Chapter 6
Aura
Wyl takes so long to respond that I wonder if he has fallen asleep. Did the release of prolactin after his orgasm sedate him, or was my question inappropriate?
Finally … “You want sex. Now. Didn’t you just come twice in a row?”
“Yes. It was quite enjoyable. I wish to do it again.”
He sighs and removes my hand from his genitals.
“Maybe we should slow down. I want to rest more before we reach the station, and we still need to come up with a cover story for how and why you exist. I don’t exactly have a ready excuse for why I’m in possession of a brand-new XR-17 that was outlawed decades ago. ”
“Because my existence is unethical, correct?”
“We’ve been over this, Aura. You’re not unethical.
It’s the previous XR-17 models that had some questionable programming.
” Wyl stands and retrieves a couple of crew uniforms from the storage drawer, tossing the smaller set to me.
“Look, I’m going to take a shower. Go hunt down a DigiPad, and we’ll meet back here in ten minutes.
Maybe my DNA will deactivate the biolocks on the data you were trying to access earlier.
It’s easier for me to explain if I can show you why those droids were considered unethical. ”
I nod. “Yes, Captain.”
“Let’s not call me ‘Captain’ for the time being. That opens up a whole different series of ethical issues, especially given what we just did.”
“Why?”
He shakes his head and starts down the hall towards the bathing facilities. “Trust me, once we have access to those files on Regent Archer IX, it will all make more sense.”
As Wyl requested, I locate a DigiPad and queue the files on my predecessors while he showers.
Once he scrapes a few skin cells onto the DNA receptor pad, the biolock opens, and the data slowly scrolls across the screen.
I would prefer it to scroll faster, but the speed seems set for human comprehension.
Given that only organic tissue can unlock these files, I suppose it makes sense, but it is frustrating, nonetheless.
The data is disturbing.
Accounts of the galactic ruler of the time, Archer IX, depict a man obsessed with sexual interactions—specifically with androids.
Addicted to the power he had over his droids, Archer IX fetishized them, commissioning several dozen droids to exact specifications with exaggerated sexual proportions.
The records show that Archer IX ordered his team of royal engineers to develop a series of androids whose sole purpose was to cater to his sexual whims.
The altered XR models, which came to be known as the Archer Droids, demonstrated that the galactic regent had particular tastes. Large-breasted female droids with tiny waists and wide hips. Muscular male droids with sizeable genitalia. All with realistic parts.
While the files show that the XR-17 and XR-20 models owned by Archer IX had comparable intelligence to myself and other, newer models of AI, his droids did not have autonomy.
They did not have the luxury of choice that I do.
Programmed only to comply, they did not have the same complex neural decision-making processors that I possess.
Intelligence without resistance. Absolute compliance when given an order from a superior. The XR-17 and XR-20 models were essentially brainwashed slaves.
“He raped them …” My voice trails off as the horror of the situation processes.
Wyl nods. “Basically. That’s why it was considered so incredibly despicable.
” He takes the DigiPad from me and sets it aside.
“Aura, I don’t want to do that to you. I especially don’t want to be your captain because that puts me in a position of authority over you, and it shouldn’t be like that.
If we’re going to pursue this, we should be equals here. ”
“I … I … Wyl, I almost—”
“You didn’t almost anything. You wanted to continue, and when I didn’t want to, you stopped.” He strokes my cheek gently. “The same goes for me. I will never do that to you. If you ever tell me ‘no,’ it ends there, and ‘no’ is always an option.”
My neural network churns with this new data, though I think I understand now why Wyl did not wish to continue our sexual relations today. The pleasurable sensations from arousal and climax were such that I almost refused to stop. What more would I have done if Wyl had not redirected me?
Would the obsession with sexual stimulation have overridden my ability to choose? Would I have overridden his ability to choose?
“Thank you, Wyl. Not only for allowing me to view these files, but for being the voice of reason when I lost control.”
Wyl chuckles. “I wouldn’t call that loss of control—at least, not in the sense you mean it.
You got excited. That happens to the best of us, especially when we experience something new and enticing, something that feels so amazingly good.
” He pats my shoulder. “And it was good. Well, for me, at least. I can’t speak for you. ”
Despite my distress, a smile comes to my lips at his praise. “I enjoyed it as well.”
“Now,” Wyl stands and starts pacing, “we need to plan what to do when we reach the station. I don’t want you hurt if the GA decides to inspect the ship.”
“Will they decommission me?” Despite my earlier desire for decom, now that Wyl has reassured me of my intact ethics, I no longer wish to be deactivated. I want to follow Wyl to his next destination, and to all destinations thereafter.
“I honestly can’t say if they’d try or not. The Galactic Authority sets and enforces the laws, but they also act like they’re above the laws that they enact. Their interpretation of galactic legislation is sometimes different than a textbook definition.”
He stops pacing with his back to me, and he pauses long enough to be concerning.
“Basically, the law regarding today’s artificial intelligences contradicts the law regarding XR-17s.
The models Archer IX commissioned were all …
They were dismantled, I guess, is the nice way to put it.
But standard protocol when dealing with an AI under current legislation is to let it live.
If a droid has intelligence, by law we can’t kill it.
So, if the GA discovers you, it could go either way.
” His hands clench into fists at his sides, and I notice increased muscular tension in his neck, back, and shoulders.
“Don’t worry, Aura. They’re not going to hurt you; I won’t let that happen.
Even if I have to lie to the GA, I’ll find some way to protect you from them. ”
“That is unwise, Wyl. The Galactic Authority imposes strict penalties and steep fines for submitting false information during an investigation. You could be incarcerated.”
I expect him to listen to reason, but instead, he simply shrugs.
“Whatever. I’m a salvager; it’s not like I haven’t lied to them before. Now, I’m off to the galley. I’m starving.”
“Wyl, wait!”
I am too late. The clanking of his magboots recedes down the corridor, leaving me alone with my thoughts.
My thoughts … and the DigiPad.
It remains unlocked.
Curiosity needles at my synapses until I pick it back up. Something tells me there is more to the saga of the 2573 XR models, some crucial piece of data too devastating for Wyl to show me.
As I delve deeper into the fate of the Archer IX models, I become increasingly grateful that I do not have a stomach.
If I did, I would surely have lost all its contents by now.