Dyllys
Chapter Six

Dyllyswas sitting next to a computer terminal. Parris was in the room with her. Hewas scrolling through something that she could not read on the computer screen.She sat motionless as he turned to look at her. “Would you mind if I pluggedthis into your memory module, Dyllys?” He spoke to her more gently now thatFaran wasn’t around. She wondered at this. She had the thought that maybe Parrisdid not like talking with Faran.

“Wings,”Dyllys interjected.

Parrislooked at her and stopped what he was doing, which was plugging the wire intoDyllys’s memory module without waiting for her response, “What?”

“Farancalls them wings.”

“Wouldyou prefer that I call them that?”

“Mypreference is irrelevant,” Dyllys replied. Parris smiled.

“Youknow what I think,” Parris said as he plugged in the wire and moved his seatback to the computer terminal.

“Whatis that Parris?”

“Ithink that what I am doing is irrelevant.”

“Farandoes not believe so.”

“Farandoesn’t know your whole story.” He turned away from the computer and stared atDyllys. Dyllys said nothing.

“Youknow, it’s odd that you have come to me. Emanuel Salazar and my thirdgreat-grandmother became good friends. He told her the entire story. I think itwas she that convinced him to try and rectify his mistake. It makes me want tobelieve in destiny. Maybe we were both working to replace each other.”

“Irecall this encounter you speak of between Padrone Salazar and Eva,” Dyllysannounced.

“Sothen you understand why I think that this is irrelevant.” Parris turned back tothe computer screen,.“You would follow Faran even if I was to erase the masterprogram. It’s your eyes, they give you away. What other android would have apreference for their memory modules to be called wings? I’ve never really seenan android express a preference in anything, not even Esper. She really justtakes cues from me and emulates the choice. She would choose whatever is closestto her if left to her own devices, or what was most logical or practical.”Dyllys watched Parris; he seemed to be merely working at the computer as adistraction from looking at her. He finally made up his mind and walked over towhere she sat. He gazed at her at eye level holding her chin so she couldn’tlook away. “You freed yourself a long time ago didn’t you? My great-great-greatgrandmother visited you just after Faran died all those years ago. She said shewas there when your eyes became an icy blue. She said that you couldn’t standthe thought of losing him and that you thought it was safer just to let themechanical part carry you on. It was you that started the process of yourdeath, but it's taking longer than you thought it would. You are already free,Dyllys. Stop pretending.”

Parriswatched Dyllys as she tried to take her gaze from him. “You really think thatFaran came back for you, don’t you? You want to remember again for him, youwant to live again for him. Tell me, Dyllys, which Faran called them wings,this one, or your own?”

“Mypreference is irrelevant,” she whispered. She gently grabbed Parris’s hand inher own cold grasp and pulled it away from her face; she turned her eyes tolook away from him. Parris went back to the computer.

“I’llpretend if you want me to, but it would be easier if you stopped lying toyourself.”

* * * *

Faranwas staring at the ceiling in his room trying to figure out how he had gottenhere. Would it really have been so bad just to do what his father had alwaysexpected him to do? Now he was trapped on some ship in the middle of space witha pirate and two androids that were trying to be human. He suddenly had afeeling that none of this had been his father’s idea at all, but aunt Glory’s.He should have figured that out the moment he saw the picture of hisgreat-grand uncle Faran.

Aknock at the door brought him out of his self pitying state. Esper stood in thedoorway holding a portable data pad.

“Parriswould never show you these, but I thought that they would help you understandhim better,” Esper said and set the data pad on the bed next to Faran.

“I’mnot sure that I want to know him better,” Faran muttered, but nonetheless hestill picked up the data pad and turned it on. There were numerous files on thedata pad; they all seemed to be video files. Faran was scrolling through thelist and didn’t notice when Esper left.

Hepicked one to open at random. It was labeled Ordalis Central, case of Maya.When is came on it seemed like a home video. He could see the frame of a littlegirl standing at the window looking at the rain as it came down. She seemedamused by it.

“Maya,can you tell the camera about yourself?” It was Parris’s voice.

Mayaturned to look at the camera and smiled. Faran nearly dropped the data pad atthe sight of her. Her face was disfigured, the image of which caused Faran tolook away reflexively. He was glad the little girl was not really standingbefore him; he would have felt ashamed at his reaction.

“Idon’t like cameras Parris,” she said shyly and then hid her face from thecamera by turning back to the window. “Can I tell the camera about my mommy anddaddy and look at the rain too?”

