceptable for us to start...dating?"
Dave catches himself from falling over in shock. He was a first-year student at Dalhousie in mathematics. "What the heck brought that on?!" he stares at her.
"Some of the boys at school are starting to stare at me," Amy lightly smiles, finding her cheeks heating.
"Oh? Is that all they're doing?"
"No," she sighs. "Oh, Mother, this is so confusing! They say things like, 'Hey, good looking! What's cooking?' Sometimes, they even touch me back here," she pats her backside.
"Understandable," he shakes his head. "They're scouting you out."
"For what? Mating purposes?"
"Potentially," he nods, sitting down on a rock. "I mean, our bodies mature much faster than our minds. Sex is genetically driven. They probably don't fully understand what they're doing, or if they do, they don't care. Some men on Earth are like that, I hate to say. In their eyes, you're very desirable...and, I must add, available."
"So how can I insinuate that I'm not available?" she muses. "I mean, the boys who try to go after Miti wind up in the nurse's station right afterward. I'm not an Attacker, remember."
"True," Dave reaches into his pocket, pulling out a small velvet-lined case. Inside was a simple gold band with two hearts intertwined etched in the metal. Taking it out, he slips it on her finger. "Here. For you."
"Me?" Amy gasps. "Oh, thank you! Um...does this mean that we're now boyfriend-girlfriend?"
"If that's what you want," he nods. "Don't go bragging around that you're seeing a university student. Although we're just three years apart in age, you're still below sixteen, and being...intimate with someone below that age is, even for one like myself, not seen as kosher."
"We're not intimate," Amy shrugs. "In truth, we're just good friends who might like to pursue something in the future. Besides, I'm an intelligence officer. I know when to keep my mouth shut."
Both laugh, then stare at each other. They drift into each other's arms, their lips warmly caressing. "For the first time, I feel so safe," Amy stares out into the Atlantic. "Yet, I can't seem to put out of my mind the third Attacker credo."
"What's that?"
"'Nothing ever comes without cost.'"
Dave sighs. "Smart advice. It's the way of life on this planet, I'm afraid."
"Yeah, it is, isn't it?" Amy nods.
* * *
"Hey, Amy, looking good!" Beth laughs as the Solnoid walks up to the school's front door the next morning. "Why the change?"
Amy smiles. She had finally let her hair down, switching to more baggier clothing to try to deter the boys from coming after her. "Oh, I felt it was time for a change," she smiles.
"Oh, my God!!!" Alice, another of Amy's classmates, gasps on seeing the small band on her new friend's finger. "Is that what I think it is?!"
"Yep," Amy smiles. "My boyfriend gave it to me!"
Both girls squeal. "You creep!!" Beth snaps. "You never told us anything about him!"
"Hey, I only just met you a couple of weeks ago," Amy reminds her. "Besides, we're really just good friends. Maybe in the future."
"How old?!" Alice looks concerned.
Amy hesitates. Dave had warned her about some social stigma if word got around that a minor was dating a university student, even a freshman. "Um...well..."
"He's not grade twelve," Alice smiles, play-punching Amy in the arm. "Smart girl!"
"Well, he's first-year," Amy shrugs. "Dalhousie."
"Oh, you little devil," Beth laughs. "Good choice. Besides, most of the boys in this place are SO immature."
"I wish I could get my hands on one," Alice looks to the ceiling as they walk into class. "At least, they can try to understand me."
"True, true," Amy nods.
"My, Miss Clark, a change in style?" the teacher hums as he stares at her.
"I felt it was necessary, sir," Amy blushes.
Several boys stare at her. They are quick to see the small band on Amy's finger, realizing what that could be stating. Disappointment appears on their faces as they return to work. I guess this really works, Amy giggles as she finds her seat.
Suddenly, there is a crash outside. Everyone turns to see a grade twelve student being rammed against a locker by Miti, who has one fist cocked back to strike. "Look, you, I don't know how much it'll take for you to get the message, but I am NOT going to be one of your dates!!" the young Attacker threateningly growls. "Got me?!!"
The teacher sighs as he steps into the hallway. "Trying to sew your wild oats, Mister Parker?" he stares at the senior.
"Um...I...uh, gee, sir..." the hapless student stammers.
"Let him go, Miss Anderson," the teacher turns to Miti. "I think he's had enough."
"He better have," Miti snarls, "or I'll make sure of it after school!"
The senior hastily retreats as the Solnoid turns to the class. "Miti, when are we going to learn to control that temper of yours?" the teacher softly inquires.
