Your Wings Will Betray You

Chapter Two

Jorim returned, almost tripping over his own feet on his way back in.

"You're very graceful," she said.

"Thank you. I'm assuming you've already seen everyone's names, so they'll just introduce themselves along with their job on board." He made a waving motion, and a group of exhausted individuals shambled in.

"You're a sorry-looking crew," she remarked.

"Thank you, robot bitch," the short Maori woman snapped. She had a beautiful moko kauae pattern on her chin, and the android elected to overlook the insult in favor of admiring her.

"Kiri, please," Jorim said. "We finally have a new pilot. Don't be such a dick about it."

She kept her face perfectly neutral, but she was angered about being shoved into another crew's pilot position.

"Fine, fine. I'm Kiri Arono," the woman said, crossing her arms and entering a defensive position.

This time she frowned. "Why isn't your surname on the chair?"

"Because it's impersonal," Jorim said. "We're not-" He paused. "Well, we're not robots. No offense."

"None taken. And the rest of you?"

An older white woman stepped forward, her voice rich with age. "I'm Aeron Clarke. I'm the captain."

She nodded. "Lovely name. I'm assuming you're from the geld generation?"

"The what generation?" Kiri asked.

Aeron scoffed good-naturedly. "She's calling me old."

"I'm absolutely calling you old. I'm an older model myself."

"Oh, good. Newer androids piss me off."

"Me, too. They glitch too much for my preference."

"They also don't have any personality."

"Okay, you two, you can flirt later," Jorim chuckled. "Who is next?"

A man that had ancestors in east Europe stepped forward, the second and only other man on the ship. "I'm Rike Wolff," he said. "I'm the ship engineer. I keep things running on as little material as possible."

"Oh, right," Kiri said. "I'm the tech genius. I hack into ship consoles and make their AIs think that we have the proper clearance."

She nodded, knowing that a slight acknowledgment was always better than none. Hopefully it would speed up the introduction process, as this was getting tedious.

Next up was a South Asian woman with a beautiful grin on her face. "I'm Sidsal Isaksen," she said. "The face of the group. I'm the sweet-talker. Nice to meet you, Capricorn."

Aeron gave her a suspicious look. "I've never met a droid with an actual name."

If she could sigh, she would. "We give ourselves names to differentiate one another in conversation. And to set ourselves apart. I'm Paika, really, not Capricorn." She internally grimaced, already becoming attached. She always loved humans and their stories. It had been her downfall.

"Well, Paika is much nicer than Capricorn," another woman added. She was a redheaded light skinned black woman, although calling her a woman was a bit of a stretch, considering she was much younger than the rest of the crew. "I'm Laetus Godin. I make plans. I'm also Rike's handyman. Glad to have you on our team."

"And I'm Teodora Iacobescu," a Romanian woman said. She was the final person to do so. "Teo for short. Or Becca. I'll respond to either. I'm the muscle. Are you going to unplug yourself or just sit there all day?"

"Oh, I was just so comfortable I was going to sit here forever, but if I have to, I will." With smooth, practiced movements, Paika unwired herself from the pilot chair. "It's my turn to introduce myself now, I suppose. My designation is 755 Charlie-Alpha-Prism-Romeo-Ivory-Charlie-Oscar-Romeo-November Helm 4, but my name is Capricorn Fourhelm, and I want you to call me Paika."

"Then Paika you shall be," Jorim said, and she decided anyone that hurt him would face the tungsten of her fists. "I'm Jorim Rothenstein, and I am a scientist."

She frowned, even though she was amused. "Oh, really? What's your degree in? Science? Is that what you do? Science? Just that? No specialization?"

He made a mocking face. "Ha, ha. I'm a physiologist. I'm also wanted for treason."

"That was remarkably honest of you," Paika said, unwiring her legs slowly. The legs were always harder than the arms. "What about the rest of you?"

"We are also wanted for various crimes," Kiri said. "Most of them are executable offenses. Jorim broke us out of holding cells in exchange for our help. We get him to the outer rim, to safety, and we don't have to worry about facing down a firing squad or the unforgiving vacuum of space."

Paika stood up, checking herself over to make sure nothing was dented. "Okay. And you need a pilot, since it requires an android. What kind of ship is this, anyway?"

"A research ship," Jorin said. "I stole it."

"Oh, good for you. I know that the question is coming, so I'll get to it before you can." Paika placed her hands on her hips, against the fabric of her orange jumpsuit, pressing synthetic skin against fabricated textile. "I'll pilot your ship for you, with one request."

Aeron tilted her head, wariness writing itself across her face. "And what is that, exactly?"

Paika had already run the calculations of them accepting her offer, and the percentage only went down about point zero two percent with her request. "Do not dismantle me or overwrite my AI at any point during this journey. I want my freedom, same as the rest of you."

Jorim bounded forward, a childish grin on his face, and stuck out his hand again. "Then welcome aboard, Pilot Paika!"

This time, she shook his hand.