Some of you may be wondering what this scene has to do with the story. All will be revealed soon. If someone can name all the quotes in this first scene… Congrats. Also these next few chapters will be slowing things down a bit. Also: MASSIVE STAR TREK INSPIRATION FOR THIS CHAPTER.
2754. The Rama II Senate Debate. Orbit around Alpha Centauri A.
“Now, senators, with your views on the economy out of the way we move on to our next topic: Android rights. Now this is a difficult topic that has been danced around and avoided so I would like you both to answer with straight answers. Or, as the expression went: Cut the crap.”
Senator O’Reilly spoke first, “Now I agree with you that this issue is a toughie but it is an easy one for anyone of education and strong conviction to make, so I will cut the crap as it were.”
The crowd laughed.
“I hold a strong view that as machines, androids are not entitled to rights. The very word ‘Android’ means likeness of man. They are meant to resemble us, not be us. They were only meant to look like us, to act like us, to EMULATE us for our comfort in the work place and as companions across a wide variety of fields. Giving them rights would be a disaster! By that logic I should start giving my phone the right to vote, hold political office, and even marry! The absurdity of it all is monumental. They are not real.”
A part of the crowd cheered.
Senator Valorous spoke next, “Now Senator, I respect your view and that is your right, but I must correct you one critical fact. Androids were not originally meant to emulate us for our comfort in the work place; rather they were designed around 300 years ago as a military surveillance project. Project Titan as it were, designed the first models of androids and, from the records we have, was a huge success. They behaved human almost perfectly.”
“Ah yes, but you see that was only when they thought they were human. And even then they were still only machines! Pieces of equipment. Extremely human like equipment but equipment none the less.”
“And yet even with the information of their identities they still behaved human. If you recall history, Senator O’Reilly, two found out who they were. The 7 model and the 8, otherwise known as Jett Halsey and Dane Meridian."
Pictures of two boys appeared on the screen behind the two senators.
“Now Senator,” Valorous continued, “Do these boys look human to you?”
“Yes, however only superficially. Beneath that skin is all circuits, servos and Tritanium. While they may look like your son, grandson, or nephew they are merely machines.”
“And yet both of them were actually sons. They were the only androids that resembled kids in the project and they were placed with families. One of them, Jett Halsey, was taken and raised by one Fleet Admiral George Kirkland Halsey, who even in his advanced age, is sitting in the audience. The man who saved the Alliance. The man whom you yourself senator have idolized on many different occasions had an Android for a son.”
O’Reilly looked down at his podium at some unseen screen, “And yet… there were reports that the machine was prone to mischief and even in some cases fits of violence. For example: There was a documented report where the android violently assaulted 16 football players and caused extensive injuries.”
“And do you know what the fight was about, Mr. O’Reilly?”
“A Girl, Senator Valorous.”
“Yes, a girl. A living, breathing, girl. Now what does that tell you? I don’t know about you but I see strong signs of a protective instinct towards this girl. She may have been only his roommate or a friend or something more but needless to say the report indicates the android was protecting her personal information as well as defending himself.”
“And due to savagery of the incident the three laws were implemented less than a hundred years later to prevent MALFUNCTIONS such as these.”
“You consider emotions MALFUCTIONS, SENATOR? Were you also aware that the android was exhibiting symptoms of PTSD? And that those symptoms disappeared as soon as this girl came into the picture? Behavioral analysis of any kind will tell you that a strong emotional connection was formed.”
“So it was a MALFUCTION that repaired itself. A malfunction none the less.”
“PTSD is a MALFUCTION?! Senator by those standards, PTSD in humans is a malfunction as well and I will agree with you. It is a malfunction brought on by stress and can be repaired through proper treatment. Only in humans it is seen as a condition to be treated. In androids it is a malfunction that requires that the android’s net be purged. These are people, Senator! People with emotions! People who can feel! People who have children, families, husbands and wives with other androids and even organics.”
“And yet none of those emotions are real, Senator! Everything can be programed, altered, added or deleted. The Jett example is just more proof that when given freedoms and rights the androids become unstable. If not for the three laws they would have wiped us out a long time ago! I wouldn’t trust one of those things alone with my daughter!”
