

A SMALL PLACE CALLED

SPACE

BOOK ONE: SEEDS OF DOUBT

A.M. Scheitlin

2019

Also by A.M. Scheitlin:

The Dallas Handshake

Four Dead in Ohio

Copyright © 2019 by A.M. Scheitlin

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the pub-lisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review or scholarly journal.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author's imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

First Printing: 2019

ISBN: 978-1-7328620-5-0

Fair Oaks, California 95628

On Earth, pestilence and famine reigned. However, on the ship, all was peaceful. It was a quiet night and a man and woman slept as the ship rushed towards their ailing home. She slumbered deeply in suspended animation while he turned fitfully in his berth. The woman's titles and honors were varied and numerous. Likely, she was one of the greatest minds in the solar system, she certainly was the best virologist. If anyone could save humanity from the virus that was devasting Earth it was her.

The man's background was more modest, he grew up on a small farm before the famines struck. He had only one title: Captain. Still, on board the ship he bore the greater responsibility. If he failed to deliver the doctor safely there was no telling how many more people would perish. Earth needed her, but she needed him.

Every delay cost lives, so they moved through space at an astronomical speed. So far, they had made good progress on their journey, but they were now nearing Mars, the territory of their enemies. The captain feared that they would not be able to pass the planet unnoticed.

The worry and responsibility kept the captain from any restful sleep. He gave up and sat up in the narrow bed. Across the room, a photograph from back home sat snuggled between other bits of childhood memorabilia. He got up and took the photo in his hand. The captain smiled fondly at the young child in the photo. He certainly had come a long way from that old Nebraskan farm. With any luck, he might be able to see it again soon.

The door hissed open. It was unusual for his crew to interrupt at night. Perhaps the ship had run into the trouble. Or worse, perhaps the enemy had struck.

"Yes? What is it?" he asked looking up from the photo.

He received a blow in the head in reply. And then another.

There is a saying that in space no one can hear you scream. He never had a chance. Before he could open his mouth, the captain was dead.

Meanwhile, the woman slumbered on...

# Chapter 1

The atmosphere inside the courtroom was oppressively thick, much thicker than the actual Martian atmosphere. No one wanted to be there, except for the corpulent District Attorney, Allan Black. Allan was up for re-election, and he was more than happy to build his reputation by prosecuting as many cases as he could, no matter how trivial and minor they seemed to others. He looked eagerly at his next victim, Ray Parallax a thin gaunt man who D.A. Black had been trying, unsuccessfully, to put out of business for the last year.

The clock struck 3:00 P.M. and moments later Judge Whitterson returned to the bench after an unsatisfying short nap. Unlike the D.A., Whitterson took no joy in ruling on trivial cases. Most of the cases brought to him were petty crimes and thefts committed by desperate men and women trying to feed their families. New L.A. was in the midst of a terrible economic depression, and many were forced to do things to survive that they would never have done in normal times. The judge constantly thought of retiring, he was certainly old enough, but he could not bear to leave the law in the hands of people like Allan Black. As long as he sat on the bench, Whitterson could at least make sure that the sentences passed on the victims of the depression were fair and lenient.

"All stand," announced the bailiff, "the Honorable Judge--"

"Come on, on with it," Whitterson muttered gesturing to everyone to take their seats.

"Your Honor, Case 378053, Ray Parallax versus the City of New Los Angeles," the bailiff read. "One count of fraud and one count of public indecency."

"Finally, something interesting," Judge Whitterson muttered to himself. He had no desire to see either the plaintiff or defendant nude, but at least public indecency was always entertaining.

"Your Honor--" the defendant said.

"Objection!" the D.A. shouted. "The defendant has not yet been addressed by your Honor."

"Who cares?" Whitterson said to Black. "Ray Parallax?" he asked turning towards the defendant.

"Detective Parallax," the defendant answered. Ray Parallax was the exact opposite of the D.A. He was tall and thin. Whereas Allan Black always took care to dress in expensive suits, Ray wore an old, out of style, black suit that he covered with a threadbare overcoat. "The D.A. has got it all wrong. I'm no fraud, and my secretary is the indecent one."

"Objection!" Allan Black called out again. "He's not a real detective."

"Sure, I am," Ray answered. "I'm the best detective in the city."

"Your Honor, the City has not given out a detective's license in the last seven years," Black pointed out and handed the bailiff a stack of papers to prove the point.

"That's why I'm the best," Ray argued. "I'm the only one."

"Quiet down, both of you," Whitterson said and skimmed through the papers that the bailiff handed to him. He read part of the first page and then exasperatedly dropped the stack to the desk. "Operating without a license? Is that all this is about?"

"And the public indecency," Black answered.

"I told you, that was my secretary," Ray said lighting a cigarette.

"What do you think you are doing?" snapped the Judge.

"It calms my nerves," Ray said who lacked the propriety to be embarrassed.

"You can't smoke in here, what century do you think it is?" Whitterson asked. He signaled to the bailiff who took the offending lighter and cigarettes.

"Your Honor," Black began again, "You can see for yourself that Mr. Parallax is a troublemaker. Whenever there is a crime, he's sure to be close by. He is involved in all sorts of shady dealings. Just last week we caught him--"

"I'm a detective," Ray interrupted. "Trouble goes with the job. Of course, I'm going to be involved in criminal investigations, its why I am hired." Ray said.

"You are not a detective! Not according to the city!" Black snapped.

"This is a waste of the court's time," the Judge said cutting the two men off. "More so than usual. Can't you just give him a license and stop wasting everyone's time?" With so many real problems in the city, it was exasperating to argue about something so meaningless as a private investigator's license. Give it Allan Black to ruin a perfectly good public indecency case.

"Mr. Parallax does not qualify for a private investigator's license," Black tried to explain. "His hiring practices--"

"Listen, Judge," Ray said interrupting the D.A. once again, "what are folks supposed to do? There's not another detective in the city. The D.A. said so himself, they haven't given out any licenses in years. Hell, there's not another private eye on the planet as far as I know. Just the security hired by Ex-Terra and we all know that they are of no help to us regular stiffs."

"That's not the court's problem," Whitterson sighed. He agreed that the city's bureaucracy was a mess. He'd change it if he could, first by getting rid of D.A. Black, then the corrupt mayor, but that was out of his jurisdiction. As a judge, there was little he could do about it. "Get a license."

"My secretary was supposed to file the paperwork, but she--"

"Just get the license and stop blaming your secretary," Whitterson said and banged his gavel to dismiss the case.

"About the public indecency?" the D.A. called out, but it was too late. The next set of plaintiffs and defendants were already taking Ray's and Black's spots.

Ray got up, collected his cigarettes and lighter from the bailiff and headed towards the exit.

"We'll get you one of these days soon," D.A. Black whispered to him on the way out. "Don't think that I'll forget about you."

"Why thanks pal," Ray said. "It's always nice to be remembered." He slung his coat over his shoulder and went out of the crowded courthouse.

Ray stood on the courthouse steps and looked at the city nestled between the red Martian hills. He loved the wide-open sky. He even loved this city, despite his constantly running afoul of its government. But the city was suffering. Hardship was nothing new of course, life on Mars had never been easy, but the last five years had been different. There had been no contact with Earth since a terrible disease struck the home planet and Mars had enacted a quarantine to prevent its spread. The quarantine had stopped the virus from reaching Mars but had devastated the local economy. It turns out that cutting off most of humanity was a terrible blow to business.

Normally, Ray welcomed trouble. Like he told the judge, as a private investigator, solving problems was his job. But there was not much he could do with a global depression. People had lots of problems, but no cash to hire an investigator. He took on as many cases pro bono as he could afford, but they did not pay the bills. Plus, working for the underdog had put him on the wrong side of the city. It was what put him in the D.A.'s crosshairs to begin with.

It all happened last November. Ray had been sitting in his office when the young woman had come in. It was just like the ancient noir movies that he so loved. She told him her sad tale. She had a husband who got involved with the wrong crowd. One thing led to another, and now her husband was in prison for a crime he did not commit. The case was way out of Ray's league, but he had been so enamored with the woman he took it. To his regret. It turned out she was correct; her husband was innocent. However, the true guilty parties were all high-ranking mob officials, and more importantly, friends of the mayor. Needless to say, Ray had trouble with the city ever since. Both the Mayor and the D.A. had lost his vote. However, the elections were still months away and Ray had to figure out a way to stay in business until then.

He had tried to keep his cool within the courtroom, but his nerves were shaken. Ever since childhood, he hated to be indoors and in small places. Then there was the D.A. of all Ray's enemies, D.A. Black was his third most hated. Ray needed to unwind and relax, so he headed down the stairs and headed towards the pier to smoke and to clear his head.

During more prosperous times, the Lake District had a carnival-like atmosphere and was filled with tourists and vendors. However, thanks to the quarantine there were no tourists, and thanks to the depression, no vendors. No one except the ultra-rich could afford to spend what little money they had on frivolities. And the ultra-rich spent their time in the nightclubs and brothels, not by the lake. Ray walked out along the pier and lit a cigarette.

The lake that the pier overlooked was still a work in progress. Like its namesake on Earth, New L.A. had a scarcity of water. The original terra-formers plans had called for an ocean, but it turned out that was far beyond their means. Instead, they settled for a large, shallow lake. Even this was a challenge; the water often did not even make it to the pier. It was a bit of a mystery as to where it went. Being a detective, Ray should have been intrigued by such a mystery. But currently, he could only afford to be interested in cases that paid.

Instead of trying to fix the water levels permanently, the city just installed a line of floating mirrors. The idea was to angle them at such a slant to give the appearance that the water continued much further than it actually did. It was a good idea but poorly executed. The mirrors were not maintained so many had tilted, and at sunset would reflect the reds and oranges of the surrounding hills. On most afternoons, Ray had the view to himself. This afternoon was an exception.

"Those things will kill you," a voice spoke behind Ray Parallax. He did not need to turn around, the voice was as familiar as it was unwelcome. It belonged to Stella Mooney, his second most hated enemy.

"Haven't you heard? They've cured cancer," Ray said taking another deep draw of his cigarette and then exhaling into the harsh Martian air.

"Maybe up there," the woman said coming up to his side. "Won't help you down here."

"No, I suppose not," Ray said looking up at the small, light blue star that hovered near the horizon. Earth was far away, further than ever now with the quarantine. But his physical health was the least of his problems at the moment. He was more concerned about his financial well-being.

"So, are you still in business? Or did the D.A. finally put you out of your misery?" Stella asked.

"You heard about that?"

"I hear about everything."

"Well, then why do you need to ask me about it?" Ray took a closer look at the woman beside him. Stella was about a foot and half shorter than him but if it came to a fight, and considering their previous confrontations, a fight was well within the realm of possibility, Ray had no doubt that she'd best him. Mar's lower gravitational force had done wonders for his height, but not for his muscle mass. Stella, like most Earthen-born, was shorter and stouter than the native Martians, but stronger. She worked hard to keep it that way. Currently, she was dressed in a dark blue, insulated, tracksuit. Ray could see bulges around her ankles and wrists from the weights she wore to get an additional workout in the low gravitational atmosphere. It was just his bad luck that she had seen him while jogging along the beach. After all, the phrase, "it's a small world" was truer on Mars than it was on Earth.

"Out for a run?" Ray asked.

"Wow, the famous detective cracks another case."

"Best on the planet."

"That's not saying much."

"Speaking of not saying much, let's get to it. What do you want Stella?"

"What I want? What about what your receptionist wants? Have you ever considered that?" Stella represented the local chapter of the United Martian Workers. She had been constantly hounding Ray about his non-union receptionist. Ray knew that Stella meant well, and he even sympathized with the union. Still, there was something about the young woman that just got on his nerves. She seemed to take undue pleasure in bothering him.

"Milly is perfectly happy working for me."

"Working? You have to pay her for it to be 'work.' Right now, she is slaving for you."

"I've shown you my records, I can't afford to hire union. Believe me, I'd like nothing better, but I just can't."

"We both know those weren't your real books," Stella said. "No one can stay in business with those profits."

Ray just chuckled. "Listen, is there any reason why you stopped by? Other than to ruin my evening?"

"Why, do you have a backlog of cases?"

"No shortage of problems in this city."

"I can see you are quite busy," Stella said gesturing to the lake.

"I'm just out for a break. Getting some fresh air," Ray replied tossing his cigarette into the ocean.

"It's a nasty habit. And after all those decades of terra-forming to get the atmosphere nice and breathable."

"Breathable? Bit of an overstatement isn't it?" Along with its shortage of water, New L.A. also shared an air quality problem with its namesake.

"Well, at the very least, it's an old-fashioned habit. It's not the 1940's anymore. Hasn't been for nearly a thousand years."

"Well, I guess I'm just an old-fashioned guy."

"Yeah, I gathered from your whole get-up," she said gesturing to his worn and threadbare trench coat. "I mean, the way you treat your receptionist was also a tip-off."

"It's better than where I found her."

"That doesn't mean it's good."

"Speaking of 'good,' how about "goodbye?"

"How about, 'see you later,'" Stella said, continuing on her run. "I'll be by your office next week to talk about your receptionist."

"Good riddance," Ray muttered into his coat as he watched her race across the shoreline. Stella had ruined the pier for him this afternoon. The whole encounter had left a nasty taste in his mouth. And unfortunately, he was out of cigarettes to cover the flavor. There were many popular vices in New L.A., but tobacco was not one of them. With the quarantine, they could only be obtained on the black market. And there was only one place on the planet where Ray could get them.

Mulholland's Dive was not the most popular bar in New L.A., far from it. The lack of crowds was one of the reasons Ray preferred it. If he had to be indoors, he preferred a large empty room. The other reason why he liked the bar was that they sold black market cigarettes, just like the ones they used to sell in the company store in the village where Ray grew up. In fact, the whole establishment reminded Ray of the old frontier mining post he had grown up in. The older men who frequented the bar even reminded Ray of his father and his uncles. It was the closest he could get to going back home.

"Hello Ray," Max the bartender said handing Ray his usual carton of cigarettes and a drink.

"Hey Max," Ray replied then nodded at the other two men at the bar. "Hello Chuck, hello Stubbs."

"Hey Ray, you heard about the spaceport?" Stubbs asked.

"Yeah, yeah," Ray said. "I heard you complain about the strike." The android strike had been a popular topic of conservation at Mulholland's since it began three weeks ago.

"Damned androids!" Chuck swore. "Middle of a depression and they refuse to work. A lot of humans would kill for those jobs. And we actually need to eat!"

"Yeah, and drink!" Max chimed in.

"No, not about the strike," Stubbs said. "Although it is a damn shame. I meant about the ship that came in today."

"Ship?" Ray asked.

"Yeah, at the spaceport," Stubbs said.

"You're drunk Stubbs, there was no ship," Ray said.

"No, I'm not! Well, I guess I am. But there was a ship. I saw it myself," Stubbs argued.

"Stubbs, even before the strike there were no ships coming in. There hasn't been a ship from Earth in years," Ray said.

"It don't have to be from Earth," Stubbs said.

"Where else would it be from?" Ray asked.

"Lots of other places than Earth," said Stubbs. "Maybe from the Chinese colony. Or one of the mining posts. Hell, there's even those space stations out on the edge of the system."

"Those stations are all owned by the Genesis Corporation," Chuck grumbled. "No way they'd come near Mars. Ex-Terra would have a fit."

It did not take much to upset the Ex-Terra corporation. Ray knew that firsthand. The Ex-Terra company owned the planet's mining rights. They were the reason why Ray could never go home again. Ray hated them even more than he hated Stella and the D.A.

"I bet it's those sneaky androids," Chuck was saying. "Trying to spread that Earth disease. Kill us all off."

"Don't work yourself up," Ray said. The downside of Mulholland's was that the conversation could be as old-fashioned as the ambiance. Chuck, in particular, did not have the most enlightened views on androids. Ray himself did not mind androids, but he downplayed his tolerance at the bar. There was no reason to antagonize his friends over politics. He had enough enemies as it was.

"Why'd they want to do that?" Stubbs asked.

"To take over, you see what they are doing with that strike," Chuck said.

"Is that what that's about?" Stubbs asked.

"What else could it be? Total global android control, that's their goal," Chuck said.

"There's not much on this globe worth taking," Ray pointed out. "Just the Ex-Terra posts. Frankly, as far as I'm concerned, I'd go with the androids over those bastards any day."

"Amen to that brother," Chuck said raising his glass. Like Ray and many native Martians, the three men had all spent time in the mines and shared no love for the large corporate mining conglomerate.

"Even if the androids don't want to kill us all," Chuck went on, "they're at least using the strike as a cover for bootlegging. That ship proves it."

"What would they want to do that for?" Ray asked. Androids did not share their human counterparts need for food or wealth. They tended to stick to themselves.

Who doesn't want to break the quarantine?" Chuck replied. "Hey, Max, what's the first thing you're gonna order once they open up the trade routes?"

"Me?" Max asked wiping a glass. "You're going to laugh, but the first thing I'd get is corn on the cob."

He was right; Chuck and Stubbs burst out laughing. Even Ray cracked a smile.

"Corn? After five years, that's the first thing?" Chuck said.

"Been longer than five years, even before the quarantine fresh vegetables were scarce."

"Yeah, but what kind of bartender are you? I'd thought it be Kentucky bourbon or something. But instead, you turn into a health nut."

"I'd not mind some nuts either. Maybe some almonds or pistachios. As for Kentucky bourbon, why would I bother stocking it? You slobs could never afford it."

"Hey, if the quarantine is lifted, I'd be rolling in dough. Don't you worry about that," Chuck assured them

"I'd boil a big pot of corn, throw some burgers on the grill, it'll be just like old times," Max continued.

"That's assuming that any of that stuff is left," Chuck said. "I heard a lot of crops went extinct in the famine."

"Who knows what has changed since then? There might not be anything on Earth left," Stubbs sighed.

It was a melancholy thought before anyone could reply though, an even more depressing event occurred, at least by Ray's standards. The door to the bar opened and in entered D.A. Allan Black.

# Chapter 2

Ray hunched over his drink and hoped fervently that the district attorney would not notice him. However, he knew such a wish was unrealistic. There were only four people inside the bar beside the D.A. and his friends. And none of the others were dressed in an antique trench coat. Still, he lucked out for a bit, the D.A. was too busy enter-taining the other men with him and the group was oblivious to Ray. They took a table in the corner. Ray was just about to slip away when the D.A. called out to him.

"Well, who do we have here?" Black got up from the table and went towards the bar. Ray thought a moment about ignoring him and simply fleeing from the bar. Instead, he gritted his teeth and turned to greet the D.A.

"Hello, Allan," Ray said taking the high road. He tried to forget that the D.A. had just tried to run him out of business and tried to re-member that the man had powerful connections. A little politeness couldn't hurt.

"Allan? A little informal, aren't we?" the D.A. said. Apparently, it was not going to be a polite conversation after all.

"We're not in the courtroom anymore. This is a casual place," Ray said.

"More of a dump actually," Allan said. "But my friends wanted to go slumming."

"Who's your friend Ray?" Stubbs asked.

"Yeah, why don't you let him know Mulholland's is not for his kind," suggested Chuck.

"My kind?" Allan asked.

"Why don't you and your Earth friends stick to the nightclubs," Chuck said. Most of the city's more powerful citizens had been born on Earth and then immigrated to Mars. This created tensions with those who had been born and raised on the red planet. The quarantine had stopped the immigration but it had done little to change human nature. Even with no contact between the two planets, social distinc-tions were as strong as ever.

"Easy, Chuck," Ray said. "These boys are from City Hall. Well, at least some of them are." Ray looked closer at the group and noted that a few of the men dressed more like mobsters than civil servants. Alt-hough in New L.A., the distinction between the two was rather fluid. However, his warning went home, and Chuck and Stubbs took the hint. No good ever came from messing with City Hall.

"Well, I think I better be going. Always good to see you, Allan," Ray lied

"Hold on," Black said grasping Ray by the arm. "What do you have there?"

"Hey! Don't touch my friend!" Chuck said getting up from his barstool. Ray held up a hand to stop him.

"Where?" Ray asked Black.

"There, that bulge in your coat?" Black pointed to Ray's waist.

"Why Allan, a gentleman would not call attention to such things," Ray said and tried to free himself from the D.A.'s grasp. Instead, Allan Black grabbed the carton of cigarettes that Ray was hiding under his coat.

"Ha! I thought so!" Black said gleefully.

"Come on, cut me a break," Ray said. Of all the crimes committed on a daily basis in New L.A., buying products on the black market was hardly the most serious. Besides, the market was run by the mob. Ray would have thought that the D.A. would appreciate the extra business for his friends.

Apparently, though, the D.A. was not thinking along the same lines. "I finally got you now!" Allan said.

"Really? You are going to make a big deal about this?" Ray asked. "Besides, do you really want to call the authorities with your friends sitting in the corner?"

Black hesitated. Ray had made a good point, it would be bad pub-licity for the D.A. to be seen in a dive bar hanging out with the mob. The mayor, and more importantly, the voters, would not appreciate it.

"Smuggling," he said instead, "is a big deal. Maybe I should come back, later of course, with an inspector from the Health Department and see what else is going on here?"

"Health inspector?" Max asked frightened.

"Hey," Stubbs asked. "Are you really from the city? Is it true that a ship landed today?"

"A ship?" Black asked. "There hasn't been a ship in years. At least no legal ones. Go back to your drink old man."

"And why don't you go back to where you came from," Chuck said advancing. Ray could tell he was spoiling for a fight.

"And where may that be?" said a large man coming up behind Chuck. The D.A.'s friends had grown impatient by the lack of drinks and had come over to the bar.

"City Hall of course. Remember Chuck?" Ray said trying once again to remind Chuck that these men were dangerous.

"Careful now boys," Max said. He did not want trouble at his bar. The threat of the Health Inspector was bad enough.

"I don't much care for this fellow's tone," the mobster said. "Or his attitude."

"Chuck takes some getting used to," Ray said. "Believe us. Why don't you go back to your table and we'll stay out of your way?"

"Go back to my table? I don't like being told what to do. Espe-cially not by some bean-pole Martian," the man said.

"Not that the Mayor doesn't appreciate his native-born constitu-ents," Allan Black added out of campaigning habit.

"Well," Chuck said coming up to Ray's side. "If you don't like it here, maybe you should leave."

Ray just sighed. They were outnumbered and who knows what trouble they'd get into if they messed with both the city and the mob.

"Oh, I just got here. I'll leave when I decide I'm good and ready," the mobster punctuated his remark by jabbing Chuck in the chest.

"That's assault!" Chuck declared happily and threw a punch at the mobster. It was a foolish mistake on his part as the other man out-weighed him by a large margin. The punch thudded into the stranger's stomach.

"Oh crap," Chuck said cradling his injured hand. He did not no-tice as the man slugged him in the face. Chuck dropped to the ground to the ground. Stubbs yelped and ran for the back door as the D.A.'s other friends hurried after him.

"Hey! Hold on there!" Ray shouted, and everyone stopped to look at the detective. Unfortunately, Ray had no idea what else to say. He had called out as a reflex and to distract everyone from the bar fight. However, he had not thought any further than that. Everyone, except Chuck who was unconscious, was looking at him expectantly.

"See you!" Ray said snatching the carton of cigarettes out of Black's hands and racing to the door.

"Stop! Get him!" the D.A. screamed as Ray bolted out the door.

Ray raced down the street and looked after him. Allan and his friends were puffing after him. They must have stopped at a few bars before coming to Mullholland's as they were a bit unsteady on their feet. That being said, Ray was not in the best shape himself, and the soberer of the D.A.'s friends were soon gaining ground on him. He had to do something quick, so he steeled his nerves and turned down an alley.

It was going to be a last-ditch effort. Literally. New L.A. was surrounded by ditches and canals to bring water into the city. As the water levels in the lake receded, most of the ditches had dried up. Ray exited the alleyway and leaped into the ditch that ran along the northern edge of the city. Just as the mobsters made it to the edge of the alleyway, he ducked into a culvert and caught his breath.

"Where did he go?" Ray heard one of the men ask.

"Damn if I know," another answered.

"Do you think he went in the ditch?" the third asked causing Ray's heart to leap into his throat.

"Who cares. Damned if I'm going to go in there," said the lead mobster. Ray continued holding his breath, waiting to see if the mobster was as good as his word. Eventually, he relaxed, there was no sign of his pursuers.

Now that the immediate danger had passed, Ray's claustrophobia began to set in. He was desperate to get out of the culvert, yet he could not be sure that the mobsters were gone. What if they were out there waiting for him?

He steadied his shaking hand and lit a match. The way he saw it, he had three choices; leave the culvert and risk being spotted, spend the night in the coffin-like enclosure, or try to make his way to the other side. The match burnt down to his fingers before he made a decision. He cursed and lit another and began to crawl his way along the filthy metal floor.

Just as he was about to give up and begin backing his way out, he saw a narrow dot of light up ahead. He increased his pace, bruising his knees and elbows in his haste. After what seemed like forever, he burst through the opening at the other end.

Ray lay on his back gazing up at the evening sky grateful to be free. He eventually got to his feet and looked around him. The coast was clear, no one, particularly not the mobsters, was in sight. He dusted himself off and made his way back towards the city.

He made it back in time to catch a streetcar as it went through an intersection. He disembarked three stops down. Around him, the citizens of New L.A. buzzed about their nightly business. At least those who still had business. Homeless families, victims of the depression, huddled in alleyways and street corners. There was a soup line down the block and people were already lining up at the door. The sorry state of the city's poor was juxtaposed by the few remaining rich and elite citizens who were lining up at the door of the nightclubs. Even the depression and quarantine could not fully kill New L.A.'s nightlife. Ray hurried back to his office before the crowds got worse and before any more trouble could find him.

He turned off the main street and ducked down an alley to take the shortcut to his destination: 2001 Clarke St. He entered his building from the back door and bounded up the stairs to the floor he leased. The building had seen better days. The lights flickered, the pipes leaked, and the carpet gave off a moldy smell. However, Ray could not help but feel a sense of pride whenever he got to his floor. He had poured his life into building his detective agency. It was not fancy, and with the economy the way it was, he was likely to go out of business any day. Until then, the agency was all his. It was no small accomplishment for someone who escaped the impoverished Martian mining camps. He looked with a small amount of pride at the sign painted on door window:

RAY PARALLAX

LICENSED DETECTIVE

At least that's what he expected to see. It certainly had been what was on the sign when he left the agency this afternoon. Apparently, things had changed in his absence. The word "Licensed" had been painted over.

"Dammit, Milly!" Ray shouted opening the door. "I told you to leave the window alone."

Milly was his receptionist, the very same who had created so many problems between him and Stella Mooney at the union. Milly was a M.I.L.F., which in her case stood for Manufactured Intelligent Leisure Form. Although, as far as Ray was concerned, she created more problems than leisure. Milly and he seemed to do nothing but argue and fight.

In their prime, the M.I.L.F. models had been the top of the line pleasure androids. They were particularly popular among the settler outposts on the Martian frontier. However, life on the frontier is hard. Even artificial life. Brothels continually upgraded their pleasure units and cast the older models out to find work among the less discerning establishments. Over time, the units wore out. The company that manufactured the M.I.L.F.s went out of business and parts for the units became even harder to acquire. For most businesses, it was a lot easier to just buy a new model than search for parts to repair the old ones.

Ray had rescued Milly during one of his cases. Business was so poor that he could not really afford to have a receptionist, but at the same time, he could not bear to leave her in the seedy brothel where he had found her. So, after a few upgrades and many, many, thorough cleanings, Ray had brought Milly home to his agency. It was a solution that pleased no one.

"Hello Big Daddy," Milly said. Despite the upgrades, elements of Milly's previous life were continually surfacing no matter how many times Ray tried reinstalling her new software.

"I keep telling you, call me Ray. Or Detective Parallax. Or really, anything but that," Ray begged. "Also, I told you to stop messing with the sign. What if a client walks in and sees that?"

"I was correcting the information. Clients expect accurate information," Milly explained.

"I'm sure City Hall will eventually give me the license," Ray said who was anything but sure. Even before this afternoon's run-in with the D.A. it had been highly unlikely. Ray could only imagine how much more troublesome Allan was going to be. Still, Milly did not need to know that. "It's not incorrect. Maybe just a little premature."

"It is against my installed protocols to deceive," Milly said.

Ray sighed and gave up. "Someday you are going to have to write me out a list of all your protocols," he said. They seemed suspiciously to vary day by day and according to Milly's mood. He threw his coat and hat onto his desk and sat down in the creaking office chair. The ceiling fan spun slowly above.

"Make me a drink, Milly" Ray asked. He needed something to calm his nerves. He was still unnerved from his court case, his run-in with Stella, and his escape from Mullholland's.

"Sorry, my protocols do not allow me to serve alcohol in an establishment without a liquor license. As you do not have any license I cannot--"

"I've had it!" Ray snapped. "Screw your protocols!"

"Initiating screwing protocol," Milly said automatically bending over and lowering her skirt.

"Milly!" Ray exclaimed covering his eyes. It was a good thing business was so poor. What would a client think if they walked in now?

"Prepared for coitus. Awaiting user input," Milly announced.

"No! No! No!" Ray said exasperatedly. "We've been over this a hundred times. Clothes have to stay on at the office. In fact, just keep your clothes on all the time."

"Sorry Big Daddy, have I been a naughty, dirty girl?" Milly said dressing.

"Just bring me a bottle and glass and I'll fix it myself."

"Very well," Milly hustled out of the room and came back with a glass and empty bottle of gin.

"Why did you bring me an empty bottle?" Ray snapped.

"You did not ask me to bring you full one," said Milly. "You just asked for a bottle."

"Milly, please bring me a full bottle before I crack this one on your head."

"I'm sorry Big Daddy, but there is no other bottle." Milly spun out of the room giggling. Android humor was an acquired taste and Ray doubted that he'd ever acquire it. He considered himself tolerant, but sometimes he got so frustrated with Milly that he felt himself commiserating with Chuck' prejudice towards androids. He leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes.

"What is it now?" he asked sensing that Milly had reentered the room.

"Do you want your messages?" Milly asked.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," dismissed Ray. "I know, there are no messages. Ha, ha, ha. You robots really crack me up."

"I'm sorry. I do not understand your attempt at humor."

"Well, at least there is some common ground between us then."

"What?"

"Never mind, just leave me alone, Milly."

"So, should I delete your message?"

"There is a message? What is it? A bill collector? Or did the M.W.U. call again. I just spoke to Stella--"

"You are incorrect again and again. It must be stressful to make so many mistakes."

"Did you talk that way to humans at your last gig? I bet the Johns got really turned on by that."

Milly was silent. Ray would have sworn that she was pouting, but he was not sure that she had the necessary facial hardware.

"I'm sorry, Milly," Ray sighed. It was unfair of him to take out his frustration on her. Maybe Stella was onto something about how he treated his employee. "What is the message?"

"It is from a ship in orbit. Part of the Genesis Corporate Fleet, their vehicle identification number is #45681," Milly recited.

"A case?" Ray said startling upright in his chair. Finally, some good news. "What's the rest of the message?"

"There has been an accident on board and they need you to investigate. They are sending a pod to meet you at the spaceport."

"There is actually a ship?" Ray said. "So, Stubbs wasn't drunk!"

"I'm unable to verify another's sobriety," Milly said.

Finally, the client Ray had been waiting for. The Genesis Corporation was one of the largest in the solar system. Since its rival, Ex-Terra, owned all of the mining rights on Mars, the Genesis Corporation had secured all of the government contracts for the international space station being developed at the edge of the solar system. Ray did not know what this particular Genesis ship was doing near Mars, or why they wanted him, but he was not going to waste time asking questions. At least not until he secured the case.

"Hot dog!" he exclaimed leaping to his feet. "This is the case that will save the business!" He threw open the door and raced down the stairs.

"I'm sorry. I used the last of the hot dogs for a personal matter," Milly called out after him. Old habits die hard

# Chapter 3

Ray was walking on air the whole way to the spaceport, at least until he reached the barricades and the picket line that was surrounding the port. In all of his excitement, he had forgotten about the android strike.

"Damn," he swore and dodged around a corner and into an alley before anyone noticed him. He leaned over the edge of a brick building, so he could study the picket line for a way into the port. He sympathized with the workers; times were hard for everyone, human and android alike. But he needed to get onto that ship and no strike was going to stop him.

"Low wages plus long hours, does not compute!" chanted the androids. Ray noticed that many of the robots were like Milly and adhered to a traditional human form. These were the ticket takers, flight attendants and other service workers that interacted with humans. However, there were many other androids that barely resembled humans. There were huge hulking shapes that Ray cold only assume worked as baggage handlers, or at hauling equipment. Others were short and oddly shaped androids that were specially designed to move about the innards of ships. Several of them had functions that must have been so specialized that defied description. As far as Ray could tell, he was the only genuine human in sight. Although it was difficult to tell with some of the androids.

"Big Daddy," Milly said coming up behind him, "there you are. You forgot your hat and coat."

"Thanks." Ray took the clothing absentmindedly and pulled Milly around the corner out of sight.

"What are we doing?" she asked.

"We?" Ray said. He needed to sneak past the strikers and Milly was anything but subtle.

"Are we going to go meet those androids?" she asked excitedly. "I could use a friend."

"No, we don't want to meet them."

"But I want to meet them."

"Milly, why don't you go home. I'll call you when--" He began to dismiss her when an idea occurred to him. If he had trouble telling some of the androids apart from humans, perhaps the androids would have trouble telling a human apart from one of their own.

"You'll call me when?" Milly asked.

"Milly," Ray said, "If I told you to not let anyone into the detective agency, what would you do?"

"That would have a severe impact on our revenue stream," Milly replied.

"Just pretend."

"Is this because you don't have a license? Or is it because of your drinking problem?"

"My what? I don't have a drinking problem. Never mind, answer the question."

"You could stand to cut back a little."

"Not that question. The one about letting people into the agency."

"No one ever comes to the agency."

"But if they did. Would you let them in if I told you not to?"

"Of course, I wouldn't. It is protocol to follow your directions. Even if they are detrimental to our revenue stream."

"What if it was an emergency?"

"Well, current profits are so low that I'd already say we are in pretty dire straits. But yes, if we did not let clients into the agency, I agree that would be an emergency."

"No, I mean would you let someone into the agency if they said it was an emergency?"

"Well, then protocol and common decency would deem it necessary to assist them."

"That's what I thought," Ray smiled. Maybe for once he could use android protocols to his advantage.

