It was the better part of three weeks before we arrived at Unthu Goq.

We’d swapped the original Glevack ship for a Baishain vessel nine days into the journey and then hopped a Tsengju transport six days after that. By time we arrived at the Bamidh planet, well… let’s just say it was a long three weeks. I mean, what are you supposed to say to someone you just tried to gun down?

… I know what you’re thinking, and no, I haven’t forgotten declaring I could never hurt her, that I wasn’t that far gone, but you gotta understand just how irritating it was having her constantly needling me. Damn it, she’s not an actual person, she’s just an imitation! If the Mona Lisa suddenly started trash-talking Da Vinci, how long do you think it would be before he shoved her into a fireplace and lit a match?

But there was more. There was no way she should have survived me shooting her in the head, let alone to magically heal her wounds and carry on like nothing was wrong. How did she do it? For that matter, was I entirely sure she had? Or was this evidence of some hostile third party at work, someone capable of hacking into my domain and overwriting my operating systems? Not to boast, but that’s a damn short list. The Troika might pull it off, especially if they used that new Eleexx software I’d run into on my last job for Chris, but few others could manage it.

Chris. What was I going to do about her? She’d started me on this investigation to stop the Brotherhood, and now I was trying to make contact? How was that going to go over, considering she’d pointed a weapon at me once already?

Look, us investigators, the ones operating at this level, we often have to make decisions on the fly. We’re the tip of the spear, as the saying goes, and we’re often the first ones to stumble into something and then make impromptu policy arrangements to maintain our advantage. Chris knows that, it’s the reason she handpicks her operatives with care. Until now, I’d always had her trust, but with this…

Yes… the Brotherhood had murdered six Terrans in cold blood, that I knew of. There could be other bodies out there, other crimes still undiscovered, so why was I even considering approaching them with anything less than a full spread of tactical nukes?

If you know anything about Terrans, the answer should be obvious. We’ve been making deals with devils for the past two hundred years to stay alive, and this was no different. If they were even half the allies I suspected they could be, they could change everything. They could help bring the Troika down and create a new order, one where the strong didn’t automatically subjugate the weak. A society of equals, where all live in peace.

It’s a lovely dream. Seductive, even.

So yes, I’d hold my nose and shake their hand, if that’s what it took. They offered something that no one else could, a blade held poised at the Troika’s throat. I’m sorry for those deaths, I truly am, but I have to think of the bigger picture. Our very survival is at stake, and I can’t let anything, not even justice, impede that.

… who was it who said, “Kill one man, and you are a murderer. Kill millions, and you are a conqueror. Kill them all… and you are a God.”

Jesus, I need a drink.

Where was I? Ah yes… Raven.

There was something different about her, something I couldn’t quite put my finger on. She wasn’t as combative as I remembered, as “in your face” as she used to be. Did that mean she was mellowing, perhaps even taking on some of Laura’s attributes? Now that I was aware she knew about her, I couldn’t dismiss the possibility out of hand.

But there was another possibility, one that terrified me. What if she was now playing a much deeper game, taking a more subtle approach to achieve her goals? How can she even have goals?

… was Raven evolving?

By everything I knew, that shouldn’t be possible. In the entire history of the Avatar Clan, there had never been a single instance of a simulacrum developing sentience, so I found it difficult to believe it was happening now. But she was different... and I had nothing to do with it.

I had to keep those thoughts buried. There was no getting away from her, so I had to maintain the pretense that all was well between us… no simple thing when you spend every waking moment together. We were still sharing a bed, and everything that implies, and the fact she didn’t blow my head off told me my acting skills must be better than I’d ever imagined. It was a good thing I’d long shed my corporeal body, otherwise I’d likely be well on my way to a stomach ulcer.

Stay focused on the mission, I’d keep telling myself. Keep your head in the game and grow eyes on the back of your head. The skills that allowed me to survive in the field served me well now, as I lay beside a changeling, wondering what the hell was going on behind those enigmatic dark eyes.

… stay on target, Al.

Right.

We arrived at Unthu Goq without issue, slipping away from our ride and taking up temporary lodgings in one of the navigation buoys. It wasn’t ostentatious by any means, but it was an integral component of the port’s network. It only took a few seconds to tap into and download Traffic Control’s interface, as we started considering our options.

“... What about this one?” Raven asked, pointing at a freighter on the ship roster.

I pulled up its file and began perusing it. “Too big,” I decided after a moment, “plus it’s scheduled to deliver cargo in less than two weeks to another system. If it doesn’t show up, it’ll be missed.”

“Hmm…” she mused, “so something small, something that’s not going anywhere anytime soon…”

“... plus it needs to have extended range,” I reminded her. “The rendezvous point is a long way off. And ideally, capable of at least limited self-repair.”

“Self-repair?” she said curiously.

“Think about it,” I explained, “without corporeal bodies, what are going to do if some critical part of the ship fails? We certainly can’t fix it, not if that means removing a defective part and installing a new one. How could we? Unless, of course, it also comes equipped with repair drones.”

Raven nodded slowly, taking that in. “Are those common aboard ships?” she asked.

“They’re not un-common, at least,” I replied. “Good thing for us.”

We went back to the list and scanned the available ships. With so many to choose from, we both wanted to be sure we’d picked the vessel that gave us the best odds. We spent several subjective hours at the task, sifting through the database, until finally, a single ship remained.

“... Ghiadaha Velu,” she read from the screen, before glancing over at me. “You sure this is the one?”

“As sure as I can be,” I shrugged. “It’s got long legs, a decent acceleration curve in case we have to run for it, plus a full complement of drones. Even better, it’s being held by the Port Authority for non-payment of anchorage and repair fees.”