Senator Valorous paused. O’Reilly grinned smugly. Silence filled the hall.
And then, the senator spoke, “… Let me pose a question to you, senator, and to everyone in this room. What is real? Is real a sperm and an egg coming together to form a zygote that 9 months later travels down the birth canal as a human baby? Or is it a group of synthetic cells and Nanites made of a number of nonorganic elements that when given the proper materials in a test tube to form a Tritanium skeleton, circuits and servos, and polymers? Is it a boy who grows up with organic skin, a digestive system to get energy, and two gelatinous orbs that capture light to view the world? Or can it be a boy who grows up with synthetic skin, fusion reactors, and two silicon and fiberglass orbs that also capture light to view the world? Is it a series of chemicals in the brain that when imbalanced correctly make us feel things like happiness, sadness and even love? Or is it software and coding lines that when activated create the very same effect? Is it a person powered by fusion or a person run by nutrients? Which is more real than the other? If they both look the same, sound the same, feel the same, and love the same, which one is real? Is it the organic born formed from meiosis or the synthetic born from computers?”
A silence fell over the hall again. No one clapped or booed or even made a sound.
“Can it be both?”
…
“I want to show you all something,” Valorous said and tapped a button on his podium. A picture of a boy sitting on a couch with a smiling girl in his lap appeared. They were no older than 20. And they both looked extremely happy.
“Which one is real? Which one is feeling ‘REAL’ emotions? Which one feels the real love in the relationship there?”
No one could answer.
“No one knows? Then I’ll tell you. The girl is my Daughter who just graduated high school. The boy is the android who lives two houses down with the happy Android couple for parents. He’s been at her side since they were both kids. And he’s been nothing but a great friend and boyfriend to her. He’s still new at the whole love thing but he’s learning. I’m not saying he is perfect but he may as well be. If he can make her happy, what does it matter what he’s made of or what he runs on? Senator you said you wouldn’t trust one alone with your daughter. Well I can’t think of anyone I’d trust to leave with her or to walk her down the aisle one day. You all came to this debate wondering what our stances on the issue were. Senator O’Reilly has said his, and I have said mine.”
Stunned. The only word that would adequately describe O’Reilly’s face at the moment. This wasn’t how it was supposed to happen. O’Reilly had done his research on Valorous. But he never saw this coming.
Silence filled the room as the crowd waited for what would happen next. Valorous wiped his head before continuing.
“We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. We may have given birth to them but we are certainly not their almighty nor do we hold the rights to bar theirs from them. They are like us in more ways than one. They love, they believe in their own faiths, they have questions about the world, and now, like us so many centuries ago, they wish to have equality. Equality consists in the same treatment of similar persons. We are all alike, on the inside and they are fighting to prove that. The worst thing we can do to them now is subjugate them to the point where they come to believe that they are inferior. But that’s not true; I know that, Senator you know that as well! We are all, all of us, synthetic, organic, all of us are children to the same world. . All people are equal, it is not birth, it is virtue alone that makes the difference.”
A second later the room erupted into applause.
***
Present.
Spitfire and Jett finally reached the HQ. The process hadn’t been easy. Though the Princess formally said that Jett was in no trouble what so ever, Shining Armor was still suspicious of him. He refused to let Spitfire leave without an escort unless she swore to take a six shooter with her. She had buckled with a sigh and walked back to her HQ with a gun strapped to her thigh. She continued to hold Jett’s hand as they walked. The android himself was looking around the city almost in a scanning fashion.
Curiosity.
Spitfire smiled. The more things change the more they stay the same. Soon they passed through the gate and were standing in front of the doors to the cafeteria.
“Now, I know you don’t really know me much right now-”
“That being a relative statement. You are the first person that’s actually occupying any space in my personnel files considering you’re the first person I actually formally met today.”
Spitfire blinked, “Okay… Now I’m trying not to let the fact you have no memory of me bother me the best I can but as your friend, a word of advice: watch your step when you enter, things can get a little crazy here.”
“Logged.”