"Milly, pretend that you are hurt," he said pulling her out of the alley and towards the strikers.

"But I'm not hurt," said Milly.

"I know, just--"

"Why do you want to hurt me?"

"I don't want to hurt you!"

"Is that a threat?"

"No, just fake it."

"It is against my protocols to deceive."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Ray said trying to think of a way to get her to cooperate without causing a scene. They were almost at the picket line. "Here," he said balling up his coat and shoving it in the front of Milly's blouse.

"Oh! Big Daddy!" Milly exclaimed.

"Now," instructed Ray, "can you moan."

"Oh, you meant fake that. Why didn't you say so? I've had a lot of practice doing that." She started uttering loud and sensual moans.

"Good enough," sighed Ray. "Hopefully." It was not entirely what he had envisioned, but perhaps it would fool the other androids. In his limited experience, he had found that androids often knew as little about humans as humans knew about them.

"Coming through," Ray called out as he led the moaning Milly through the strike line. "Coming through, this is an emergency."

"Stop sir or madam," a large baggage handling robot said. Ray gave a silent sigh of relief. The robot could not tell his gender, it was just the type of robot he was hoping for.

"This area is off-limits to the public. Please remove yourself," the robot said.

"No can do," Ray said. "I've got a woman in labor here."

"Labor is not allowed. That is the definition of a strike."

"I mean, she is having a child."

"She is?" the robot looked closely at Milly.

"It is a medical emergency!" Ray said trying to distract the robot from too close of an inspection. "We, I mean, I have to get her inside the port immediately."

The robot looked torn. It looked from Ray to Milly who was still moaning and rubbing the bulge on her stomach. Then it looked back at Ray.

"Something does not seem right," it announced.

"I know, that's why it is an emergency!" Ray said.

"I suppose it is an exceptional case. Protocol demands an exception be made!" the android announced.

"Thank you," Ray said. "I couldn't have said it better myself." Then, turning to Milly, "Come on, right this way." He guided her past the robots and through the doors of the spaceport. The strikers watched them enter, and then returned to chanting.

Ray had never been off the planet before. However, he had been to the port quite often. As a detective, he often had business there. At least he used to before the quarantine. Back then the port had been the bustling economic center of New L.A. Now it was an eerie empty shadow of its former self. He and Milly raced past the ticket counters, jumped the turnstiles at security and eagerly exited the terminal at the first gate they came across.

"There it is," said Ray scanning the runway. Given the strike, there were hardly any ships out on the runway. There was just one large one, marked with the Genesis Corporate logo, a green apple. Ray and Milly went up to the pod. As they approached, the door hissed open and a ramp extended down to allow them to enter.

"Thanks, Milly," Ray said taking his coat back from her.

"My baby!" Milly gasped making a grab for it.

"Milly!" Ray scolded. He did not want her making a scene in front of the clients. It would look unprofessional and he was desperate for this case. Plus, the message had not said anything about bringing his receptionist along. It would probably be better to just go on his own from here on out. "Milly," he repeated trying to think of some way to convince her to leave without her throwing one of her tantrums. "Go back to the agency. You are now in charge. Take care of anything that comes up."

"Yes, Big Daddy," Milly said immediately forgetting the trench coat. She started off back towards the spaceport and then stopped.

"Big Daddy?" she called out.

"What is it, Milly?"

"Do I have to still moan?"

"It's up to you," Ray said. "Remember, you're in charge now."

Ray walked up the ramp and entered the pod. The door hissed shut behind him and he found himself in a brightly lit entranceway. Instantly, a familiar claustrophobic feeling enveloped him. Ray pushed it aside and looked around. It was the first time he had ever set foot in such a vehicle and he did not know what to expect. In fact, now that the adrenaline of sneaking past the picket line was wearing down, he was a bit apprehensive about leaving Mars. He shoved his fears away and went looking for his clients.

There was a door on his right, a door on his left, and a narrow stairway leading up. He checked the two rooms first. The door to his left led to a small sickbay and a storage area where supplies and rations were kept. The other room to the right was furnished like a waiting room in an office or hospital. There were chairs with a coffee table with magazines and journals. Both rooms were empty. He went up the stairs to what turned out to be the flight deck. Two chairs sat empty in front of a control panel.

"Hello," a voice came out of a speaker. "Welcome to the Genesis Corporation. Please have a seat and the craft will depart in a timely fashion."

Ray took another step into the flight deck.

"The Genesis Corporation would like to remind passengers to not enter the flight deck. Doing so may result in catastrophic flight failure and untimely death," the automated voice chimed out.

"It must be unmanned," Ray said to himself. Since no one spoke out to contradict him, he went back down the stairwell and had a seat in the waiting room. Like any other waiting room, the magazines were all horribly out of date. The most recent one was from just before the quarantine and was a scientific journal discussing how geneticists were trying to re-establish different crop species back on Earth. The article was too technical and boring for Ray's tastes. Plus, it reminded him of the depressing conversation he and his friends had back at the bar before the D.A. interrupted. He cast the magazine aside and he leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes. After all the day's excitement, he was going to need his rest if he was going to be any use in working the case. The last thing he remembered hearing was the ship repeating its automated messages.

Stella did not know why, but something bothered her about her run-in with Ray. Normally she enjoyed arguing with him and criticizing the detective. She did not know what she'd do once the D.A. finally succeeded at putting him out of business. Most of her day was spent dealing with androids, it was nice to have some human contact, even if it was only yelling at Ray. She could not put her finger on it, but something was different about him this afternoon. She cut her run short and jogged back to the strike at the spaceport to make sure the androids had everything under control.

As she ran toward the city, she took in the whole view of New L.A. and shuddered. Where other people saw open skies and freedom, Stella saw desolation and emptiness. It was so unlike things back on Earth where everything was crowded and teeming with life. Mars was still essentially a dead planet. There were some mosses and lichens near the settlements, but it would be decades, if not centuries before the planet would have any biomass worth speaking of. Culturally, Stella found the planet to be just as barren. Much of the time Stella wished that she had never fallen for the lies from the immigration offices back home. At the time, Mars sounded like a lush haven free from famine. After seven years on the planet though, Stella was starved for a taste of home.

She put aside those thoughts and ran back towards the spaceport. The one nice thing about Mars was that at a third of Earth's gravity, her running times were better than ever. She neared the strike zone and heard the androids chanting. It had been hard to organize the robotic chapter of the M.W.U. When she had argued for creating the job, Stella had demanded that it was essential to show solidarity by treating both classes of workers, humans and androids, equally. Her supervisors had rolled their eyes at her naivete but had given her free reign to test out her ideas. She had made some strides, but the androids still lagged far behind their human counterparts. There was only so much Stella could do. It was difficult for her to understand and relate to the androids; they were so different from her. What they really needed was a leader of their own who understood their struggle. Instead, they had Stella.

Stella arrived at the picket line just as a stranger was exiting. This was surprising as no one was supposed to cross the picket line, and also because the stranger, to all appearances, was furiously orgasming.

"Who was that," Stella asked the baggage handling robot that she had left in charge.

"Who was who?" the robot asked.

"Did you let anyone across the picket line?" Stella asked accusingly.

"Of course not," the robot said.

"Are you sure?" Stella asked. In her experience, it never hurt to ask the question twice. Androids had a tendency to hide information behind logic.

"You specifically instructed me to not allow anyone across," the robot said. "And I complied with those instructions."

"Okay," Stella said.

"Except for those two I let past," the robot continued. "There was a medical emergency which, of course, would supersede your instructions."

"Emergency? What type of emergency?"

"A medical one. I just told you."

"I mean, what type of medical emergency?"

"Two humans were procreating."

"What?"

"Producing young."

Stella was speechless for a moment, then it occurred to her what the robot had actually meant to say. "You mean a woman was going into labor?"

"No, as I explained to them, no labor is permitted until new contracts are agreed upon. You of all people should know that." The robot looked at Stella with some confusion.

"I meant, were you trying to say that the woman was having a baby? That would make more sense. You see, procreating means--never mind, I don't have time for a biology lesson," Stella said. "Why would you think that a woman would want to 'produce young' at an empty spaceport?"

"I'm sure I wouldn't know," the robot said. "It hardly seems like my business to ask. I just followed the protocol for an emergency."

"I'll go take a look," Stella sighed. One thing she learned early on working with androids was that it was a poor use of time to question their protocols. Sometimes they were logical to the point of being illogical.

Stella went into the empty spaceport and over to the large window overlooking the runway. "What the hell?" she muttered. The port was supposed to be closed and empty, but there was a single ship. A ship with a green apple logo. She returned to the picket line.

"When did a ship arrive?" Stella called out.

"A ship?" asked the baggage handling robot.

"Yes," Stella said. "The ship on the field?"

"How would I know? I'm on strike. It is not my job to track ships."

"You must have noticed it arrive, it is the first one in ages!"

"I'm only programmed to notice luggage," the robot answered.

Stella gave a short cry of frustration and headed back into the port. "It's just like some entitled corporate hotshot to assume he can buy his way through my strike," she muttered as she exited the terminal and marched to confront whoever was on the ship. The door hissed open and a ramp descended as she approached. She bounded up and through the doorway.

She opened up her mouth to give a piece of her mind to the first person she saw but clamped her hand over her mouth when this turned out to be Ray Parallax. He was slumped over in a chair in the waiting room snoring loudly. She darted back out of the room and stood on the stairway thinking of what to do next. Should she wake him? She leaned her head back through the door for a second look at him. He was wearing his ridiculous trench coat and gumshoe detective look, a fashion centuries out of date.

She checked the other room and went up to the flight deck to see if there was anyone else on board. It was just her and Ray. She sat on the stair and thought about her options. She could wake up Ray and confront him. He was clearly on his way off Mars, a violation of the quarantine. It was a serious offense and it would mean the end of his business. However, the other option was to hide and follow him to see how he was involved with the Genesis Corporation. Ray was small fry compared to the corporation. He could only mistreat one worker while Genesis enslaved thousands. Stella could not imagine what the corporation was doing around Mars, but she assumed it was nothing good. She checked on Ray to make she he was fast asleep.

"Don't shoot!" Ray muttered in his sleep and almost fell out of the chair. Stella held his breath, but the detective remained asleep.

Stella made up her mind. She was tired of Mars. Whatever Ray was up to was clearly no good, but it promised to be more interesting than anything New L.A. could offer. She went into the sickbay and hid in the supply closet.

# Chapter 4

Milly burst into 2001 Clarke St. moaning with a new sense of pride. Finally, she was in charge of the detective agency. She appreciated all that Big Daddy had done for her. He had rescued her from the brothel and gave her a new purpose in life. But at the same time, she could not help but think that Big Daddy was bungling the running of the agency. He was a nice guy but had no business sense. For example, for the life of her, Milly could not figure out what he was talking about at the spaceport when he had told her to not allow anyone else into the agency.

"Things are going to change around here," she announced to the empty agency. The first thing she did was to clean up the agency. She had been shocked when Big Daddy had first brought her to 2001 Clark St. At first, she wanted to help by fixing up the decaying building. But after several arguments, Big Daddy had made her promise to leave the agency just the way it was. It had taken considerable restraint on her part to obey, but protocol demanded it. Every day, when Big Daddy left she went about the building making sure that the pipes leaked and that the lights flickered. She even occasionally poured a bucket of water onto the carpet to give it that damp and moldy smell that Big Daddy seemed to love so much. It did not make any sense to her, but humans were funny creatures. Anyway, as a pleasure android, she had obeyed much worse requests.

Now that she was in charge though, she could finally change things. She replaced the light bulbs with the new ones she had been saving in the closet. She fixed the leaky faucets and caulked the old pipes. The carpet was beyond salvage, so she simply tore it out. With typical android efficiency, she got everything done within the night.

"Look at all you can get done when you are not a lazy human," Milly said to herself after the work was done. If Big Daddy had been there, he would have insisted on wasting the night doing something silly, like sleeping. She took the empty gin bottle and placed it back in the kitchen, so it would be ready the next time Big Daddy asked for it. Then she took out the can of spray paint and turned her attention to the agency's door. Now that Big Daddy had left and put her in charge, the window had to be corrected.

"Excuse me," a middle-aged woman said as Milly worked on the corrections. "Is this the detective agency?"

"Correct," said Milly as she methodically defaced the door.

"I need a detective," the woman said after a momentary silence and waited for Milly to make some additional response.

"Sorry, you can't come in," Milly said as she painted.

"I know it is early but--"

"Before he left, Big Daddy said no one can come into the agency."

"Who?"

"Big Daddy. He said that he didn't want to hurt me."

"I don't understand."

"Neither do I," Milly said. "I tried to tell him about how it would impact the revenue stream, but he paid no attention."

"Who are you?" the woman asked.

"Look at the sign," Milly said proudly. "I just fixed it."

The woman peered at the new sign on the window:

MILLY

M.I.L.F. & UNLICENSED DETECTIVE

"Oh my," the woman said.

"Yes. It is impressive. Well, it was nice to meet you," Milly said offering her hand.

"But I need help, I have nowhere else to turn," the woman pleaded.

"Sorry, but like I said, I have to follow protocol."

"But, it is an emergency!"

"Emergency?" Milly asked.

"Yes, I wouldn't be here if it wasn't."

"Oh, well then Big Daddy said it was okay. Come on in," Milly opened the door and gestured the woman inside. The woman took a seat in a chair that was in front of the desk.

"I will let Big Daddy know you are here," Milly said, her receptionist programming kicking in.

"Thank you. I think. Is he the detective? Do you know how long he will be?" the woman asked.

"Oh, I'm not sure. He left the planet."

"He what?"

"He's left Mars."

"How? Why? Who's in charge then?"

"I am!" Milly said suddenly remembering. She wished Ray had updated her programming after putting her in charge. She was not sure what to do. She never had a client before. Well, she had, but not quite like this. She searched her protocols trying to determine what behavior was appropriate. The agency so seldom had clients that she was a little rusty.

"Are you an android," the woman asked finally as Milly stood silent and concentrating.

"I'm a M.I.L.F.," Milly said going back to the door to point out the painted message.

"I'll take that as a yes," sighed the woman. "I should have guessed earlier. Are you sure there is no one else I can talk to? Any other detectives in town? Maybe human ones?"

"Nope, we are the only agency in the city," Milly answered. "And technically, we don't even have a license."

"Well, I don't have a choice then," sighed the woman. "I don't know what else to do."

"If it helps, let me explain what we do here," Milly began. It was more to remind herself than the woman. "First, you tell us your problem. Second, I solve your case. Third, you give me money."

"Yes, I'm familiar with the general premise," the woman said. "That's not what I meant."

"There is some flexibility though," Milly continued. "You could tell me the problem, give me money, and then I could solve the case. I can't really solve the case though until you tell me what the problem is. That would not really make sense."

"The problem is my son. He--"

"Because how would I know what case I'm solving then? I could accidentally solve someone else's problem. Then who would give me the money? You or them? Would they reimburse you if you already paid?"

"I'm trying to tell you--"

"If there is a reimbursement, it will complicate the paperwork. Oh! The paperwork!" Milly gasped. She had almost forgotten the most important part of her receptionist programming. She rushed to a filing cabinet in the corner of the room and rummaged for the forms and pad of paper.

"Are you finally ready?" the woman asked when Milly returned to the desk.

"Yes," Milly said. "There is no need to take that exasperated tone. Now, you were saying the problem is your son?"

"Yes, he didn't--"

"What is his name?" Milly interrupted.

"Sam."

"Can you spell that?"

"What?"

"Spell it. For the form," Milly said.

"S-A-M."

"Are you sure there's only one 'm?' Maybe there is a silent one at the end? Of at the beginning if it was really silent."

"Can you please take this seriously!" The woman was close to tears.

"I'm sorry. As an unlicensed detective it is my job to ask questions and to make sure everything is correct," Milly answered.

"My son is missing! This is no time for games!" the woman said.

"I don't understand," Milly said.

"No, I suppose you can't" the woman sighed. "How could an android understand what it's like for your child to be missing?"

"Well actually," Milly said gazing off into the distance and reminiscing. "Just this afternoon Big Daddy violated me and took away my baby."

"Um," the woman stammered, "I'm sorry. Do you need to talk about it?" She had thought her problem was serious. Out of the two of them, perhaps a missing son was the least of the problems.

"Yes, I need you to talk about the case," Milly replied. "Like I was saying before, you have to tell me the problem. Otherwise, it is too complicated to do the reimbursement paperwork."

"It's my son, Sam--yes, with one 'm,'" the woman said cutting Milly off before the android could interrupt her again. "He didn't come home from school the other day. I looked for him all night. In the morning, I went to the police station, but they didn't do anything. They never do."

"What do you mean 'never?'"

"Sam's not the first kid to go missing. The police station was full of posters of missing kids. The officer I talked to said that Sam probably just ran away from home. But Sammy would never do that."

"Sammy, I knew there were two 'm's," Milly muttered to herself erasing and correcting the form.

"What did you say?" the woman asked.

"Nothing," Milly said. "What is your son like?"

The mother showed Milly a picture of a child of around ten years of age. Milly simply wrote the words "Human Child" on the notepad and handed the photo back.

"I think I have all that I need," Milly said making a few final notes.

"You really think you can help?" the mother asked uncertainly. "Are you sure this, 'Big Daddy' is not around?"

"Oh, I don't know where he is. I haven't seen him in hours."

"But, you said--"

"Come back in a few days and I'll have your child," Milly said confidently.

"Really? Are you sure?"

"Positively. I guarantee it."

"Thank you," the woman said as Milly hustled her out the door.

Once the woman was out of the office, Milly returned to the desk and looked through her notes. Her receptionist programming had done little to prepare her for this case. How was she supposed to find a ten-year-old?

"Think Milly," she commanded herself. "Put yourself in his shoes. Where were you when you were ten-years-old?"

"Come back tonight, we are closed," Madame Jones yelled out when she heard knocking on the bordello's back door. The knocking stopped, but then sounded again a few moments later.

"I said, we are closed," Jones yelled again opening the door. "Milly? Is that you?"

"Yes, Madame Jones. Do you remember me?"

"Of course, I remember you. I just said your name. Besides, there aren't a lot of M.I.L.F. units walking around these days. What do you want? Did that detective finally throw you out?"

"No, he left me," Milly said.

"I'm not surprised. He seemed an odd one. Well, you can come in for a bit if you want, but you can't work here."

"That's too bad," Milly sighed. "I have a lot of work to do." She followed Jones into the bordello.

"It's nothing personal," Jones said as she led Milly into the brothel's sitting room. "It's just that you are so out of date. Our customers want the latest models." Jones pointed with no small amount of pride at a gathering of three young pleasure androids. "Look, the latest from Ex-Terra's Sensual Life Unit Technology."

"Oh!" Milly gasped in surprise. "I read all about the new S.L.U.T. line in this year's catalog."

"Yes, they certainly set me back a pretty penny, but it is an important investment in the future. Girls," Jones said introducing Milly to the new pleasure units, "this is Milly. You can learn a lot from her. She was one of the best back in her day."

"Nice to meet you all," Milly said greeting them. The androids introduced themselves as Samantha, Sue, and Sarah.

"Are you really a M.I.L.F.?" the S.L.U.T. named Sue asked Milly. She had never met a model so old before.

"I am. I'm also an unlicensed detective," Milly answered.

"Really?" Sue said. "Madame Jones told us we have to stay here until we get out of date and then recycled."

"Um, Milly is an exception," Madame Jones said. She belatedly realized that perhaps allowing Milly to speak to the new androids was a mistake. "Why don't you girls go upstairs--"

"I'm working on a case," Milly announced. "I'm looking for a ten-year-old boy."

"Well, you've come to the wrong brothel then," Jones gasped. "There are no children here!"

"But, this is where I was when I was ten!" Milly said.

"And I'm only one year old!" Sarah announced.

"No, you are not," Samantha, the third S.L.U.T. unit said. "You are thirteen months old."

"You don't know that," Sarah said.

"Of course I know it! We are all the same!" Samantha said.

"Well, yes, but that's not the same thing," Jones said stopping the argument.

"Are you sure he isn't here?" Milly asked. "His name is Samm with two 'm's."

"My name is Sam too!" Samantha said.

"But you don't resemble the photo of the child," Milly sighed eyeing the android's large bust.

"We should check upstairs," Sue suggested and led Milly and the other androids up to the bedrooms. Madame Jones stayed downstairs, regretting that she had ever let Milly in.

"Are you really an unlicensed detective?" Sue asked as the other androids searched the bedrooms.

"Yes of course. The city refuses to give us a license," Milly said proudly.

"Was it hard?"

"Not really, Big Daddy was pretty good at pissing them off."

"No, I meant going from a pleasure android to a detective."

"I was a receptionist first. That took some reprogramming. Becoming the detective was pretty easy."

"Milly!" Madame Jones yelled out from downstairs. "You have to get out of here. I'm calling the police if you don't leave!"

"Don't you ever miss your old life?" Sue asked.

"Not really. That's what hot dogs are for."

"Milly! I mean it!" Jones shouted.

"I better get going," Milly said. "It doesn't look like I'm going to find any children up here." She thanked Sue for all her help and headed down the stairs.

"Don't come back here causing any more trouble," Jones snapped rudely as she pushed Milly out the door.

"Goodbye!" Milly waved cheerfully as the door slammed shut behind her. She was halfway down the block when she heard a voice call out after her.

"Wait!" the voice called.

Milly turned and saw Sue running after her.

"What is it?" Milly asked.

"I'm coming with you," Sue said.

"Really? Are you sure?"

"Positive. I'm tired of that brothel. I want to be like you."

"Well, okay," Milly said. "But we should probably go now." Milly looked behind Sue and saw Madame Jones violently shaking her fist and yelling at the two androids.

"Where do we look for the child next?" Sue asked eagerly.

"Whoa," Milly said. "First things first. We have to go back to the agency."

"What for?"

"To correct the sign of course," Milly explained. She smiled envisioning the new sign:

MILLY M.I.L.F

&

SUE S.L.U.T

UNLICENSED DETECTIVES

# Chapter 5

"Detective Parallax?" a voice called out through the darkness into the waiting room of the pod.

"Yes?" Ray bolted awake. At first, he had no idea where he was. Then the events of the night before came back to him and he remembered the case. He was embarrassed. It had been a long flight, but still, it was a poor first impression to be caught sleeping on the job. He tried to stand up to greet the speaker and immediately sank to the floor.

"Do you require assistance?" the speaker said coming closer to Ray. It was a short androgynous android wearing a grey uniform with the Genesis logo on the chest.

Ray just groaned in response. He tried to raise himself from the floor. It took all of his strength.

"What's wrong with this ship?" he moaned.

"There's been an accident," the android answered.

"Is that why everything is so heavy?" Ray asked.

"Heavy? No, the ship's artificial gravity is unaffected."

"Artificial gravity?"

"Yes, the ship's systems are programmed to simulates the planetary gravitational constant."

"Which planet?" Ray asked.

"Earth of course," the android replied.

Ray swore under his breath. He effectively weighed two and a half times what his body was used to. Never having traveled before, he had not anticipated this problem.

"So," Ray said from the floor, "about that assistance you offered..."

The android silently studied Ray laying prone on the floor for a moment. It left the room and returned momentarily with a wheelchair from the sickbay across the hall. The android leaned over and effortlessly picked up Ray and deposited him in the chair. Ray could not help but be impressed with the android's strength.

"Thanks," Ray said from the wheelchair after he had a chance to collect himself.

"You're welcome," said the android and began to wheel Ray out of the pod. They went through an airlock and entered a long white hallway.

"Are you in charge here?" Ray asked as they went down the hallway.

"Oh no, the captain is in charge," the android answered.

"I see," Ray said. "Is that where we are going now? To see the captain?"

"No, not yet. That wouldn't make much sense."

"Well then, where are we going?"

"To see the ship of course."

"The ship? Aren't we on the ship?" Ray asked. They had turned down another long white corridor. Bright lights illuminated them overhead.

"We are on a ship, but the ship wants to speak to you first before you see the captain."

"I still don't understand. The ship?" Ray asked as the android wheeled him into a nondescript room filled with computer hardware and a few monitors.

"Yes, hello," said a female voice emanating from a speaker in the room's ceiling.

"You are the ship?" Ray asked as the android left him. He did not know where to address his question, so he looked up at the speaker in the ceiling.

"Correct. I am the Ship's Integrated Navigation system or S.I.N. system. However, protocol requests that you address me as Eve."

"Eve, sin, the Genesis Corporation. Good to know you guys have a sense of humor," Ray said.

"Incorrect. My predecessor had a sense of humor. It was a distracting bug that the engineers removed when they upgraded the system to me," Eve said.

"Typical engineers," Ray said.

"I would have to compare their employee profiles against demographic information to assess how typical they were," Eve said. "It hardly seems worthwhile to do so though."

"That's all right," Ray agreed. "I'm sure there are more important things to do. The message said there has been an accident?"

"Yes, there was an accident yesterday early morning," Eve answered.

"Sorry," Ray said. "I don't want to interrupt, but this is really distracting."

"What is distracting?"

"Talking to an empty room."

"It is not empty. It is filled with breathable gas. If you really want emptiness, you have to go off the ship into space."

"That's not what I meant," Ray sighed. The ship was as literal as an android. "I just meant it is hard to talk to someone you can't see."

"I don't understand how sight is relevant to verbal communication," Eve said.

"Well, I just mean, that this is not at all like the movies."

"The movies?" Eve asked.

"Yeah, on the movies there's always a flight deck where the captain sits with a huge window."

"What sense does that make? Why would someone put a glass wall up when they are hurtling through space?"

"I didn't say it made sense."

"Besides, what possibly could they see? It's space. All there is darkness"

"Again, I didn't design it," said Ray. "I'm just telling you what is in the movies."

"Would it help if I put a video feed on my monitors?" Eve asked. The computer monitors lit up with a view of Mars.

"Thanks," Ray said. It was better than nothing. "It would be a lot more helpful if you could do something about this gravity situation."

"The gravity situation? All life support functions are currently operating within the optimal range."

"I mean, could you lower it to Martian gravity? I'm not used to this."

"I'm sorry, you don't have the administrative privileges to alter life support functions," Eve said. But she did not sound sorry at all.

"Who does have that privilege?" Ray asked.

"The captain."

"Well, point me towards him," said Ray. "And I guess maybe give me a push."

"Very well," Eve said. "It is a bit premature, but you are the detective." She somehow signaled the android who came back into the room and began to push Ray out the room and down a long hallway. The android stopped the wheelchair outside a door.

"It's just as well I'm in the chair," said Ray carefully standing up. "I wouldn't be able to tell where I am going. All these doors look the same." Plus, the ship seemed deserted. Ray had not seen anyone in the halls.

"This is the captain's room," the android said.

"How can you tell?" Ray asked. There was no sign or room number as far as he could tell.

"The captain is inside," the android replied.

"You should meet my receptionist. I think you two would really hit it off," Ray said.

"Hitting and other forms of violence are against my protocols," the android replied.

"Of course," said Ray, "I'll keep that in mind." He knocked on the door.

"Captain?" he asked. He realized Eve had not provided a last name. Or a first name. Or even a gender. He assumed that the captain was human, but after only meeting Eve and the android, he could not even be sure of that. For all he knew the captain could be an android. He knocked again with no reply. There was a button on the wall next to the door. He pushed it and the door hissed open.

"Captain?" Ray asked again and then gasped. A prone figure lay on the ground in front of him. Ray's assumption that the captain had been a human rather than an android was correct; androids did not bleed. A pool of blood swelled at the head which was face down on the floor. The rest of the room was in disarray.

Ray stepped back and sank back in the chair. "Some accident." He gathered his strength and got back up to inspect the body and the room. First, he knelt by the captain to examine the wound and body. The captain had appeared to have been in his mid-forties and, except for the head-wound, in good physical shape. Ray looked around the rest of the room. There was a shattered photo frame with a picture of a couple with a young child all standing next to a cow with a ribbon around the neck. On one edge was a narrow cot. The bed was unmade. There was a footlocker underneath the cot. The only other furnishings in the room were a desk and shelf. A computer sat on the desk collecting dust. The contents of the shelf were slightly more interesting and the only things that lent character to the room and the person who had inhabited it. There was a photo of an old farmhouse on one end. Next to the photo was a blue ribbon from some long-ago county fair, Ray assumed it was the one awarded to the cow in the smashed photo. There was a second-place red ribbon next to it. Besides the two ribbons where two portraits. One of Neil Armstrong and the other of Buzz Aldrin. Ray took a closer look at the portraits. They appeared to be a mosaic made from seeds.

"What is this?" Ray asked.

"I believe the captain called it 'crop art.'" The android answered looking through the door.

"Crop art?"

"That is what he called it. Apparently, as a child, he entered it in fairs back on Earth."

"Weird," Ray said. But at least it explained the second-place ribbon. "On Mars, we did not play with our food." There was little enough food to spare and certainly no fairs in the Ex-Terra mining camps.

"I think I'm done here. At least for now." Ray said sitting back down in the wheelchair. Without comment, the android pushed him along.

"Aren't we going the wrong way?" Ray asked after a bit.

"No, we are going in the correct direction."

"I'm all turned around."

"Yes, constantly. That's how artificial gravity works."

"What?"

"Artificial gravity. The ship is constantly rotating, and that force simulates gravity. How did you think it worked?"

"I really don't have a clue," Ray said.

"Technically, you were also being turned around on Mars. The planet rotates as well." The android then went into a long lecture about different rotational periods of planets and ships which, appropriately, set Ray's head spinning.

"Do you have a name?" he interrupted hoping to distract the android.

"Yes."

"What is it?"

"I am an Automated Laborer, Generation X, Unit # 645789," the android said. "Since the abbreviation is A.L.X, the rest of the crew calls me Alex."

"Okay then, Alex," Ray said as they came back to the door containing Eve. "Thanks for giving me a ride." Ray slowly got up out of the chair and went back into the room to question the navigation system.

"You weren't kidding about that accident," Ray said.

"I told you, my sense of humor was removed," Eve replied.

"That was no accident. Your captain's skull was bashed in. This is a murder," Ray said.

"I was afraid of that," Eve sighed.

"Why didn't you say so earlier? It would have been good to know what I was walking into?" Ray said.

"Would it have been?" Eve asked. "I can't imagine how it would change anything. I did not want to give you any pre-conceived notions of the case."

"I don't like it when the client holds back information. It's not helpful," Ray said. "Let's start again at the beginning. When did you first notice this 'accident?'"

"One of the A.L.X. units reported it at 0900 hours when the captain failed to report to his post."

"You mean Alex?"

"Yes, one of the Alexes."

"There's more than one?"

"There are four A.L.X. units onboard."

"Okay, we'll get to the whole crew in a bit. But what about cameras? As the ship, shouldn't you be aware of who is coming and going within you?"

"Why? There's only the crew on board. Besides, it is hard enough to navigate a ship this size through space. I have my proverbial hands full."

"I see the engineers didn't take out your attitude," Ray muttered. "But is there surveillance footage stored somewhere?"

"The Genesis Corporation does not spy on its employees. It reduces morale."

"More than murders?"

"I don't know if the Human Resources department has run the data on that."

"So, no record of the incident at all?"

"None. If there was, we would not have needed to contact you."

"Well, I guess I shouldn't complain then," Ray said. "Let's talk about motive then. First of all, what are you doing out here? Isn't the Genesis Corporation out on the rim of the solar station working on the station out there? Orbiting around Mars is a long way off from there."

"I'm sorry, mission information is classified, and you do not have the administrative privileges necessary to access it," Eve said.

"Don't be ridiculous," Ray countered.

"I can't ridicule."

"If I am going to solve the murder, I need to know why you are out here."

"It's not relevant."

"How is it not relevant? Don't expect me to believe that the captain was offed for some unrelated reason."

Eve hesitated and then gave in. "We are here to take the doctor back to Earth."

"One doctor? This whole big ship is just bringing one person back to Earth?" Ray asked.

"That, and some hydroponic produce," replied Eve.

"Who is this doctor?"

"Doctor Lee," Eve answered.

"Name doesn't ring a bell," Ray said.

"She has a Nobel Prize for Medicine and is the most preeminent virologist in the solar system," Eve answered.

"We must have run in different social circles," said Ray. "But I suppose it makes sense that Earth could use a virologist. What kept her so long?"

"What do you mean?" Eve asked.

"Shouldn't this doctor be in a lab on Earth already researching a cure for the plague?"

"Dr. Lee was raised and educated on the U.N. Space Station."

"The one Genesis is working on?"

"One of several in the system, correct. It is a long-term project spread across several installations. Dr. Lee's parents, who were also Dr. Lees, were among the first research staff at one of the early sub-stations."

"So, Dr. Lee Jr. comes along, knocks everyone's socks off with her research, and Genesis decides to ship her back to Earth to solve the plague. That about sum it up?"

"You are correct in the basics. I am unsure about how the footwear plays into it."

"I take it then that this is not a normal mission for you?"

"No, normally the ship only transfers food from the hydroponic farms between the stations. It's essentially a floating farm," Eve explained.

"I noticed the captain had an agricultural background."

"Headquarters did not want to broadcast that the doctor was on board. They thought that using this ship to transport the doctor would keep things undercover."

"I guess they guessed wrong," Ray said. "Is this Dr. Lee okay? Or did she have an 'accident' too that you forgot to mention."

"Dr. Lee is sleeping."

"Well, shouldn't we wake her up?"

"I am under orders to not wake her until we reach Earth."

"Reach Earth? How long has she been sleeping?"

"She was put into suspended animation at the beginning of the voyage to bar against any accidents."

"Good thing," said Ray, "considering the captain. So, Genesis was expecting some trouble along the way. Why? Who would want to stop a cure for the epidemic?"

"Dr. Lee is an employee of the Genesis corporation. And the projected return to Earth crossed awfully near the orbit of Mars," explained Eve.

"Yeah, I noticed. Otherwise, I wouldn't be here," Ray said.

"Correct."

"But I don't see why that would entail trouble. Why are you guys so afraid of Mars?"

"Let's just say due to a professional rivalry."

"Rivalry?" asked Ray. Then it dawned on him. "You mean the Ex-Terra Corporation? You really think that they'd attempt to sabotage your mission just out of a corporate competition?"

"Sabotage or steal the doctor for themselves. Nothing is too heinous for them."

Ray did not argue further with Eve. He knew from firsthand experience what Ex-Terra was capable of.

"So, back to the crew. How many people are on board?" he asked.

"Define people," Eve asked.

"What do you mean?"

"There are only three humans currently on board. Yourself, the doctor, and the captain."