Miti looks contrite. "I do try, sir. It's difficult at times, especially when I'm surrounded by people like him."
"True, true," he nods. "Sometimes I believe your nerves are as sharp as that dagger you wear on your cheek. Have you ever thought of taking it off?"
Miti blinks, then sadly looks at him. "No, not yet. I mean, I would if I'm ordered to, but this..." she touches it, "...reminds me of a past I'm still trying to come to grips with."
"So I see," he nods. "Head to class, Miti."
"Sir," she bows, then walks in.
The teacher sighs, then smiles. Some would have seen Miti as a potential problem student, certainly someone which should be sent for psychiatric counselling. Yet matched to that phenomenal temper of hers was a sense of discipline which had been lacking in many students. Miti and Amy were quite a refreshing change from the normal local boys and girls. Teaching students suddenly seemed like fun again. He chuckles as he walks back into class...
* * *
Outside the school, relaxing on a high-performance motorcycle, a young woman stares through a set of binoculars into the windows of the school, having witnessed Miti's altercation with the other student. The woman chuckles as she lowers the binoculars, then secures a part of sunglasses over gold eyes. "Pure Attacker, that one," she laughs, scooping her curly blonde locks in a motorcycle helmet, then mounts her machine. "We'll need her."
Starting the engine, she drives off...
* * *
These programs are so simple, Catty muses to herself as she works away on her computer, debugging a tables program for a company in Michigan who wanted to get it on the shareware market as fast as they could. In just a week, Starleaf Computer Services had already begun to amass multiple business transactions as the three Solnoids put their expertise...and Catty's unique abilities...to work. Fortunately, the Terrans were still some distance away from achieving the Solnoids' level of computer expertise, but they were progressing at even a faster rate than Catty calculated. Perhaps the packet she had helped sent to Earth three million years before would not be needed. Finding herself yawning...like organic Solnoids, her body needed oxygen to keep her internal systems working at peak efficiency...Catty stops as she memorizes the alterations, then leans back.
"Something's missing," she muses. What could it be? She had friends, a job, a way of keeping herself sustained as best as she could. Correction; she had found ways to keep herself physically intact. Mental and emotional health were a whole different matter. What could she be lacking? She had friends, a purpose in life. Was there anything more she needed? Catty hums as she calls back the program to continue work. Perhaps she needed some time to contemplate this matter before drawing conclusions.
"How's it coming?" Mal inquires as she walks inside.
"Quite good, actually," Catty does not look up from her work as the engineer sits beside her. "Terrans are remarkably astute when it comes to computer software. I believe their imagination helps them conceive of things when rational analysis fails them."
"I've noticed that," Mal hums. "Catty, you know more about the Species Unification Project than me. Do you think this is what the people controlling Mission 21 and Project: Exodermus had in mind for the third race?"
"No, I do not believe so," Catty shakes her head, stopping work. "To be honest with you, I don't believe the Species Unification Project was responsible for the race native to this world."
"What?!" Mal gasps. "What does that mean?"
"Mal, when we first explored this world, we discovered that there were highly advanced primate-like beings already in existence here," the android stares at her. "In my opinion, they eventually evolved into the current sentient race we are now striving to become a part of."
The dark-hued woman looks down. "Then my sister's sacrifice was for nothing."
"I did not say that," Catty shakes her head. "Mal, perhaps at best, Rumy and Patty's son contributed, even if it was just their DNA in the food chain, to the evolution of Terran-type humans. And besides, even if we did not conceive of the Species Unification Project, Earth would have become a battleground eventually. Look what happened when Shildy, I and the others had to destroy DAMIA."
"That's true," Mal sighs. "I...I guess we're all trying to come to grips with all that we've lost. It's so hard at times. I wonder if all the sacrifices, all the death, actually meant something."
"I believe so," Catty points to herself. "Earth was here waiting for us to come to it, with a sentient race capable of dealing with us. While I mourn the fact that we had no homeworld of our own to return to, I feel happy that those who were responsible have paid the supreme penalty for their crimes against us and the Paranoid."
"I wish I had your certainty, Catty."
"I understand."
Shildy peeks in. "Catty, e-mail."
"Thank you," the android stands, walking out of the room.
* * *
Lufy looks at the cenotaph, a simple dark grey obelisk emblazoned with a simple phrase: LEST WE FORGET. Below it was a listing of names, which constituted the war dead of Lunenburg and the area in three conflicts, marked with dates: 1914-1918, 1939-1945 and 1950-1953.