“Okay,” Spitfire said. Deep down she sighed. From all the crap he’d taken through all the time she knew him she should have begun to expect that his luck was just bad wherever he went. Hit by a car, harassed at school, sister died, shot in the head, nearly crushed by several tons of concrete, and then crashing into the ground at nearly Mach I and again losing his memory. And yet this all seemed like just another day at the office.
She opened the door, “Hey guys! Sorry I’m late but I brought someone for you guys to meet.”
“FUCK YOU SOARIN’!” came an angry yell.
“No no no no no no NO! Not the PIE!” came the response.
Spitfire looked up, “Oh shit.” She ducked just as the android entered the building only to be smashed in the face by one freshly baked apple pie.
Spitfire turned around and put a hand to her mouth to suppress a giggle. Everyone in the Café turned and observed before bursting out laughing.
Even Soarin’ who lost his pie was laughing at the sight.
Fleetfoot held a hand to her gut, “Whoa, sorry dude. That wasn’t meant for you.”
The android was covered in apple flavored goop with bits of crust falling off of it. He calmly removed the tin pan from his face. Underneath was a clearly unamused expression. He held the tin between his hands.
“Hey, can I get tha-”
The sound of metal compressing was heard as the pan was crushed down between his hands before being mashed into a marble sized ball in the mechanical hand of the android. He calmly walked over to the nearest table and placed the metal ball on the surface before walking to one of the nearby counters and grabbing some napkins.
Fleetfoot walked over to Spitfire.
“What’s his deal?” she whispered, “He seems oddly familiar.”
“He’s had a rough day. Along with the fact he lost his memory for a second time. And he should feel familiar. That’s the kid you pulled from the recently filled crater out front.”
“That’s him?! I couldn’t recognize him underneath that pie. Not that I could recognize him before but still.”
The robot was sitting alone at the table cleaning his face off. Misty had taken the prerogative and gone over to talk to him.
“Hi,” she said in a friendly tone, “I’m Misty. What’s your name?”
His face remained devoid of emotion but lacked the festering anger that had popped up earlier.
“Jett.”
She held her hand out, “Well Jett, it’s nice to meet you. So you’re the one that kept our Spitty safe those six months she was gone?”
He looked at her inquisitively, “I’m sorry?”
“You’re the one who took her in right? Who kept her safe?”
“I’m sorry but I have no recollection of those events. In fact I don’t remember anything south of this morning.”
“Oh…” Misty said quickly looking for a new subject, “So you’re a robot?”
“That’s what they tell me.”
“… So what’s it like being a robot?”
“What’s it like being a human?”
“… I don’t know.”
“It’s like that. You can’t accurately explain it can you?” he responded.
“No I guess not,” Misty said with a wry grin. The android continued to examine the room. Soarin’ walked over to the table and sat down looking at the crushed marble of tin sitting on the table. The blue haired jock picked it up and looked at it before putting it down again.
“So you’re a robot?” He asked.
“Yes…” the android responded.
“Why do you look like us?”
“Look like us?”
“Why do you look like us? Like a human if you’re not.”
Misty face palmed. The android looked a bit irritated.
“I don’t. This vessel only looks like this because you people are only comfortable interacting with your own kind.”
Spitfire meanwhile was talking with Fleetfoot. Spitfire had pulled the gun off her leg and placed it on a nearby table.
“What’s that for?” the snow haired flier asked.
Spitfire sighed and pulled the bullets out of the weapon, “Did you see the news recently?”
“Uh, when have I ever watched the News?”
“Good point. The Guard Captain wouldn’t let me leave without it. Apparently that while the Princess formally pardoned Jett, he still posed a threat and insisted I take it with me.”
“Really? I mean we saw what he did to the hospital room but Shining Armor really saw him as a threat?”
“Let’s see, he incapacitated two guards and a doctor, did the same again to two other guards and stole one of their guns, and out played four out of six of the elements. And after that remained hidden for the rest of the day. Even by my standards he’s a bit dangerous.”
Fleetfoot smirked and placed her hands on her hips, “And you lived with this guy for six months?”
“Hey, he may be a bit dangerous but believe me when he’s about as docile as a puppy,” Spitfire frowned.