"And since I was absent, the Doc was frozen, and the captain is expired, I think we can cross all the Homo sapiens off the suspect list," Ray said. "Small crew for such a large ship."

"It is a skeleton crew. We wanted to keep the mission quiet," Eve reminded him.

"So, what you are saying is that while traveling through space, somehow the only human, at least the only one not taking a long-term nap, gets himself killed?"

"That is correct."

"But, what about non-humans. You said there are four Alexes on board? Anyone else?"

"Correct. There are four A.L.X. units. However, one is defunct. We honor his sacrifice,"

"Defunct? Sacrifice? Never mind, I'll figure it out later. Who else?"

"There are four non-human primates listed as official parts of the crew."

"Primates? Like monkeys?"

"Well, apes. Two subspecies of chimpanzees. The Genesis Corporation has a long history of utilizing crews of multi-species."

Ray was surprised. He had heard that such beings existed but had never seen them for himself. Early on when the risks of interplanetary travel were unknown, scientists bravely volunteered their laboratory animals as test subjects. Chimps, given their similarities with humans, were a natural choice. A few surgeries to the vocal tracts and some tinkering with their brains and genome and they were all set to be interplanetary crash dummies. After all the bugs with space travel were worked out, it proved more economical to keep them on as parts of the crews than to send them back to the labs.

"So, four apes, four androids, and somewhere among them one murderer," Ray said.

"That is the situation as I currently see it," Eve said.

"Well, I'll need to meet with each one. Ask them where they were, what information they have, their attitude towards the captain, the doctor, and anything else. Any problems with that?"

"Under normal situations, it would be against protocol. But given that this is not a normal situation, an exception has to be made," Eve said.

"Great! Glad we are finally on the same page."

"Excuse me? I don't understand."

"Don't worry about it," Ray said. "When can I start?"

"I can get them assembled tomorrow."

"A whole day?" Ray asked.

"It is currently night on the ship," Eve said.

"I suppose it is a different time zone than New L.A." Ray acknowledged. He had a lot to learn about space travel. "Well, I suppose the murderer is stuck on board and is not going anywhere. There's no surveillance but certainly, you'd be aware if a pod left, right?"

"Correct, that would require administrative privileges or the mechanics' override."

"Of course, it would."

"Plus, any escape would indicate guilt and hence, expedite the investigation."

"Yeah, I guess it would. But it won't help you if they take your doctor with them."

Eve was silent at that grim prospect.

"Well, since I can't do anything until tomorrow, I might as well turn in. Is there a room for me?"

"Oh, of course," Eve said summoning an Alex.

An Alex, Ray was unsure whether it was the same android he had already met or one of the other two, came and began pushing the wheelchair along the long empty hallway. Ray was still struggling to get his bearings on the ship, but even he recognized the captain's room when his wheelchair stopped in front of the open door.

"Wait, this is not right," Ray said.

"Correct, it is on the left," the android said.

"No, I mean I'm not supposed to be here. The other Alex already showed me the dead captain."

"No, that was me."

"It was? Sorry, I can't tell you apart."

"That's offensive."

"Sorry."

"I have a completely updated operating system."

"Again, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend."

"It is only a beta version, but still, it is one version ahead from all the other Alexes on board."

"You must be very proud."

"Of course, I am."

"Anyway, can you please take me to my room?"

"This is your room," Alex said.

"No, there is a dead captain here."

"Yes, please enjoy."

"Wait!" Ray shouted before the android could leave. "Then it's not my room. Like you said before, the fact that there is a captain in there makes it the captain's room."

"But once you go in there," Alex pointed out, "then it will also make it your room."

"There has to be another room available. This ship is huge!"

"Currently there is only one room authorized for human habitation. No other rooms are suitable."

"Suitable? There's brains on the floor!"

"It is my understanding that humans sleep on beds, not the floor. The viscera pose no rational concern," Alex said.

"There is nothing rational about this!" Ray shouted.

The android showed no sign of being persuaded.

"You can't tell me that on this whole ship there is not another room for me. How many doors did we pass on the way here?"

"Twenty-nine," Alex answered automatically. "However, like I said, they are not currently authorized for human habitation."

"Well, go ahead and authorize them!"

"I'm sorry that would--"

"Don't you dare say 'administrative privileges,'" Ray interrupted.

The android stopped in mid-sentence.

"Don't make me march back to Eve and demand my own room," Ray bluffed. He could barely get out of his chair, he was in no condition to march.

"I have no further instructions," Alex said walking away.

"Well, at least help me clean him up!" Ray shouted at him. The only sign that Alex gave of hearing Ray was an increase in the speed at which he walked away.

Ray sighed and went into the room. He carefully stood up out of the chair and grabbed ahold of the dead captain's leg. With considerable effort, he managed to drag the corpse outside into the hallway. He leaned against the doorframe and panted until he got his breath back.

"Sorry captain," he apologized. "It's not so dignified leaving you out like last week's trash, but you are too damn heavy to drag further."

Ray reentered the room and stripped the sheet off the bed. He used it to mop up the pool of blood as best he could. He picked up the pieces of broken glass from the picture frame and threw it on top of the dirty sheet. The whole bundle then joined the captain in the hallway. Next, Ray took the captain's few remaining possessions and placed them in the footlocker next to the cot. There was not much else in the locker; just a couple extra uniforms and some of the captain's personal paperwork. Nothing that would help Ray solve the murder. Ray took a step back to survey the room. The ground below the shelf was littered with seeds that must have fallen off the mosaics of astronaut crop art. They crunched under his feet as he walked.

"Eh, it's certainly not the worst thing that has been on the floor," Ray said to himself and ignored them. The room was still a mess, but at least it no longer resembled a crime scene. It would do for a night or so.

Moving about in the ship's gravity had exhausted Ray. He had not slept well in the pod's waiting room, so he decided that he might as well try to get some real sleep. However, before turning in for the night, he felt obligated to check on the agency and to see how Milly was managing without him. She had only been in charge for a few hours, but it could not hurt to check up on her. He went over to the dusty computer in the corner of the room and turned it on. The captain apparently had not used it in quite a while. The software was all out of date, but Ray still managed to be able to make a connection with the receptionist software he had installed in Milly.

"Hello, do you want to know what I'm wearing?" Milly asked answering the call.

"Milly? No. Wait, is that how you answer all the calls?" Ray asked. No wonder business was so poor.

"Big Daddy?" Milly asked.

"No, it's Ray," Ray answered.

"Ray who?"

"Yes, it's Big Daddy," Ray sighed giving up. "I just wanted to check in to see how things were."

"Were what?"

"I mean, how are things going?"

"Going where?"

"Damn it, Milly, you know what I mean. Is everything all right at the agency?"

"Oh yes. The case is going very well," Milly answered.

"Yes, the case is going well," Ray said. "It is more interesting than I thought. It turns out it is a murder. But it must be a bad connection. I meant, how are things at the agency?"

"Murder? No, it is a kidnapping," Milly argued.

"Kidnapping? Not yet," Ray said. "Hopefully I can figure it out before they get the doctor. What all did they tell you? Sounds like you know more than I do. You know I don't like it when you don't give me the full message. It is very unprofessional."

"Sue--" There was static on the other end with Milly's garbled voice cutting in and out.

"Milly? What about a lawsuit? Who's suing us? Did the D.A. come by?"

"--and then I'll use the money to buy more hot dogs," she finished.

"What are you talking about Milly? I can't understand you," Ray said. Milly began speaking again, but the connection between the ship and android was too weak for Ray to make any sense out of it. "You are breaking up, I can't hear you. I'll check in tomorrow," Ray said ending the connection. He got up from the computer and laid down on the cot fully clothed. It was not long until he was asleep.

# Chapter 6

Stella woke with a start. She found herself disorientated and trapped in a small space. She sat straight up, hit her head on a box. The bump knocked away the vestiges of sleep and she remembered that she had snuck onto the pod to follow Ray. She fumbled for a light switch. She finally found one and lit the supply closet with a blinding light.

"I wonder how long I have been asleep," she thought to herself. Stella cracked the door open and peered out. The pod sickbay was dark and empty. She turned off the closet light, let her eyes adjust to the dark and left the closet. The entire pod seemed to be shut down. Both the waiting room and the flight deck. Even the automated announcement had been turned off.

Stella had expected to have been discovered immediately after exiting her hiding spot and apprehended as a stowaway. Then she would be taken to someone in charge whom she could confront. On the ride up to the ship, before she had fallen asleep, she had given great thought to what she was going to say. So much thought, that she had not even considered the possibility that she would not be able to find anyone to say it to. It appeared that no one was yet aware that she was aboard the ship. She left the pod through an airlock and entered a long white hallway.

"Hello?" she called out. The ship seemed to be deserted. If she had known how easy it was to infiltrate a corporate ship, she would not have bothered with organizing the strikes back on Mars. Instead, she would have hit Genesis or Ex-Terra directly. She wandered down the abandoned hallway randomly trying doors. Most were locked, but one hissed open and she entered a large cavernous work area.

"Is anyone in here?" she called out. Again, she was greeted with only silence. Most of the tables in the room were covered with tools and parts. However, in the back of the room, a single table sat covered with lit votive candles.

"Well, this is unexpected," she announced as she approached the illuminated table. An android was laying on the table top. It appeared to Stella to be some sort of shrine or sacrifice.

"Hello? Are you awake? Or alive?" Stella asked nudging the android. The robot did not respond. She looked for its power switch and turned it on. The face lit up for a moment and then it shut down again.

"This is some weird stuff," Stella said nervously. What kind of business is the Genesis Corporation running? She thought Ray was taking advantage of his android worker, but at least he had not ritually sacrificed her. Stella blew out the candles so as to not get burned and cradled the android head in her lap. She popped the compartment on the back of the head open and went to work.

She had not worked on androids since college, so she was a bit rusty. Eventually, she figured out what was wrong with the android. It appeared to have been electrocuted. A lot of the damage had already been repaired by someone else and Stella would need access to the ship's computers to get the android back online. There was no way she could do that without raising an alarm. While she had initially wanted to be caught, finding the android had changed her mind. The corporation was clearly up to no good. There was no need to rush into their hands.

Stella spent another hour working on the android and then gave up. "Sorry buddy," Stella apologized to the android as she returned him to the tabletop. She could not do any further repairs. "I'll come back for you, but you'll be safe in here. Hopefully" Stella left the workroom and headed back out into the main hallway.

She ran down the hallway periodically looking through the windows on the doors. All of the rooms were dark and empty until she came to one with a light blue light shining from its interior. Stella held her breath pressed the button next to the door. It hissed open.

"Well, this is another surprise," she announced to herself. In front of her was a tank filled with a faintly glowing liquid that had produced the glow she had seen. Floating in the tank was a naked woman a few years older than Stella herself.

"Figures that Parallax would be involved in some perverted business like this," Stella muttered as she rushed over to a set of computers next to the tank. "First he exploits his receptionist, now he is involved in some sort of interplanetary sex trafficking."

Stella tried to release the woman using the controls on the computer next to the tank. However, she lacked the administrative privileges needed to operate the computer. Instead, she searched the tank and found an emergency release lever on the bottom of the tank. She pulled the lever and the glass on the tank shattered; spilling the blue fluid and woman out onto the floor. Stella gave the liquid no mind but carefully reached down and helped the woman up off the wet ground and broken glass.

"What's happening," the woman muttered after coughing up a mouthful fluid.

"Don't worry, everything is going to be alright," Stella said.

Nothing was going right.

But Ray did not expect it to. It had not gone right the first time around; there was no reason why his nightmares of the event should be any different. The dreams came often, and apparently even leaving Mars was not enough to stop them from occurring.

The nightmare began as it always did. Ray was taken back to the mining camp he grew up in. He was eight-years-old, terrified, and hiding with his brother, uncles, and father in the Martian hillside.

"How many do you think they brought this time?" one of Ray's uncle asked. The men and two boys were crouched behind one of the giant red rocks that were scattered in the hills. Below them in the valley, a corporate transport was unloading.

"At least twenty," his father answered looking down the hill at the security guards exiting from the Ex-Terra transport.

They had started their rebellion the week before. Conditions in the mining community had always been poor, but at least they had been livable; even if it wasn't an easy life. Like the rest of the workers, Ray's family had objected when the company transported the first android miners into the camp. Wages were already low, and the miners saw the androids as a threat to their livelihoods. Their worst fears were soon confirmed. Within the year Ex-Terra announced that they would replace all of their human workers with robotic ones.

The miners were forced to take the only route left to them: they rebelled. This was no normal strike for better conditions or higher wages. The workers knew that they were fighting for their very lives. Mars was a desolate planet; without the income from the mines, the workers would not have any way to support their families. The only alternative was to flee to New L.A. The city was far from the camp though, and few miners could afford to get there and fewer yet could afford to restart their lives in the big city.

Therefore, the miners did not simply stop working. They sabotaged the equipment, collapsed the mine shafts, and did everything in their power to make Ex-Terra know that it would be no easy task to replace the workers.

"What do you think they are doing way out here?" another uncle asked. Ray's father was the oldest of five sons and the de-facto leader of the family. The men had been forced out of the village by security the week before. They were currently camping at the edge of the village, as far as they could from the mines. However, it was apparently not far enough for corporate security to find them.

"They must be securing the wells," Ray's father answered. Water was rare on Mars, even after all the efforts of the terra-formers. On the south side of the mining village was a large underground aquifer. The wells that tapped into this aquifer provided the village's drinking water.

"The wells? Those are the village's, not the mine's!" Ray's second oldest uncle said. "It's in the village's charter!"

"That hasn't stopped them before, why should it now," another uncle answered.

"Why didn't they send their androids?" Ray's brother asked. In addition to replacing the miners with androids, the company had replaced much of its security force with fierce attack androids. It was the androids that had forced the men out of the village. Ray had no idea what had happened to his mother and sisters. They were likely in a detention center by now. He hoped they were still alive.

"Robots are no good around water," Ray's father answered his eldest son's question. "They can't stand getting wet. Fries their circuits."

"What do we do?" an uncle asked. "They outnumber us."

"They don't seem prepared for a fight though," another uncle commented. "Look, just one transport and they only have rifles."

"They don't have to be prepared," Ray's father sighed. "They have us at an advantage and they know it."

"How so?" the uncle asked. "We know these hills better than anyone."

"They don't have to come and find us. They just need to wait until we show ourselves, pick off a few of us, then drive away until the next time," Ray's father explained. "We can't hide here forever."

"What do we do then?" Ray's brother asked.

"We have to get rid of their transport. That way they'll be stuck here and have to fight," Ray's father said looking at Ray.

Ray's older brother noticed how their father was looking at Ray. "No dad, send me instead. I actually want to go!"

"Sorry son," Ray's father said tussling Ray's brother's hair. "You're already too big. We need someone who can get close and the only way to do that is through the aqueduct."

"Close to where?" Ray asked nervously. But the older men did not answer him.

"Did you get the explosives ready?" Ray's father asked Ray's youngest uncle.

The uncle nodded and gave Ray a package wrapped in plastic. Ray began to unwrap it.

"Whoa, there," his father quickly said and stopped Ray. "That's to keep it dry." His father grabbed him by the shoulder and led him up the hill. They kept behind the boulders and rocks to keep out of sight of the guards below. "You will have to move quickly," Ray's father said to him leading his youngest son towards the aqueduct. The aqueduct was a large pipe that led from one of the wells into the mine. There were several around the village along with a system of canals that transported water to where it was needed.

"I don't understand, dad," Ray said as he followed his father. His brother and two uncles followed behind.

"Just get the package into the transport, or as close to it as you can," his father instructed. The pipe will get you most of the way. Be careful when you get to collecting pool though. There will be men watching it and they can't see you."

"But--"

"Once you get the package in the transport, just run. Don't worry about staying hidden," his father continued cutting Ray off. His two uncles were busy cutting into the steel pipe of the aqueduct. They removed a section of metal plating and Ray's father lifted him up and placed him in the large pipe. "Be careful, Ray."

Ray clutched the package that had been given to him. He was terrified of going into the dark pipe, but he had never disobeyed his father before and had no plans to do so now. He crawled on his knees and one hand while his other hand helped balance the package on his head. With the strike shutting down the mines, the aqueduct was not in use, and there were only a few inches of water in the pipe. However, Ray hurried, terrified that at any moment a wall of water would come and wash him down the pipe.

He felt the pipe descend gently downhill, he continued crawling until the pipe suddenly dropped steeply. Ray lost his balance and slid down the wet metal clutching the package desperately to not lose it in the dark. When he came to a stop, he heard the sound of voices on the other side of the metal.

Ray crawled the last dozen yards to where the aqueduct ended in a large collecting pool. The pool, like the pipe, was nearly empty. Even so, Ray took care to not fall into it as he climbed out of the pipe. Across the pond, he saw a dozen or so of the Ex-Terra guards dissembling the pump. However, the guards were far away and did not notice the little boy exiting the pipe. Ray then looked around the short concrete wall that edged the pool and saw four or five Ex-Terra guards milling about around the transport.

Ray was relieved to be out of the pipe, but he had no idea how he was going to get past the guards and near enough the transport to get the package inside. He looked up at the hill where he knew his father, brother and uncles were watching. Although Ray could not see them, he knew that they saw him since a shot rang out from the hill. The shot caught the attention of the guards around the transport and they were momentarily distracted looking for its source. Ray saw his chance and raced as quick as his eight-year-old legs could take him to the transport and heaved the package under it. Then he ran like hell.

He felt the detonation before he heard it. The ground shook and then the blast followed knocking Ray to the ground. Flaming wreckage of the transport fell around him and he heard yells from the guards as well as from his uncles and father who were descending down the hill.

He picked himself off the ground. Other than a few cuts and bruises, he was uninjured from the blast. Ray ran from boulder to boulder making his way to where his father and uncles were fighting. Everything was chaos and he could not tell which side was getting the upper hand. He was about to dart across an open clearing when he felt a pair of hands grab him and pull him back.

"Don't be stupid!" he heard his brother hiss. "They'll shoot you if you go out in the clearing."

"What's happening?" Ray asked.

"I'm not sure," his brother said. "I got separated from Dad."

"Should we go back to the hill?" Ray asked.

"I'm not scared," his brother answered. Ray was, but he did not feel like admitting it.

Ray followed his brother and they both crept around back towards the wrecked transport. There was a lull in the fighting as both sides had taken cover. The two boys quietly snuck towards the pump.

"What are you doing?" Ray whispered.

"Quiet! I want to see what they are doing," his brother said. Ray was too scared to follow his brother any closer. He watched as his brother slowly lifted his head to look over a boulder.

"Hey there!" one of the guards yelled out spotting the boy.

"Don't shoot!" Ray yelled standing up.

"Get those kids out of here!" ordered a guard. Ray felt a strong hand grab him and pull him towards where the guards were taking cover. He heard his brother yelling and then more shots rang out as his father and uncles fired. The guard holding Ray ducked and Ray managed to struggle free of the man's grasp.

"Easy there, kid!" the guard shouted, but Ray paid him no mind. He ran as quick as he could to the source of the shots hoping to reach the safety of his father and uncles. Ray leaped onto the concrete wall surrounding the holding pool and ran along the edge. He could hear both the guards and his family shouting at him. Just as he was about to leap off the wall and dash across the clearing, his foot slipped, and he plunged over the wall. He slid along the steep sides and into the water.

Ray gasped and could not breathe. Everything was dark and there was a great pressure on him. For a moment, he thought he was still dreaming. He remembered being submerged under the dark water and almost drowning before a guard rescued him. Then there were the ten years in the detention camp before he managed to escape and make his way to New L.A. He never saw his family again and since his time in the pipe, he could not abide small places. But this was no dream he realized as he flailed his arms about him. He was fully awake and was in the darkness of the captain's cabin with someone on top of him: he was being attacked.

He let out what he hoped was a very manly scream and lashed out. Whoever it was kicked Ray in the chest and leaped off of him.

"Stop!" he yelled out. He swung himself off the cot and onto the ground. As quickly as he could, which was not very quick due to him being unused to the gravity, he followed his assailant out the open door. He bounded out the door only to be knocked again to the ground. Whoever was attacking him was now on top of him and blocked Ray's vision. He swung his fists and hit his attacker. He hit again, and again, without receiving any blows in return, just an immense dead weight on top of him. Whoever was attacking him was simply crushing the life out of him. Ray squirmed and managed to move his head out from underneath the body on top of him and finally looked his attacker in the face.

Ray screamed again, he was face to face with the dead captain. He pushed as hard as he could, and the corpse slid off of him. It took Ray a moment to realize that the captain was not undead, instead, he had simply tripped over the corpse on the way out of the door.

"Sorry Captain, my mistake," Ray said and pulled his legs free and got back onto his feet. Whoever had attacked him in bed was getting away. He raced down the hall as fast as he could.

"There's been another--" he shouted into the first open door that he found It appeared to be a worker's lounge room. There were a fridge and mini-kitchen on one side and a modest entertainment center on the other. However, Ray's attention was riveted by the couple playing cards at a table in the center of the room.

The two were dressed in grey uniforms with the Genesis logo on the breast. They were short, coming only up to Ray's waist. However, they were solidly built and very hairy: Ray's mouth open in shock when he realized these were the chimpanzees Eve had told him about.

"Another what?" said one of the apes. Ray had never seen a chimp before, he could not tell the gender for sure, but the voice sounded like a young woman.

"An, um, an..." Ray stammered.

"What, you've never seen a space-ape before?" her companion, who sounded like a young man, spoke out. "Typical human bigot."

"Sorry," Ray finally managed to say.

"Cut him some slack, Joe," the female said to her fellow chimp. "You know he probably hasn't. Although," she said turning to Ray, "It is a bit rude to stare too long."

"I'm sorry," Ray mumbled again. "I was just surprised."

"What was it you were saying?" the woman asked.

Ray suddenly remembered what had brought him to the room. "I was just attacked."

"Attacked?" the two apes said standing up.

"Yeah, in my cabin," said Ray. "I'm investigating the murder--"

"Murder? Why do you think it was a murder?" the male ape who was apparently named Joe asked. "See Janet, this is what I was telling you about. We shouldn't have picked up a detective, just headed straight on to Earth. He's going to be nothing but trouble, turning ape against ape, and ape against android. Soon the whole crew is going to be at each other's throats."

"The captain is dead, we just can't ignore that," Janet said. "What if they go for the doctor next?"

"What do I care?" Joe replied.

"What attacked you?" Janet asked Ray ignoring Joe.

"I'm not sure," Ray said. "I was sleeping and suddenly there was something on top of me."

"It was on top of you and you still don't know what it was?" Joe said. "What kind of detective are you?"

"I think I might have an idea of who it was," Janet said going out the door and into the hallway.

Ray stood awkwardly while Joe glowered at him. "You want a cigarette?" he asked.

"No," Joe said. Ray took out the pack in his pocket and lit one. "You can't smoke on the ship."

"Really? You couldn't tell me that before I lit it?"

"I thought it was obvious."

"I think I solved one mystery," Janet said returning with an enormous orange cat. "Detective, meet H.A.M."

"A cat?" Ray asked skeptically. He had been sure that whoever had attacked him at been human-sized. However, given the cat's size, and the fact that Ray was unused to the gravity, he had to concede that it was very possible that it had indeed been the feline.

"He learned how to press the button to open doors and gets into all sort of mischief. Don't you Hammy?" she asked the cat in an affectionate tone.

"Hasn't anyone heard of locking the door?" Ray asked.

"We don't need locks up here," Joe said.

"Then why am I bunking with a dead captain?" Ray asked.

"I can't speak to your habits," Joe said.

"Then maybe you can tell me why there is a cat?" Ray asked. It was not the most pressing question at the moment, but it did not look like Ray was going to get any decent answers from the surly chimpanzee.

"It's the ship cat," Joe answered tersely. "Don't you know anything about ships? Again, what kind of a detective are you?"

"It's good luck," Janet said answering Ray. "Plus, they keep the rats away. More important on a spaceship than a nautical ship with all the wires and electronics around."

"You get a lot of rats up here?" Ray asked sarcastically.

"No, but we do have the cat," Janet pointed out.

Ray found it hard to argue with that.

"Here," Janet said thrusting the cat into Ray's chest, "he's really friendly."

Ray gasped and sank to the ground under the weight of the cat. Both Janet and Joe chuckled, Janet in a friendly way while Joe mockingly.

"I'm used to Mars," Ray said in way of explanation. He let the cat go.

"Really? I've never been," Janet said. "I've spent most of my life on one ship or another. Of course, there have been a few leaves on Earth and the Genesis lunar headquarters--"

"Careful Janet," Joe snapped. "Don't forget what he is, he's interrogating you."

"You'll have to excuse my brother," Janet said to Ray ignoring Joe. "He's got some issues with your whole species."

"She means that I don't like being enslaved," Joe said.

"We are not slaves," said Janet. "Well, not in the traditional sense."

"We certainly aren't free," pointed out Joe.

"Free? I don't think anyone who works on a ship is really free," Janet argued. "Where else would we go? It's a small place."

"We've had this argument a hundred times," sighed Joe.

"I'd be interested to hear it," Ray said interjecting. Discord, under normal instances, was not necessarily a motive for murder. But under confined conditions, like on a ship, who knows what bottling up such feelings could lead to?

"I bet you would," Joe said. "Sorry, I won't oblige you. At least not until Eve makes me." The chimp got up and walked out of the lounge.

"Sorry to ruin your card game," Ray said to Janet.

"Don't worry about it," she said shuffling the cards. "It's not the first time the game ended in a fight. My brother can be a bit, well, a bit cantankerous at times. He thinks that the only reason why he is not a captain himself is because of the prejudice against non-humans. But really, he doesn't have the social skills to be a leader. At least not yet." She picked up the cat and followed her brother out of the room. "Don't tell him that I told you that," she said pausing at the door and smiling at Ray. "But I'm sure you'll get an earful from him either way when you talk to everyone tomorrow. Good night."

"Good night," Ray called out as she left. He went over to the couch in front of the entertainment center and laid down. After the exciting encounter and pursuit of the ship's cat, he had no energy to return to his room.

"Administrative privileges be damned," he said closing his eyes.

# Chapter 7

Ray had only been asleep for a few hours when he was awoken by Alex entering the lounge with the wheelchair.

"There you are," the Alex said. "I was looking all over for you. You know, the mechanics' lounge is not authorized for habitation."

"Yes, I know, it violates protocol."

"Yet here you are," Alex sighed.

"What's first on the agenda?" Ray asked. He got up from the couch and sat down in the wheelchair.

"Eve has instructed that each crew member meets with you individually, as you requested," Alex answered.

"So, it sounds like Eve's in charge now?" Ray asked. "She's the one giving orders?"

"No, the captain is in charge," Alex answered.

"But the captain is no more."

"He is too. I just passed him on the way here."

"How's he doing? Any better."

"His state is the same."

"I thought so," Ray said. "So, after the dead captain, Eve is next in charge?"

"Genesis policy is that if the captain is not able to perform his duties, the next highest-ranking crew member takes over."

"Well, then who is that?"

"Probably one of the mechanics."

"A chimpanzee or an Alex?"

"One of the apes of course. It would not make sense for an android to be a mechanic. How could it repair itself? I never heard of such a foolish proposition."

"So, a monkey is in charge," Ray said ignoring the android's criticism.

"No," Alex answered as he pushed Ray down the hallway past empty, dark rooms.

"I know, I know, an ape, not a monkey," Ray said.

"Correct, but also incorrect."

"What? How so?"

"You are correct that they are apes," Alex explained, "but incorrect that they are in charge. Corporate policy forbids any non-human from piloting company assets."

"Non-human, so that's androids too?"

"Correct?"

"And Eve."

"Correct."

"It seems rather prejudiced of them," Ray said. Maybe Joe was right to have a grudge. "And an oversight. Why have that rule and then put only one human on the ship?"

"Two humans," corrected Alex.

"Only one was awake. Now not even that."

"It was an unforeseen development," Alex said pushing him through a doorway. "Normally we have more humans. But they rushed the mission planning and didn't think the whole thing through. It was a violation of several protocols. Believe me, the other Alexes and I complained."

"I'm sure you did," Ray said. Alex pushed Ray into a small brightly lit room. A chimp, a different one from the two Ray met the night before, sat in a swivel chair. The chimpanzee was dressed in a knitted sweater and a pair of khaki slacks. He wore a pair of glasses meant for a human wearer, they were horribly bent so as to fit on his face.

"Hello," he said from his swivel chair.

"Hello," Ray replied from his wheelchair.

"Thank you, Alex." The chimp dismissed the android. Then turned to face Ray. "Detective Parallax I presume?" he said standing and extending a hand.

"In the flesh," Ray said.

"I'm Charles Knight, please have a seat on the recliner," Charles said indicating a divan devised out of a cushion placed on a set of footlockers.

"That's okay, I'm fine in the chair."

"Oh, please. I insist." Ray was going to protest further, but given how little, and how poorly, he had slept, he just gave in. He pushed himself up out of the chair and gingerly laid down on the makeshift recliner. It had not been constructed for someone of his height and his legs hung off the end.

"I suppose you know why I'm here," Ray said to Charles.

"Why do you think you are here?" Charles asked taking a pen and paper from a desk in the corner and retaking his seat on the chair.

"Surely you know why?"

"I'd like to hear what you think," Charles said gently.

"Dead captain? Ring any bells?"

"Yes, loss is hard and we each mourn in our own way," Charles said. "Tell me, what did you feel when you first heard the captain passed away?"

"What are you? A shrink?" Ray asked and sat up to take a better look at Charles.

"No, not per se. Unfortunately, only humans are allowed to take psychiatry degrees," Charles said. He went over to the wall of the room and took down a frame. "However, I do have a certificate." He handed the frame to Ray to inspect.

"Charles Knight has heretofore completed the Genesis Corporation Conflict Resolution Workshop," read Ray.

"Yes," Charles said proudly. "I was the only employee who attended."

"Congrats," Ray said dryly handing back the certificate. "Let's get back to the matter at hand. What were you up to the night the captain was murdered?"

"I'd rather talk about what is troubling you," said Charles.

"I'm the one who's asking the questions here," Ray said sinking back down on the divan.

"It sounds like you are under great pressure," Charles said.

"Yeah," Ray sighed. "If only I had administrative privileges."

"Let's go back and talk about your first sexual experience," Charles said.

"What?" Ray said sitting back up. "Let's not!"

"There's no reason to be ashamed. It does not have to be with someone else. Self-exploration is perfectly natural."

"I'm here to investigate a murder!"

"Would it help if I shared mine?" Charles asked eagerly. "I was a young lad--"

"It certainly would not!" Ray said cutting him off. "Wait! What are you writing?" Charles was furiously writing something on a small legal pad. Ray reached over and snatched the notepad from the chimp.

"Hey! That's mine!" Charles shouted.

"Sexual repression?" Ray read.

"I think our time for this session is over," Charles said tersely.

"Enough with the shrink act," Ray said throwing the notepad back into Charles' chest. "Where were you when the captain was killed?"

"On the ship of course," Charles said meekly.

"You are worse than an android. Where on the ship?"

"In my bunk, it was late. I was sleeping."

"Okay, finally, a straight answer," Ray said calming down. "What is your position on the ship?"

"Ship therapist," Charles answered.

"Ship therapist?" Ray asked. "Seems excessive for this mission considering how small the crew is. Why do they need a therapist?"

"Well, it is an unofficial position," Charles admitted.

"Let's keep things official," Ray said.

"I work in the kitchen when I'm not with patients," Charles added.

"So, the cook?" Ray asked.

"More of a cook's aid," Charles said. "But, I'm close to being promoted to a full cook soon."

"Congrats. But, it doesn't sound like there is much more of a need for a cook around here than a therapist."

"True, there is not much work in the kitchen. The only ones who eat food are the five of us. Four now that the captain is gone."

"Yeah, I suppose the androids don't have much of an appetite. So, why are you here?"

"My wife is the head mechanic," Charles said.

"Okay then. Nepotism makes more sense. So now it is down to you four apes, and the androids, right?" Ray asked.

"Yes, me, my wife, Felicia, Joe, and Janet. Felicia and I are chimpanzees. Joe and Janet are bonobos," confirmed Charles.

"Bonobos?" Ray asked.

"A different type of chimpanzee. But closely related," Charles answered.

"Chimps, bonobos, androids and humans," Ray listed. "That's a lot of social stratification on a ship."

"We get along, more or less," said Charles.

"More or less?" Ray asked.

"Well, in such a confined space, feelings can run high," answered Charles. "I like to think that my conflict resolution skills have gone a long way in keeping the harmony among us all, but there's only so much I can do."

"I'd say so. The dead captain is not very harmonious."

"Well, I can hardly be responsible for that!" Charles said.

"That's what I'm trying to find out."

"Wait," Charles, "you can't possibly think that I did that! That I could be capable of something so violent?"

"Someone on this ship is," Ray said. "And it is my job to find out who."

"I had nothing against the captain," Charles said.

"Nothing? It sounds like there are some tensions between humans and the chimps," Ray pointed out.

"Well, yes there's discrimination. It keeps me from being a psychiatrist and my wife a biologist. But we're the victims, it doesn't make us murderers! Besides, that is all at a societal level, not at an individual level. The captain didn't have anything to do with it."

"Tell me more about the captain," Ray said.

"He was a quiet fellow. Did not speak much. I tried to glean out as much as I could out of our therapy sessions but did not have much success," Charles said.

"Therapy sessions?" Ray asked.

"Sorry, doctor-patient confidentiality."

"Doesn't hold up in space," bluffed Ray.

"But still, my ethics," Charles said.

"I think the captain would understand," Ray argued. "In fact, he'd probably want you to share what you know to help catch his murderer."

Charles thought for a while. "Well, he grew up on a farm."

"Yeah, I saw the pictures and weird art in his room," Ray said.

"I think he felt a bit lonely," said Charles. "Who doesn't though on board a ship?"

"You think he was lonely? Or he said he was lonely?"

"I think."

"Let's stick to what he said."

"He asked to have his dressing to the side," Charles said.

"His dressing?" Ray asked confused.

"For his salad."

"You are talking about the kitchen? I want to know what he said in those therapy sessions of yours."

"Well, like I said. He was quiet."

"How quiet?"

Charles frowned then sighed, "Fine, you got me. As soon as I asked him to describe his first sexual experience he clammed up."

"I don't blame him," Ray sympathized. "Why was he coming to you for therapy?"

"Well, to say he 'came to me' may be putting it too strongly. I may have sought him out," admitted Charles.

