Episode 94, One too Many
31 Aug 2024Ryuko Ntsikana
Episode 94, One too Many
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One of the android attendants woke me in the middle of my rest. There was plenty of stock remaining but no order had been placed by Ceri for replenishment. Their attempts to contact her went unanswered and her cabin door was locked. As master of the ship, I had override authority. My eyes hadn’t yet focused as I reached over blindly with my hand, trying to find my data tablet. The attendant understanding what I was looking for picked it off the end of the table next to the bed and handed it to me.
It took me a moment to focus on its screen as I shuffled through its tabs to the security section. Even though we had no passengers on board, there were several areas marked in red. Highlighting her quarters I tapped the icon, turning it to green.
I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes as the attendant stood in silence; his head turning one way then the other as he received signals from the other attendants.
“One of the other attendants is with her but she does is not responsive. Activating medical protocol.”
“Dammit!” I yelped, pushing the android to one side as I leaped out of bed, rushing to get on my onesie flight suit. I didn’t need this shit right now…
“Ashlyn?” I croaked as I pulled my flight boots on.
“She is well and resting. Should I notify her?”
Are you nuts?
“No, let her sleep.”
I felt that something wasn’t right after her breakdown at the restaurant. She never said a word the whole evening and isolated herself the moment we boarded. I thought she just needed time and should have known better.
Lakon’s boxy ship designs had certain benefits. All of the crew quarters were on the same deck as the bridge, and my rush down the corridor was a straight line.
My heart sank as I ran the short distance to her quarters where an android attendant was with Ceri, scanning her as two other attendants exited the ship’s central lift, with a magnetic repulsive gurney between them. The air inside her quarters was heavy with the smell of alcohol and the potent sticky scent of onion head narcotic.
I always hated narcotics, especially onionhead. My nose scrunched out of reflex as I walked up next to Ceri’s unconscious form. “Status?”
The android stepped to one side, motioning for me to do the same as the other two attendant androids entered her quarters, and began placing her on the gurney.
“She is alive but will require medical care.”
The last thing she needed was to be rushed to this station’s medical facilities. She was already on the outs with her own kind, and doubted any of them adhered to any code to ‘do no harm’.
“Can we provide for her aboard this ship and can she make a jump back to our home port?”
The android nodded as the others carried her out. “We have the capability onboard to stabilize her, and yes, she can survive a jump, but we recommend that she be placed in a higher level of care facility as quickly as possible.”
“Alright, notify Ryuko’s carrier as to what has happened, and tell them to expect us. I am going forward to get us out of here.”
The android nodded in compliance as we both headed out into the corridor, it headed toward the ship’s central lift and me toward the bridge. I only hoped that the sudden departure didn’t wake Ashlyn.
***
Ryuko sat in his bridge wing office chair, his hands steepled on his desk as his eyes turned away from the bulkhead monitor, where Doctor Jenkin’s image vanished. He looked out the office’s large display window, with thousands of stars highlighting it from the distant beyond. Tara and Lilia both turned their head from the display and back to Ryuko, whose eyes shifted from the window toward the android Aby; who stood like a statue near the office door.
“The good news is her overdose was not an attempt to take her own life,” Aby stated, maintaining his position near the door.
Tara rolled her eyes in a way that made it difficult to determine if her response was mimicry or evolved emotion. “The levels that were in her system make that hard to believe.”
Aby tilted his head, after a fashion in his weird way. “After a certain point the cognitive abilities to judge what is or is not safe cease.”
Ryuko suppressed a smile as he could see by the look in Zaria’s eyes that this exchange amused her, but she was doing a great job of keeping it from showing on her face.
Tara turned her head to one side. “Tomatoes tomato in her case. She was willing to obliterate herself and I don’t think she cared about the consequences.”
Ryuko cast a glance between the two ladies before looking back at Aby, whose head tilted in the other direction. Knowing that this back and forth was not healthy for anyone, Ryuko raised his hand, motioning for Aby to come forward. “Aby, I have a mission for you.”
Aby walked up to the desk, staring down at Ryuko with those android eyes that he had always found creepy.
“Commander Meredith needs someone to fill in as his boatswain’s mate.”
Aby’s head remained immobile as he downloaded all of the required information.
“All of the necessary information on the ship and its crew have been downloaded. After a review of their contents, I need to ask a question. Are the attendant androids incapable of performing the task themselves?”
Tara leaned over in her chair toward Zaria, who rolled her eyes again in what was now a clear sign of evolved annoyance. “When you wiped the memories of the recent past, did they damage its logical pathways?”
Ryuko held up his hand as he stared at Aby. “Yes, Aby, they are capable, but my concern is the well-being of the human crew. Part of your duties, until Ceri returns, is to maintain their care.”
Aby tilted his head again, analyzing the variables of the tasks being presented to him.
“What is my function to be after the return of Miss Ceri?”
Ryuko nodded his head. “Fair question. Your role will then become that of quartermaster for the human crew. I want you, without being too forward, to keep tabs on Ceri and report back everything. I need to know if what has happened to her is a one-time affair or if she has an addictive issue.”
“Do you wish me to notify her primary employer as to the incident?”
Ryuko sat back in his chair at that question, shaking his head. “No, and this is a direct command. You are not to mention or hint at what has happened to anyone, aside from those in this room and/or to Meredith himself. No one else, and let me repeat that order, No one else.”
Aby nodded in compliance. “Order acknowledged. When would you like me to assume my duties?”
Ryuko motioned toward the office door. “Now is as good of a time as any. Go report to Commander Meredith. I will send a message ahead for your introduction.”
Aby turned without acknowledgment and headed out of the office as Ryuko leaned forward to type out a quick message on his data tablet.
Tara smirked in what Ryuko knew was an evolved emotion. “Let’s hope that his good intentions algorithms don’t trip him out of an airlock… again.”
It was Zaria’s turn to roll her eyes as Ryuko chuckled.