“Really? After making an embarrassment from the Guard?”
“Yes. I mean, human emotions still avoid him like the plague sometimes but he’s a very nice guy.”
“The Plague?”
“Whoops, sorry. When you live in a whole other world like that you kinda… pick up a few things.”
“Oh, so is he alright? I mean, he looks a bit… off if you don’t mind me saying.”
Spitfire sighed, “Ah, he lost his memory again. And that should probably concern me more than it is right now but in all honesty crap like this comes with the territory. He’s been hit by a car, suffered the loss of his sister before turning nearly homicidal, beaten up repeatedly before finally snapping and… well that one didn’t end pretty, shot in the head and losing his memory, and… I think that covers most of it before he was nearly crushed by several metric tons of concrete. And that’s when I brought him here.”
“And he’s still alive from all of this?”
“Yeah. But after sharing a bedroom with him you get used to it I guess.”
“Wait, you never said you shared a bedroom with him,” Fleetfoot smirked.
“Echo…”
“Well,” she laughed, “I’m not saying anything, but he is kinda cute.”
“Back off sister, I saw him first,” Spitfire said.
Fleetfoot blinked before cracking up and laughing, “Oh! So that’s what this is about! You got lost in some future world, got saved by the robot next door, who just happens to be the complete opposite of the bad boys you’ve been going playing with since forever, and you now have the hots for him.”
Spitfire turned red, “You’re a real bitch Echo.”
“So just what about this good boy robot that makes him special?” Fleetfoot continued to tease, nodding over to the android who had undid the ball of tin and was now shaping it into a small sculpture to the amazement of Soarin’, Misty and most of the other team members, “Is he great in bed?”
“You know how he got hit by a car? Well he took the car by pushing me out of the way. And that’s just the beginning of it all. Quite honestly most of the shit he went through on that list was because I had showed up.”
Fleetfoot frowned, “So you two haven’t done it?”
“Oh fuck you.”
Spitfire looked past her childhood friend. Jett had finished his sculpture and placed it on the table. It was a man about five centimeters tall sitting on a pedestal with his hand at his chin… thinking. Her team mates smiled and marveled at it. Phrases of, “Dude that’s sick!” and, “Awesome!” came from the table. She smiled sadly.
Fleetfoot took notice, “Okay, what’s up? I’ve never seen that look on your face before. Who the hell is he?”
Spitfire sighed, “In six months, he showed me more than anyone I’ve ever knew. We spent nearly every waking moment together. When you get that close to a person… things happen. Now imagine that’s all gone. I mean this kind of thing has happened before and I’m sure he’ll be fine, I mean… he always is, but… it kinda hurts.”
“Do you… do you have feelings for him? Like actual feelings? Like more than ‘I want you to ruffle my feathers’ kind of feelings?”
“What do you think? I stood in the middle of the street for five hours waiting for him to show up. He’s saved my sorry ass more than once. He took me in and kept me safe even after I punched him in the face. I… there’s no explaining it.”
“Alright, I get it. He’s important to you. But out of curiosity. How does a person like that go from a stranger to… that in the span of six months?”
“It’s not the quantity but the quality of the time we spent together. If you ever meet someone like that you’ll see.”
Fleetfoot smiled, “Aw… Our little Spitty is growing up.”
“Hey fuck you. I’m still Captain.”
“Relax Spitfire, I’m just messing with you,” Fleetfoot laughed, “Does he have any brothers?”
Spitfire turned sad, “Left behind.”
“…Oh…”
“Funny, he was almost exactly like you. White hair and everything.”
The team seemed to be getting along with Jett just fine. They watched in amazement as the android flipped through the pages of a book and then repeated it back to them in record speed. It seemed he let down his rough around the edges attitude.
Spitfire turned back to Fleetfoot, “When’s our next show?”
“Well the entire season was called off while when you were gone but now that you’re back, management is working on rescheduling. But till then we have some time off. Why?”
“Just wondering. I still haven’t figured out what I’m going to do with him now that he’s here and our roles are pretty much reversed.”
“Well what did he do when he found you?”