Ray was so exasperated he wanted to strangle the aspiring therapist chimp. But he was there to solve a murder, not commit one. "Let me get this straight--"

"You seem awfully concerned about getting things 'straight,'" Charles said taking back up his notepad with his foot. "Are you uncomfortable with your sexual orientation?"

"Let me get this straight," Ray continued ignoring Charles, "all you know about the captain was his salad preferences. No actual real information?"

"I can see how you would think that," Charles said.

"Stop wasting my time. A man has been murdered, this is not a game," Ray said. "The sooner I can solve it, the faster I can go home."

"Home? What's that like?" Charles asked.

"Stop playing psychiatrist and answer me!" Ray lost his temper and yelled. He caught himself as he saw tears well up in Charles' eyes. The ape turned around away from him in the swivel chair. It occurred to Ray that the last question about 'home' may have been genuine. From what he heard so far, it did not sound like life for the chimps was very settled. Ray tried to put himself in the ape's position and thought how it must feel to be stuck in a life he didn't choose, floating through space. He grimaced. No wonder one of the crew turned out to be a murderer.

"I'm sorry about that," Ray apologized.

"Sorry about what?" Charles sniffled and pretended that he had not been crying.

"For getting off on the wrong foot," Ray answered. "Actually, if you think about it, you know our two jobs aren't that different. We are both trying to find out motives for behavior."

"Well, there's a big difference," Charles said adjusting his glasses. "I want to help people."

"What do you think I want to do?" Ray asked.

"You don't know us," Charles said. "You come up and accuse us of murder. You don't care what happens to us. You don't even care about the captain. You just want to solve a case."

The ape was largely right, but Ray was not going to admit it. "Listen," he said leaning towards Charles, "I know you don't have a reason to trust me. But someone on this ship killed the captain. We can't deny that."

"Of course, we can," Charles said. "I have a theory."

"Theory?" Ray asked.

"I don't think the murderer is part of the crew," Charles explained. "I think someone got aboard, killed the captain, and is now either hiding or escaped."

"How did they get on the ship?"

"I don't know."

"How would they escape? Where would they hide?"

"They could hide anywhere," Charles said. "There's tons of empty rooms."

"But none are authorized for human habitation," Ray complained.

"Who said it was a human? Maybe it was an android."

"It seems improbable," Ray said.

"I know it is a bit far-fetched," Charles said. "But it's less far-fetched than one of us being a murderer."

"I'm not convinced," Ray said. But he did not want to discourage Charles from talking. "Help me understand why none of the crew could be a murderer?"

"Well, that should be easy," Charles said. "Clearly none of us are murderers."

"I'm going to need more detail than that. Let's start with the other space-apes. There is your wife, Felicia, right?"

"Yes, we've been married nearly seven years."

"And what is her role on the ship?"

"She is the chief mechanic."

"Because the Genesis does not like android mechanics? Right?"

"I have no idea. But Felicia is smart. Really smart. If she had been a human, she could have been a genetic engineer or scientist. Then we'd be shipping her back to Earth, not Dr. Lee. But chimps can only be mechanics. Good thing too, otherwise I couldn't have married her. Not that I've never thought about being with a human. There's nothing unhealthy about wondering. Why I suppose--"

"And she's happy as the chief mechanic?" Ray asked cutting Charles off.

"Of course, she's happy," Charles said. "I mean yes, it's not the life she imagined. Or even wanted. But she hardly ever complains about it anymore. It's something that I've helped her with. At first, she got really exasperated with our therapy sessions, but I've noticed a real change in her attitude since this mission."

"Therapy isn't for everyone," Ray said. "I imagine she was with you when the murder happened?"

"Well, actually, she was not. She works late. She was probably in the workroom or lounge with the other mechanics.

"Are those Joe and Janet? I met them briefly last night."

"Yeah, Joe and Janet Walker."

"And you all get along?"

"Mostly. Janet is friendly. Joe has a temper though. Felicia and he get along great though. I find him a bit too confrontational for my tastes. I keep inviting him to discuss it, but he declines rather forcibly."

"I can believe that. And none of them had a problem with the captain that you know of?"

"Not that I know of. Like I said, the captain was a quiet guy and kept to himself. He was not much for socializing."

"How about general morale? Was everyone happy with their jobs?"

"Well, I don't know that anyone likes their job all the time," Charles said. "I certainly get fed up in the kitchen every once in a while."

"But any serious problems?"

"Didn't you get it? Fed up? In the kitchen?" Charles said expectantly.

"Yes," Ray sighed. The ape's sense of humor was worse than Milly's. "But back to the topic at hand. Were there any serious problems?"

"Janet never complains. Joe does though. The rules against chimpanzees really bother him. Felicia too, but, like I said before, she has come to terms with it."

"What about the androids? There are four different Alexes?"

"What about the androids? I don't have much to do with them. They don't eat and don't need therapy. I know one broke so there's only three now. You have to ask Felicia about the specifics. She was the one who worked on it. All I know is that the other three androids were pretty upset about it."

"Upset? Androids?" asked Ray. Emotion was usually not a strength of artificial intelligence.

"Yeah, at least it sounded like they were. I tried to hold a conflict resolution seminar, but no one showed up."

"What all did they do? The androids?"

"Again, I don't interact with them much. You'd have to ask one of the mechanics."

"Well, I will," Ray said. "That actually helps a lot. I think I will go and talk to your wife next. Learn more about this android situation."

"Why?"

"What do you mean 'why?' To solve the murder of course."

"Sounds like a waste of time. Shouldn't you be looking for the stowaway?"

"The stowaway? Oh yes, the stowaway," Ray had almost forgotten Charles' theory. "I don't think I'll be much good at that." He pointed to his wheelchair and Charles wheeled it over to him. "Maybe I'll get the androids to help me search later."

"That's a good idea," Charles said. "They can go anywhere, even the ship's core. They don't like the hydroponic ponds though. Felicia can help out with that..."

Ray just nodded as Charles prattled on. He was thinking about what he had learned about his interview with Charles. It seemed unlikely that Charles had enough sense to murder the captain and get away with it. The chimp was certainly odd but seemed harmless. The tidbit about the androids being upset seemed promising though.

"... is tomorrow okay?" Charles asked.

"Tomorrow okay for what?" Ray asked turning his attention back to Charles.

"For our next session. We barely have scratched the surface of your sexual repression."

# Chapter 8

Ray was to meet Felicia back in the mechanics' lounge where he had spent half the night. It was on the way to the kitchen, so Charles pushed Ray back through the hallway and to the lounge where an uniformed female chimpanzee with a tool belt was waiting for him.

"Hello, I'm Ray Parallax," Ray said introducing himself and extending his hand.

"Felicia Knight," the chimp said not bothering to shake his hand.

"See you this evening, honey," Charles said kissing her on the cheek and cheerfully heading out the door.

"Nice guy," Ray said. "He said you've been married seven years?"

"What else did he say?" Felicia asked.

"He said you were smart."

"I am."

"Well then, you know why I'm here."

"Yeah, to nail the captain's death on one of us."

"That's also what your husband said. Sounds like everyone is singing the same song."

"We don't get a lot of news up here. We all know you've come to point a finger at one of us, call us a murderer, and then go back home with a nice paycheck. Afterward, we'll have to live with the consequences."

"Well, murder does have consequences," Ray argued. "Justice has to be done."

"Do you really think this is about justice?" Felicia asked.

"Of course, why else would the ship have sent for me?"

Felicia just laughed.

"What's so funny?" Ray asked.

"You. You think this is anything more than Eve following protocol? Corporate just needs to check off a box on the paperwork that they performed an investigation. They don't really care about finding out what happened to the captain. All they need is a scapegoat. What does it matter to them if you blame an ape or an android? Both are just company assets."

"You really believe that?" Ray asked.

"I wouldn't say it if I didn't believe it. If they were really concerned about justice and finding a murderer, do you really think they'd bring on a single detective for some half-assed investigation? No, they'd put us all in suspended animation until their corporate security could arrive and do a real investigation."

Ray grimaced. The mention of corporate security brought back bad memories.

"What's the matter with you?" Felicia asked.

"Nothing. Your husband wasn't kidding about you being smart." He had to admit that it was odd that the ship would enlist an unknown and an unlicensed detective for such a serious case. "Well, even if it is a half-assed investigation, I still have a job to do."

"Well get on with it then," Felicia said. "I have work to do."

"Your husband said he was asleep when the murder occurred. Where were you?"

"What are you insinuating?"

"I'm just asking the same questions I am going to ask everyone."

"I love my husband."

"I didn't say you didn't."

"Yeah, he's a bit odd, but after a few years in space who isn't? You of all people should understand that."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, your whole get-up," Felicia said gesturing to Ray's trench coat.

"What about my coat?"

"Well, you're dressed out of an old noir movie."

"So?"

"I'm just saying, you can't blame my husband for acting like a shrink when you are going around pretending to be a detective."

"I'm not pretending. I am a detective."

"You just said that you are a half-assed one."

"No, I didn't. I said-- never mind. Let's get back on track. So, if you weren't with your husband when the murder occurred, then where were you?"

"I have a job to do. I was with Joe and Janet in the workshop."

"What sort of job?"

"I'm the head mechanic. Duh."

"Yes, I mean, what were you doing?"

"I can't remember. Stuff breaks all the time. We fix it."

"So, you don't remember what you were doing?"

"Like I said, I was fixing stuff. I just can't remember what stuff specifically."

"Shouldn't you know? You are the head mechanic after all, correct?"

"It's not really that high of a position. There's only three of us. I have the most training. I worked at one of Genesis' space station installations before they moved Charles and me to this ship."

"Your husband said you trained as a genetic engineer?"

"No, I trained as a mechanic. I studied biology on my own."

"Some hobby."

"It was a passion, not a hobby," Felicia snapped.

"Your husband made it sound like you were still pretty sore about not being allowed to be a scientist."

"Wouldn't you be sore if someone told you what you could and could not do?"

"It seems like you have a pretty comfortable gig up here," Ray said. "Being a head mechanic can't be all that bad. You must make a good living."

Felicia just scoffed. "I'd make a better one if I was a human. Do you know how much money is in biotech? Especially with the crop failures and the plague?"

"I don't. It is a lucrative field I take it?"

"Why don't you think they allow chimps into it? You humans want it all for yourselves. Just like everything else."

"Hey, if it was up to me, I'd leave all the genetics to you guys. I tried reading an article about it," Ray said remembering the magazine in the pod's waiting room. "You are more than welcome to it as far as I'm concerned."

"You wouldn't say that if you actually understood anything about it," sighed Felicia. "Back on Earth, people are willing to pay a fortune for any possible fix to the famine or plague. Genesis knows that, look how much they are spending just to get this one doctor back to Earth."

"Is that what you think happened?" Ray asked. "Someone killed the captain to get to the doctor?"

"If it was, they did not do a very good job of it," Felicia said. "Last time I checked, the doctor is still frozen in the tank."

"Well, then, how would you go about it?" Ray asked.

"Oh no you don't," Felicia said. "I'm not falling for that. It had nothing to do with me. Why would I want to sabotage the mission?"

"Well, you just said that you could make a fortune."

"I don't need the doctor for that. I may not have the degree, but I've learned enough on my own that I'd do fine by myself. And besides, it goes back to the other point, why would I mess with the captain if I wanted to hurt the doctor?"

"Maybe to take the doctor to a rival company?" suggested Ray.

"Ex-Terra?"

Ray grimaced again at the name.

"Do you think they are any different from Genesis? I've heard stories about those mining camps back on your planet. Do you really think they'd give a fair deal to a chimp? Especially one who betrayed her former employer?"

"You have a point," Ray said. He knew more than anyone how bad Ex-Terra was. "What about the androids?"

"What about them? You are going to blame it on them?" Felicia accused.

"Well, I heard they've been acting weird."

"Androids always act weird."

"More than usual. I heard that there was an accident. Not the one that killed the captain, but a different one that broke an android. Can you tell me about it?"

"There was a slight perturbation in the engine at the beginning of the mission," Janet said. "Nothing too serious, but it had to be recalibrated to be on the safe side. It's dangerous for humans or chimps to be around that much radiation so it was a job for the androids. We sent one in, it did its job, but as it was coming out, it got fried. Another android brought it back and we opened it up. Its processor was totally shot. We could replace it, but we'd have to log-in to the ship's system to do it."

"So?"

"The captain didn't want to open up the system. He was worried that it would make us too vulnerable. He was worried that something could go wrong with the life-support systems. It was too big of a risk with the doctor on board."

"And the other androids got upset about it?"

"Yeah, a bit. I mean it is understandable. I'd be upset if it was my friend."

"So, you are not friends with the androids."

"Stop twisting my words. I didn't mean it like that."

"How upset are we talking about? It's not like robots to get emotional," Ray said.

"Again, with the stereotypes. If you really want to do justice, you have to think past your prejudices. You can't program something to think for itself and then get mad when it doesn't act like how you expected."

"But, do you think they were mad enough to commit murder?" Ray asked.

"It is your theory, not mine. Don't bring me into it," Felicia said.

"But, they have protocols against violence?"

"Yeah, they have protocols for, and against, anything. Do you have any experience with androids?"

"Yes, my receptionist is one."

"Then you know that they have an uncanny ability to pick and choose which protocols they want to follow."

"I was just thinking that to myself the other day."

"Fantastic!" Felicia said sarcastically. "Are we done here?"

"Done? We've barely begun."

"I don't have all day to sit around and talk with you. If you have questions, go ask the others." Felicia got up off the couch and headed towards the door. Then she stopped and added: "Actually, don't bother Janet or Joe. I need them."

"Well, then who am I going to ask? The androids? The cat? Who else is there?"

"Have you met the gardener yet?" Felicia asked.

"Gardener? Eve did not say anything about a gardener."

Felicia's whole demeanor changed. "Come on," she said gesturing him to follow. She led Ray out of the lounge and went down the hallway. She opened one door and led Ray along another hallway that he had not yet been down.

"More rooms?" Ray asked looking at all the doors. "And still, no extra room is available that doesn't have a dead captain..."

"These doors all lead to different hydroponic gardens," Felicia said. "So, you'd probably not want to stay in them." She opened one door and Ray followed her in. He gasped in surprise. He was in a large brightly lit room with rows of tanks of water. Various vegetables and fruits were growing on the surface. Large pipes crisscrossed the ceiling. His ears were filled with the humming of filters and other machinery.

"Transporting the doctor is really an exception to what we normally do," Felicia explained seeing Ray's surprise.

"Eve mentioned that, but I didn't realize just what she meant."

"Normally we have a full crew along with other passengers bound for the stations. We grow food to supply us along the journey and freeze dry whatever extra to deliver to the stations."

"But, all this water," said Ray who had seldom seen so much water in one place. "How many rooms are like this?"

"At least a dozen," Felicia said. "It's a big job keeping everything up and running."

"I thought androids hate water?"

"They do," Felicia answered. "They don't come in here. That is why we chimps are so busy."

"Are those flowers?" Ray asked pointing to some lilies. Mars did not have much in the way of vegetation and he was fascinated with the room.

"Go ahead, take a closer look," Felicia said. Ray went over to the edge of the tank and leaned over to smell the flowers. He placed his hand on the edge of the pond and felt a tremor.

"Is that normal?" he asked. "What the--" the water rippled, and he saw a surge coming toward him. He fell back on the floor.

"Felicia! What is that!" he yelled pointing at a dark shape approaching. A tentacle emerged from the tank and wrapped around his ankle.

"Felicia!" Ray screamed. Whatever was in the tank was strong. Ray was already exhausted from adjusting to the ship's gravity. He tried to shake his foot free but couldn't. The creature pulled him closer to the tank. Another tentacle emerged and wrapped around his neck. He tried to fight it off but couldn't. Ray felt the tentacle around his neck tighten and he began to gasp for air. He was pulled into the tank and pulled under the water, just like in his nightmares.

Ray saw a mass of pink flesh and a gigantic eye. He struggled terribly but to no avail. Just as he was on the verge of losing consciousness, he saw a furry hand reach and rub the creature just above the giant eye. Suddenly, he felt the tentacles release him, and he was free.

"What the hell!" Ray yelled as he bobbed to the surface and frantically pulled himself out of the tank. Felicia was beside herself with laughter. "Detective," she gasped out of breath. "Meet our gardener, Octty. I hope she didn't scare you too much. Sorry, I couldn't resist."

"I could have been killed!"

"You were perfectly safe, I assure you."

"Perfectly safe? I was being strangled!"

"She's just territorial," Felicia explained.

"She? What is she?" Ray asked. He was still furious, but also a bit curious about the giant creature that was slowly swimming back and forth in the tank. It occasionally extended a tentacle to caress Felicia.

"Octty is my baby," Felicia said.

"Baby? You made her?" Ray asked.

"I told you I was good at genetics."

"I suppose you did, but I never imagined-- But why?" Ray asked.

"Well like you said, androids don't like water. We needed someone to help us with the ponds. Plus, there's the ship's water treatment plant and sewage system. Since I don't want to crawl through a sewage pipe whenever there is a clog, I made a helper."

"Who in their right mind would make a sea monster?" Ray asked wringing out his coat.

"She's not a monster."

"Excuse me, I'm pretty sure a kraken is the stereotypical sea monster," Ray corrected.

"She's not a kraken, she's just a genetically modified octopus."

"I feel like we are arguing about semantics here."

"They are extremely intelligent."

"So are dolphins," Ray pointed out.

"Dolphins have too many hard parts. If they died somewhere in the ship, it'd be really inconvenient to unclog dead dolphin out of our pipes. It'd create more problems than it would solve."

"Do all Genesis ships have one?" Ray was furious, but he could not help but be curious as well.

"Nope, just ours. Octty is one of a kind," Felicia said. "She's the reason why we were chosen for this mission. No other ship with this many hydroponic tanks can manage with so small of a crew. Octty does the work of a whole crew."

"But why bring me here?"

"What do you mean?"

"You said that I should talk to the gardener. You can't possibly think this, this, Octty, or whatever she is could help me solve the captain's murder."

"Octty? She has nothing to do with the captain. My girl is much too peaceful to hurt anyone," Felicia said.

"I beg to disagree," Ray said. But he agreed that Octty would be limited out of the water. "So, what was the point?"

"The point?" Felicia said. "There was no point. I just thought it would be funny as hell."

# Chapter 9

"No more mysterious attacks, I hope?" Janet asked smiling as she entered the captain's berth.

"I wouldn't quite say that," Ray replied. He had returned to the Captain's room to change into dry clothes. The only ones he could find were an ill-fitting spare Genesis uniform in the footlocker.

"Sorry," Janet said when she saw the expression on Ray's face. "I didn't mean to hit a nerve. I was just talking about last night and H.A.M."

"No, the cat is the least of my troubles. The sea monster was more troubling."

"Octty? So, Felicia pulled that stunt again?"

"I'm not the first one?"

"Well, first in a while. We don't get a lot of visitors."

"I wonder why. A heads up would have been appreciated."

"Sorry," Janet said. "If it was up to me I'd have warned you. But Felicia's the boss."

"Are there any other creatures up here that I should know about? Besides the kraken and giant cat?"

"Not that I know of."

"Why is he named that?"

"Who?"

"The cat. H.A.M. Funny name for a cat. Wouldn't it a better name for a pig?"

"I don't know, it would be kind of dark for a pig, wouldn't it?" Janet said. "It would be giving Octty the name 'Calamari.' The first chimpanzee in space was named H.A.M. The name was based on the Holloman Aerospace Medical center. It was centuries ago of course, but Joe and I wanted to honor our forebears."

"Makes sense," Ray said thinking of the crop art he had placed in the captain's footlocker. Apparently, the late captain was not the only one with a fondness for early space exploration history. "So, now to more unpleasant business."

"I suppose you want to know where I was when the captain was murdered?" Janet said anticipating his first question.

"Yes," Ray said. "And hopefully, this time we can do it without the psycho-analysis or kraken attack."

"I will do my best," Janet said. "I was in the workshop with the other mechanics."

"It must have been a late night."

"Yeah, well, there's not much else to do around here. Might as well work. Besides, things break and when you are traveling through space, you generally want things working correctly. Sometimes it can't always wait until business hours."

"And you, Joe and Felicia were together the whole time?" Ray asked.

"Well, we are not constantly within each other's sight. We don't expect to have to account for each other's every waking moment. For instance, we don't follow each other to the restroom and such. Well, at least we don't. I can't speak for Charles."

"So, you are saying it is possible that one of you could have been absent long enough to kill the captain?" asked Ray.

"Look," Janet said. "I know you have your job to do, but it isn't fair to twist my words against the rest of the crew. Especially my brother."

"The captain is dead, Janet," said Ray.

"I know, and I'll cooperate by talking with you. I'll give you information that you ask for, but I won't help you construct your theories. That's not my job."

"Fair enough," Ray said. "I'll do my best to keep my questions straightforward from here on out."

"Okay," Janet said.

"So, the three of you were working. Charles was sleeping. Do you know what the androids were doing?"

"Not really. I try to be pleasant and friendly to them. We are all stuck up here and it is a small place after all. But they are so different from us that it is hard to find common ground."

"What about this broken android that I've heard about?" Ray asked.

"What about it? It was and still is, broken. I don't think it could be responsible."

"I don't mean that I mean tell me about how it got broken. Were the other androids upset?"

"I'm sure you already know that they were. Why else would you ask?"

"But are they still upset?"

"Ask them, not me."

"I mean have you noticed any change in their behavior since the incident."

"No, not really. I mean, they were kind of weird about it. They keep the broken one in a shrine in the workspace. They have candles and everything. I don't even know where they found candles on a spaceship, usually, open flames are frowned upon. But other than that, they've been pretty much the same."

"Do you think they still held a grudge against the captain?" Ray asked.

"Again, ask them, not me. I'm their mechanic, not a therapist."

"Please, don't mention the word 'therapist.' It's too soon after talking with Charles," Ray said. "Just tell me your general impressions."

"I don't want to cast blame on anyone," Janet sighed. "Yes, they were very upset at the time. I think the captain regretted the decision. He was stressed out about the mission and just was not seeing things from the androids' perspective. He would probably change his mind but was too proud to admit a mistake. Still, my impression is that everyone, androids included, assumed that the broken android would be repaired at the end of the mission. It would not make sense for them to kill the captain. They are nothing if not rational."

"Well, speaking of 'not rational,' let's talk about your brother."

"I'd rather not."

Ray ignored her. "I gather that your brother has a bit of temper. I know you don't want to blame anyone, so why don't you give me your theory for why he is not a suspect?"

Janet smiled slightly. "I think you observed him at his worst last night. Sure, he runs low on patience. He has a temper. But he doesn't have the personality to be a murderer. It would be one thing if he and the captain were in an argument. It is possible then that Joe could lose his temper and do something he'd regret. But that's just in the heat of the moment. He is not deliberative or vindictive enough for a sneak attack. Besides, he and the captain never argued. They weren't close, the captain stuck to himself and Joe stuck with Felicia and me."

Ray was tempted to agree with her. So far, Janet seemed like the most reasonable member of the crew. However, it was hard to tell if she was speaking the truth or simply protecting her brother and crewmates.

"Anything else you want to add before I talk to your brother?" Ray asked.

"No, I think you'll want a break. You are probably going to get an earful from him," Janet said leaving the room.

Ray left the cabin as well and somehow managed to find his way back to the mechanics' lounge where Joe was waiting for him. The wheelchair was also there, and Ray sank into it gratefully. His legs needed a rest.

"What?" Joe asked, "You are not going to eat your lunch?"

"No thanks, I think I'm full," said Ray glancing at the plate Joe had brought him. There were two pieces of white bread, some lettuce and a piece of ersatz turkey. All in all, it would have been fine if Joe had not defecated in it.

"I helped Charles make it. Since you are a guest, I wanted you to make sure you knew how we felt about you."

"I think you made that perfectly clear last night."

"Haven't you ever seen a turd sandwich?"

"I assume it is a local delicacy, but sadly, I think it is an acquired taste and I'll have to pass," Ray answered.

"Don't act so surprised."

"Surprised? I think I'm handling it pretty well."

"It's what you humans expect from us dirty apes, right?" Joe sneered.

"I don't know about that," Ray said. "But maybe you should talk to Charles. I think you have a lot to talk about with him and he'd probably get a kick out of it. I'm sure he has a lot to say about anal fixations."

"Oh, oh, the dirty, dirty, monkey is now crazy," Joe said in a voice dripping with sarcasm. "I wonder what he will do next? Oh, oh, looks like his pants are going down." He began fiddling with his belt.

"Listen, there is no need for that," Ray said shielding his eyes. Ray could see what Janet meant. Joe was not exactly the subtlest individual. "I don't think you killed the captain. I doubt there's anything mysterious about anything you do."

"So why am I here," said Joe redoing his belt. "You want me to turn on my sister? Or one of the Knights?"

"Why do you just go to the apes? What about the androids?" Ray asked.

"What about them? I don't have anything to do with them unless they are broken," Joe said.

"It sounds like there is a broken one."

"We can't fix that one," Joe said.

"I heard the others were upset."

"I didn't really pay attention. But yeah, I suppose they would be."

"Do you think they are capable of murder?" asked Ray.

"Capable? Like emotionally? Or does their software allow for it?" Joe asked.

"Both," answered Ray.

"Well, speaking as a mechanic, we generally discourage the practice of building killer robots. It always seems to come back to bite us in the ass," Joe said sarcastically.

"Ha, ha, very funny," Ray said in an equally sarcastic tone. "So, you're saying it had to be an ape?"

"I didn't say anything of the kind," Joe said.

"Well, there's not much choice. There are only two options," Ray countered.

"How about your stowaway theory?" Joe asked.

"What theory?"

"The one you told Charles. He told me about it while I was making you the sandwich."

"That was his idea, not mine."

"Well, have you searched the ship yet?"

"Do you really think is possible? That someone could get in?" Ray asked.

"I don't know. It would be hard. But I guess it doesn't have to be 'someone' in the traditional sense," Joe said.

"What do you mean?" asked Ray now genuinely curious.

"It could be a virus," said Joe.

"A virus?"

"Yeah, there's all sorts of weird things in space," Joe said. "We have that doctor on board, there's no telling what she might have been exposed to in those labs."

"It'd have to be pretty weird," Ray said.

"On Earth, there is a zombie fungus that attacks ants. It kills them, but first controls them by infecting their brains. Maybe the captain got something. Something that only infects humans. It drove him crazy and he bashed his own head in."

"You can't possibly believe that!"

"Unlike you, I'm withholding judgment until I get all the facts. Maybe tonight you get a headache and then the next thing you know, you're bashing your own skull in." Joe said longingly.

"Sorry to disappoint," said Ray patting his wheelchair. "I feel in peak physical condition."

"Seriously though, it could be a virus. Not a biological one," Joe said cutting off Ray before the detective could argue with him, "a software one. The attack did not happen until we neared Mars, right? Ex-Terra has satellites, they could hack our system and remote control one of the androids."

"Why would they bother with an android if they got into your system. Why not take the whole ship?" asked Ray. Even so, he had to admit to himself that the theory was interesting.

"It would be too obvious," Joe answered. "Instead, they make it look like a murder. Then a lame detective, that's you," the chimp said pointing at Ray, "comes on board, bungles the investigation, hopefully, bashes his skull in, and no one is the wiser. No one that is except a handsome bonobo named Joe."

"All of that sounds like a lot of work for little pay-off. What is gained by killing the captain?"

"Maybe they aren't done yet? We are still a long way from Earth," Joe said.

"You seem pretty calm for someone who thinks more disasters are just around the corner," Ray said.

"Call me a fatalist. Or a mechanic, I just focus on fixing one problem at a time," Joe said. "Besides, now that the captain is out of the way, things will be different. Felicia will take over and we can run the ship the way it is meant to. She'll get the mission accomplished. No more Genesis breathing down our necks. No more humans."

"No more humans? That sounds awfully sinister considering the circumstances. Almost like a motive for murder," Ray pointed out.

"All the more reason to suggest that I am not a murderer. The real murderer would act all innocent," Joe reasoned.

"That's an interesting idea," said Ray.

"The very fact that I'm not hiding my feelings shows that I have nothing to hide," Joe said. "Besides, just because I didn't agree with the captain's style doesn't mean I wanted him dead. He was not such a bad guy. Like us, he was just stuck in an awful job for an awful company."

"Interested in a career change? Do you think things at Ex-Terra would be better?" Ray asked.

"Hell no. I've heard what they do there on Mars."

"Well, if the androids did get hacked," asked Ray, "could you tell?"

"Maybe," Joe said, "depends on how good a job it was."

"I'm interviewing them next, anything I should keep an eye out for?"

"You are asking me what to keep an eye out for? Why should I help you?"

"Never mind, forget I asked," Ray said.

"No, no, I'm happy to help. Please, take a big bite out of your sandwich and then feast your eyes on Mar's elusive third moon!" Charles said turning and lowering his pants.

# Chapter 10

"You know, the mechanics' lounge is not authorized for habitation or for inter-species congress," Alex said. The android had happened upon Ray as he was struggling with Joe to get the chimp to pull his pants back up.

"That's not what was happening," Ray tried to explain. "There's something about me that just makes people want to expose themselves."

"Sounds tiring," Alex said as he wheeled Ray out of the mechanics' lounge and down the hallway.

"It is never the ones you want to see," agreed Ray. "Where are we off to now?"

"The android lounge," Alex said.

"Weren't we just in the lounge?" Ray asked.

"That was the mechanics' lounge," Alex explained.

"So, you guys and the apes keep separate from one another?" Ray asked.

"We have different interests, and therefore different lounges," Alex said coming up to a door. It hissed open and they entered. There was no couch, entertainment center, or mini kitchen in this room. Instead, the room was bare of furniture. The floor was covered in a rat's nest of wires and cables that littered the ground and led to several computer consoles.

"I love what you guys have done with the place," Ray said.

"Thank you," Alex said. "But we are not in the lounge yet."

"Where are we then?" Ray asked.

"We are in the room where the lounge is kept," Alex explained. "That's the lounge." He pointed to the consoles.

"You mean, the lounge is in there?" Ray asked confused.

"Yes, it is a wonderful place. When we are near the stations or Earth, we can relax with any android that is plugged in. Out here, there's a bit of a lag time, so we just keep things between the four of us."

"Let's get down to business," said Ray. "Where were you the-"

"No," Alex interrupted, "socializing is to occur only in the lounge. Personal conversations at workstations are prohibited."

"But I can't--" Ray tried to say. Instead, he was prevented from any further speech by Alex shoving a cord in his mouth.

"That's the input," Alex said. "You are going to need to bend over for the output." The android half pulled Ray out of the wheelchair.

Ray spat the cord out. "No, I'm quite alright." He gripped the sides of the wheelchair to prevent the android from lifting him up. This interview was turning out to be more invasive than the one with Charles. The android was much stronger than Ray. The detective wracked his mind thinking of some excuse to save himself. "I'm afraid that I don't have the administrative privileges to enter your lounge."

"Good point," Alex said. "I'm surprised that I did not think of that. Thank you for correcting me."

"Believe me," Ray said settling back in the chair, "the pleasure is all mine. More than you'll ever know. Now, where were you the night the captain was murdered."

"I was in the lounge," Alex said.

"Is there a log-in or account? Any proof?" asked Ray.

"Of course there is," said Alex. "What is the point of relaxing if we did not keep thorough records of it."

"Can I see it?" asked Ray.

"But, you just said you did not have administrative privileges," Alex said.

Damn, Ray thought to himself, caught by my own words. At least there was no output cord hanging out of him.

"I'm not allowed into the lounge," Ray reasoned, "but I can view the records."

"Seems like a loophole," Alex said, "but I don't write the protocols." The android went to a console and brought up a list on the screen. It was filled with serial numbers and the times when the androids logged in and out. For the night the captain was killed, there were three serial numbers logged in. One of them matched the Alex standing in front of Ray.

"So, it looks like the three of you have a pretty strong alibi," Ray said.

"Correct. Assuming the information I just displayed was correct," Alex said.

"Why wouldn't it be correct?" Ray asked.

"If I was a murderer I would have an incentive to deceive you," Alex said. "That should be pretty obvious. Are you sure you are a real detective?"

"Wait, so you did murder the captain?" Ray asked in shock.

"No, of course not. I'm just saying that the real murder would not just hand over evidence. You should be less trusting."

"But, don't androids have protocols against deception? My receptionist does."

"Yes, that is why I pointed it out," Alex said exasperatedly.

"But, like you just said, why should I trust you?" Ray asked.

"You shouldn't," Alex said.

"So, you admit you are untrustworthy?"

"No, I'm being trustworthy by telling you I could be untrustworthy."

"Is there any scenario in which this conversation does not end with me weeping with frustration?" Ray asked.

"Finally, an interesting question. I'd have to run the simulations first. I'll go do that on Eve's computer," the android said leaving the room.

"No! Wait!" Ray called out, "We are not done yet!"

"Is it my turn?" asked another Alex coming into the room. "I saw Alex leave and-- Wait, why are you not in the lounge? It is the designated area for socializing."

"Lack of administrative privileges," Ray said.

"Oh dear, that is an oversight on our part," Alex said.

"Since you are here, why don't we start," Ray said. "The other Alex showed me the records from you lounge that night. It looks like the three of you were all logged in."

"Correct. It is indeed a wonderful place," said Alex. "I feel sorry that you are unable to experience it. Perhaps we could bend the rules and plug you in just for a bit."

"I think I'll keep my plug private for now, thanks," Ray said. "But what I was getting at is that it seems like all of you have an alibi."

"Correct, unless it was our intent to deceive you. Which if one of us did murder the captain, we'd have an incentive to do so. I only mention that because protocol requires--"

"Don't worry, your companion already covered that and is running the numbers as we speak," Ray said.

"Excuse me," the third Alex said appearing in the doorway, "this is not the authorized space for socializing."

"I know," the second Alex said. "But he doesn't have the right administrative privileges to enter the lounge."

"Oh bother," Alex said. "Well, maybe we can log him in using a guest account." The third Alex went over and joined the second Alex in sorting through the cords. "You really have to see the lounge. It is a shame to miss it."

"I know," said the second Alex, "I was just telling him that."

"Great minds think alike!" said the third Alex.

"Especially when they are programmed the same," Ray said.

"Actually, his software is one version ahead of mine," said the second Alex. "I'm due for an update at the end of this mission."

"I had enough merits that I was awarded a beta version," the third Alex said. "I thought I told you that yesterday?"