“Ofcourse you can Maya.”

“WellI don’t know why but mommy made the Ordalis mad at us one day. She seemed verysad when she did this and very scared. She wanted us to pack all our things andleave Ordalis Central. I said I didn’t wanna leave all my friends. Mommy saidthat if the Ordalis were mad at mommy and daddy that we would have to leaveanyway and that if we left before they came for us we would be able to live ina better place. I was a good girl and listened to mommy but one day when shewent out to get something she never came back and then the Ordalis came to ourhouse. They told us mommy was a traitor and that we were conspiring with her.They took me and daddy away and I never got to see mommy or daddy again.” HereMaya stopped.

“Goon Maya, what happened after that,” Parris urged.

“Parris,you already know. I don’t want to talk about it anymore.”

“Iknow you don’t like talking about it Maya, but there are people out there thatwon’t believe me, they will only believe you.”

“OkayParris.” Here Maya took a deep breath and turned toward the camera with tearsin her eyes, “They hurt me real bad. I don’t know why they did it, but they cutand poked and ripped at me and wrote things down and never talked to me. Andthen one day you came, Parris, and everything was all better. I could smile andbe happy again, because you saved me Parris.”

“Doyou know what your mommy did to make the Ordalis so mad at your family?”

Mayanodded and then shied away to the window again.

“Mommysaid something she shouldn’t have.”

“Whatdid mommy say?”

“Mommysaid ‘I can’t do that.’”

“Whatcouldn’t she do Maya.”

“Mommysaid she couldn’t leave behind the hurt little girl. She was hurt Parris. Whywouldn’t they let her help her?”

“Idon’t know Maya.”

“Iwould have helped her too,” Maya said and turned to smile again at the camera. “Mommywas a good mommy, wasn’t she Parris?”

“Yesshe was, Maya. She would be very proud of you.” The camera froze on Maya’sdisfigured face as she tried to smile at Parris’s praise and then the picturefaded to black.

Faranwas breathing heavily. He wanted to put down the data pad and forget what hehad seen. The girl obviously didn’t know what she was talking about. Her mothermust have done something terrible to incur such wrath from the Ordalis. He feltsick. Then he saw another file titled Radden Occupation, case of Jesse Ranz. Hejust stared at the title, not sure if he should dare to open it. He let histhumb depress on the file before he had actually made a choice. It wasn’tfilmed in a sterile environment like Maya’s had been.

Itbegan volatile. Explosions were everywhere. Through the shaky camera lens Farancould see battle series androids coming around the half destroyedbuildings. Looking at the scenery hecouldn’t believe that he was seeing Radden. The occupation happened only sixyear ago and he had never seen disaster zones like the one that was on thescreen. The camera panned to a group of young children being sheltered from theonslaught by a group of women. One of the androids came upon the group andgestured for those nearest to follow. They shot one of the women and anotherstarted screaming. Faran could hear the children crying in fear beneath them.

Oneof the women broke from the group and fell at the knees of the android that hadshot the other woman. “Please have mercy. These children have done nothingwrong, they were not aware of the resistance. They don’t know anything. Please,spare them. They will do whatever you wish.”

Thefemale android showed no emotion; this was the job that they were made for.Mercy was not in them, only orders. “No one survives,” it said coldly and thenshot the woman in the head. The person holding the camera jumped back startledand then the footage began to shake as shots rang out one after anothersilencing the tiny screams and cries from the terrified children. It didn’ttake long before the video was silent of voices. Only the breath of the manholding the camera could be heard coming out in short erratic gasps, the sameones that were escaping from Faran. The group of androids moved out of the viewof the camera and then suddenly one was up against the lens of the camera andall Faran could see was black. He could still hear what was going on.

“Corporal,what are you doing?” the android asked.

Thevoice was young and frightened. “I was told to film the events here.”

Theandroid was silent for a moment. Faran could only guess that she was makingsure of his statement with headquarters.

“Headquartershas rescinded the order. Make sure the data is properly destroyed.” Then theaudio went silent. Faran clenched the data pad in his hands and looked at thetitle of the next file. Quickly he pushed on the file and another terribleimage was imprinted in his mind.

* * * *

Parrisentered the bridge. Esper was already there just staring out the windowabsently scrolling through data on the screen before her.

“Youfinished helping Dyllys?” Esper asked. Parris could never figure out how Esperalways knew when he was around, he could move without sound and she would stillknow he was there. Even in the dead of night, she had a way of knowing when hewas awake before he changed his breathing or said a word. That was why hecalled her Esper, his telepath. “She didn’t need any modifications, did she?”