“After I punched him in the face? Well considering his home wasn’t even on the same planet we went out shopping before buying a ticket home. After that he got me into his school and we just… lived life from then till now basically.”
“Well, why don’t you do the same for him?”
“Maybe…” Spitfire said walking over to the table. Jett was sketching with two pencils, almost with a childlike attribute while the rest of the team watched the ambidextrous android draw two halves of the same picture. She walked up behind him and peered at his sketch. It was a cityscape with a sun going down in the background. The view was atop a skyscraper with a random person standing near the edge holding on to a flag pole. His back was turned. Beneath him was the caption, “Us Verses The World,” on it.
“That’s pretty cool,” she smiled.
He turned and looked up at her. There was something about his face… she couldn’t place her finger on it. It was almost childlike.
“Really?”
“Yeah… hey how about I give you a tour of the place so you don’t get lost?”
“Oh no worries, I memorized the layout while you were talking to your friend over there.”
“Well there are still some things I can show you so come on,” she said grabbing his hand and dragging him from the table.
“It’s getting late,” Misty said, “I think I’m gonna hit the sack.”
“Me too,” Lightning Streak said.
The rest of the team nodded in agreement and stood up to leave.
“King sized mattress here I come,” Soarin’ yawned.
“We all know you’re just gonna polish your nob, Soar,” Fleetfoot laughed walking towards her room. The rest of them laughed at his expense.
“You’re all assholes,” he sulked.
Spitfire and Jett were the only ones left.
“Come on,” she smiled, “I wanna show you something.”
She stretched her wings before leading the robot out of the cafeteria towards the back of the building. A large patio was behind the cafeteria and extended over the edge of the cliff face.
The sun had long set and the stars were out. Twinkling gems of nearly every color were up in the sky. Streaks of blues and reds and oranges of nebula were painted across the night sky. Spitfire walked over to the railing. Beneath her was the spread out landscape of the valley floor beneath her. Trees, fields, rivers, everything imaginable. Near one river was a collection of lights, twinkling in the night. She recognized the town.
Above, hovering in the sky, almost like the entrance to some fantastical heaven, was Cloudsdale. The city hung in the sky like a temple for the gods. It glowed with an almost lunar light to it with its tall spires and columns giving it an almost roman appearance.
Spitfire leaned on the railing. Jett walked up behind her.
“What is the point of this exercise?” He asked.
She turned, “I just want to see if you’re still you.”
“If I’m still me?”
“Before… you lost your memory, you were almost in love with the stars. You even gave me a lecture on how important they were to your people.”
“Oh…”
…
Jett stood staring into the sky. He made a face before his vision flashed blue and then faded.
“What did you just do?” Spitfire asked.
“I took a picture.”
“Why?”
“Seemed like the thing to do at the time.”
“Are you really not remembering anything?” she asked.
He turned, “Sorry. Must have hit my head harder than I thought.”
Spitfire sighed, “It’s alright…”
“I’m really sorry I can’t remember anything. He… I must have been an important person to you.”
Spitfire suddenly found something interesting on the railing, “You could say that.” She looked up at him and gave a sad smile, “And you still are.”
He smiled back, “I wish I could remember who you are. You’re nice.”
She smiled, “Thanks.”
Spitfire yawned, “You know, you always were the apologetic type. Even when you did nothing wrong. I guess that’s a start.”
"You look tired."
“Nah, I’m fine.”
He frowned and performed a bio scan.
“You’re lying,” he said.
“Yeah?” she taunted, “And how would you know?”
“Biomedical scanning.”
“Cheater,” she yawned.
“Go to sleep. I’ll be fine.”
“Uh… no. I just got you back and I’m not going to leave you alone out here. You’re coming with me.”
“Okay, okay,” He muttered, “I’ll come with you. Can I just grab a few books from the library?”
“How do you know we have a library?”
“I memorized a map of the place.”
“Alright. What do you want to get?”
“Some books on history and things like that.”
“No science or magic books?” Spitfire asked.
“Considering my understanding of one is more advanced than that of the entire population of this planet and the fact that your ‘magic’ has no effect on me considering I’m not from here, the effort would be futile.”