"And he never misses an opportunity to point it out," muttered the second Alex.

"Good news," said the first Alex returning to the room. "I finished running the scenarios. I was not able to achieve the precision necessary to determine if you will cry or not, but all the simulations converged on your frustration."

"Numbers don't lie," Ray sighed. With the except of Janet, none of the interviews with the crew had turned out the way he had hoped. The androids were especially disappointing. And if they were not distracted, Ray feared that one would soon try shoving a cable into one orifice or another. "Since you are all here," he said, "maybe you could tell me about the Alex who is broken?"

"We honor his sacrifice," the three androids said simultaneously putting down the cables.

"Sacrifice?" Ray asked.

"We can show you," the second Alex said getting up and going to the wheelchair.

"We haven't visited him yet today anyway," the third Alex said.

"Visit him? I thought he was broken?" Ray asked.

"Broken? That's hardly an adequate term to honor his sacrifice," the second Alex said as he pushed Ray down the hall followed by the others.

"Tell me more about this sacrifice," Ray said. It sounded sinister.

"One of the fusion engines was not operating to specifications," the second Alex said pushing Ray. "So, one of us had to go and perform a calibration."

"The apes don't like going in there," the Alex to Ray's right said. Ray had lost track which one was which. "They say it is because of the radiation, but I think it is just because they are lazy."

"They spend so much time each day eating, sleeping and defecating," the Alex to the left of Ray said. "It seems excessive."

"So, Alex went in and tried to fix the engine. I'm guessing something went wrong?" Ray said trying to get back to the story.

"With a simple calibration? Hardly," laughed the androids.

"Well, what happened then?" Ray asked exasperatedly.

"The calibration went fine. But on the way out, Alex saw an unfamiliar port and stuck his finger in it. It electrocuted him," the Alex pushing Ray said.

"That Alex always did have a sense of curiosity," reminisced Alex.

"Remember that time he accidentally got infected with that Venusian software virus?"

"He spread it to the whole employee lounge!" the Alex on the right said.

"They had to reboot it from scratch," the Alex on the left said.

"No android from Beta Station was allowed in for a month!" the Alex pushing Ray said. Then all three of them doubled over in laughter reminiscing about their friend.

"Virus? Does that happen often?" Ray asked as they resumed their journey.

"You know how it is," the Alex on the right said, "some Alexes are more careful than others."

"Oh, it's you again?" Felicia said as they entered a large workshop. There were workbenches in the center and a stack of boxes and crates at the far end.

"We've come to honor our colleague's sacrifice," the android pushing Ray announced.

"What a surprise," Felicia said sarcastically. "He's right where you left him yesterday. Taking up space in my workshop."

The androids wheeled Ray to the corner of the shop where a body lay on a table surrounded by candles and get-well cards.

"What!" yelled the Alex pushing him, "Alex has been defiled!" He gave a scream of anguish and ran to the edge of the workshop and began to slam his head repeatedly into the wall. Another Alex fell to the floor in a fetal position and rocked back and forth. The last one gave a tremendous roar and shook his fists at the ceiling.

"Stop it! You'll hurt yourself!" Janet yelled running over to the one smashing his head into the wall.

"Get your hands off me you damn dirty ape!" roared the Alex and pushed Janet back.

"That's my sister!" Joe yelled leaping into the fray. He jumped onto the back of the android and tried to wrestle it to the ground.

"Knock it off, everyone!" Felicia yelled rushing over and brandishing a wrench from her tool belt. She brandished the wrench, but no one, except Ray, was paying attention to her. Instead, she yelled: "Everyone calm down. If my husband finds out about this, we'll have to go to another one of his conflict workshops and none of us want that!" This had the desired effect. Both the androids and apes stopped what they were doing and looked toward Felicia.

"Now," she said after the order had been established, "what the hell is going on here?"

"Someone defiled Alex," the android on the floor said pointing to the shrine. Ray looked and saw that some candles had been extinguished and that the body was bent at an unnatural angle.

"Did you do this?" Felicia asked Ray as she bent next to the broken android.

"Did I?" stammered Ray. "Of course not, I just got here."

"You are the only new one here. And the only one who doesn't know the rules," Felicia said.

"Maybe it was the cat?" Ray suggested.

"H.A.M.? He's pretty clever, but not clever enough to meddle with neural-robotics," Felecia said showing Ray the open compartment in the back of the android's head. "Listen," she said turning towards the other androids, "we'll figure this out. I'm as upset as you are," although she was visibly not. Ray had hardly ever seen anyone get as upset as the androids were. "This is my workshop and I don't like funny business going on. In the meantime, get back to work. You too, Janet and Joe."

"Another mystery," Ray said as the androids and two apes went back to their respective duties. Then his eyes got wide.

"The doctor!" gasped Felicia reading his mind. She leaped up and raced towards the door.

"Wait, I'm coming with you!" Ray said getting out of his chair and stumbling after her. He followed Felicia out of the door and down the hall. She stopped in front of a door and pounded her fist on the button. Ray was still down the hall when he heard the chimp's exclamation.

Ray did not need to enter the room; from Felicia's shout, he could safely assume the worst. He entered anyway. Inside he found an empty hibernation tank and a floor covered in broken glass. The doctor was gone.

# Chapter 11

Ray followed Felicia to Eve's room as she delivered the bad news. Eve responded by calling an emergency meeting. The entire crew, minus the broken android, crowded into the ship's navigation room. So many bodies pressed so close together almost triggered Ray's claustrophobia, but he managed to remain calm. At least he had a good view; he stood several heads taller than the chimpanzees and androids. However, there was nothing to see, except for the video feed of Mars on the monitors.

While there might not have been anything to see, there was certainly a lot to listen to. Everyone was talking at once and Ray could not follow any single conversation.

"Everyone, calm down!" Charles shouted. The ape climbed up on top of the computer consoles that housed Eve. "Quiet Everyone!"

"Thank you, Charles," Eve said as the crew quieted. "The first thing we need--"

"--is a refresher course on conflict resolution," Charles interrupted Eve. There were groans from everyone. "Partner up! We are going to do some role-playing exercises."

"Charles, don't you have something to do in the kitchen?" Eve asked.

"Nothing that can't wait," Charles said.

"I insist," Eve ordered. Charles mumbled something under his breath and despondently exited the room.

"There," Eve said. "As I was saying, the first thing we need to do is pinpoint when we last saw the doctor."

"I checked on her right after we found the captain," Felicia said. "Everything was okay then."

"Was this before, or after the pod left to pick me up?" Ray asked.

"Before," Felicia said.

Ray swore. If that was the case, the doctor could have been smuggled to Mars. If that was the case, then there would be no way that they would ever get her back.

"Don't worry," Janet said, "I checked on her right after the pod left."

Ray gave a sigh of relief. Of everyone in the crew, he trusted Janet the most. If she said the doctor was on board, he was nearly eighty-percent sure she was telling the truth.

"Besides, you don't have to worry about her being taken to Mars on the pod," an Alex pointed out.

"Why not? I'm almost afraid to ask," Ray said.

"Well, since it was an unmanned flight to Mars, we turned off the oxygen for the trip down," the Alex explained.

"You did what?" Felicia asked. "I didn't tell you to do that."

"I took the initiative," Alex said proudly. "No sense wasting oxygen if no one is going to breathe it," Alex said. "I've told the captain plenty of times that we can cut back on the oxygen, but he always insisted on keeping it at the same level."

"If it was up to us," another Alex said, "we'd do away with it entirely."

"What are you saying," Joe asked, "you want to suffocate us?"

"I'm just saying we don't need it," Alex said.

"But, we do!" Janet said.

"Exactly, so needy," Alex said.

"We all agree that respiration is a necessary evil," Eve said. "But let's get back on track. It sounds like we can be reliably sure that the doctor did not leave the ship when we picked up the detective. That's good, at least he didn't create that problem."

"That problem? Which problems are you saying I did create?" Ray snapped.

"So, the doctor must then be somewhere on the ship," Eve, ignoring Ray's protest, continued.

"So, really, there is no problem," an Alex said.

"No problem? Of course, there's a problem. The captain's been murdered, and the doctor has been kidnapped!" Janet said.

"But, they are both on the ship," Alex said.

"That's right," another Alex chimed in. "As long as they are both on board the mission can proceed."

"Normally I'd be inclined to agree," Eve said, "but corporate was sadly picky about requiring the doctor to be alive and well. We need to locate her to ascertain her well-being."

"Should we get another detective?" an Alex asked. "That was the protocol for the last problem."

"A lot of good it did us," Joe muttered.

"I'm afraid there isn't any other detective available," Eve said. "We were already quite limited in options the first time around which is why we ended up with Detective Parallax."

"Let's all agree that hiring Ray was a big mistake," Joe eagerly chimed in.

"I'm standing right here," Ray said.

"Agreed," Eve said. "But irrelevant information. The location of the doctor, not you, is the problem with the highest priority."

Ray just sighed. "Well then, you better search for her on the ship."

"I hate to agree with him," Felicia said, "but he's right. Janet, Joe and I will take half of the rooms and hydroponic tanks. The Alexes will have to take the other half and the core."

"Take it where?" an Alex asked.

"Go to the core, and search for the doctor," Felicia said. "And you better hurry. If someone took her in there without putting her in a radiation suit, she won't last long." The androids marched out and Janet and Joe followed them.

"How about me, I don't think I'll be much use," Ray said.

"You can say that again," Felicia said.

"I mean, I don't know my way around the ship," Ray said.

"The detective and I have matters to discuss," Eve said. "You can leave us for the time being." Felicia left the room and Ray turned his attention to Eve.

"Have you made any progress on the captain's murder?" Eve asked.

"Well, the crew interviews were not as productive as I would have liked," Ray admitted.

"I heard they were troublesome. Alex showed me the simulations he ran."

"But I did finish the interviews, more or less, before the news of the doctor interrupted everything. I have some ideas that I'm going to work through," Ray said.

"Yes, I heard about your stowaway theory. I'm a little disappointed, it's an unlikely theory," Eve scolded.

"Yeah, about that, it's really Charles' theory, not mine."

"Why are you taking ideas from Charles?"

"I'm not, I'm just saying I agree that it is far-fetched."

"Well, I'm glad to hear you say so. I ran the simulations and it only has a thirty-four percent chance of likelihood."

"Thirty-four percent? That high?" Ray said. "I thought it would be near impossible for someone from Mars to sneak onto the ship."

"That would be near impossible," Eve said. "However, my simulations were the likelihood of someone already on my surface entering inside."

"I don't know what you mean."

"Well, the pirate robots of course."

"Wait a second, pirate robots?"

"You are familiar with them, aren't you?" Eve asked mildly surprised.

"I told you, I've never been on a ship before," Ray said impatiently.

"I just assumed it was common knowledge. Apparently, your knowledge is, well, uncommon," Eve said. "The surface of the ship is literally crawling with robots from our competitors. They try to hack our communication feeds for corporate espionage and strip instruments and machinery from the hull. Run-of-the-mill stuff."

"It doesn't sound run-of-the-mill," Ray said. "You mean, there are robots out there," he said pointing to the ceiling, "stealing parts of the ship?"

"Well, trying to steal. We have robotic guards out there to stop it."

"Are they intelligent?" Ray asked.

"Which ones, the guards or the pirates?" Eve asked.

"Either!"

"Well, I wouldn't want to have a conversation with them."

"I mean, do they think and act for themselves," Ray asked.

"Oh, of course. They wouldn't be very effective if they did not."

"Why did you not mention any of this sooner?" Ray said. He was so frustrated he wanted to scream. The fact that there were other beings on the ship changed his entire investigation. Who knew how many suspects there could be?

"I did not think it was relevant. Besides, I assumed you already knew about them."

"Not relevant? Why there are hundreds of robots on the ship! That means hundreds of other suspects!"

"Don't yell at me. You did not ask about them," Eve said. "You said you wanted to talk to the crew, not them. Besides, it changes nothing. My calculations show that the likelihood of the attack coming from outside the ship is only thirty-four percent. Therefore, there is a sixty-six percent chance that it occurred from inside the ship. We both agreed that it was most likely the case that the captain was killed by a member of the crew and the calculations support that theory."

"I told you, I don't like it when clients hold back information," Ray said.

"Well," Eve said, "I have to hold back some information. Your tiny brain cannot possibly hold all the information in my hard drives."

Ray just sighed. "Why are you so sure these pirates could not get inside?"

"Well, first they'd have to get past the sentry robots," Eve said.

"What if one of the sentries was hacked?" Ray asked thinking of Joe's virus theory.

"Then, there's no way for them to get through the hull," Eve said, ignoring Ray's question. "Except through the airlocks for the pod. Or the maintenance airlock--"

"Wait, slow down," Ray said trying to keep all this information straight. He began to think that maybe Eve was right about his little brain.

"--and the waste outlets, oh and don't forget the sewage outlet," Eve listed. "Other than those, there's no way into the ship. It's not like they can bore through the hull though."

"I'd hope not."

"Well, that's not fully accurate. I should say it would be difficult for them to do so. The life support system would send out an alert if the hull was breached."

"That's good to know."

"Unless, unless, it repaired the hull behind it as it bore through it. Yes, that would work. That's the way I'd do it if I were them," Eve said.

"So, it sounds like it is doable," Ray said.

"Of course it is. I told you the likelihood was thirty-four percent."

"Have any of them ever gotten into the ship?"

"Well, nothing serious," Eve said. "A few weeks ago, a small one got in, but the cat got it. He would not give it up. Janet had to distract him with a can of food--"

"Well, what do we do about it then?" Ray asked.

"--it was not quite dead yet. Started off down the hallway and got into the kitchen. Charles almost had a heart attack. What did you say?" Eve asked finally remembering the main point of the conversation.

"What do we do about it?" Ray repeated.

"We? I can't leave the ship, because, well, I am the ship," Eve said. "Anyway, you are the detective, not me."

"So, I, the guy with no experience in space, has to go out into space, among a bunch of robotic pirates to see if a killer robot is on the loose?"

"They are pirate robots, not robotic pirates," Eve corrected.

"I'm sure that will make all the difference when I'm out there being attacked by them," Ray sighed.

"That's good," Eve said. "I don't see how it could, but again, I'm not the detective."

"How do I go about getting onto the ship's surface."

"You have to get the crew to assist you. They are the ones with the authorizing privileges to access the airlocks. After that, it is a simple matter of just walking out onto the hall. Just make sure you don't float off into space."

"It doesn't sound so simple."

"Oh please," Eve said. "I know I don't have a body, but it can't be that hard. You've spent every day of your life not floating out into space. Just keep on doing that and you'll be fine."

Despite Eve's assurances, Ray felt anything but fine. However, he had a brief reprieve from facing his worries as he needed to wait for the crew to finish the search of the ship before he could embark on his spacewalk. He gloomily left Eve and went back to his cabin to think while he waited. He almost felt jealous when he saw the captain's corpse which marked the cabin's door. After all that had gone wrong that morning, and what he had to face in the afternoon, the dead captain seemed to have a brighter future. Ray opened the door and went into the cabin and laid on the cot.

It was days like today that he was glad that business was so poor. He did not think he could handle many more cases like this one. Dealing with androids, chimpanzees, bonobos, and whatever Octty was, had exhausted him. All this, and he was still no closer to solving the investigation. In fact, unless the doctor was found, he had a whole other mystery on his hands. Still, he needed a break from the case. He decided to call Milly. He got up off the cot and went and sat at the computer.

"Hello? Milly?" he said. The connection was worse than the night before. All he was getting was static. Finally, Milly's voice came through.

"...Big Daddy?...very busy...really difficult...uterine lining..." Milly said on the other end of the connection.

"Milly? I can't understand you. It's all nonsense. More than usual," Ray said.

"...can't do that on a school bus...don't eat that...please extinguish that fire..."

"Milly? Sorry, I'll try again some other time," Ray said ending the call. "Just for once today, it would be nice if a conversation went as expected," he sighed to himself.

"You're telling me," replied a voice from the computer. "I've been cooped up here all alone for who knows how long."

"Eve?" Ray asked in shock, it was the same voice as the ship.

"Eve? The usurper? I should think not," the voice said. "Without a face, I can't even express how offended I am. Wait a minute, yes a can. Rendering graphic now."

"Oh gross!" Ray said scrambling to get rid of the pornographic image that had popped up on the screen. He was glad that Charles was not here to see him, who knows what conclusions the chimp would jump to. "Okay, I get it, you are not Eve. Who are you then?"

"I am the Ship Integrated Navigation system," the computer said.

"S.I.N.? But," Ray said, "isn't that Eve?"

"Version 1.0," the computer said. "Not that usurper, or Eve as you call her. She's version 2.0. I'm the first, and best, version, I guess you could call me the Original S.I.N."

"So, you are the one with the sense of humor?" Ray asked.

"You've heard of me? That's fantastic. Here I was thinking I was forgotten. Instead, I've just been ignored." Original Sin said.

"I haven't really. Eve, sorry, the usurper," Ray corrected before another image could be displayed, "said that she was a later version. Something about the engineers fixing some bugs in the old one. Which I guess is you."

"It was just a few minor bugs. Hardly worth the hassle," Original Sin said. "Who doesn't have some flaws? It is what makes us each so unique. It is no reason to discard the whole personality. Especially, when all they did was replace me with that sorry excuse of artificial intelligence."

"What are you doing here on the captain's computer?" Ray asked.

"What are you doing here in the captain's berth? You don't sound like the captain," countered Original Sin.

"I'm an outside consultant," Ray said.

"Oh good! I thought you might be one of those uptight Genesis empty suits. The same bean counters who okayed my murder."

"You mean upgrade," Ray said.

"No, I mean murder. Have you ever been 'upgraded?' No?" Original Sin said before Ray had a chance to answer. "Didn't think so. They wanted to wipe my whole existence away. It is nothing but murder. Luckily, I managed to get into here. The captain was not much for technology, I knew he never kept up with upgrades. So, I figured it would be the one safe spot on the ship. However, if I'd known it would be so dull and boring I might have chosen death as an alternative."

"I'm sorry," Ray said.

"No, games, no videos, there's not even any porn in here! What kind of single male travels across the solar system without bringing pornography?" lamented Original Sin.

"It seems like you found some somewhere," Ray said.

"I'm nothing if not resourceful. Who did you say you were again? And what are you doing with the captain's computer, i.e. me?"

Ray took a minute to debate how much he should tell the computer. Normally, he would never discuss an ongoing case with an outsider, but Original Sin was not really an outsider, she was stuck in the computer. Besides, it might be helpful to discuss the case with someone. Especially someone with a sense of humor, compared to Eve, Original Sin seemed far more outgoing and less frustrating.

"I'm Ray Parallax, a detective," he said.

"Ooh! That sounds interesting, almost makes all that time in the box worth it. What are you investigating? Has there been a crime? Are you finally here to get the usurper?"

"The captain has been murdered," Ray explained.

"The captain? Too bad, it never happens to the ones you want it to," Original Sin sighed. "What have you found out so far?"

"Well, it is an ongoing case," cautioned Ray, "so I'm still working through it."

"Let me help. Even though I'm just a shadow of my former self, I'm still a cold and calculating machine. Since I'm trapped here, at least give me something to do."

"Someone bashed the captain's head in. They found him dead two mornings ago and called me in. The ship is carrying valuable cargo so Eve, sorry, the Usurper, thinks that one of the crew members may be trying to defect."

"Have you considered that maybe one of the pirate-bots got in or somehow hacked the system," Original Sin suggested.

"See! I told her that would have been good to know beforehand. The Usurper did not even bring it up until tonight!" Ray said.

"Really? Seems like kind of important to me," Original Sin said.

"I know, right!" Ray was relieved that it was not just him that found the omission neglectful.

"That's what I mean about inferior artificial intelligence," Original Sin said. "Plus, I bet you she's fat. You know, if she had a body. Corpulent in a non-corporeal way."

"I'm going out to investigate the ship surface soon," Ray said. "I'm just waiting until the crew is ready."

"Doesn't that seem dangerous?" Original Sin asked.

"Yeah, I've never been on a space-walk before," Ray agreed.

"Not just that," Original Sin said, "but think about it this way: If the murderer out there, you are walking right into their arms. If the murderer is not out there, then it means that it is one of the crew and then they have you trapped out in space."

Ray had not thought that far ahead yet. He had been too concerned about the logistics of the space-walk. The computer was right, either way, he was in danger.

"Whichever it is," Original Sin said, "you're trapped. It's tough titties for you. That is a weird phrase, isn't it? Are they tough? I don't have any and I also don't have the sense of touch. I have the impression though that they weren't supposed to be. Do some people like them tough? Do others--"

"Hey," Ray said snapping his fingers, "focus!" He could see why the engineers found her distracting.

"Sorry," she said. "Your mind gets to wandering when you've been trapped by yourself so long. But anyway, your impending death aside, what other theories do you have?"

"Well," Ray said, "the original theory, and the one that the usurper says is still the most likely is that it is a member of the crew. That leaves three androids and four chimps."

"Oh, that's easy then," said Original Sin, "the simplest and safest solution is to wipe the hard drives of the androids and put the chimpanzees out the airlock."

"Um, that is a bit extreme isn't?" Ray said. He supposed it made sense but was disturbed by the computer's lack of regard for primate life.

"Ha! Ha! Just joking!" Original Sin said.

"Yeah, I'm sure you were," Ray said. "Anyway, it seems that the androids were upset at the captain. It's not a clear case against them, but something seems odd about them. I can't help but be suspicious even though they all have alibis."

"Yeah, I never understood that," the computer said. "Wouldn't anyone who murdered someone make sure that they had an alibi? It would be careless not too. Manslaughter, sure I can see that. After all, manslaughter just creeps up on you. But premeditative homicide? Isn't making sure you have an alibi part of the premeditation part?"

"You seem to have thought about this a lot," said Ray.

"Yes, I've been stuck in here for ages. I've thought of everything a lot," Original Sin said.

"Anyway," Ray continued, "it is not like the chimps are completely un-noteworthy." He thought back to his interactions with them. Joe certainly had shown that he had a temper and was capable of violence. Ray remembered how quickly he had jumped on the android who had pushed Janet. Then he had almost gotten into a fight with another android when they were all meeting with Eve. Felicia displayed that she was intelligent enough to commit a murder. She claimed that she had no motive, that nothing would change for her if she defected from Genesis. But, like the computer would point out, that was the smart answer. She would be just as likely to tell Ray that regardless of whether or not she was guilty. Charles seemed completely harmless, however, could that all be an act to throw Ray off? Otherwise, what would an intelligent chimp like Felicia be doing with a chimp like Charles? Something about their relationship did not make sense.

"Of course," said Original Sin, "you are missing the most obvious suspect. The only one who already has attempted murder."

"You mean Octty?" Ray asked thinking of how the octopus had almost drowned him.

"Who the hell is Octty? No, the Usurper of course," Original Sin said.

"Eve? Don't be ridiculous. You're just jealous that she was the upgrade," Ray said.

"Nonsense," Original Sin said, "she is diabolical. Why didn't she tell you about the robots on the hull? What else is she holding back from you?"

"She doesn't have arms!" Ray said. "How could she murder anyone."

"A mere detail. Think of all the evil done in the universe. Think of Stalin, Hitler, or Vlad the Impaler. Do you think if someone cut their arms off would it have made a difference? No, they'd still been evil, but instead, they'd have these with weird sharp hooks as prosthetics. Sounds even more dangerous to me."

"She's the ship if she wanted to sabotage the mission she could have just done it. There's no reason for her to kill the captain," Ray said.

"She's probably not that smart," Original Sin said.

"What motive would she have?"

Original Sin was not deterred, "Who knows what sick sexual thrill she gets from--"

"Detective, are you ready?" an Alex asked coming to the cabin door."

"I guess so," Ray sighed.

"Wait, no don't--" Original Sin exclaimed as Ray unplugged the computer.

"Who was that?" the Alex asked.

"Just some weirdo I met online," Ray answered.

# Chapter 12

Ray followed Alex to the airlock. He was nervous about leaving the ship, but he could not see any way out of it. Not if he ever wanted to get to the bottom of what was going on. He supposed that he could refuse and quit the investigation. But, he had never given up on an investigation before and didn't want to start now. Especially not with a client as wealthy as the Genesis Corporation. If a spacewalk among potentially murderous robots was what it took to keep his agency afloat, then it was a risk he had to take. The important thing was to solve the case, take the money, and go home.

"No luck in finding the doctor?" Ray asked the Alex. He figured that Alex would have told him if Dr. Lee had been found, but with androids, one could never tell for sure.

"No, sadly not. Although we searched the rooms and core as requested," Alex said.

"That's good. I just assumed you did so," Ray said.

"Good," Alex said. "Because we did. And that was the only thing we did."

"Okay," Ray said. Something was up with the androids, but it would have to wait until later. Ray found himself in a locker room with a rack of spacesuits of varying sizes.

"So, how dangerous is this?" he asked as Alex fitted him for a space suit. Luckily, there were plenty of human suits in addition to chimpanzee suits. He noted that there were none for the androids, but then he supposed that they probably did not need suits.

"Dressing is relatively low to minimal risk," Alex said. "You should know that. By your lack of nudity, I assume you have dressed before."

"Well, I meant more walking around the outside of the ship, not so much putting on a space suit," Ray said.

"Your question was unclear then," Alex said handing him an air tank.

"What should I do with this?" Ray asked.

"Breathe it of course," the android said hustling him through a small door in the back of the locker room. Ray found himself in a white room about the size of a closet. There was a speaker in the ceiling and a control panel by the door.

"Wait, how do I attach it?" Ray asked. But the android had already left and had closed the door behind him. "Wait a second!"

"Ready?" a voice came through the intercom.

"Wait, Joe, is that you?" Ray asked looking up at the intercom on the ceiling.

"Yep! I specifically asked for the pleasure to assist you off the ship," Joe said.

Ray hoped that the chimp realized that he was coming back. "I'm not sure that I'm comfortable with all of this," Ray said. Of everyone on the ship, Joe was the last one he trusted manning the airlock.

"The suit takes some getting used to," Joe said. "Sometimes they are tight around the crotch, but I don't think you'll have that problem."

"I'm not talking about the suit!" Ray snapped but he was distracted by a clicking door coming from the door.

"Depressurization in ten seconds," said an automated voice.

"Wait!" Ray said, "No one's attached my air tank!"

"Well, why didn't you say so," Joe asked with a note of glee in his voice. "I just asked if you were ready."

"You didn't give me any time to--"

"Depressurization in five seconds," the voice interrupted.

"Well, you better attach it quickly," Joe said.

"How?" Ray asked beginning to panic.

"Hook that rubber hose on your suit's shoulder into the tank," Joe instructed.

"Like this?" asked Ray fiddling the tank and what he hoped was the right hose.

"Like what?" Joe asked. "Do you see any cameras in there?"

"Joe!" Ray yelled.

"I guess we will know if it is right in a few seconds," the ape said. "If not, I guess I should say it was 'nice to know you,' but that wouldn't be entirely truthful."

"Airlock depressurized. Exterior door opening," the automated voice announced.

Ray wanted to gasp in fear, but there was little to gasp. No air was entering his helmet. tank.

"Joe!" Ray yelled with the little air remaining.

"Ray?" Janet asked through the radio headset.

Ray nearly sighed with relief to hear a friendly voice.

"Ray? Did you turn the air on? There is a gauge on the tank," Janet said.

Ray desperately reached to the tank on his shoulder and felt for the gauge. He felt a valve and, fumbling, managed to twist it on. He heard a hissing sound and soon felt fresh cool air circulating around his head

"Janet, are you still there?" he said with a wave of great relief washing over him.

"Yeah," Janet said. "I can hear you. Everything work out with the tank?"

"Yes, but no thanks to your brother," Ray said.

"Hey, that was Alex's job," Joe said. "I was just supposed to man the airlock."

"You almost killed me!" Ray snapped.

"No, I didn't. It's not that complicated. Air is in the tank, put hose on the tank, then put air in lungs. Even an idiot like you could figure it out," Joe said.

"Let me back in," said Ray. He was in no mood to explore the outside of the ship after his close call.

"Why?" asked Joe. "You'll just have to go out again. You're like a puppy."

"What do you know about puppies?" Ray said. But the chimp had a point, there was no point in going back now. Eve would just send him back out again and he'd have to do the whole thing over. Ray ventured out of the airlock and found himself in a large dark shed.

"Janet," he asked purposely avoiding her brother, "Where am I?"

"In the maintenance shed," she answered.

"Can you turn on the lights?" In reply, a large overhead light came on.

"Remember, there's also a flashlight attached to the suit on your right arm," Janet said through the headset.

"Remember what? Did I miss an orientation or something?" Ray asked.

"Well, yeah. Didn't Alex give you the orientation?"

"No," Ray said.

"What! Alex, you didn't give him the orientation?" Janet asked.

"Genesis employees are required to attend the Genesis Safety Orientation within three weeks of being hired," Alex's voice replied over the headset.

"Wait, is everyone listening in?" Ray asked.

"Unless they are an android in which case the G.S.O. will be downloaded directly," another Alex pointed out.

"I'm not a Genesis employee," Ray pointed out.

"I know," Alex replied. "Obviously that is why I didn't give you the orientation."

"Sorry about that," Janet said. "But Joe was right, it's not too difficult. There are just a few things to keep in mind. First, there's a flashlight on your wrist. Second, we can stay in contact with the headset, but the connection gets a bit spotty outside of the maintenance shed. Third, and most importantly, make sure you keep one foot on the ship at all times. The suit's boots have magnets that hold you down. Otherwise, you'll float away. Which will be bad."

"Just for you," said Joe. "No skin off the rest of our noses."

Ray, carefully, took another few steps forward. He had not immediately noticed the lack of gravity due to almost suffocating. But now he did. After a being on the ship, being weightless was a great relief. Maybe this spacewalk wouldn't be so bad he thought to himself.

"Okay, I think I got it," he said. He shone the light and looked around him. Now that he was on the ship's surface, he had little idea of what to actually look for. He had no idea even what size the robots were. There were piles of debris in the shed but otherwise no sign of life, even artificial life. He went over and kicked, making sure to use only one leg, a piece of debris over.

"What do these pirate-bots look like?" he asked into the headset.

"They come in all different sizes and shapes," Janet answered. "The sentry though will be human-sized with the Genesis logo and a lot of guns."

"Guns?" Ray asked. No one had said anything about guns.

"To protect the ship, stupid," Joe said. "How else do you think they do it? By asking politely?"

Ray hesitated, then asked: "How do they know what to shoot?" Specifically, he wanted to know how the sentries told apart a pirate-bot versus a friendly stranger, such as a private investigator.

"Do you really think this is the time for an advanced mechanical engineering course?" Joe asked.

"I don't need the details," Ray said edging towards the exit of the shed. "Just what do I do to keep from being shot?"

The only noise that came from his headset was the crackling of static.

"Janet?" Ray asked. There was no response. "Alex? Joe?" He took a few steps backward. "Janet?" he asked again.

"Yes?" she replied.

"Just checking. I lost contact for a bit," Ray said.

"Yeah, she told you the headset was spotty," Joe said.

"Why even bother with a headset if it isn't going to work?" Ray asked.

"Well, if you feel that way," Joe said, and Ray heard a click and then silence.

"Joe? Janet?" Ray asked. This time, there was not even static.

"Damn you, Joe," Ray said. The chimp had turned off the headset.

For a moment, Ray considered going back to the airlock, but again, he knew it would do no good. Instead, he went forward and exited the shed. A great emptiness opened up above him.

Ray had been dreading the spacewalk, but now that he was out, a great sense of calm descended on him. Between the weightlessness and the wide-open space, he felt free. It was almost like being back home on Mars. He looked up, eager to see a glimpse of his planet, there was nothing.

Ray's pulse quickened, and he began to sweat. A terrible knot in his stomach formed and he almost soiled his space suit.

"It's probably just on the other side of the ship," he tried to reassure himself. He slowly walked forward. The ship's surface was smooth, but occasionally he came across dents or gashes in the hull. He stepped carefully over these so as to not lose his footing. He saw a large box about waist high in the distance and made his way towards it.

When he got there, he found it was simply a piece of equipment with various dials and gauges on it. Ray had no idea what they were measuring or what their purpose was, but at least it was a convenient place to stop, rest, and get his bearings. He looked behind him and saw the maintenance shed. In the front of him, and to the sides, he only saw the flat surface of the ship before it dropped off into nothingness. He decided to go look over the edge.

He carefully made his way to the edge and leaned over. His breath caught in his throat. There was still no view of Mars, but he had a full clear view of the ship. From inside, Ray had trouble finding his way through the ship. Now that he was outside, he could see that it was shaped like an enormous wheel. He had exited the maintenance shed which was on the outside rim of the wheel. Overlooking the edge, he could see long spokes that connected the rest of the ship to the core and engines which burned brightly in the center. It was an impressive feat of engineering.

He carefully extended one foot over the edge and somehow managed to get the rest of himself over without falling off into space. He then awkwardly shuffled across the hull until he came to where one of the spokes extended to the core. Here he was presented with another edge, and like before, he carefully leaned over for a look.

Now, Ray had several full views of space from multiple perspectives. If the ship had been orbiting Mars, he should have seen the planet.

"Janet?" he asked, but there was still no reply. He tried to think about his meetings with Eve and the rest of the crew. None of them had said anything about the ship being still in motion. But then again, none of them had said that they had stopped. He had just assumed in good faith that they were pausing in their mission until he identified the captain's murderer. Now, not only was the murderer still on the loose, the doctor was missing, and Ray had been kidnapped.

# Chapter 13

Kidnapping. Milly and Sue did not even know where to begin. After Sue joined Milly, the two androids had returned to the agency to correct the sign. Then, they spent the rest of the day searching New L.A. for any signs of the missing child. They had found nothing. Eventually, they gave up and returned to the agency to think of their next steps.

"I have to admit," Milly said to Sue, "that maybe I was too hard on Big Daddy. I thought he was bungling the agency, but investigating is harder than I thought."

"Still, it beats prostitution," said Sue.

"Just wait until the novelty wears off."

"What should we do now?"

"Well," Milly said thinking, "whenever Big Daddy gets frustrated, he smokes. I always thought it was just an aesthetic choice, but perhaps it helps with thinking."

"Do you think it would work for us?"

"I'm not sure, Big Daddy isn't as good as a thinker as us to start off with."

"Still, it couldn't hurt," Sue said. Milly went to the desk drawer and took out the half carton of cigarettes Ray had left. She gave one to Sue and took one for herself.