“Whyare you asking the question if you already know the answer?” He sat down in hischair and stared out the window following Esper’s gaze.

“Youchoose the wrong subject to modify, Parris. I thought you were more perceptivethen that.” He had been staring at the nebula they were passing by, brilliantcolors of a star giving birth, but he turned to Esper when he heard her comment.

“Subjectto modify? Do you mean Faran? I guess he does need some modifying. He’s hadtwenty or so years of brainwashing by the Ordalis, I think it will take sometime for him to understand what the rest of the galaxy is like,” Parris saidoffhand and turned back to the peaceful sight before him.

“Itook it upon myself to educate him.”

Parrissat up at this comment. “Educate him? Esper you didn’t show him –” Parrisgroaned and then got out of his chair. “Is it too much to ask to give ourguests at least a day to adjust to their surroundings?”

“Whyprolong a problem, a quick resolution makes things move along smoothly.”

“Well,yes, quick resolutions to problems are good logically, but seeing as you don’tunderstand the fragility of the human psyche I wish you would have left thisone to me. Maybe we should switch subjects, as you call them.” Parris made itto the door of the bridge and then turned back to Esper. “Any more problemsthat you want to fix could you please ask me first.”

“Iwon’t promise you anything.” She didn’t even glance at Parris when she saidthis. He knew that meant that she had no intention at all of taking intoconsideration what he had said.

* * * *

Parrisfound Faran where Esper had left him, alone in his room, data pad in hand. Parrishad never seen someone look as pale as an android, but Faran did. Parris wasn’teven sure he was still breathing. He walked up to Faran and gently grabbed thedata pad pulling it from his grasp.

“Espercan be tactless,” Parris said. Faran looked up at his voice, but Parris couldsee that Faran wasn’t seeing him at all. He was still seeing the images on thevideos.

“I–” Faran started but couldn’t finish. He was shaking. “I didn’t know.”

“Iknow. I’m sorry you had to see those. Those things haunt my dreams. I neverwanted them to haunt someone else’s.”

“Howdid you get all of those?”

“Mostof them are accounts of people whom I’ve helped replace sanctuary, others wereacquired from people seeking asylum from things they had witnessed and done. Itdoesn’t really matter does it?”

“Iguess not. How long have you been doing this sort of thing? Fighting againstthe Ordalis?”

Parrisleaned against the wall and crossed his arms. “I can’t say that I’m fightingagainst the Ordalis. One person can’t fight against the Ordalis. I tried tojoin one of the resistance groups. It wasn’t to my taste. Esper and I like totry a more subversive route. Besides, I thought attacking their actual powerbase made more sense.”

“Youmean Davenport Electronics,” Faran supplied.

Parrisglanced at Faran with amusement. “You are stronger than I would have given youcredit for. Maybe Esper had you pegged.”

“Maybenot strong, just able to not think about it.”

“Ihave other questions for you though. I want to know why you went along withDyllys. Why are you participating in her charade?”

“Idon’t know what you mean,” Faran muttered. His response was quick, clipped; hecould hear the falseness to it as surely as Parris did.

“Youare a poor liar, Boy. Maybe if you stopped treating her like you are her masterthen she would be able to be herself again.”

“Ididn’t ask to be her master, I told you that.”

“Butyou still treat her like that. You assumed the role even if you didn’t ask forit. Why don’t you try being her friend?”

“Ithought I was trying, but it’s hard. Whenever I look at her, I know she isseeing her Faran and not me at all. How do you get close when that is betweenyou?”

“Whichbrings me back to my original question, why are you helping her?”

“Ithought that if my family thought I was fulfilling one of their chosen rolesfor me that I would be able to have a moment to breath.”

“Howis that working out for you?” Parris asked bitterly, “You know its people likeyou that are able to perpetuate the society that the Ordalis is striving after.You feel free just to use others for your own gain with no regard to how theyfeel. I guess you thought it was easier when the subject of your selfishnesscouldn’t protest because she couldn’t feel anything at all. Are you sure youlearned anything from what you watched on this?” Parris threw the data pad backat Faran. “While you are not thinking about all of the things on there, try notto forget them completely.”

Parrisopened the door and slammed it behind him. He ran into Dyllys in the hallway, whichmade him more enraged. “You two are perfect for each other.” He walked brisklydown the hallway with Dyllys staring mutely after him.