Every Canadian town and city had at least one of these, a memorial to the nation's war dead. While the casualties were miniscule compared to the losses the Solnoid suffered, they were still remembered, both in places like this and at the branches of the Royal Canadian Legion, the national veterans' organization. Reaching into her jacket, she pulls out a folded piece of paper. On it is a poem:
"In Flanders Fields, the poppies grow
Beneath the crosses, row on row
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
"We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders Fields.
"Take up our quarrel with the Foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The Torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die,
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders Fields."
Lufy stares at the cenotaph. She had read a little of the wars Canada had been involved in, especially the one which blazed when the immortal poem was written. The First World War, with its miserable existence in the trenches, stunned her. At least war in space was clean. No bodies to bury when they were vaporized into ashes or exploded when exposed to hard vacuum. In France and Flanders during those four horrid years, bodies atop bodies were heaped in metres-thick muck, mostly bulldozed down by machine guns. Very few times did the Solnoids face such levels of butchery. Ground combat had been avoided by both sides, although they were equipped for it in case it came. What could a ground base do when you could call in a squadron of battleships to wipe them out from the safety of high orbit? Fortunately, Earth had not progressed to THAT stage yet. Lufy wondered if when that time came, would her adopted people be emotionally ready to take on that sort of power.
"You know, Remembrance Day is still a couple of months away," a voice calls out.
Lufy spins around to see a blonde-haired woman, her eyes behind sunglasses, walk up to her. She was about Catty's height and build, dressed in a leather biker's jumpsuit. "So? Can't I visit a memorial?"
The woman reaches up to her glasses, tilting them to reveal gold eyes. "It's a free country," she answers...in Solnoid.
Lufy blinks. "Shit, you're a...!"
The woman replaces her glasses, then holds out her hand. "Barbara Scott. A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Group Leader. I was in the Eighth Expeditionary Forces, but we were on different ships."
Lufy shakes the stranger's hand. Sure enough, she felt the powerful, unyielding grip marking Barbara as an android. "You look so different now," she shakes her head.
"We all made cosmetic changes to ourselves when we came to Earth," Barbara smiles. "It would not do if people who look like Caucasians wound up living in Asia or Africa, for instance. Further, the lavender hair would make people stare even here in Canada. How are you doing?"
"Oh, getting by," the Attacker shrugs, then notices Barbara's motorcycle. "Shit, nice machine you got there."
"Thanks, I built it myself," the android beams, the pride of having created something automatically not meant for destruction shining through her eyes. "It's a modified Harley-Davidson. They're about the best type of bikes available here."
"I'd like to get one," Lufy smiles. "Whenever I have to go to the Coast Guard station, I have to get my boyfriend to take me in his car."
"Oh, so you're with a potential mate," Barbara nods. "That's wonderful. At least you're finding it easy to adjust."
"Well, there still are problems," Lufy sighs. "We're finding it hard sometimes to reconcile our past with our present. After all, very few people on Earth could ever conceive of what we've just been through."
"True," Barbara nods. "In fact, that's a problem with a lot of people who came from Sigma Narse."
"How are they handling it?" Lufy looks curious.
"Sometimes, they're incapable of handing it, to be honest with you," Barbara fires her a warning stare.
The Attacker tenses. "You spent a lot of time with my people. I can tell what that look means. As Eluza's boyfriend would say it, something's definitely not kosher."
"At least you're getting the cultural idioms right," the intelligence officer giggles. "Yes, you are right. Something is not right here. That's the reason we're working to keep your presence on Earth a secret."
"What?! Why?!"
"I can't fully answer that at present," Barbara looks frustrated. "To be honest with you, I don't fully understand the scope of the problem, which if you know Catty, would gall us. I can tell you that there are many who would have felt happy if you and the 'Starleaf' crew had perished in space."
Lufy feels the heat of anger rise in her cheeks. "What for?!! We did our damn job!!!"
"Lufy, there are those who see Mother as a traitor to the cause," Barbara emphasizes. "That means anyone who associated with Mother...including yourself and your friends from the Lorelei Fleet...are also seen as suspect."
"Because we wanted the war to end?!" Lufy exclaims. "Barbara, in the name of the Mother, what nonsense is that?!!"
"Yes, it is nonsense, insane nonsense given our present situation," Barbara nods. "Further, another despised target of these people is your friend Rabby."