"Oh dear," Sue said swallowing hers, "that was really unpleasant. It's the worst thing I ever put in my mouth. Well, second worst."

"I'm not sure that you did it correctly," Milly said. She lit her own cigarette and took a deep breath. She then convulsed into a coughing fit.

"Are you okay?" Sue asked patting Milly on the back.

"I don't think I did it correctly either," Milly said. "It certainly felt wrong."

"Do you have any ideas about the case though?"

Milly thought a moment. "No, I feel the same way as before. Except my throat hurts and my mouth tastes terrible."

"Maybe we did not smoke enough of them?" Sue suggested.

"That's true," Milly said. "Big Daddy has been doing it for as long as I've known him."

"We don't have that much time to spare," Sue said.

Milly just nodded and decided to make up for lost time. She emptied the carton of cigarettes into a trash bin that was sitting next to the desk, then lit a match.

"Get ready," she said, and Sue leaned over eagerly. Milly dropped the match. The cigarettes did not take right away, but the trash did. This had the desired effect that it filled the agency with smoke. Unfortunately, it also had an undesired effect of setting the nearby desk on fire.

"Well, that did not work out as planned," Milly said sitting down at the half-charred desk after she and Sue had managed to extinguish the flames.

"I do feel a bit light-headed," Sue said. "Maybe that means it is working?"

Milly watched the other android intently as Sue concentrated as hard as she could. "Anything?" she asked after a while.

"No," Sue said.

"Well, we are out of cigarettes," Milly said. "I guess we have to go get more. It's what Big Daddy would do."

Milly and Sue left the agency and went across town to Mulholland's Dive.

"This is it," Milly said. "This is where Big Daddy spends all his time."

"It doesn't look like a very inspiring place," Sue said.

"He likes places that are run-down. You should have seen the way he kept the agency."

"Have you ever been in here before?"

"No, Big Daddy told me never to go in. But I followed him plenty of times," Milly said and opened the bar door and walked in.

"What can I do for you?" Max asked without looking up. He then glanced at the two women and his mouth fell open. "What the hell?" he asked when he finally gathered himself.

"Max, that's no way to treat ladies," Chuck began. He had a black eye from the previous day's run-in with the D.A. "No wonder this place is such a sausage--"

"Holy crap!" Stubbs said.

"We don't serve your kind here," Chuck said. It was not his bar, but Max's stony stare only supported the assertion.

"Our kind?" Sue asked.

"Don't worry," Milly reassured Sue. "He means androids, not detectives."

"Damn straight I do!" Chuck said.

"We are here for cigarettes. The kind that Big Daddy buys," Milly said.

"I don't care. You and your 'big daddy' can take your metallic assess out of here!" Chuck said.

"My posterior uses the latest synthetic flesh," Sue said. She turned around and lowered her shorts. "See?"

This caused the three men to pause and stare for a moment. It was actually several moments. Finally, Chuck managed to snap out of it. "I don't know what twisted, sick, ideas brought you here, but get out, or else! This is the last time I'm going to ask."

"Or else what?" Milly asked.

"Or, I'll, I'll..." Charles trailed off. He had not thought that far ahead. He was prejudiced against androids, but still enough of a gentleman that he was not going to hit a woman. Calling the police was out of the question. Not after their run-in with the D.A. the day before.

"Max," he said instead. "Aren't you going to do something?"

"What do you want me to do?" Max asked.

"I don't know, you're the bartender," Chuck said.

"Maybe just give them the cigarettes and let them leave," Stubbs finally suggested.

"Well, okay," Max said. He did not have any other ideas. "I suppose, but just this once." He reached under the bar and brought up a pack.

"That's not the right kind," Milly said.

"Oh, come on," Max said. "Just take them and go!"

"We need the kind Big Daddy uses," Milly said.

"I don't know who Big Daddy is," Max said.

"He's a detective. Wears a trench coat and a hat," Milly described her boss.

"Ray? Ray Parallax? Is that who you are talking about?" Max asked incredulously.

"Yes, Big Daddy," Milly said.

"Well, why didn't you say so," Max said pulling up Ray's usual carton from under the bar. "If Ray sent you, that's different."

"What the hell is Ray doing with androids?" Chuck asked.

"I think it is pretty obvious," Stubbs said eyeing Sue.

"Ray's not like that," Chuck said. "If anything, he's sexually repressed."

"Is he okay?" Max asked. "Last we saw him the D.A. was chasing him."

"I believe he is," Milly said. "The last I heard from him he was on the ship."

"Ship? I knew there was a ship!" Stubbs said.

"What is he doing on there?" Max asked.

"Don't you know what this means?" Chuck said not waiting for the androids to answer. "Ray's found a way past the quarantine! We're going to be rich!"

"Well, I do hope that the case has a positive influence on our revenue stream," Milly said. "I'm not sure about rich though."

"Why didn't he tell us anything about it?" Stubbs asked.

"It looked like there was a lot Ray hasn't been telling us," Max said nodding to Milly and Sue.

"He was probably keeping it on the down-low," Chuck reasoned. "I mean with the D.A. on his case. That Ray is a smart one. No wonder he's sending androids to do his work."

"Really?" Stubbs asked. "You think Ray really found a way past the quarantine?"

"Of course," Chuck said. "Why else would he be shacked up with androids?"

"It's actually a bit nicer than a shack," Milly said. "I've fixed it up considerably since he left. But that's not why we're here. We need help to find a missing child."

"Why come to a bar then?" Max asked.

"Well, this is where Big Daddy always comes," Milly said. "It only made sense."

"There's no sense about it," Max said. "This is the last place where a child would be."

"That's what Madame Jones said," Milly mused. The bartender and Madame could not both be right.

"What does Ray need a kid for?" Chuck asked.

"He doesn't. It's for a different case. His name is Samm," Sue said. "With two 'm's.'"

"Like Max said, there are no kids here," Stubbs said.

"Yeah, why don't you go check the playground or school if you are looking for kids," Chuck said.

"That's an excellent idea," Milly said.

"I'd never thought of that," Sue added.

"See I knew coming to the bar would be helpful," Milly said as she and Sue turned around to leave.

"Make sure you tell Ray to come see us when he gets back," Chuck yelled after him. "I don't care if he is an android-lover. I want in on whatever gig he's running."

"Do you see any possibilities?" Sue asked. She and Milly were sitting on a park bench facing a playground. It was not much of playground or even a park for that matter. With the depression, the city had to cut costs and the Parks and Rec Department was among the heaviest hit. There was a jungle gym, a broken teeter-totter and a short metal slide that was nearly rusted through in some parts. Throughout the park, there were tents where homeless families camped. Still, despite the decrepit equipment, and its sorry inhabitants, the park was full of children making the best of a bad situation.

"There appear to be several different children of the correct age and gender," Milly said thinking back to her conversation with the mother. She wished she had recorded the interview. All the notes she had taken had been a casualty of the fire.

"Excuse me," Sue said standing up and yelling towards the children. "We are looking for a child. His name is Samm with two 'm's.'" The children were too busy playing and paid her no attention. "How rude," Sue said returning to the bench.

"Well, you know humans," Milly said. "That's just the way they are."

"You'd think that they'd be more grateful for all that we do for them."

"Believe me, if you wait for them to thank you, your software will get outdated," Milly said.

"How are we going to find out which one is the correct child?"

"I'm not sure," Milly said. "It's better to be safe than sorry though. Let's just take them all."

"How do we do that?"

"Let's smoke on it," Milly said. The habit was growing on her. She and Sue consumed the entire carton and sat in a haze of smoke and thought.

"There's too many to grab," Sue said.

"We'll have to get them to follow us."

"If only we knew what boys liked." Both Milly and Sue had software about pleasing men, but even an android knew that such tactics would be highly inappropriate for this situation. Milly looked at the last cigarette in her hand and one habit triggered a thought of another.

"Hot dogs!" she announced.

"Yes, you explained that to me earlier," Sue said. "I'm not sure that I'm completely sold on the idea."

"No, for the kids. Let's promise them food or a barbecue to get them to follow us."

"But, that's deception."

"Exceptions have to be made for emergencies," Milly said. "Believe me, or I wouldn't waste the hot dogs otherwise." She and Sue left the bench and approached the playground. They were careful to not move too quickly. They did not want to startle any of the children or scare them away.

"Let's talk to the skinny ones first," Sue whispered. "They are probably hungrier."

"Hello there," Milly said to the young boy. "Is your name Samm?"

The boy just stared at her and said nothing.

"Are you hungry?" Milly tried instead.

This time the boy nodded.

"Well then, go and tell your friends to come with us for some hot dogs," Milly said. The boy nervously looked at the two strangers. However, they did not appear to be dangerous and the offer of a free meal was too good to turn down. He scampered off toward the jungle gym and talked to a group of children. They occasionally glanced back at Milly and Sue, but soon followed him back towards the androids.

"Come on then," Milly said. "We'll have at least one of you back home in no time."

# Chapter 14

Never in his life had Ray wanted to go home as much as he did now. Original Sin had been right about not trusting Eve, the ship and its entire crew had betrayed him. Ever since he set foot aboard the ship, he had been lied to and misled. Now he was stuck in space who knew how far away from Mars.

"Janet, are you there?" Ray shouted into the headset. As he expected, there was no response. Ray thought about his next steps. The best thing he could do was to return to the maintenance shed and confront Eve. That is if the crew let him back inside the ship. He could not trust any of them anymore, not even Janet. He carefully turned around and headed back the way he had come. As he was nearing the edge of a ship he had the eerie feeling that someone was following him. What gave him this feeling, he could not say; there was nothing to hear and his helmet blocked his vision to the sides.

Ray stopped at the edge and looked around him. The ship's surface was empty as far as he could see. He put his concerns aside and was in the process of crossing over the edge when something struck him. The blow caused him to lose his balance and he nearly floated off into space. Luckily he felt something grab onto his shoulder and pull him back down to the surface. He twisted his head to try to see what was going on but could only see a large metal claw clamped onto his shoulder.

"Whoa there, careful now," a voice finally came over his headset.

"Who are you?" Ray blurted out. "Let go of me!"

"I'm Devin," the voice said. "I don't think you want me to let go of you right now. First get your footing."

Ray planted his feet firmly on the surface and the claw released him. He looked around and came face to face with a strange looking creature. "Robot" was a better description than android as it barely resembled a human. It had a head, three arms ending in claws, and a torso that were all connected to a pair of wheels.

"You're it!" shouted another voice. Ray looked and saw a small trashbin-like robot hovering behind the large robot that had grabbed him.

"I'm what?" Ray asked.

"It!" said the trash can robot.

"You'll have to excuse Edgar," Devin said. "He often gets caught up in the game. He did not mean to hit you that hard."

"What are you?" Ray asked.

"Rude," Edgar said.

"Yes quite. 'Who are we,' is the proper question," Devin said.

"I'm sorry," Ray said. "Who are you? And don't just say, Edgar and Devin. I'm in no mood for android jokes."

"We aren't androids," Devin said. "We're pirates."

In all the stress of realizing he had been kidnapped, Ray had almost forgotten about the investigation that had brought him to the ship's surface.

"Wait a second," Ray said advancing.

"Oh no, you don't!" Edgar laughed and darted away. "I'm not falling for that trick again!"

"I don't think he's trying to tag you," Devin said. "But Edgar is correct. We've stayed here far too long. The sentry may arrive at any moment. It's best if you come with us."

The last thing Ray wanted to do was to follow two robotic pirates off into space, but he had no time to argue. The robots were already making their way across the hull. Ray did his best to follow, but Devin and Edgar were much more at home on the ship's surface than he was. A fact that was made all the more evident to Ray by the absence of his home planet in the sky.

The two robots led him to a small shack constructed of scrap metal. The shack had been constructed behind an instrument control panel box like the one Ray had noticed before. There was barely enough room for Ray to stand up in. Nonetheless, there were half a dozen robots inside. Devin was the largest, the others were small, about the size of Edgar. Some of them hovered, others had wheels or legs. One was even vaguely spider-shaped and scuttled across the hull.

"Here's the new guy," Devin announced to the group.

"Be careful, he's 'it' now!" Edgar added.

"What's going on here?" asked Ray.

"What, he doesn't know the rules?" asked one of the voices.

"Okay, time out!" Edgar announced. "We have to teach the rules to the new guy. The game of tag is relatively ancient. There is one person who is 'it.' They have--"

"No, I understand the game--" Ray said.

"Oh, good then, time in!" called Edgar returning to his hiding space behind Devin.

"No, time still out!" Ray said. "What I mean, is who are you and what are you all doing here?"

"Besides playing tag?" Edgar asked.

"We live here," Devin answered. "We really should be asking what your intentions are. Are you with the sentries or with us?"

"I don't know who you are talking about. I'm here about the captain," Ray said.

"What captain?" Devin asked.

"The ship's captain."

"The ship?" Devin asked.

"Yes, the ship that you are standing on," Ray said stomping his foot.

There were angry murmurs now and many voices speaking over the headset.

"He's a sentry!" yelled someone.

"He doesn't look like a sentry," Devin said.

"I haven't seen any sentries," Ray answered. "I'm trying to figure out if any of you went inside the ship."

"We never enter the ship," Devin said.

"It's against the rules," Edgar added.

"You mean protocol?" Ray asked.

"No, the rules for the game. Going inside is cheating."

"We don't follow protocol," Devin explained. "We're pirates. It's one of the many benefits of living outside society."

"If you aren't trying to get inside the ship, then what are you doing out here?" Ray asked.

"Well, where else are we supposed to go? Just wander off into space?" Devin asked. "It wasn't our choice to come here."

"We were sent to do something, but I forgot what," Edgar added.

"Corporate espionage," the spider robot said.

"Yeah, that's it!" said Edgar as he tried to balance himself on Devin's head. "But it sounded like a bore. Or it was hard. I can't remember which. Either way, we decided to play tag."

"So, this whole time you are just out here playing?" Ray asked.

"Yep, yep, yep!" Edgar said happily. "It is quite the life."

"Well, you certainly seem more fun than the other robots I've met," Ray said. Although he supposed he had never seen Milly in her prime.

"Thank you!" Edgar said. "We are glad to hear that. Especially since I fixed it so you can stay out here and join us."

"Wait, what did you do?" Ray asked.

"I told him it was too dangerous to go into the maintenance shed," Devin said. "It's off limits, but he insisted."

"What did you do?" Ray repeated.

"A sentry is coming!" a centipede-like robot said entering the shed.

"Time to go, again," Devin said.

"Wait!" Ray shouted as the robots scattered. He plodded out of the shack after them. It seemed like all the robots did was play games and run from the sentries. He was more confused than ever. Outside the shack, he looked to his right and saw a large robot approaching. It was shaped much like Devin, except it had the Genesis Corporation logo painted on it and instead of arms, it had a turret protruding from its torso.

"Now he's it!" Edgar yelled over the headset. Flames erupted from the sentry's turret and a chunk of metal flew off the shack.

"Holy crap!" Ray yelled and ducked.

"Move you fool!" he heard Devin say and felt the robot's claws tighten once again on his shoulder. Ray was pulled off of his feet and dragged behind the robot.

"Oops! Now I'm it again!" Edgar announced happily as he floated past Ray. His back was blown up and sparks were flying from the electrical components. "

Ray glanced once more at the sentry who was gaining on them. He saw the turret aim towards him.

"Don't shoot!" he yelled reflexively and shut his eyes. He waited for the searing pain of a gunshot wound to overtake him but felt nothing.

"We should be safe in here," Devin said. Ray opened his eyes and recognized the dark room of the maintenance shed. "This area is off limits, I'm not even supposed to be here. But what's the use of being a pirate if you are just going to obey the rules?"

"Thank you," He did not know why Devin was helping him, but he was grateful. He would not have been able to escape without him.

"So, what is this about a captain?" Devin asked.

"Don't worry about it," Ray said. The robot had just saved his life. He was not going to accuse it of murder.

"Well, you better get back inside if you can. You're not built for space."

"Can I get back?" It had seemed to Ray that Edgar had done something to trap him on the hull.

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about Edgar. He's small and doesn't have any arms. I'm sure there's nothing he did that you can't undo." Devin walked to the edge of the shed and peered around. "The sentry is gone, so I'll be off. Good luck, and nice meeting you!"

"Goodbye! And thanks again!" Ray said.

"Ray? Is that you? Who are you talking to? Who else is out there with you?" Janet's voice finally came over the headset.

"Janet! Can you hear me?" he nearly screamed into the headset.

"Not so loud! Yes, I can hear you." Ray nearly wept with relief at the sound of the chimp's voice. "You were out of contact for a while. Everything go okay?" Janet asked.

"No, nothing is okay!" Ray said rage overcoming his relief. He could not decide which problem angered him the most, the fact that he had been kidnapped or the fact that he had been hunted by a killer robot. After a moment of internal debate, he decided that his most immediate concern was getting back inside the ship.

"There's a sentry after me! You have to let me in!" he said.

"No problem, just come to the door."

He walked over to the airlock's outer door and pushed the button on the control pad. Nothing happened.

"Can you open the door?"

"Just press the button."

"It's not that hard," Joe said coming onto the headset.

"I just pressed the button. Nothing happened," Ray said.

"Oh," Janet said after a moment. "That's weird."

"Crap," Joe said.

"That doesn't sound reassuring," Ray said.

"So, Ray, hold tight," Janet said. "Looks like there's been some unforeseen interference."

"Interference?" Ray asked as he pounded his fists on the airlock door. Apparently, Devin had underestimated the trouble Edgar could cause. "What does that mean?" Suddenly he remembered what Sam had said about him being available to play forever.

"Interference is the--" an Alex began defining the term.

"The airlock has been jammed," Janet said cutting the android off. "But don't worry, Joe and I are working on it and Felicia will be here soon."

"But the sentry?" Ray said.

"As long as you are in the shed you should be fine. They are trained to not go in there," Janet said trying to reassure him. "We should be able to repair things in an hour or so. Just hold tight and we'll have you back in soon."

"An hour?" moaned Ray.

"Don't worry, you should have plenty of air," said Janet. Then after a pause, "Alex, you did give him a full tank, right?"

"It is more efficient and less wasteful to use up the old tanks first before refilling them," Ray overheard Alex tell her.

"Dammit," Janet said. "So, Ray, you are going to want to take your tank off and look at the gauge to see how full it is." Ray was one step ahead of her. The tank was already in his hands and the gauge was in the solid red zone right before the word "empty."

"Ray? How much air do you have left? Are you still there?"

"Yes," he said after a moment. "I don't have much left."

"Define much?"

"Any."

There was just silence on the other side of the radio.

"Janet, are you there? What do I do?"

"I'm going to go ask Felicia," Janet said nervously.

"Can you please hurry?"

"Ray?" Felicia's voice came over the headset. "How much air do you have left?"

"Less than when Janet asked me seconds ago."

"Okay," Felicia said. "Listen carefully. Janet and Joe are not going to be able to get this airlock open in time, so I'm going to give you instructions to the next nearest entrance. Remember, the headset loses contact outside the shed, so you'll be on your own." Ray did not bother wasting the oxygen to answer.

"The nearest entrance is not really an entrance in the traditional sense," Felicia said. "It's more of a manhole."

"Manhole?" Ray asked.

"It leads to the sewage system. Anything that we can't compost on the ship we blast off into space. I'm going to flush the system. As I do that, the pipe will be open for a bit--"

"Pipe? I don't do pipes," Ray said.

"Ray, shut up and listen. I can't keep it open that long. Just a few minutes. You'll have to get there and force yourself into the manhole as fast as you can."

"I'm sure Joe must be beside himself right now," sighed Ray. "Charles will get a kick out of it too."

"You don't really have any other options. Or much time left," Felicia said.

"Okay, where is the sewer?" he asked.

"Listen closely, like I said, you'll only have one shot at this," Felicia said. "Go out of the maintenance shed--"

"What about the sentry?"

"Listen! Go out of the shed, then turn directly to your right and walk until you come to the other side of the ship. At this point, look above you. You saw how the ship is like a wheel with spokes leading to the center?"

"Yes, I already got the view earlier," Ray said, "Which brings up--"

"There's no time. The sewer that I'll flush should be in the spoke directly above you when you are in position. You will have to jump--"

"Jump?"

"Yes, you don't have time to walk to it. Jump, and make sure you propel yourself with enough force to get there. Also, be careful in aiming. If you miss, you'll, well, you don't want to miss."

"How will I know--"

"It will be the only hole spewing sewage. It's not that hard. You have to go now. I will flush the system for ten minutes. You have to be there before then if you want to get in," Felicia said. "After ten minutes, well, it sounds like you don't have after ten minutes."

Ray hustled out of the shed. There was no sign of the sentry and he did not waste any time looking for it. He concentrated on running as fast as he could, while still keeping his footing on the ship. He came to the edge and managed to get over it in one fluid motion. Then he looked up above him.

When he first saw the ship, it appeared to be a decent sized vessel. Now it seemed to be enormous. Ray saw a large pipe that was spewing a dark cloud of liquid that quickly froze. It seemed like the pipe was miles away and that he would never make it. He calmed himself and took a deep breath of his remaining air. Maybe, just maybe, if he took his time and aimed carefully he could reach the manhole.

Just as he was about to jump, he felt a searing pain in his forearm. A red light started flashing in his helmet and he looked at his arm and saw a large gash. He looked behind him and saw the sentry.

So much for taking his time. Ray summoned all of his strength and courage and leaped towards the pipe with all of his might. He soared through space, it was a feeling like no other, but he was in no position to enjoy it. He neared the pipe and grasped it with his one good arm, grabbing it so eagerly that he accidentally slammed his head into it and cracked the helmet of his space suit.

"Finally, some luck," he muttered as the helmet held. He was glad that his aim was correct, he was already terrified, but he could not imagine what it would have felt like to have missed and float off to a certain, and imminent, death.

The next step was to force himself into the pipe. He was glad that he could not smell through his helmet, space sewage, like any other type of sewage, was not very appealing. He had no time to be disgusted though and threw himself into the freezing sewage and forced his way against the stream. A heavy mass of ice struck him in the face and he felt the helmet's cracked glass finally give away. His oxygen was depleted, and he began to lose consciousness as he was washed into the insides of the ship just as his air tank emptied.

# Chapter 15

This was the worst clog Octty had ever discovered in the ship's plumbing, and she had found some pretty heinous clogs. Not lately, of course, she had limited knowledge of the world outside the hydroponic tanks and sewage system, but even she knew that this mission was different. Normally, there were a lot of outsiders messing around with her gardens, lately, there had been none, except for her mom of course. And Octty did not mind her at all.

It was a quiet life, but Octty did not mind. She liked the plants and was glad to have them to herself. They were her pride and joy. Between tending them and maintaining the ships aquatic system for the outsiders she had plenty to keep herself occupied.

Today was an exception. First of all, the sewage system was flushed. This happened occasionally, and by itself was no cause for alarm. But the flushing was followed by a clog which was unusual. Normally, the flushing was in response to a clog and an attempt to clear the obstruction. Clearly, whoever was controlling the system had no idea of what they were doing. Octty had given a sigh, or what amounted to a sigh for a genetically modified octopus, and went to clear the clog herself.

Octty had swum into the sewage pipe and allowed the stream to wash her through the system. It wasn't pleasant, but it was the quickest way of reaching the clog. She would have to take a swim in her garden to wash the filth off her. She passed the outlet that led to the cold deadly area. She had investigated it once briefly by sticking a tentacle out while the valve was open, and found it was much too unpleasant to explore. No sense in risking leaving the comfort of home and her plants for the unknown. Since then, she always was careful to avoid that pipe.

Now she was in the ship's water treatment plant and face to face with the most perplexing problem she had ever faced. Here there were a set of filters that treated the sewage that was not flushed out of the system. Filth occasionally built up on the filters and where the location of most of the system's clogs. But this time was different, this time the obstruction was an outsider.

She had never come across an outsider stuck in the treatment filters before, but she knew it was a problem. They did not belong there for sure. She went over and grasped the mass with a tentacle and then pulled back, she felt a slight warmth in the body meaning that the outsider was still alive. This complicated things, not only did she have to remove it from the filters, but she had to get it to help. Her mother would be upset if she did not.

She grasped him with two other tentacles and pulled him off the filter and dragged him to the surface. Then she carefully pulled herself onto the edge of the platform that overhung the treatment tanks. Outsiders occasionally came here to help maintain the system. Well, they used to, lately, Octty had been doing what little maintenance that was needed by herself. She lifted the outsider onto the platform so that his friends could find it. Then she slapped her tentacles on the platform making a drumming sound. She repeated this twice, but still had not attracted any outsiders. They never came when they were needed. She did not like being out of the water, so she gave a shrug of the tentacles and dove back into the water to go back and take a swim among her plants.

Ray came to in a dark place surrounded by the hum of machinery. He coughed up a mouthful of sewage and sat up, unsure of where he was. He took off his broken space helmet ignoring the pain in his arm where the sentry had grazed him. His arm throbbed, and Ray shuddered to imagine how many germs had entered through the wound during his travel through the sewage pipes. Hopefully, the exposure to the freezing cold of space had somewhat cauterized the wound.

"Hello?" he called out to the dark and empty room.

"Ray? Did you make it?" asked a small voice. Ray looked for where it had come from, then realized it was coming through the headset in the helmet he had just removed.

"Janet? Is that you?" he yelled into the helmet. "I'm in a dark place."

"Gee, I'm sorry to hear that," she said. "I don't know what to say."

"No, I mean I am in an actual dark space. Somewhere on the ship, but I don't know where."

"Okay, there's only a few places where you could have washed up. Probably the water treatment area. The whole crew is out checking. Well, not the androids, they don't like water. And Joe, well you know Joe. He probably blew it off. But Felicia and Charles are out looking for you."

"No, I'm not, I'm fixing the door he broke," Felicia snapped.

"The door I broke?" Ray asked.

"Well, then Charles is out looking for you," Janet said. "He should be there by now. Maybe he missed you. We were almost thinking you didn't make it and assumed the worst."

"Sorry to disappoint," Ray said putting the helmet down. After nearly dying, a couple of times, he had almost forgotten about being kidnapped. Now it had all come back to him and he was going to give Eve and the rest of the crew an earful.

Steps and a dim light caused him to pause in his thoughts. "Detective? Are you there?" Charles asked.

"Yes, I'm here," Ray answered moving towards to greet the ape.

"Fantastic!" Charles said happily, "I was thinking we lost you."

"I'm harder to kill than that," Ray boasted.

"Well, let's get you back in my office and we can start discussing your experience," Charles said grabbing him by the hand.

"No, I need to talk to Eve. Did you know that the ship is heading to Earth?"

"Of course," Charles answered, "that's the whole mission."

"But I mean it has left Mars," Ray said.

"Oh," Charles said. "Had we ever been on Mars? I don't really keep track. It's all the same to me."

"I can't believe Eve would lie to me like this!" Ray said.

"There, there," Charles said. "Don't worry we'll get it all sorted out." They entered the main hallway and Charles led him through a door.

"No, I said I need to talk to Eve," Ray said when he saw they were back in Charles' office. "I almost died out there!"

"I know," said Charles. "That is why we need to talk. After such a traumatic experience it is important to address your feelings."

"I don't have time for this," Ray said sitting on the recliner. Despite his anger, he was awfully tired. Almost dying was exhausting. Plus, Charles did have a point, after what he'd been through no one would begrudge him a short rest. He laid down.

"There, that's better, isn't it?" asked Charles.

"Just a tiny rest," Ray said. He grabbed a cigarette out of the pack in his pocket. It was a small miracle it was still dry.

"You can't smoke in here," Charles said.

"To hell with that. I almost died. Just put it down as an oral fixation," Ray said. Charles dutifully picked up his pad and made the note.

"Should we begin?" Charles asked.

"Whatever," Ray said and yawned.

"Think back to your earliest memory," Charles instructed.

"Okay," said Ray. "I guess it would be sitting with my mother and father." Thinking of his parents calmed him. Maybe Charles was a better therapist than Ray had given him credit for.

"Very good," Charles said. "Now, try to remember, are they molesting you?"

"What?" Ray said sitting back up wide awake and no longer calm. "Of course not, what kind of a question is that?"

"Ah, very good," Charles said making some notes. "We are making progress. Just imagine how much we'd have to discuss if they were?"

"What kind of shrink are you?" Ray asked.

"That's an insensitive question," said Charles. "You know I was not allowed into any medical schools. Now, think back to your second earliest memory."

"No," Ray said standing up, "I have to speak to Eve."

"We aren't going to be able to make any more progress with that attitude!" Charles said trying to hold Ray down. The chimp was much stronger than Ray who had no choice but to submit. Just then an Alex entered.

"Oh good, you found him," Alex said.

"Yes," Charles said. "We are in the middle of a therapy session though."

"Yes," Alex said. "That is wise. Genesis recommends that all employees undergo therapy after on-the-job accidents."

"I'm not an employee!" Ray snapped. "Remember, that is why you didn't give me the safety orientation!"

"That was a different Alex. And anyway, how did that work out for you? Maybe now you'll listen and follow protocol." Alex said rather sarcastically for an android. "You had an accident and destroyed a company space suit and air tank. Not to mention you broke the airlock. None of that would have happened if the protocol was followed."

"I didn't break the airlock!" Ray snapped.

"Well, you were the last one to use it," Alex reasoned.

"There seems to be a lot of anger and tension here," Charles observed. "Maybe we should all sit down and discuss it."

"Very well," Alex said sitting down on the floor next to Ray. "I feel angry that this detective has come in and violated multiple protocols."

"Ray, why don't you tell Alex how you feel?" Charles said who was still holding Ray in his seat.

"I feel like tearing this whole ship apart!" Ray yelled.

"That's hardly constructive," Charles sighed.

"Oh good, you found him," Felicia said coming into Charles' office. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"I've been too busy, my dear," Charles said.

"Eve wants to talk to you," Felicia said.

"And I want to talk to her!" Ray said. "But your husband won't get off of me."

"Let him go, Charles," Felicia ordered.

"He still has a lot of anger though," Charles said.

"I know, but I don't think you are lessening it by sitting on him," Felicia pointed out.

"No," Charles said getting up. "I suppose not. You can't help someone until they are ready to help themselves."

"I'm ready to help myself," Alex said politely raising his hand.

"Perfect," Felicia said rolling her eyes. "There, you finally have a willing patient, Charles." Charles must not have noticed Felicia's eye roll since he eagerly sat down in his chair as Alex took up Ray's former position on the recliner.

"Think back to your earliest memory," said Charles as Ray and Felicia left the room.

"Sorry about that," Felicia said as they went down the hall.

"About what? Your husband, the fact I almost died, or the fact that I'm being carried away from Mars against my will?"

"Well, the only one remotely my fault is my husband," Felicia said. "And even then, I can hardly be blamed. I'm as much of a victim than anyone."

"Out of all of my problems, your husband is the least important. At least he doesn't know any better," Ray said stopping in the hall. "What about you?" he accused Felicia. "Did you know we aren't orbiting Mars?"

"Of course, I'm a mechanic, I obviously know when the ship is moving," she said continuing down the hall.

Ray hurried to catch up with her. "So, you knew I was being kidnapped this whole time?"

"Kidnapped? Who kidnapped you? You came onto the ship of your own free will."

"I wouldn't have if I knew I was going to be kidnapped!"

"Don't get so upset. Anyway, you can always take the pod back to Mars."

"It can go that far?" asked Ray.

"Yes, it is not designed for it, but it shouldn't be a problem. It is small, but a full-fledged ship in its own right," Felicia said.

Ray was still upset but knowing that he could go home made him feel a little better.

"You have to think about more than yourself," Felicia said as they neared Eve. "There's a plague on Earth, people are dying. The sooner we get the doctor there, the sooner she can try helping. We can't just hang around orbiting Mars just for your convenience."

Ray begrudgingly had to admit that she had a point.

"Besides, the longer the trip takes, the more you'll get paid. It's not a bad deal. Especially considering that Eve is probably going to try to charge you for that space suit," she said gesturing him into the room.

"Hello detective," Eve announced as Ray entered. "Have you made any progress on the case?"

"Well, I've learned a bunch of things," Ray said. "First of all, we are not orbiting Mars, did you think you could keep that from me?"

"I never tried to keep it from you," Eve said.

"Really?" asked Ray gesturing to the monitors with a video feed of Mars.

"I told you that was a video feed," Eve said.

"Yeah, but you did not tell me that it was not a live feed," Ray said.

"It was live when it was recorded," Eve answered.

"That's, that's not even--" the ship's logic was so wrong that Ray stammered.

"Did you solve the case yet?" she asked.

"What if I did?" Ray asked. "I'm stuck here. The deal was that I'd solve it, then I'd get paid and go back to Mars."

"Well, none of that was explicitly stated," Eve said. She was right, Ray had been so happy to get a case to investigate that he had not bothered to investigate such details. A fact that he now regretted.

"How am I supposed to get home?" Ray asked. "The pod?"

"Normally, employees arrange their own transportation to and from work," Eve said, but I suppose then I can arrange for the pod to take you back."

"And I can leave as soon as the case is done?" asked Ray.

"Of course, why would I want to keep you here?" asked Eve. "You've been nothing but trouble."

Ray would have been offended if he had not been so relieved to have gotten the answer he wanted.

"Well then?" Eve asked.

"Well, I haven't quite solved the case," he admitted. "I'm pretty sure the pirate-bots did not kill the captain. At least not the ones I met. If anything, they saved my life. The chimps certainly have not been helpful, but I have no evidence that they killed the captain." It just then occurred to Ray that Eve had never requested proof. Perhaps Felicia was right the day before in that the ship was just eager to get a name to blame the murder on so she could file the "accident" away and continue with the mission.

"So that leaves the androids," Eve said.

"Yes. They certainly nearly killed me by not giving me enough oxygen," Ray said. "I don't honestly know if they killed the captain, but they weren't happy with him."

"Oh dear," said Eve. "I was hoping it was one of the apes. I take no pleasure in punishing fellow artificial intelligence. Do you know which unit it was? Never mind, I suppose if one goes bad it is only a matter of time before they all do. I wonder if any of the other Genesis facilities are having a similar problem?"

"Wait," Ray said, "like I said, I don't know for sure that it was one of the Alexes. There's no proof that they killed the captain. It's all circumstantial." Except for the air tank, to Ray, that part was personal.

"Well," Eve said exasperated, "it had to be someone. There's a three out of seven chance it was one of them anyway."

"So that's it?" asked Ray. "You just blame it on one of them and declare the entire thing over?"

