Chapter 11
IDENTITY: Mechanical Operations and Support Systems
→ SUB-IDENTITY: Moss
LOCATION: Rhymarra [human]
Torian Razner was preparing to leave again.
I disliked this, although current data indicated Rhymarra was safe by human standards, and their university was even more so. Plus, Torian had promised me she would be less stupid in interactions from now on, which lowered her risk level on this planet to a mere 4 percent.
I was not concerned about her physical survival. Instead, I was analyzing the planet as we landed at the university—and growing more concerned for her mental survival.
“Torian,” I asked, as she pulled on her shoes in the cargo bay. “What is our next procedure if they don’t accept you and Celise?”
“They’ll accept us,” Torian said. My system flagged it as two things: determination … and denial.
That did not bode well.
I needed a physical access point to break into private networks and gain control of any actual, valuable data or systems. However, there were digital signals all over this planet, sharing nonessential information.
I had been collecting them since we entered Rhymarran airspace, and my central system was crunching all that data as we talked.
The results were not promising. I said, “There appears to be fewer than eleven percent of colony citizens residing on Rhymarra. As a caveat, this data is incomplete, but trends suggest it is reliable.”
Torian paused, but she did not look at the cameras. “Eleven percent isn’t zero.”
“That is accurate,” I agreed.
There was silence.
She pushed to her feet, examined the ravla stain on her shirt, and retreated to the sleeping pod. From the hallway camera, I could see her changing her shirt. I had no context for fashion, and frankly did not care—she replaced one fabric piece with another, and that was the entirety of my analysis.
“It is curious that you would base your sister’s life on eleven percent success,” I said. “Curious” seemed like a kinder word, and since Torian was my best friend, I used it to replace what I actually wanted to say: illogical, irrational, absurd.
I refused to voice those things, even if they were true.
Torian clenched her eyes shut and went concerningly still.
“Are you injured?” I asked. “Mentally, or physically?”
“I know this is stupid, Moss,” Torian replied. Her voice was quiet enough that I had to raise the volume on my microphones to process it.
“Yes,” I agreed.
Torian’s heart rate spiked, and I felt … bad … for saying it. I hastened to clarify: “My scenarios are sometimes inaccurate. Eleven percent is not zero.”
Torian’s eyes began to leak. “You said I’m your best friend. Well, Celise is mine. We’ve been together all my life, and she’s always watched out for me. I can’t leave her to die, Moss. Even for such a low probability, I have to try this.”
I had data on Halyon’s disease. There was no mention of it in the Rhymarran broadcasts, but it appeared in multiple places on Colony 13. Torian was 100 percent accurate now: Her sister would die if she remained on that station, breathing that air.
She would not die on Rhymarra. She also would not die on the Destitute. As much as I did not want to share my human with another, if Celise was Torian’s best friend—I would not separate them.
“The Destitute can host both of you. My life support systems will ensure it.”
Torian smiled, wiping her eyes. “I know. And thank you. But—this ship is small, Moss. It’s not a feasible long-term solution. Not for you and me, and especially not for Celise. She’d rather die on Colony 13, helping folks until the end, than be trapped on this starship for the rest of her life.”
“I have been trapped on this starship,” I said. “I am doing fine.”
“Are you?” Torian whispered.
[No.]
“This has to work, Moss. I can’t…” Torian inhaled, her hands shaking. “I can’t think about the odds. I just have to try. Okay?”
I realigned my datapoints, identifying human nuance and adjusting the scenarios accordingly. “Eleven percent is not zero,” I repeated. “Good luck, Torian.”
“Thanks,” she said.
After she left, I retreated into my calculations, passing time with more research. If the Destitute was not an option … perhaps there was another alternative when this inevitably failed. I would not let Torian and Celise down.