She raised an eyebrow. “I know we’re stealing a ship here, but isn’t taking one the cops have chained to the pier just a little risky for us? Aren’t they going to be watching that one even closer?”

I grinned at that, and Raven could only stare at my expression with confusion. “What?” she queried.

“The answer’s simple,” I chuckled. “We pay the fee.”

She looked over at the outstanding debt and then back at me. “I wasn’t aware you were that wealthy.”

“I’m not,” I assured her. “I have several very untraceable accounts set up across the Perseus Arm, all loaded with credits that were acquired elsewhere.” I could barely contain my snicker as understanding struck her.

“You stole it?”

“For accuracy’s sake, I embezzled it, but that’s another story,” I said. “What do you say we get this show on the road?”

It took time for her to calm back down, but after several more minutes she nodded she was ready. A few taps of the keys, and…

“... Done!” I announced as we both watched the numbers rise to meet the goal. The status indicator went from angry red to a more subdued green as I paid the outstanding fee.

“How long before somebody notices?” she asked nervously, glancing about at the crowded port sky.

“I don’t know,” I admitted, “but we have a few factors in our favor. Anonymity, for one. No one knows who we are, and even if they do figure it out eventually, we’ll be long gone. And even if the original owners show up to pay off the debt, it’ll take a while for the Bamidh to sort it all out. That’s time we can use to our advantage.”

“I suppose,” she answered, mollified for the moment.

“Come on,” I told her, extending my hand, “let’s check out our new ship.”

The Ghiadaha Velu was a decommissioned Yait’xaik tender, originally designed as a support vessel for their navy. Judging by the layout, someone had hoped to turn her into a specialized transport for luxury goods. The only problem was that’s an extremely niche market… too niche for the owners, as it turned out. The corporation that purchased her went bankrupt, forced to sell at a fraction of her value.

Her next owner had other ideas, and re-outfitted her as a tourist ship, able to go places the bigger vessels could not. However, once again there proved to be little market for such a boat, which is why we’d found her languishing at Unthu Goq. It was unlikely the owners could pay the lien, making it unattractive to potential buyers. Ghiadaha Velu was an excellent design for its original purpose, but outside of a small navy, it had no viable commercial use.

It thrilled them that we took it off their hands.

Once onboard, we spent some time exploring her via the internal security system, going over her systems. There were some minor issues to deal with, but I was certain the repair drones could handle them. Plus, we could pump her full of inert nitrogen for the journey, saving both on Life Support costs and wear and tear, since oxygen is corrosive. After all, we certainly didn’t need it. A couple of days later, after some minor repairs and taking on stores, we were ready for departure.

“Requesting clearance from the Port Authority… now,” I informed Raven.

“How long til we know if they bought it?” she fretted, looking at me anxiously.

“Not long,” I assured her, “and there’s no reason to worry. I’ve done this plenty of times, and no one’s come looking for me yet.” I even managed what I hoped was a rakish smile, but part of me couldn’t help but wonder why she was so nervous about this. I’d seen her take on far greater risks over the years without batting an eye, so why did this have her so on edge?

Maybe because it’s real, my mind whispered, but that made no sense either. Real, not real. It shouldn’t affect her personality matrix one bit. At least it wouldn’t if she were still the same Raven I’d created so long ago.

I was beginning to have doubts on that front.

A soft chime announced the Port Authority’s reply. “We’re cleared for departure,” I grinned, “casting off mooring lines and bringing thrusters up to 5kph.”

The thrusters nudged us away from the spacedock and pointed us in the right direction until they finally shut down. Another message to the Port and another wait, until we received clearance to depart the system.

“That’s it?” Raven asked, somewhat incredulously.

“That’s it,” I confirmed. “Next stop, the middle of nowhere.”

With the push of a virtual button, the Ghiadaha Velu disappeared from their screens.

It was several more weeks until we reached our destination, weeks that were slowly driving me mad. Have you ever lived in a place where you were never alone? I certainly hadn’t; at least not since giving up my corporeal form. I could create a mansion with a thousand rooms, a million, and somehow, she’d still find me every time. Which meant keeping up that fake smile, all the while wondering if she’d gone rogue and was contemplating ways of killing me in my sleep.

Which is why I don’t. Sleep, I mean. Would you?

But that still left us with a great deal of time to kill until we arrived. I tried even more distractions; the Cyclone at Coney Island, skiing the Rinderberg at Gstaad, hot air ballooning over Ayers Rock. We lounged and sipped Mai Tais in Bora Bora, deep-sea fishing off the Florida Keys, spelunking in Vietnam.

We dove even deeper this time into the world of fiction, sharing adventures with the Three Musketeers and Huckleberry Finn, tracking down and laying to final rest the dread Count Dracula, tagging along with the befuddled Man from La Mancha while commiserating with poor Sancho.

We even did historical pieces like Thermopylae, the Spirit of Saint Louis, and Kon-Tiki. You name it; we tried it, and in the end, it left me drained and exhausted. Who knew you could have too much vacation?

And worst of all? It didn’t help.

Raven was playing a part as well, pretending like I was to have fun, though I can only guess at her motives. The world around me made less and less sense, and there were moments I feared I was going mad. Now we were both watching the countdown clock to our rendezvous with trepidation, which strangely enough seemed to push us closer, even as everything else drove us apart.

There were even times when I considered ending it all. Oh yes, it’s possible, in fact, it would be easy aboard this vessel. Simply overload the engines until they explode, and the blast would end me just as surely as it would you. But the mission still mattered to me, even in my fevered state, and the possibility of ending the Troika threat was simply too great to ignore. It became my beacon, my purpose, my very reason for being, and I know it was that flickering spark of hope that kept me going, even in my darkest hours.

Kept me going right up to the day I turned to Raven and told her, “We’ve arrived.”