“Oh… Well I guess that makes sense.”
They walked into the building. Jett stopped at the HQ library and walked out with several books before following Spitfire back to her room.
“Well here we are,” Spitfire said, “Just a warning. Place is a bit of a mess.”
She opened the door to her room. Inside there was a large king sized bed to the right against a wall. To the left down a few steps was a large couch with two arm chairs flanking it. In the center of all of them was a coffee table. The whole set up sat before a fire place with a TV hanging above it. A closet was to the immediate left. A balcony stood before them on the far side of the room.
Overall the room had a fairly modern design by Jett’s standards. Or by their standards it was futuristic.
And it was a mess. Clothes littered the bedroom area and pizza boxes were stacked atop the coffee table with various bottles and cups of… whatever previously was contained in them lying all over the floor. There was a pair of panties hanging on one of the lamps to which Jett raised an eyebrow.
“Yeah…” Spitfire said, “Not much.”
“How long was I in the hospital for?”
“Uh… a day?”
“And you managed to do all this in a day?”
“Well some of the clothes are from a while ago,” she said walking into the room. Jett followed her as she turned on a ceiling fan only to watch a sports bra fall onto the android’s head, “Like that.”
He sighed, “Why does this situation seem familiar?”
“Uh… maybe that’s a story for later,” Spitfire blushed.
“Okay,” he said outright refusing to take it any further, “Can I put these down somewhere?”
“Oh sure.” Spitfire walked over to the coffee table and picked up the pile of pizza boxes and opened the door to the balcony and dumping them over the edge.
“Uh… isn’t that littering?” Jett asked.
“No. Soarin’s room below mine. It’ll just land on his like always,” she laughed.
“O… Kay,” Jett said and set the books down on the table before sitting down on the couch and taking a book from the pile.
“Well, I’m gonna go take a shower and then hit the hay,” Spitfire yawned, “If you want you can come to bed.”
“Nah, it’s alright. I don’t need sleep. I’ll just spend the night reading these; if you don’t mind that is.”
“It’s fine.”
“Cool.”
Jett grabbed a book from the pile. A several thousand page book on Early World History and began to flip through it. Spitfire grinned and found a pair of panties and a night shirt in the mess of her bedroom and walked into the bathroom.
When she emerged she found the android was halfway through the pile of books and was flipping through another.
She smiled and walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around him.
“Whatcha reading?” she asked.
“Well I got through all the early stuff and I am now on what this book calls ‘The Millennium Years.’ Why? Aren’t you going to bed?”
“Maybe.”
He blinked, “Spitfire, it’s 11:45. Unlike me you cannot go without sleep so I would advise that you do so.”
“Will it make you more comfortable?”
“If that’s what it takes, yes. I know what sleep deprivation does to people.”
“What does it do exactly?”
“You won’t be happy in the morning and no amount of coffee will fix it.”
“Okay okay. Fine. You sound like my father some times.”
“Did I used to be like that?”
“A little bit,” She said as she released him and walked over to her bed.
“Night,” she called as she let the soft folds of the blankets envelop her.
“Night,” the android called and returned to his books.
Spitfire smiled and was soon falling fast asleep. Jett meanwhile continued to read.
Too bad you won’t ever get away you robot freak!
I’m the best there ever was and the best there ever will be! And you won’t be beating me ever!
He frowned. What was that?
Heads up for later. Character personality.
Jett.
Likes: All things space and flight and science and engineering. Likes to work with his hands and have fun with friends. Loves learning and doing new things and reading books. Enjoys pomegranates.
Dislikes: Football. Arrogance and pompous personalities. People with a superiority complex. Over confidence. Hates Sigmund Freud. Does not enjoy tomatoes. Loathes desk work and cubicles.
Personality: Cynical personality. Naturally distrusting to the point of almost paranoia. Holds on to anger and keeps grudges. Has an inferiority complex. Underneath it all is a curious personality who enjoys the company of his friends and getting into trouble with them. Self-restraining in many aspects almost to the point of self-punishment. Keeps any and ALL promises.
Note: Took traits that would make interpersonal relationships difficult and put them into this character.