"Rabby?!!" Lufy growls. "You pass it on, Barbara: anyone who even THINKS of laying a finger on Rabby is dead!! I'll kill them with my bare hands!! I care for that woman like she was my own sister!! Hell, we're all a big family when you think about it!!"
"Some do not subscribe to your ideas, I'm afraid," the android sighs. "They blame Rabby for losing Chaos, for deliberately destroying it for 'questionable' reasons."
The Attacker is stunned. "What shit is that?!!"
"I can't say," Barbara shakes her head. "But be on your guard...all of you. Lisa is coming down to brief Catty herself. But I know of you, I know your reputation. I know that when the chips are down, you'll stand for what's right. We'll need you, Lufy, if the worst happens."
"We'll be here," Lufy nods, then grips Barbara's hand. "Count on us."
"We do," Barbara nods, then mounts her machine.
Watching the intelligence officer drive off, Lufy remains in place, then looks back to the cenotaph. "Take up our quarrel with the foe," the Attacker whispers the petition of the dead in McCrae's poem. It was a charge to continue the fight, to fight for what was right and proper. If there were people out there who believed that they could go ahead and involve her new homeworld, her new people, in fighting a war that was long done and finished, then she WOULD take up the quarrel with them...
...and make them regret they survived Sigma Narse!
* * *
Catty relaxes, waiting at the arrival terminal of Halifax International Airport. She had come her herself; the first thing she had obtained when she got her identification was a driver's license. Now with a car, a second-hand machine she had personally upgraded to NASCAR standards, she could go anywhere she wanted. In fact, she was tempted at times to take a day or three and drive around her new home. Shildy and Mal had urged her to do so. "Just because you're an android doesn't mean that you shouldn't explore," her old friend had reminded her. But exploration would have to wait. For the first time in a while, she was about to meet family.
The Catty androids had always shared a unique bond. Not only were they physical and mental duplicates of a younger Catty Nebulart, but they were the most unique beings Malthus had ever seen. Not even the cyborg soldiers who came into commission near the end of the Paranoid war could compare to them. Because they had to be alone to perform their mission, they cherished every chance they got to meet, to compare notes. Catty had wept when Barbara had told her that eighty-six of their kind, out of ten thousand, were still alive. Now, with the war done and they now able to direct their own lives, the chances were good that they would become a true family in the most literal sense of the term.
"Hey, good looking, what's cooking?!" a voice ventures.
At first annoyed that it could be a male heckler admiring her, Catty blinks. That was a woman's voice. She spins around to see a dark-haired woman her height, dressed in a leather miniskirt, a tank top and various pendants and bracelets, sunglasses covering her eyes. "Hey, gorgeous," the woman purrs, slipping her glasses down to reveal very beautiful gold eyes, "...care to give me a lift, say to Halifax? I've got a nice room reserved."
Catty tries her best not to laugh. Her sister always had a weird sense of humour. She wondered if that had been a glitch in her programming or a byproduct of her time with the Rangers. "Why not? Hop in," she opens the door.
Lisa chuckles as she slides inside, throwing her small overnight bag in the back as Catty slides into the driver's seat. Closing the tinted windows, the latter reaches up to slip off her contacts. "Thanks for getting me these, Lisa. I wish there was some way we could alter our eyes naturally. Wearing these things makes my eyes itch."
"Well, nothing in the way of cybergenetic equipment survived when Malthus blew up," Lisa sighs, reaching over to run her hand along Catty's leg. "Changing hair colour was easy enough, even skin colour and eye socket structure for the ones who went to Asia or Africa, but the eyes themselves are a whole different matter."
Catty looks at her playfully. "Well, c'mon, sweetheart," she drawls in a perfect Humphrey Bogart imitation. "Kiss me."
Lisa purrs as they kiss. "The best expression Terrans have to say 'I love you,'" she smiles. "C'mon! Let's get to Halifax. I want to relax. Travelling by atmospheric jet can be a drag, even for our kind."
"Right," Catty starts the car...
* * *
A half-hour later, both androids walk into a downtown Halifax hotel. "First time I've been out this way," Lisa hums as she looks at the panoramic view of Halifax Harbour and the lights of Dartmouth beyond. "Lovely place you guys picked to put down."
"Lisa," Catty meows.
The brunette android turns to her sister. "Oh, Catty, it's so good to see you again," Lisa sighs as she walks over to sink herself in Catty's embrace.
"And you," Catty sniffs back tears, kissing Lisa's forehead. "I was prepared to die, prepared to lose all of you...but believe me, I'm so glad you survived."