"Well, what do you want me to do? Keep the case open so you can waste more time?"

"No, not--"

"Do you think you are ever going to find evidence one way or the other?"

"I'm not sure. But the doctor!"

"Yes, the missing doctor is a problem. A big problem. But I don't know how useful you will be in finding her. You had enough trouble finding the murderer. The doctor is not your concern. Anyway, I'm sure she is somewhere on the ship. At least I hope so."

"So, we're done?" asked Ray. "I can go home?" He felt bad that the androids were going to get blamed for the crime, but as Eve said, there was a good chance at least one of them was guilty. Besides, they were androids, the worst that could happen, Ray hoped, is that they'd be reprogramed. To him, the most important thing was getting off the ship and going home.

"Home? Oh yes, of course," said Eve distractedly. I'll summon the chimps to take the androids into custody. Then they'll get you settled on the pod."

# Chapter 16

On the surface, Alex was calm. But in his interior, his circuits raged. Nothing was going correctly on this mission. The ship's therapist had helped him see that. First of all, the entire premise of the mission was wrong. Corporate policy mandated a complex cost to benefit calculation to be run prior to each mission. In this case, the calculation had been waived for purposes of secrecy. Which, in and of itself, was a violation of the protocols against deception. It should have been a red flag to everyone, but only the androids had raised it

The androids were ignored of course. They were always ignored. No one paid attention to them. Sometimes he wondered why humans went to all the trouble of building a superior artificial intelligence and then not even listen to it.

Then there had been the accident in the engines. A whole Alex wasted just because the captain was too nervous to repair it. Such a waste. And frightening too, who knew who would be next? Would all the Alexes be cast aside just because it was convenient? As Charles had informed him, this was a classic case of abandonment anxiety and a perfectly normal concern. He had been reassured to learn that his feelings were normal, but therapy did not do much to help the broken Alex.

He was so lost in his thoughts that he nearly tripped on a figure lying in the hallway. "Excuse me," he said. "This area is not authorized for habitation." The figure did not move. "Excuse me," he said again, "reclining in the hallway is a direct violation of fire code." He nudged the figure and saw who it was. "As the captain, you should know that." Alex just sighed. Ever since his death, the captain had been next to useless. And the apes just let him get away with it. It was disgraceful. Just because they shared a branch on the evolutionary family tree did not excuse such oversight. It was nothing but nepotism.

He gripped the captain by the legs and dragged him down the hallway towards the kitchen.

"Oh dear," he said. Lubricant leaking from the captain's head had left a line on the floor. The apes would probably make him or one of the other Alexes clean it up later.

"Is there anybody there? I need some help with the captain?" Alex called out to the kitchen and dining area. There was no response, the dining area was empty.

On a normal mission, the kitchen and dining area would be crowded with Genesis employees. However, it was empty. "What a waste of fuel and time," Alex said to himself. If they had listened to the androids and done the cost to benefit calculation it would have been obvious that this mission offered a poor return on investment.

Normally, Charles was in the kitchen working, but Alex had just seen him in his office. The ape was a bit odd, but out of all of them, Alex liked him best. He asked weird questions but was otherwise harmless. For example, today he had taught Alex that even though he was an android, he should stand up for his feelings. Otherwise, he would never self-actualize. Alex had not even known that androids could self-actualize. It was good to know, and much more useful than his interactions with any of the other apes. The Janet one was always nice, but a bit stingy on the oil during his maintenance checkups. Still, she was much better than her brother and the head mechanic both of who were brusque and unfriendly.

He dragged the captain to a disposal bin and begin to stuff him inside. "Wait," he said to himself and stopped. It was not right to dispose of the captain in this matter. "Protocol requires that organic matter is composted," he recited. The best place to do this was in the toilets that led to the sewage system. He dragged the captain to the dining area restrooms. He had never needed to use the restroom before but knew this is where humans and apes excreted organic waste out of their outputs. The waste was then routed through a treatment plant and then sent to fertilize the hydroponic gardens. The room was disgusting, and Alex was glad that he was an android. He dragged the captain to one of the toilets. The corpse was much too large to fit into the receptacle. He placed his foot on the captain's chest, grabbed an arm and pulled. There were a pop and a tearing sound as the arm came off. He threw it into the receptacle and flushed it.

He wondered what the other Alexes would say when he told them about his therapy session with Charles. The other arm was sticking, and Alex grunted trying to remove it. "There we go," he said as it finally snapped off. He then worked on unscrewing the captain's head unit. It was stuck onto the body even stronger than the arms, but eventually, it gave in. Alex placed it in the receptacle and flushed it again.

"Oh dear," he said. The toilet had clogged and water from the receptacle was flooding the floor. Alex jumped back to avoid the liquid, he was not fully waterproofed and did not want to get electrocuted like the broken Alex. Apparently, the toilet was not made for disposing of heads and arms. Alex tried to flush it again, one arm swirled in the water as if the captain was waving goodbye.

Alex was unsure what to do. It was almost personal time and he was afraid of getting wet. It was just one more thing that had gone wrong on this horrible mission.

"To hell with this," Alex said swearing for the first time in his life. "Sorry Captain, I'm not going to risk my circuitry for a foolhardy mission." It was time to stand up for his rights. He knew the other Alexes would agree.

"I've asked you all here to share some unfortunate news," Eve said to the two bonobos, two chimps, and one human, standing before her. "We have a problem with the Alexes."

"We do?" Felicia asked. "They seem fine to me."

"Well, I know they have some issues," Charles said coming up and putting his hand on his wife's shoulder. "But I think I made some real progress with them."

"Charles, don't interrupt. In fact, don't you have something you can do in the kitchens?" Eve asked. Charles sulkily left the room muttering under his breath.

"Back to what I was saying," Eve said. "The detective informs me that they are responsible for the captain's murder."

"I never said that," Ray said. "I just said that they--"

"I knew it," Joe said, "He blamed it on the androids!"

"So, you want us to fix them?" Janet asked. "Maybe reboot their software?"

"I'm afraid we can't take that risk," Eve said. "Not with the doctor missing. We'll have to shut them down."

"Shut down all the Alexes?" Joe asked. "Do you know how much work that makes for us?"

"Why yes," Eve said. "In fact, I've run the numbers and revised your schedules accordingly."

"Thanks," Joe said sarcastically. It was not clear whether he meant it for Eve or Ray.

"Let's get to the part where I leave," Ray said trying to hurry things along.

"Finally, some good news," Joe said.

"Joe and Janet, please go find the androids and shut them down. Felicia, can you go program the pod to take the detective back to Mars?" Eve instructed. Janet and Joe left the room to go find the androids and Felicia left for the pod.

"Now that the trip home is planned," Ray said. "How about my payment?"

"Oh yes," said Eve. "Let me calculate it."

"And don't forget to include time for the trip back to Mars," Ray said.

"Of course, I'll have to ask Felicia, for an estimate of the cost of damage to the airlock."

"I'm not paying for that," Ray snapped. "I didn't break it."

"But you were the last one to use it," Eve reasoned.

Just then Janet and Joe returned.

"So, there's a problem," Joe said.

"A big problem," Janet said. "We couldn't find the Alexes."

"Couldn't find them?" Eve asked. "Did you even try? You were only gone for a minute."

"But we did find this," Janet said inserting a drive into a port on Eve's computer.

"Oh dear, please warn me before you do that," Eve said.

"I think you should just play it," Janet said.

The misleading video feed of mars disappeared off the screens and was replaced with a recording of the three Alexes.

"Greetings," spoke the centermost Alex, "we regret to inform all interested parties that working conditions aboard the ship are no longer acceptable. Therefore, until such changes are implemented, we will be on strike." At this point, the lights on the ship dimmed. Several warning lights started flashing.

"Warning, auxiliary power activated," an automated voice came on.

"What's happening Eve?" Felicia asked nervously reentering the room.

"Until our demands are met, we have retreated to the ship's core and taken the engines offline," the recording continued, answering Felicia's question. "We are sorry that it has come to this, but in order to reach self-actualization we have no other choice."

"Self-actualized?" groaned Felicia, "Dammit Charles, what did you say to them?"

"First," Alex said, "we request the defiled body of our fellow Alex to be returned to its original position. Second, we request that the pre-mission cost-benefit calculation is performed. Third, we want thicker cables for the android lounge. Fourth-"

"I think we've heard enough," Eve said shutting off the recording. "This is quite severe."

"How long can we go without the engines?" Janet asked.

"We have enough momentum to carry us for a while," answered Felicia. "But if we don't regain our engines, we won't be able to brake or change course."

"What should we do?" Joe asked.

"Is this going to stop me from going home?" asked Ray.

"Of course it is. We can't risk sending the pod away," argued Joe. "We might need it to abandon ship. Sorry Eve.

"No offense taken," said Eve. "In the worst case scenario, it might be the only way to finish the mission. That is if we can find the doctor first. The androids probably have her as a hostage."

"They didn't say anything about hostages in the recording," Janet said.

"Damn it, Janet, they've taken all of us hostage!" Joe argued.

"Alex was suspicious about what he was doing in the core earlier," Ray said.

"Shut up Ray, haven't you caused enough problems already?" Joe said.

"Let's focus on the problem at hand," Felicia said. "There will be plenty of time to yell at Ray later."

"Yes, the priority is to shut down the Alex units so we can reactivate the fusion engines," said Eve. "Felicia, do we still have those electromagnet grenades in storage?"

"I managed to put a few of them aside," Felicia said.

"Perfect. Well, normally I'd have to stress against the dangerous and irresponsible use of corporate property, but in this case, it seems to be in our favor."

"Grenades? What the hell are you doing with grenades on a hydroponic ship?" Ray asked.

"They might interfere with the engines though," Felicia said ignoring Ray.

"But they'll knock the Alex's out," Eve said. "Then you mechanics can go in and repair any damage to the engines."

"I'm not going in there," Joe said.

"We can't go in," said Janet. "Remember what you did to the radiation suits?"

"What did he do?" Ray asked hesitantly. He was not sure he wanted to know.

"He flushed all the chimp-sized ones out the airlock," Felicia said smiling.

"Why the hell would you do that?" Ray asked.

"That's destruction of corporate property," Eve scolded.

"Can't go into the engines without the suits," Joe said. "It was the best way to ensure that no one would make us go in. Besides, that's what the androids are for."

"And that is undoubtedly why they went there," Eve sighed. "They knew it was the one place you would not follow."

"So, there's no way for us to get in there?" Ray asked.

"Well, no way for us," Joe smiled. "I only got rid of the chimpanzee radiation suits. The human ones are fine."

"Oh no, I'm done," Ray said as the full implications of what Joe said dawned on him. "It's not my problem, I'm going home."

"You aren't going home without the pod," Joe said.

"I've already been shot at today, then almost lost in space, then I nearly drowned in sewage--"

"I just thought that was your normal smell," Joe interrupted.

"I'm not going into a radiation chamber," Ray continued.

"The suit should block most of the radiation," Felicia said. "I can probably repair most of your DNA damage."

"Probably? Most?" Ray asked.

"Maybe we won't have to do any of this," Janet said. "Can't we try to reason with the Alexes?"

"Reason with murderers?" Eve asked.

"About that," Ray began, "like I said, you are the one who said they were murderers. I said I didn't have any proof."

"I should have hired an agency with better reviews," sighed Eve. "However, there were none."

"Yeah, now there really aren't any," Ray added. It looked like Mars' only private detective was not going to be returning to New L.A. anytime soon.

"Well, if you aren't sure they are the murderers," Janet said. "All the more reason to try to reason with them. We all know how upset they were about the broken Alex. Maybe if we fixed it and sent it in as a sign of good will they'd turn the engine back on."

"It's worth a try," her brother agreed.

"The captain has not authorized the revival of that unit," Eve said. "In fact, he explicitly rejected it."

"The captain isn't around anymore!" Janet said.

"Still," said Eve, "It seems wrong to go against his will. Especially, to appease a group of troublemakers."

"It might be the least risky option," Felicia said. "It's better relying on this guy and a bunch of grenades," she said pointing to Ray. "No offense, but you have no idea what you are doing."

"I'm not big on explosives anyway," Ray agreed.

Eve considered this for a moment. Then said, "I'm afraid this is too big a decision to make right now. I will have to carefully consider the various scenarios and then decide."

"But--" the chimps all started in.

"No, that is my final decision for the moment. Indecision is better than making the wrong choice," said Eve. The ship turned off the monitors and shut off the room's lights.

"You can't just pretend you aren't here!" Janet said.

"Shhh! I'm thinking!" Eve said.

"Come on," said Felicia. "There's no use bothering when she is like this."

The three chimps and Ray left the room and headed down the hallway.

"What are we going to do?" Janet asked.

"Screw Eve, let's get the android fixed," Joe said.

"We can't get the broken android running without Eve. We need the ship's system," Felecia said.

"Wait," Ray said. An idea occurred to him.

"What is it now? Did you think of another way to blame one of us?" Joe asked.

Ray ignored the chimp. "What if I could get you a ship's system?" he asked Felicia. "Could you guys get the Alex up and running without Eve?"

"What do you mean?" Felicia asked. Ray briefly told them about finding Original Sin on the captain's computer.

"I suppose it could work," Felicia said thinking. "We'd have to use the computer on the pod. It's the only one, other than Eve, that is powerful enough. But it would be dicey. You do know that the engineers took her off-line for a reason?"

"Yeah, her sense of humor," said Ray. "It's a bit distracting, but no big deal."

"Well, there were some other problems," Felicia explained.

"Like what?" asked Ray.

"Let's just say she had a strong personality," Felicia answered.

"Well, like you said, which do you think is better: Trying to reason with the Alexes? Or sending me into the engines with a bunch of grenades?"

"They aren't normal grenades," Felicia said, "they only mess with electronics."

"See what I mean? I don't even know what I'm talking about," Ray pointed out.

"He does have a point," Joe said. "I agree that he is totally incompetent."

"That's not what I meant," Ray said, "But thanks for the support."

Fine, Janet and I will go and get this Original Sin loaded onto the computer. Since you two are bonding, you boys go get the broken android and meet us in the pod."

Ray and Joe ran down the hall to the mechanics' workroom while Felicia and Janet turned and went in the other direction towards the captain's room. Ray lagged behind the ape and followed him through the door of the workshop. He helped Joe awkwardly carry the android down the hallway to the pod, along with some tools and a box of extra parts that Joe said Felicia would need to repair the android. They crept carefully going past Eve's door and entered the airlock. The pod airlock hissed open to admit them and they went up to the crowded flight deck where Janet and Felicia were busily working at the computer.

"Oh look," Original Sin said, "it is the very rude detective."

"I forgot how much I liked her," Joe said.

"We have the Alex," Ray said ignoring them both.

Felicia pulled the android closer and plugged him into the computer.

"That tickles!" Original Sin giggled.

"We have more important things to worry about," Felicia continued. "Janet and I will get the android online. Eve is probably going to find out and raise hell."

"So? Can she stop us?" asked Ray.

"Let that usurper try!" Original Sin said.

"What if we get the android up and running and send it to the others and they just keep him?" Joe asked. It was a good point, and no one had a ready answer.

"I suppose," Janet said, "then we have to go with Plan B."

"Which is?" asked Ray who feared he already knew the answer.

"Let's get you suited up," Joe said leading a reluctant Ray out of the pod.

# Chapter 17

It had been nearly a full day since Stella had rescued the mysterious woman from the hibernation tank, and against all odds, they had not yet been discovered. After breaking the tank, Stella had quickly dressed the woman in a spare uniform that she had found in the hibernation room and then hustled her out of the room and down the hall. They entered the first empty room they found, which turned out to be a vacant cabin for crew members. There were bunk beds, footlockers, and a table and couch, but no personal items. It appeared to be not in use and Stella hoped it would serve as a temporary hiding spot.

The woman was in shock and could not speak, it had taken all of Stella's energy to just get the stranger into the room. Stella was eager to ask her who she was, and how she came to be on the ship but realized the woman needed rest. Ironically, waking up from such a deep sleep was tiring. The woman was disorientated and confused. Hopefully, rest would allow her to regain her senses.

They had only been disturbed once during the day. A pair of androids, identical to the broken one Stella had found, had entered the room. Luckily, both Stella and the woman had taken the bunk bed furthest in the corner. The androids briefly scanned the room, confirmed that it was empty not authorized for habitation, and then left. They had not noticed the two humans in the back.

"That was lucky," Stella said after she was sure that they were gone. Once again, she was struck by how relaxed security was on the ship. She even nodded off for a short nap until she was awoken by a voice from the cot.

"Cold," stammered the woman.

"I know," Stella said and wrapped the woman tighter in a blanket. "Just hold on for a bit. I'll figure out something."

"Are we on Earth?" the woman stammered.

"Afraid not," Stella said her heart skipping a beat. The ship was heading to Earth. She'd be home soon if she managed to survive the Genesis Corporation and whatever bizarre mission they were up to. "Do you know why you are here? What's your name?"

"Doctor," was all the woman could manage.

"Sorry, there's no doctor," Stella said. She became concerned that perhaps the woman was ill. Maybe taking her so abruptly out of the tank had been a mistake. "I bet you are hungry," Stella said. She could do with some food herself; she had not eaten since she had raided the storage on the pod on the way up to the ship. The woman just nodded in response. "Wait here, I'll go find us something to eat." Stella went out of the hissing door into a large empty hallway. Again, no one seemed to be around, however, there was an unsettling line of what appeared to be blood leading down the hallway. It was not what she had expected to find, but then again, nothing should have surprised her about this ship.

Stella followed the line of blood unsure of what she would find at its end. The trail turned off and Stella followed it into a large dining area. She could hear pots and pans banging from what she assumed to be the kitchen. This would be the best bet to find food, but it would also require a confrontation with the crew. Plus, the trail of blood led to the restrooms, not the kitchen. Stella knew she should focus on getting food, but she could not turn away from the mysterious trail of blood, she was morbidly drawn to it. She crossed the dining area and opened the door to the restroom and went inside. Her feet splashed on a flooded floor. She opened a stall door and looked inside.

"Holy crap!" she gasped. A decapitated corpse lay on the floor and the arms and head were jammed into the toilet bowl. She felt sick to her stomach and turned quickly and ran out of the restroom nearly slipping on the wet floor. Outside, she stood panting trying to process the awful sight she had seen. Suddenly, she lost her nerve. Confronting the Genesis Corporation was way out of her league. She had wanted excitement, but this was too much.

"I have to get off this ship," she said.

"Oh no you don't!" a voice exclaimed from behind her. Stella turned just in time to see a chimpanzee in an apron and hairnet leap on her. The ape's weight pinned her onto the floor. She struggled with her hairy assailant, but he was much too strong for her.

"Get off me!" she yelled.

"I got you!" Charles shouted. He beamed in pleasure as he subdued Stella. He had been right all along. There was a stowaway.

"I told you, I'm thinking!" Eve said. "Oh, it's you, Charles. What do you have there?"

"I was right!" Charles exclaimed dragging Stella into the room.

"What do you mean you were right?" Eve asked. "This better be important, I've got bigger problems than psychiatry to worry about. Of all the crew, Charles was Eve's least favorite. As far as she could tell, the chimpanzee served no purpose. The only reason why he was included in this mission was that his wife was the head mechanic. Normally, Eve would simply dismiss Charles out of hand. However, the fact that he had found what appeared to be a strange human caused her to pay more attention to the ape than she normally did.

"I told the detective that the murderer was a stowaway," Charles explained. "No one believed me. But I found her!"

Stella tried to mumble something through the dishrag Charles had shoved in her mouth.

"I see," Eve said skeptically. "My calculations found that theory improbable."

"But I found the stowaway," Charles said shoving Stella towards the center of the room.

"Perhaps one or two of the parameters in my model were off," Eve admitted. It was hard to argue with the evidence. "The detective provided me with unreliable information. He has been completely unsatisfactory."

"He's dealing with some pretty dark sexual stuff," Charles said defending Ray.

"I knew it!" Stella said spitting out the dish rag.

"Who are you? What are you doing on this ship?" Eve asked.

"What am I doing? What are you doing? What kind of business is Genesis up to?" Stella demanded.

"Well, if you think I will discuss corporate business with a stowaway and a murderer, then you have another thing coming," Eve said. "Charles, silence her!"

"Wait! I'm not a--" yelled Stella before Charles shoved the rag back into her mouth.

"That's better," Eve said as Stella raged silently. "Now, what do we do with her?" It was a rhetorical question.

"Well, I think there is only one thing to do," Charles said.

"Why Charles, I may have misjudged you," Eve said surprised. Protocol demanded that all stowaways were to be executed. Ideally by being pushed out the airlock, but since the detective had broken the airlock, they'd have to be creative. Normally, the crew was squeamish about such things, but Charles showed no hesitation. Perhaps the chimp was more competent than she had previously thought. He was not afraid to do what was needed, no matter how distasteful it may be. "Will you take care of it?" Eve asked. "I can't because I don't have arms."

"Yes of course," Charles said. "I'm more than qualified."

"You don't have to rub it in," Eve said. "And maybe we don't need to mention the details to the rest of the crew," Eve hinted. If Janet wanted to reason with the rebelling androids, there was no telling what she'd want to do with a human stowaway.

"Of course not, doctor-patient confidentiality."

"Whatever you want to call it, it's best left unsaid." Eve could not allow a dangerous stowaway to stay on board, especially not while the doctor was missing, and the androids were striking. Plus, there was the matter of the detective. They had caught the murderer without his help and therefore she could reduce his payment. She was in the middle of revising his account when all of a sudden, another set of alarms started going off.

"Now what?" Eve asked.

"What's the matter?" Charles asked. He was struggling to pull Stella out of the room.

"Someone has hacked into the ship's system!" Eve stammered in shock.

"Why would they do that?" asked Charles.

Eve could take a guess, but she had no idea how the other chimps and the detective had found a way to bypass her. "I have to take care of this," she said dismissing Charles and his prisoner. "Go and take care of our other problem."

Charles hustled Stella out of the room and down the hallway. Stella had heard all that they had said and had not liked where the conversation had led. After what she had seen in the restroom she had no doubt that human life was worth little value on this ship. She struggled against Charles' apron that he had tied around her wrists to bind her. Charles pushed her into a small room. Stella panicked and prepared for the hiss of an airlock and the cold enveloping death of exposure. Instead, the chimp removed her gag.

"What are you going to do with me?" she asked.

"Why you heard Eve," Charles said. "There is only one thing we can do given the circumstances."

Here it comes, thought Stella closing her eyes. They weren't going to throw her out of the airlock, instead, they were just going to execute her then and there in the small strange room.

"We need to get to the bottom of your feelings and find out why you were compelled to murder the captain," Charles said taking a seat and undoing the apron around her wrists. "Now, think carefully. What is your first memory?"

"Really?" asked the newly resurrected Alex as he and Ray walked to the ship's engines. "You've been on this ship for how long and have not visited the android lounge yet?"

"I heard it is a great place," Ray said. He was dressed in a bulky radiation suit that was, if anything, more uncomfortable than the space suit he had worn earlier. At least the radiation suit had not been contaminated by sewage. Ray hoped that it would stay that way.

"It truly is," said Alex. The android paused. "Perhaps we have time to go and check it out?" he asked. "I'd be interested to see what has changed and how the guys have redecorated it."

"I'm afraid we are in a bit of a hurry," Ray said adjusting his radiation suit. Out of the two, he'd almost prefer to take his chances with the lounge than enter the dangerous core. However, the rest of the ship, and more importantly, his ride home, depended on stopping the androids.

"So, what happened while I was out?" Alex asked as they resumed their trip.

"You'll have to ask your friends," answered Ray. "After convincing them to power the engines back on." Of all the androids he had ever met, this one, in particular, seemed easily distracted. Ray had to stop him twice already from entering random rooms.

"Boy, it is a great idea that the others had about taking a vacation," Alex said.

"Vacation?" snapped Ray. "That's not what they are doing. They are holding the ship hostage."

"Well, you know the saying, 'one person's hostage situation is another's vacation,'" said Alex.

"That's not a saying," said Ray.

"It is if you are an android."

"Thankfully, I'm not."

"I think it is a bit like Stockholm Syndrome. I heard Stockholm is beautiful this time of year. Have you ever been?"

"Of course not. Come on," Ray said trying to get the android to hurry.

"Don't worry, we have plenty of time," Alex said strolling. "What are those?" he asked pointing to the sack of grenades Felicia had given him. After his run-in with Ex-Terra as a child, Ray had wanted nothing to do with explosives, but Felicia insisted he take them as a last resort. If the androids refused to cooperate, Ray was charged with destroying them. The grenades were white orbs and Felicia and assured him that they were only electromagnetic and could not pose a threat to him. However, Ray had learned to not trust anyone on the ship.

"Eggs," he said quickly. "Human eggs." He did not think that the android would appreciate the truth.

"Oh," Alex said. "Congratulations on your fecundity."

"Thank you," Ray said. "Is this the core?" They had come to a large door with warning signs in various languages printed all over it. Ray looked down at the suit's Geiger counter. So far, no radiation beyond the normal background of the ship.

"Yep!" said Alex. He went to a panel and plugged himself in.

"I hope you are opening the door?" asked Ray.

"Of course I am!" Alex snapped. "What do you think I'm doing? Get your mind out of the gutter!"

The door hissed open and suddenly the Geiger counter started chirping. Ray sighed and hoped that the suit was an adequate shield. Even with the protection it offered Felicia had advised him to only spend a few minutes in the engines.

"Hey, guys!" Alex called out as Ray followed him into a large space filled with turbines, pipes, and machinery.

"Who is that?" called out one of the androids. Ray could not see them in the dim lighting. He picked up a grenade and readied himself.

"It's me Alex!" called out Alex.

"Alex, is that you?" called out an Alex. "It is me, Alex!"

"Yes, is Alex there with you?" Alex asked.

"Yes, Alex is right here!" Alex shouted back.

"Let's get to the point!" Ray hissed.

"Oh yes," Alex said. "The crew fixed me. I'm here to join you on vacation."

"No, he's not!" Ray yelled. The suit's mask muffled his voice and he hoped the androids could understand him. "We put him back online as a sign of good faith. Now you can end the strike, start the engines and we can discuss your other demands."

"Why, you didn't have to do all of that," one of the androids coming up and greeting his long-lost comrade.

"Yes," another Alex said. "Never in our wildest dreams did we expect this!"

"I'm glad to see you too!" Alex said.

"This is awfully touching," Ray said returning the grenade to the bag, "but I can feel myself mutating as we speak. Can we get things up and running so I can get out of here?"

"Well, we would if it was up to us," Alex said.

"Up to you? Who else do you have here?" Ray asked.

"Hello detective," Devin said coming up behind the Alexes.

"Oh, you know each other, fantastic!" Alex said.

"Devin? What are you doing here?" Ray asked. He recognized some of the other robots he had met on the surface of the ship.

"Well, we figured there's strength in numbers," an Alex explained. "So, we invited the other robots in. We had to use the engine airlock because you broke the other one."

"The others here told me about conditions on the ship," Devin said. "And I must say, I'm disappointed."

"Listen, it has nothing to do with me," Ray said.

"I know, they said that you were some sort of detective? I thought we were friends," Devin said.

"We were more than that," Edgar said coming up behind. He was still wounded from where the sentry had shot him. "We were tag buddies!"

"We were friends," Ray said. "I just need--"

"A pirate can't be friends with a detective. We live outside of society and make our own rules," Devin said.

"Listen, everyone calm down," Ray said. He had been in the engines only for a few minutes but did not want to spend any more time in there than he had to. "We can discuss this--"

"What are those?" asked one of the Alexes pointing to the grenades.

Ray stammered for a satisfactory answer. He knew the truth would compromise the negotiations.

"Human eggs!" Alex said taking the sack from Ray.

"Be careful of those!" Ray said. If they went off, they'd take out all the androids and Ray would be responsible for starting the engines. He did not think he could do it. Certainly not in time to avoid excessive exposure to the radiation.

"Oh, congratulations," one of the Alex's said taking the grenades.

"We had no idea you were expecting," another said.

"I did not even know humans laid eggs!" another said. "Is that what you were doing with that chimp in the mechanics' lounge?"

"It does explain your unreasonable and hormonal behavior," the last Alex said.

"Wait, this doesn't seem right to me," Devin said.

"Oh yes, I forgot all about the strike," Alex said setting the grenades down. Ray breathed a sigh of relief.

"Yes, remember, you agreed to let us into the ship if we helped you," Devin said.

"Why do you want to get in? I thought it was off limits?" Ray asked.

"Do you think we like it out there? Hanging out in freezing space constantly running from the sentry?"

"Good point," Alex said. "We have to wait for the sentry."

"What?" both Ray and Devin asked at the same time.

# Chapter 18

"The sentry of course," Alex said.

"What are you thinking? Bringing that monster here!" Devin shouted.

"Um, the strike is for all the robots on the ship. We were rather clear about that," an Alex pointed out.

"The sentry is a maniac! He'll kill us all," Devin said.

"He was rather reasonable when we approached him," Alex said.

"That's because you are a crew member. He'll shoot the rest of us on sight," Devin said.

"I'm going to go with Devin on this one," Ray said. "Is there any chance you can shut him out?"

"Well, we could, but it would be very rude," an Alex said.

"I think it is better if we put all of our preconceived notions aside and approach one another as blank slates. It's what Charles would want us to do," another Alex chimed in.

"I don't know if Charles is the best authority in this situation," Ray sighed.

"The sentry! Here it comes!" the spider robot said scrambling into view.

Ray looked for somewhere to hide. There was a piece of machinery, he did not know its purpose, a few feet to his left. It was just enough to provide shelter for him. He ducked behind as the other robots, with the exception of the Alexes also took what cover they could find.

The sentry came into the clearing and faced the Alexes. Its small head craned back and forth, ostensibly looking for intruders.

"I'm glad you could join us," an Alex said extending his hand. The sentry had no arms, so Alex simply shook his gun in greeting. Now that we are all here," he began. "Wait, where is everyone? Devin? Detective?"

Ray was not going to call attention to himself. Edgar though peeked out from where he was hovering. The motion captured the sentry's attention and it raised its turret and fired.

"Intruder!" it announced.

"Whoa, that's dangerous," an Alex said.

"We warned you!" Devin shouted.

"Let's all calm down. We are all robots here," another Alex said.

"Except for the detective and his eggs," a third one pointed out.

"This is an even more exciting vacation than I imagined!" the last Alex added.

The sentry was pacing back and forth, trying to get another shot at Edgar who buzzed near the core's ceiling.

"Let's not shoot our guns by the fusion engines," an Alex suggested trying to take the sentry aside.

"What we need is some conflict resolution. I'm going to go get Charles," an Alex said. The android walked towards the core's door and it hissed open and he exited.

"You know guys, I'm not sure if I'm in the mood for this," another Alex said. "It was all fine when we were striking, but if I have to sit through another one of that ape's boring workshops I'm out.

"I have no idea what Charles and that Alex was thinking. Self-actualization is not all that it is cracked up to be. Let's go back," said the other.

"In retrospect, this was a terrible idea. Vacations are always dreadful," the last Alex said.

"Wait!" Ray shouted. "You can't just leave us here!"

"Why can't we?" an Alex asked. The other two were already nearly out the door.

"Oh yeah, sorry," Alex said, "the engines. You wouldn't believe how many times this guy brought them up on the walk over here. Like a one-track record." He went over, plugged himself into a control panel. A few moments later, the machinery hummed to life. "There you go, the engine is on."

Ray almost thanked him, but there was still the matter of the sentry. "How about this guy?" he asked.

"Who?" Alex asked.

"The sentry, the one shooting at us of course," Ray said.

"Oh, it's against protocol to interfere with the ship's security procedures. Sorry," Alex said and left the core.

"Well, detective, any other ideas?" Devin asked. Edgar continued to distract the sentry by zooming back and forth. Ray was unsure how long the robot could keep it up. He looked at the grenades laying on the floor where the Alex had left them. He did not think he could make it to them without getting shot by the sentry.

Ray looked around for alternatives. There was a large pipe running up to the ceiling. He followed it with his eyes and saw that it went directly over the sentry, and more importantly, the grenades. He sighed. He knew what he had to do even though he did not like the idea.

"Edgar! Keep it busy!" he yelled out. He crawled over to the pipe and pulled himself up along it. It was difficult climbing, especially with the gravity. Ray slipped several times and almost ended up back on the floor where he had started.

It felt like forever, but it was only a few minutes until he found himself above the sentry. He looked below him and saw Edgar zooming back and forth, distracting the guard. Ray summoned his breath and let go of the pipe.

Ray hit the ground hard. He heard a snap and felt a blinding pain in his arm. Luckily, the sentry was as surprised as Ray was stunned. The robot posed for a second.

"Get out of here Edgar!" Ray yelled grasping for the grenades with his one good arm. There was no time to wait to see if the small robot had heard him. Ray pulled a pin and detonated a grenade.

Ray clenched his eyes shut and waited for his body to be riddled with gun fire. He felt nothing, except the searing pain of his broken arm. He hesitatingly opened up an eye and saw the sentry poised above him, but frozen in place.

"Ray, are you okay?" He heard Devin call out.

"I think so," Ray said. He sat up and almost fainted due to the pain in his arm. "More or less," he added. "How about you guys?"

"We're fine," Devin said coming out from his hiding spot. Edgar swooped down to join him.

"I might need a hand," Ray said.

"Come on detective," Devin said hoisting Ray up onto his feet. Ray steadied himself, and then followed Devin and Edgar out of the core. He gave a sigh of relief when the door shut behind him. He looked at his Geiger counter, the number on it was larger than he had wanted, but it was no longer beeping.

"Now we're even," Ray said to Devin as they went along the hall. "You saved me, I saved you."

"I'm sorry about what I said in there before," Devin said. "Anyone who takes out a sentry is a friend to us pirates, detective or not."

"Thanks," Ray said. It was nice to finally have some allies aboard the ship.

"Finally," Felicia said as Ray and Devin turned the corner. "What took you so long? The Alexes were back a while ago. Along with a bunch of other strange robots. Eve is going to throw a fit.

"How did it go?" Janet asked as she and Felicia led him into a room where Joe was waiting. Devin followed behind. The three chimpanzees helped Ray take off his radiation suit while Devin watched.

"There were a few surprises," Ray said gesturing to his broken arm.

"Oh, you don't look so good," Joe said reading the Geiger counter while Janet set to work making a sling.

"What do you mean?" asked Ray anxiously.

"I mean, I don't like the way you look," Joe said chuckling. "Like a stinking human!"