"Ditto," Lisa sits down beside her. "We've got a lot to talk about."
"Trouble?"
"Somewhat," Lisa stands, then grabs the telephone and dials room service. "Hi! This is Lisa Tanner in Room Two-seventy-one. I'd like a bottle of your best house wine sent immediately up. I'm entertaining a guest." She nods. "Yes, we'll have dinner later. Put it on my tab. Thank you." She hangs up.
"We're celebrating, I take it," Catty muses.
"Damn right we are," Lisa stands. "After the wine comes, let's hop into the bathtub. Problem with being built with organic parts is that we sweat like normal people, and airliners don't come equipped with sonic showers."
"Okay," Catty giggles. "I think you want to make love to me."
"Is there a reason I shouldn't?"
"Lisa, we ARE sisters, remember?"
"So? You're still new here. You'll have to learn how to do it eventually. I did."
Catty rolls her eyes. Lisa always had that sort of odd twist in her mainframe. It was probably one of the reasons she liked her so much. The wine soon arrives, then both androids undress and lower themselves in the warm water of the bathtub. "Lisa, is it my imagination or are your breasts bigger?" Catty muses.
"I had them enlarged," Lisa sips her wine. "Some men on Earth like big boobs on a girl. And having sex with me is the ultimate in safe sex, remember?"
Catty snickers. "If organic Solnoids ever saw us, they would utterly go insane! Two androids being passionate with each other?"
"Mom built us to express emotion, remember?" Lisa reminds her.
"True," Catty sighs. "Oh, how is Mother?"
"She's okay," the brunette android nods. "She lives in New York City. I think Barbara told you. She works at the United Nations. Her public duty is that she's chief of staff to the Secretary-General. I've met him. He's a decent fellow."
"You said 'public' duty."
"Yeah," Lisa finishes the rest of her wine, then pours herself another glass. "Her private duty is that she is a special advisor to the Secretary-General and the Security Council on Solnoid-Terran affairs."
"So people in authority ARE aware of us!" Catty gasps.
"Hard to avoid the problem when fifteen thousand strange women appear out of nowhere with no explanation as to where we came from," Lisa shakes her head. "Mom felt that the best thing to do was to come clean about it right away. Believe me, most Terrans do value honesty."
"How did the UN take it?"
"They took it incredibly well," Lisa smiles. "Mom arrived with the first group that came in, about fifteen years ago. At that time, the UN had little in the way of real power; the Cold War between the States and the old USSR was still on and all that. So, the Security Council...the non-permanent members, that is...took a dare. They made arrangements for us to be integrated in society, to live normal lives as normal Terrans. We are genetically related, even if you don't believe that Patty's son and Rumy are the Adam and Eve of Judeo-Christian-Islamic legend."
"Was there a trade-off?"
"Somewhat," Lisa nods. "Mom realized that there was no way most Terrans could hack the idea, even now, of aliens. Introducing technology like AI, warp drive systems, the Starbuild technology and things like that would be a hell of a shock to most people... and there was the risk that someone would get the urge to play God. So, the Security Council arranged for the transfer of non-military knowledge. Miraclone and the rest of that, plus better space habitation systems for the time Space Station Freedom goes up, whenever NASA gets around to it."
"That's understandable," Catty nods. "But, you're insinuating that there is a problem."
"Unfortunately so," Lisa looks depressed. "We did our best to try to make everyone feel comfortable here. Most have adjusted quite well. How are yours doing, anyway?"
"They're okay. All have boyfriends, more or less."
"That's good," Lisa nods. "But, there are the few malcontents. Mother, that's more than understandable after the shit we just went through."
"What sort of malcontents?"
"Well, to begin with, when Mother arrived, she organized an umbrella organization by which we could all fall back on in times of trouble. We called it the Chaos Foundation, after our name for the Moon. It has UN backing, can't be touched by the Big Five..."
"The US, Russia, China, Britain and France," Catty emphasizes.
Lisa nods, "...and it has the power to take control if ever some of our people do get out of control. The UN took a great risk at that one, Catty. They would prefer to keep control over the whole house, but Mom was able to make them see the light."
"But there are those who are not satisfied with the present state of affairs," Catty muses.
"Exactly," Lisa nods. "Simply put, there are two groups starting to form. The first are the more peaceful lot. They believe that Solnoids have no place on Earth. They believe that Earth should be left to its natives and we should leave, go elsewhere to build a new Malthus."
"That sounds reasonable," Catty nods.
"Here's the catch," Lisa holds up a cautionary finger. "They want to resettle Chaos."
Catty blinks. "That's stupid! If the people of Earth watched their own moon reform into another planet, it would be sociologically devastating!!"
"Right," Lisa nods. "And these people don't like your friend Rabby. After all, she was willing to wreck Chaos to ensure that the Axis or the Central Guard could not get their hands on Patty's son."
"I see," the lavender-haired android shakes her head in total disgust. "Mother, for the utter life of me, I'll never understand the illogic some organics come up with! What else is there?!"
"The war-mongers."
"What?!! They're still around?!!"
"Afraid so," Lisa rolls her eyes to the ceiling. "Even though we have no spacecraft, we have no real idea where the Paranoid are, they still want to fight the war."
Catty nearly sinks into the water. "I'll drown myself and short-circuit."
"Not with me in the tub, you lazy ass!!" Lisa snaps.
Catty recovers herself. "How are these people like?"
"Vulgar, to say the least of it," the brunette android sneers. "The other sisters don't hang around them, so it's hard to keep track of them all. They hate Mom, consider her a traitor to the Solnoid people. Anyone associated with Mom, including a lot from the 'Starleaf,' would be targets. So would we. And they consider most Terrans lower than slime."
"Hypocrites, I take it?" Catty muses.
"Yep," Lisa groans. "They want to enslave male Terrans so they can grow a new race of warriors to go on fighting the Paranoid."
"In other words, they would gladly seize total power on this planet, subvert the nations and the UN and do with Earth as they please," Catty shakes her head. "Oh, why don't we make use of some of those chemical weapons the Americans are disposing of on them?"
"Some are tempted," Lisa sighs, finishing her wine. "C'mon, let's towel off."
The two androids rise, taking towels in hand and drying each other off. "So is there any hope of keeping a tight lid on them?" Catty inquires. "I'm sure the UN must be getting quite nervous now."
"They are," Lisa wraps a towel around herself. "Mom is trying to arrange some altering of personnel, moving the malcontents around, breaking them up and scattering them so they can't form into a cohesive unit. However, there's a problem. The Terrans have something called 'democracy.' The malcontents charge Mom with trying to become another Journey."
"In other words, Mother is losing control of the Foundation," Catty wraps a towel around herself.
"Unfortunately," Lisa nods, sitting on her bed. "It's going to blow sooner or later. All it needs is a good spark to set it off."
"And that could be anything," Catty muses. "So, why are you and Barbara trying to keep the presence of the 'Starleaf' crew a secret from the rest?"
"Simple," Lisa stares at her. "Catty, do you remember what people used to call the old 'Starleaf' crew?"
The lavender-haired android nods. "The Gallant Force. The conquerors of Chaos, the destroyers of the Axis."
"That's right," her brunette sister smiles. "All of us...all the Catty androids...believe the time's come for the Gallant Force to swing back into action. The potential's there. You see it yourself."
"I do," Catty smiles. "They will find this hard to take, I suspect. We want the war to end."
Lisa taps her on the shoulder. "There's an old belief here on Earth, sis. 'When evil rears its ugly head, good people must rise and fight.' You're right now with nine of the best."
"I am, aren't I?" Catty chuckles.
"We've already started making arrangements," Lisa continues. "All the surviving equipment which is still operational will be moved into Canada, close to were your friends can get their hands on it. My Rangers are ready to fight if they smell anything which hints of Journey's policies. When the malcontents make their move, we'll be ready to stop them."
"We'll be ready," her sister echoes.
A knock is heard. Lisa stands and walks over to the door. A waiter is there. "Here's your dinner, ma'am," he smiles.
She fetches her wallet, then pulls out a wad of bills. Catty blinks on seeing a couple fifty-dollar notes. "When you get off duty there, John," Lisa reads his nametag, her voice dropping to a seductive purr, "...come by and visit. My sister and I might want some company," she winks.
He shudders at her attention. "I'll...th-think about it," he stammers, then quickly retreats.
Catty moans on seeing that. "Oh, Lisa, you've got to get your circuits descrambled!"
Lisa laughs as she wheels the cart in, then lays down beside her sister. "Well, while we're waiting for John's libido to convince his mind that we're serious and safe," she hums, undoing Catty's towel, "...I think it's time that you got to learn what the joys of Sensualism are like."
"I might regret this," Catty threateningly growls.
Both androids laugh, then kiss, the towels dropping to the floor...
* * *
To be continued...