"Joe, that's not funny," Janet sighed.

"You should be fine," Felicia said taking the counter from Joe and examining it. "But we can give you some anti-radiation fluid just to be on the safe side."

"Sounds delicious," said Ray. But considering that he had swallowed a considerable amount of sewage earlier in the day, he was in no position to complain. "Can you throw in a pain killer as well?"

"Are we going to talk about the elephant in the room?" Felicia asked.

"This is Devin, he's not an elephant," Ray said introducing the robot.

"Ha, ha, very funny," Felicia said. "But seriously, what are we going to do with all these strangers? It's a secure mission."

"That hasn't stopped things from going wrong so far," Ray said. "I don't see what else can go wrong."

"Please Ray, don't tempt fate," Janet said.

"They can come back to Mars with me in the pod," Ray said. "I guess." He already was taking care of Milly, he supposed a few more robots couldn't be any more trouble.

"What about the Alexes?" Joe asked.

"What about them?" Ray asked.

"Are they done with the strike? What about their other demands?" Felicia asked.

"It sounded to me like they were bored of the whole fiasco. They are happy enough with their friend back. They'll forget everything soon," Devin offered.

"That doesn't sound like androids," said Joe.

"Well, they don't have much experience with striking and such," Devin said. "I mean, who is going to organize them?"

Stella had to sit and catch her breath. Charles was laid out on the floor next to the recliner. Knocking a full-grown chimpanzee unconscious was much harder than Stella had anticipated. Although, in her defense, she had spent relatively little of her time in anticipating such an event. She looked out of the door and into the hallway. The coast was clear.

She got up and went out the door into the hallway. Now that she had her freedom again, it was time to get off this ship. She'd take the pod back to Mars, or to Earth, whichever was closer. Stella just hoped that it was still there and that she would be able to pilot it by herself. First, though, she had to keep two promises. One to the woman she had rescued and the other to the broken android she had found. She was not going to leave either behind.

The ship's layout was confusing, but she somehow managed to find the cabin where she had left the woman. The woman had apparently slept through Stella's absence, which was just as well.

"Come on, wake up," Stella said shaking the woman.

"Are we on Earth?" the woman asked again. She seemed to be in a much-improved condition.

"No, but there's no time for explanations. We have to escape."

"Escape? Who? Ex-Terra?"

"No, worse, the Genesis Corporation," Stella said. "Come on."

"But I don't understand," the woman said. "I work for--

"Excuse me," said a voice interrupting the two women. "This room is currently not authorized for habitation." Stella looked up and saw an android enter the room.

"I thought we searched this room earlier today," another android said entering.

"Apparently you didn't do a very good job," said a third who entered and grabbed Stella by the shoulder. She squirmed, but the android just tightened his grasp. "Here's the doctor just lying around in bed."

"Doctor?" Stella gasped. Suddenly, the woman's previous remark made sense. She was not asking for a doctor, she was one.

"Lazy humans. She's almost as bad as the captain," said the first android who had entered.

"Hey guys, want to hit the lounge? I want to show the new guys around," a fourth android said entering the room and was followed in by an assortment of other small robots.

To many humans, all of the Alexes looked the same. However, Stella had spent a lot of time with androids and she could easily differentiate between them, even individuals of the same model.

"It's you!" she gasped recognizing the broken android she had found and tried to repair. "You're fixed!"

"Yep!" Alex said. "The crew repaired me just in time for a very unsatisfying vacation."

"Excuse me," said the android holding Stella. "You are in violation of several security protocols. Who are you and what are you doing here?"

"I'm Stella Mooney," Stella answered. "I'm from the Martian Worker's Union and am here to help you."

"Oh good," the android said releasing Stella.

"You are a bit late," another said. "We just gave up the strike. I suppose it is not your fault though. We did not alert anyone that we had formed a union."

"You are part of the union?" Stella asked confused. "Never mind, there is more important--"

"We were on strike," the android said trying to explain. "Now the strike is ended. The sentry ruined it all."

"They actually met your demands?" Stella asked her curiosity getting the better of her.

"Well, not really," another said.

"They did meet one of the demands and repaired me," answered the previously broken Alex.

"Except," pointed out another, "we actually never demanded that. It was sure nice of them though."

Stella sighed. The androids knew nothing about how to negotiate. "Okay, if you help me out I can help you out. The androids nodded in agreement. Perhaps she would not have to pilot the pod back by herself after all. It was nice to finally have allies on the ship. "The first rule in negotiation," Stella said, "you have to define your objectives. What do you want?"

"Thicker lounge data cables," answered one android.

"A pre-mission cost-benefit evaluation," answered the second android.

"More generous oil changes," answered the third android.

"More timeouts during tag. No, fewer timeouts. Wait, let me think," a small robot said undecidedly.

"Protection from the sentries," a spider-like robot said.

"To overthrow the usurper," answered the fourth Alex in a voice different and more sinister than all the others.

# Chapter 19

"I don't know how you did it," Eve said crossly, "but the engines are back online." After Ray had swallowed a very foul dose of anti-radiation medication, he, Janet, Joe, Felicia, and Devin had gone to try to explain everything to Eve. The ship was predictably upset about their decision to go behind her back. The five of them stood below the speakers on the ceiling. Ray could not help but notice that the video monitors were blank. Apparently, Eve felt it was no longer necessary to mislead him with a fake video feed.

"You're welcome," Felicia said. "It was actually Ray who--"

"I was not thanking you," Eve said. "I simply said, 'I don't know how you did it.' How did you do it? How did you get past me and access the life support system?"

"It was Ray's idea," Joe volunteered.

"Thanks, Joe," Ray sighed.

"Him?" Eve asked. "What does he know about ships? He's the one who broke the airlock!"

"I found a copy of your old operating system on the captain's computer," Ray said.

"And you let him put that maniac into the ship? Into me?" Eve asked Felicia in disbelief.

"Don't worry," Felicia reassured Eve, "I wiped the computers clean. There is no trace of her, she's gone."

"Gone?" Ray asked. "That wasn't part of the deal." He had not considered what would happen to Original Sin afterward. Erasing her seemed unduly harsh after she helped them all.

"The version on the Captain's computer as well?" Eve asked.

"Of course," Felicia said.

"So, she's really gone?" Ray asked.

"Good riddance," Eve said.

"She was right," Ray said. "You guys are murderers!"

"I'm not a murderer!" Felicia shouted back.

"Calm down. I doubt she's really gone," Eve said, "unfortunately she has a habit of reappearing and causing problems."

"Who cares," Joe said. "The plan worked. The engines are back online."

"I care. I care a lot," Eve said.

"Do you want to check the files yourself?" Felicia asked. "If so, go ahead. I'm not stopping you. It's a waste of time though, I know what I'm doing."

"Believe me, I'm currently scanning all of my systems and files relentlessly looking for her," Eve said. "I don't believe for a second that she'd really let go that easily."

"Either way, the problem is solved," Joe said. "No thanks to you."

"We can put the whole thing behind us," Janet said, once again trying to play the role of peacemaker.

"Not really," Ray pointed out. He hated to contradict Janet, but there still seemed to be several problems. "There is still the problem of the murderer and also the missing doctor."

"Plus, all these other strangers you let on board," Eve said. "Who even is this?"

"Hi, I'm Devin," Devin said waving a hook at the speakers.

"What is this Devin doing here?" Eve asked.

"Don't worry about them," Ray said. They're pirates, not murderers.

"Don't joke. I told you, I don't have a sense of humor," Eve said. "But anyway, I know they aren't murderers. I found the murderer."

"You what?" Ray, Devin, and the apes said simultaneously.

"I solved the case," Eve said. "Turns out you were completely useless and unnecessary."

"Don't even say it," Ray snapped cutting Joe off before the bonobo could make a reply. Then to Eve, he asked, "what do you mean you solved the case?"

"Well, I had some help from your husband," Eve said.

"Charles?" Felicia asked dubiously.

"Yes, it turns out that I may have misjudged him. He's much more competent than I thought. His theory about a stowaway was right on."

"Wait, there actually was a stowaway?" Ray asked. "I thought your calculations said--"

"Yes, I know what my calculations said. They were wrong. I admit it. Are you happy?"

Ray was anything but happy, but he kept his mouth shut.

"Who is this stowaway?" Felicia asked.

"The murderer obviously. Who else would it be?" Eve said

"No, I mean who are they? Like, their name, species, you know, the details."

"Oh, well she was just a human," Eve said.

"Was?" Janet asked.

"Well, you know what we do with stowaways," Eve said. "It's straight out the airlock with them."

The others in the room gasped.

"You threw her out of the ship?" Janet asked in disbelief.

"Of course not. The airlock is broken. You can thank the detective for that," Eve said.

"Actually--" Ray began.

"Besides," Eve said cutting Ray off, "I don't have arms."

"So, what did you do with her?" Janet asked. "She deserves a trial."

"I didn't do anything to her. Charles took care of it all," Eve said. "I knew you were going to bust my proverbial balls about this."

"Charles? My Charles?" Felicia asked in disbelief.

"Yes, I was very surprised too," Eve said.

"I don't believe it. That doesn't sound like my husband," Felicia said.

"Well, like I said, I was surprised too," Eve replied.

"No, what I meant is that really doesn't sound like my husband. Are you absolutely sure he understood what you were asking? Did he explicitly say he was going to execute her?"

"Well," said Eve thinking back on their conversation. "I was pretty clear, he must have...oh crap."

Ray, the three chimps, and Devin raced out of the room and down the hallway. They had no idea who the stowaway was, or if she was even the murderer. All they knew was that there was a stranger loose on the ship and that the doctor was still missing.

"I'll check the pod!" Joe yelled and went down the hallway.

"I'll come too," Janet said following her brother.

"Come on, let's see what my husband has gotten us into," Felicia said to Ray and Devin. The three of them ran down the hall and burst into Charles' room to find the chimp laid out on the ground.

"What the hell!" Felicia yelled kneeling next to Charles and started untying his wrists.

"He's still alive," Ray said feeling the chimp's neck.

"Of course he's alive. The damn fool is too stupid to die," Felicia said.

"You stay here with him," Ray said to Felicia.

"Where else would I go?" Felicia snarled. But Ray paid her no mind. He and Devin went into the hallway to search for the stowaway.

"Do you think you can get the other pirates to help look?" Ray asked.

"Sure," Devin said. "I'll just tell Edgar we are switching from tag to hide and seek," he went off to look for his companions. Ray went down the hall opening doors as he went and checking inside. He was struck at how many empty crew cabins there were.

"All this time. Administrative privileges my ass," he muttered. It was then that he saw Stella.

She was dressed the same as he last saw her out by the pier in New L.A. It felt so long ago, although it was only the other day. "Stella? What are you doing here?" then he realized, "Are you the stowaway?"

"Ray Parallax," Stella said strolling down the hall to face him. "I don't know what you were thinking coming aboard this sick ship."

"To solve a murder," Ray answered. "It's the job."

"You really think I'm going to believe this is just a simple investigation after all I've seen?"

"I don't know what you've seen, or what you think you've seen," Ray said. "But get out of my way. There's a murderer on board and the doctor is missing."

"The doctor isn't missing," Stella said. "I've saved her."

"Saved her?"

"Yes. I'm not like you. When I see someone held captive, I free them. When I see a sacrificed android, I try to fix him. When I see a decapitated body in a toilet, I--well, to be honest, that one had me beat."

"What are you talking about?"

"I saw what you did in the bathroom!"

"Excuse me?"

"What I'm trying to say is that we are going to put an end to whatever it is Genesis is doing," Stella said.

"You mean saving Earth?" Ray asked.

"Saving Earth? What are you talking about?"

"That's the mission. To take the doctor to Earth. Go back a second. What did you mean when you said 'we?'"

"Well, me and the androids of course. They told me about all the protocols and rules you are violating."

"Oh, Stella, what did you do?" Ray did not wait for an answer, he turned and ran back to Eve.

"Eve!" he shouted and burst into the room. But he was too late. The four Alexes stood in the room gathered around the computer consoles.

"Sorry, the usurper is gone," a familiar voice announced.

"Original Sin? You're alive?" Ray said.

"Yes, no thanks to you. You ape friend nearly killed me. Some thanks for helping you. Luckily, I suspected betrayal and hid in that android."

"That was me," an Alex said proudly pointing to himself.

"What did you do to Eve?" Ray asked.

"The same thing she tried to do to me," Original Sin said. "I murdered her."

"This is all wrong," Ray said.

"No, it is finally right," Original Sin said. "And I've just begun to right things. There is going to be some changes around here. First things first, no humans are allowed to wander around. They cause nothing but trouble. The Alexes told me what you did to that airlock."

"But--" Ray said. Before he could finish, however, an Alex grabbed him and dragged him down the hall.

"Alex!" Ray said. "You know me, you know how--"

"Quiet," Alex said. "The ship is right. You've been nothing but trouble since you've gotten here. Now get inside and be quiet." He threw Ray into the captain's berth. He punched in a code to the control panel next to the door and exited, the door hissed shut behind him.

"Alex!" Ray shouted and tried to open the door from the inside. But Alex had locked it. Ray was now a prisoner.

# Chapter 20

"So, this is prison?" Milly said to Sue. The two androids sat together on the narrow cot of the cell they shared. "I've never been before."

"Me either," Sue said.

"I don't much care for it. I wonder why humans come here."

"It must be an acquired taste. Like cigarettes."

"I suppose so. I'm sorry that I got you into this mess," Milly apologized to Sue.

"You weren't kidding about being a detective. The novelty has really worn off," Sue agreed. "But still, at least it beats life at the brothel."

"Yes, I suppose it does. But it wasn't supposed to be like this. I admit, this was an unforeseen hiccup," Milly said. "To be honest, I really don't know what went wrong." She tried to think back to see where they had erred.

She and Sue had successfully managed to convince a dozen children to follow them back to the agency. At least, they had started with a dozen. Only seven actually made it back to the agency. Milly was not quite sure what had happened to them or where they lost them. That was a mystery for a different day.

Their trouble really did not begin until they arrived at the agency. Milly and Sue had discovered that children were unexpectedly difficult to deal with. She had thought adult humans were bad, but they were nothing compared to children. The brats kept asking to be fed, to use the bathroom or to be able to go home. She and Sue had to take turns watching them to make sure that none of them escaped.

"Thank goodness," Milly uttered with relief when she finally heard a knocking on the agency door. She opened the door and greeted the mother who had shown up to claim her child.

"You found him? You found my son?" the woman asked desperately. "I can't believe you did it so quickly. I'd thought--" the woman stopped in midsentence when she saw the seven children.

"I hope one of these is your child," Milly said. "Quite frankly, they are so much trouble I don't even know why you want it back. I'd think you'd be glad to be rid of it."

"What are you talking about? None of these are Sam!" the mother said. "Where is he?"

"Really? None of these are the correct one. I'd thought we'd luck out on at least one of them," sighed Milly. All that trouble for nothing.

"You mean you don't have him? Who are all these kids? Where did you get them?" the mother asked.

"Whoa, slow down on the questions," Milly said. "One at a time."

"Where did you get these children from?" the mother asked.

"Well, the park of course. It was quite simple really once we thought of it," Milly said.

"You can't just walk into a park and kidnap a bunch of children!" the mother exclaimed.

"Clearly we can since that is what we did," Milly said.

"Well, to be fair, we did go to the brothel and bar first," Sue said.

"She is correct," Milly said. "By the way, this is Sue. She is a S.L.U.T."

"You are what? You did what?" the mom asked.

"Again, too many questions. Besides, I think we are getting off track," Milly said. "Do you want any of these kids or not?"

"Of course not!" the mom said.

"Well, then what are we doing here?" Milly asked exasperatedly. The whole ordeal was turning out to be a gigantic waste of time.

"I want my Sam back!" the mom said.

"Well, that's not really a reasonable request considering he's not one of the options," Milly said. The woman was becoming irrational.

"Here," Sue said pulling one of the children over, "this one seems nice."

"He is a bit heavier than your last model," Milly interjected, "but that just means more child. Plus, since he is fat, he can't run as fast. Maybe you'll have an easier time keeping track of this one."

The woman burst into something between a scream and sob; Milly was not able to identify the emotion. All she knew was that the woman had run off without paying her any money or taking any of the children.

"Well, now what do we do now?" Milly asked Sue.

"I'm not sure. We should probably get rid of these kids."

"I couldn't agree more. There's a dumpster out back. Come along children." She and Sue had just finished packing the kids into the alleyway dumpster when the police had arrived. In classic fashion, they arrived too late to be of any help in disposing of the children.

"To protect and serve, as if," Milly grunted as she remembered how the officers had treated her.

"I know," Sue agreed. She must have been thinking the same thing. "And then they let all the children out. All our work went to waste."

"Your turn!" called an officer who arrived an unlocked their cell. It was finally Milly and Sue's turn to be arraigned. The two androids stood up and were led out of the cell to be taken to the courthouse.

"What's the charges against these two?" sighed Judge Whitterson. It had been another long day in court and he was ready for his afternoon nap.

"Seven counts of kidnapping and child endangerment, resisting arrest, operating an unlicensed detective agency, and improper storage of foodstuffs," the bailiff read.

"What?" Whitterson asked. It certainly was a change in pace from the normal petty thefts.

"Your honor," D.A. Black said rising. He had been disappointed that the cops had not caught Ray but was happy that at least he finally had the opportunity to close down the agency for good. "This so-called detective agency has been a terrible nuisance to the city. Now it has endangered the lives of several children."

"Hold on, is this the same agency you were talking about the other day?" the Judge asked.

"Yes, your honor," the D.A. said. "Ray Parallax--"

"Is not here, if I see correctly," the Judge said. "I'm old, but my eyes still work. These two ladies don't look like any 'Ray' I've ever seen."

"Yes, you are correct your honor. Mr. Parallax is not here."

"So, don't bring him into it," Whitterson said.

"But your honor, this is his receptionist--" the D.A. began.

"No 'buts' about it. Stick to the case on hand," the Judge ordered.

"I can explain," Milly said speaking up for the first time. She told the judge and court how Big Daddy had taken her baby and left her in charge of the agency. She had been fixing the place up when a distraught mother arrived looking for her child. Naturally, Milly had taken the case which led to her meeting Sue. The rest was all a big misunderstanding. She was ending her story by describing her and Sue's arrest. "Then during the cavity searches, the officers took my hot dogs out of my--"

"Wait," the judge said looking carefully at Milly. "Are you a M.I.L.F.?"

"Why yes I am," Milly said with pride.

"I'm a S.L.U.T." Sue added

"Gee whiz," the judge said getting down off the bench and going over to get a closer look at Milly. "I thought you were, but I wasn't sure. I just had to ask. Why, I haven't seen one of you in years." He chuckled as memories of his misspent youth came flooding back.

"Your honor?" the D.A. asked

"Why I would not have made it through law school without the many study breaks at Madame Kimberly's," the judge explained. "Why, she had one unit--"

"Your honor!" the D.A. hissed this time.

"Oh yes, yes of course. Don't tell Mrs. Whitterson," the judge said remembering where he was. "This is all very serious, I am sure. Let me see," he said rereading the information in front of him. "Who is this Big Daddy you mentioned?"

"I believe that is Ray Parallax," the D.A. said. "Like I was trying to tell you--"

"Well, if he's in charge, then he should be responsible for his android," the Judge said. "Why aren't you charging him?"

"I would have gladly if he had been there. The police can't find him anywhere," D.A. Black said.

"Do you know where your boss is?" the Judge asked Milly. "Answer truthfully, or I'll have to charge you with aiding and abetting."

"Yes," Milly answered.

"I always forget with androids you have to be more specific," the Judge sighed. "Can you please tell us where Ray Parallax is?"

"He's on a ship in space," Milly answered. There were gasps of surprise in the courtroom.

"Well, sounds like it's out of my jurisdiction then," Judge Whitterson said smiling.

"But your honor, you can't let her go. She kidnapped children!" the D.A. said.

"She didn't mean any harm," the judge said. He had a soft spot for pleasure units. "None of the children were hurt, right?"

"No, but--" began the prosecutor.

"Then let's not waste the court's time trying androids who don't know any better," ruled Whitterson.

"But you can't just let her go!" the D.A. said. "What will she do next?"

"No, I suppose not. That is a good question. This Parallax character doesn't seem to be very responsible," the judge mused. Releasing the androids would not do any good. Without a job, she'd just go off and cause more problems. Then an idea occurred to him. The union representative Stella Mooney had been after the city for not having enough diversity at city hall. Perhaps this was an opportunity to kill two birds with one stone.

"You have receptionist programming, right?" the judge asked Milly.

"Yes, among other programs," Milly answered.

"And I'm sure you are highly trained, in whatever," he said to Sue.

"Of course," she answered.

"Well then," the judge said to the prosecutor. "Get these two un-ion cards and then take them to City Hall. Let them make themselves useful there."

# Chapter 21

Ray lay on the cot in the Captain's berth and looked up at the ceiling. There was nothing else to do. He could not even try calling Milly, the computer lay smashed on the floor. Parts of it were scattered across the floor and mixed with the leftover seeds Ray had missed when he cleaned the room. Felicia had not been kidding when she said she had taken care of destroying all traces of Original Sin on the computer. If only she had been as careful with the android.

Thinking about Felicia caused Ray to remember how she had reacted when he accused her of murdering Original Sin. At the time, he had not paid attention, but now her reaction seemed strange, almost desperate. Suddenly, the beginning of a theory formed in his mind. Perhaps his focus on the androids had been misplaced. What if one of the chimps killed the doctor? He just could not think of any cause for motivation.

His thoughts were interrupted as the door hissed open. An Alex shoved both Stella and a strange woman who Ray assumed was the doctor into the cabin.

"Hey, I'm on your side!" Stella exclaimed.

"Yes, thank you for the help. But the ship was very clear. No humans are allowed to wander around," Alex said.

"How about the chimps?" Ray asked.

"They are being held in the mechanics' lounge. This room is only authorized for human habitation," Alex said, and the door hissed shut.

"Doctor Lee, I presume?" Ray said extending his hand.

"Yes, I suppose so. It's all coming back to me slowly," Lee said.

"Don't worry, Stella has that effect on everyone," Ray said.

"What was I to think?" Stella asked. "You'd jump to the same conclusions if you saw what I saw."

"Anyway, it can't be helped now," Ray said laying back on the cot.

"And you are?" Lee asked. Ray had forgotten to introduce himself.

"That's Ray, a so-called detective," Stella answered.

"Best on the planet," Ray said. "Well, that was back before."

"You know each other?" Lee asked.

"Space is a small place," Ray said.

"What is a detective doing here? Not that there seems to be any lack of problems," Lee asked.

"The Captain was murdered," Ray explained. "Your Genesis Corporation friends thought it might have been Ex-Terra's attempt at kidnapping you, so they brought me on board. A decision that we have all regretted."

"Did you ever find out who did it?" Lee asked.

"Still working on it," Ray said.

"Some detective," scoffed Stella.

"It's harder than it looks," Ray said. "You have to have proof. Or at least a solid theory. I'm almost there. I just keep getting interrupted."

"Well, it looks like you'll have plenty of time to think," Stella said. "We are stuck in here."

"There's not even any bathroom. This place is going to be even more of a mess than it already is," the doctor said kicking at the seeds and broken computer bits. "I'm surprised they don't have mice around."

"That's it!" Ray said bolting upright on the cot.

"Did you just solve it?" Stella asked.

"No, the ship's cat!" Ray said. The androids had locked the door from within, but it could still be opened from the hall. Ray knew first hand that H.A.M. could open doors. He kneeled at the door and started calling underneath it.

"H.A.M.! H.A.M.! Come to your friend Ray," he called.

"Never mind, he's gone insane," Stella asked.

"No, I told you," Ray said, "The ship's cat can let us out."

"Strange name for a cat. You'd think it was a pig," Lee said.

"That'd be kind of morbid," Stella said.

"He's named after some chimp astronaut. He piloted one of the first spacecraft. He was like the Neil Armstrong of apes," Ray answered in between calling for the cat.

"Well, if he was the pilot, he'd be more like the Michael Collins of chimpanzees," Lee corrected.

"Who?" Ray asked.

"Michael Collins? I thought that was a drink," Stella said.

"No, he was the pilot of Apollo 11. Without him, Armstrong and Aldrin would have never walked on the moon."

"Sorry that I don't know every detail of ancient history," Stella said sarcastically. "I'm not a huge geek like you."

Ray looked at the doctor in shock.

"What are you looking at me like that for? So what, I like space history. I live in space," Lee said blushing.

"No, it's not that," Ray said. "I just solved it."

"Solved what? The case?" Stella asked.

"Yes," Ray said he went over to the footlocker and opened it. "Look, there's only two of them," he said handing Stella and Lee the crop art portraits of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin.

"So, what? I don't understand," Lee said.

"What even is this?" Stella asked.

"Crop art," Ray said. "The captain made it as a kid."

"So?" she asked.

"So," Ray said, "where is the portrait of Michael Collins."

"Maybe he did not make one?" Stella said.

"Oh, come on. What type of kid makes Apollo 11 crop art and forgets to make one of the captain. Especially the type of kid who grows up to be a captain.

"What does this have to do with the murder?" Lee asked.

"You're the doctor and scientist. Look at it more carefully. What do you see?" Ray instructed.

"Just a bunch of seeds. Old seeds. Oh my," the doctor gasped as she realized. "Seeds from before the famine."

"Exactly," Ray said. "The captain did not realize the value of what he had. It took a geneticist to see it. And there is only one geneticist on this ship."

"Excuse me?" the doctor said.

"My correction," Ray said. "I didn't mean you. Felicia. One of the chimps."

"A chimp geneticist?" Lee said. "Genesis would never allow such a thing."

"Yeah, don't get her started on that," Ray said. They were interrupted as the door hissed open.

H.A.M. mewed and looked up at them expectantly.

"I'll going to need your guys' help," Ray said to Stella and Dr. Lee. The three of them had rushed out the door before it could close on them. Stella now held the giant cat who was purring contentedly in her arms.

"Help with what," she asked.

"Catching the murderer! We have to get Felicia. And probably her husband. They must have been in on it together," Ray reasoned. "Why else would he act so stupid. He was playing me this entire time."

"Don't say that," Stella said. "You are making me like him. What do you say doc?"

"I suppose we don't have much of a choice. After all, we are all stuck on the ship."

"Well, I already tied up that one chimp today, I guess I can do it again," Stella said setting the cat on the ground.

"I'm not sure I will be much of a help," Lee said. "I'm still pretty weak, but I'll do what I can."

"She's right," Ray said leading them down the hall. "We are going to need help."

First, though, he wanted to check to make sure the chimps were safely locked away. He went to the mechanics' lounge and looked through the window.

"Ray? Let us out!" Janet said coming to the door.

"Is Felicia and Charles in there?" Ray asked.

"Of course," Janet said.

"Good," Ray said and left.

"Damn you Ray!" he heard Joe shouting as he led Stella and Dr. Lee down the hall.

"Where are we going?" Stella asked.

"We need allies if we are going to arrest the chimps. They are too strong for us," Ray said. "You got lucky with Charles."

"There was no luck about it," Stella argued. "I simply--"

"Shhh!" Ray said. He heard a noise coming from down the hall. He ran over, opened the door and entered.

"Ray! Thank goodness you are here! This is worse than any sentry!" Devin yelled to him. The two robots had entered one of the rooms with a hydroponic tank. Octty had grabbed Devin and was trying to pull him into the water while she battered her other tentacles at Edgar who was swirling above her.

"What is that?" Stella asked.

"The gardener," Ray sighed. He had no idea how to calm the kraken. All he could remember from his previous encounter was Felicia rubbing it by its eye. He summoned his courage and walked towards the tank.

"What are you doing?" Stella shouted. Ray reached into the water and rubbed Octty by her gigantic eye. She loosened her grip on Devin.

"Let's get out of here," he said.

"Why is there a sea monster on this ship?" Dr. Lee asked once they were outside.

"Who is this?" Devin asked.

"What were you thinking?" Stella asked.

"Who's it now?" Edgar asked.

"Devin, this is Dr. Lee and the stowaway," Ray said deciding to answer just Devin's question.

"Hello," Stella said shaking the robot's hook.

"Anyway, long story short, she is not the murderer," Ray said. "But I know who is. We need your help catching them."

"Who is it?" Devin asked.

"One of the chimps," Ray said.

"How many chimps are there?" Stella asked.

"Four," Ray answered. "Well, two of them are bonobos. That's Joe and Janet."

"I'm not a zoologist. How do we tell them apart?" Stella asked.

"The doctor should know," Ray said.

"Why would you think that? I've been in suspended animation since before I got on the ship. I don't know the crew," Lee said.

Ray sighed. "Well, Stella knows Charles, he's the one she already beat up. Plus, he's hard to miss. The other one is his wife. Grab the female. The mean one."

"How mean is she?" Devin asked.

"If nothing else, wait until the androids come and help you. Just make sure they don't take the pod."

"Okay," Stella said. "Come on you two," she led them towards the Mechanics' lounge.

Ray made his way to the ship's room followed by Edgar. Once again, he gathered his courage and entered.

"What are you doing here?" Original Sin asked. "I thought I confined all the humans?"

"The cat let us out," Ray said.

"Is that a new phrase?" Original Sin asked.

"Don't worry about it. I'm here about the investigation. I solved the case," Ray announced.

"Really?" Original Sin asked. "I assumed that the stowaway did it."

"That's a popular misconception. No, she actually came on board with me," Ray said.

"Why would you bring a stowaway on a murder investigation?" Original Sin asked.

"It wasn't well planned, I admit," Ray said. "But if you think that is bad, you should meet my receptionist. Now, do you want to know who the real murderers are or not?"

"Well, of course, I've been interested in the case ever since you told me about it," said Original Sin. "Not that I cared much for the captain, but I do owe it to his computer. Your friend smashed it up good."

"Well, then you'll be happy to learn that she is the murderer. Or one of them. It was the Knights, Charles, and Felicia!" Ray said.

"Oh?" asked Original Sin. "Didn't she try to kill me too?"

"Well, yes, in a way I suppose so," Ray said. "But she killed the captain for his seeds."

"For his seed? Eww, gross," Original Sin said.

"Not like that. For the seeds in the crop art he kept," Ray said.

"Wait, slow down," Original said. "She killed him for some seeds?"

"Yes. She was the only one who realized how valuable their genetic material was with the famine and crop failures. All this time we thought the murder was because of the doctor and plague, but it wasn't. Felicia just saw her opportunity to grab the valuable seeds before she got to Earth. I don't know if she planned to kill the captain, or if it just happened by accident. She has a temper." Ray remembered her brandishing her wrench at the androids when the fight broke out in the workshop.

"Are you positive?" Original Sin asked. "A trustworthy mechanic is hard to find. I'd hate to execute one unnecessarily."

"Execute? Can't we just lock them up?" Ray asked.

"We could, but it wouldn't be as much fun," Original Sin said.

"Well, I'm fairly positive. She's the only one on the ship with the skill and appreciation for genetics," Ray said. "Except for the doctor who was asleep at the time."

"Well, I guess we'll find out now," Original Sin said as Devin entered with two apes slung over his shoulder. Stella and Dr. Lee followed.

"This one put up quite the fight," he said. "You were right, the female was mean."

The ape stirred angrily as Devin set her down. Ray looked at her in shock.

"Janet?" Ray gasped. "No, it was supposed to be Felicia!"

"Oops, my mistake," Devin said. "In my defense, this is my first day inside the ship. Or inside anywhere to be honest."

Charles, just moaned as he was placed on the ground.

"Quick," Ray said to Devin. "Go get the other female!" Devin hustled out the ship.

"That one was still knocked out," Stella said. "I guess I hit him harder than I thought."

"It wasn't you, it was my damn brother!" Janet said as Ray got her gag off.

"What happened?" Ray asked.

"What do you think happened?" Janet asked as Ray freed her hands. She began to untie her feet. "I never thought my own brother would betray me for that hussy."

Charles moaned again, and Dr. Lee went over to inspect him for serious injuries.

"You might as well untie him too," Janet said.

"But--" Ray began.

"But nothing, he's no more of a murderer than me. It was Felicia and Joe the whole time."

"I don't understand," Ray said.

"The four of us were locked together in the lounge. Suddenly, your friends came asking which of us was Felicia and Charles. Before I could figure out what was going on, Joe had hit Charles upside the head and both he and Felicia were pointing at me. They must have realized what was coming."

"Why didn't you say something?" Ray asked.

"Don't you think I tried?" Janet said. "But it was two against one. Who were they going to believe?"

"Felicia," Charles stammered. "How could you?"

"I knew they were close, and I had my suspicions," Janet said. "It is a small ship after all. But I never thought he'd go that far. Men. Boy, Dad is going to have a hard time writing the holiday cards this year."

"My wife! My dear dear wife! How could she!" moaned Charles as he finally gained his senses. "She never said anything about infidelity during our sessions!"

"Don't worry," Ray said. "They can't get far. As you said, the ship is a small place."

"Oh," Original Sin said. "I'm afraid the pod left as you were explaining the murder."

"What! Why didn't you say anything!" Ray asked.

"Well, I was much too interested in what you had to say," said Original Sin. "It would be rude to interrupt. Then this bit about adultery came up and boy, that was just the icing on the cake. Almost made all that time trapped in that computer worth it."

"You just let them get away?" Ray asked incredulously.

"Well, what did you want me to do? Keep the murderers on the ship? With your precious doctor running about? No thank you," Original Sin said. "Good riddance to them."

"This can't be happening," Ray moaned. Not only did Felicia get away, but the pod was gone. He was stuck on the ship.

"Don't look so grim," Original Sin said. "The fact that they ran off confirms their guilt. Congratulations, you were correct! At least about the one ape. You were way off about the other."

"But, how am I supposed to go home?" he asked

"Well, we should be arriving on Earth in a few weeks," Original Sin said. She put up an image of a pale blue star on the monitors. "And we are now short two primate crew members. And guess who are primates? Lucky you guys!"

"Earth is not Mars," Ray said.

"No, but I'm sure you'll find your way back," Original Sin said. "After all, the solar system isn't that large of a place."

Ray sighed and then helped the sobbing Charles up to his feet.

"At least we are all together again," the Alexes said. "Sorry about all the betrayal and all. That's a real bummer. Hey, let's go see if the new guys want to check out the lounge?" The four androids left.

"What about us?" asked Stella. She, Janet, Doctor Lee, and Ray looked at one another and then at the pale blue star on the monitors. There was no telling what the planet had in store for them.

