The same words as last time, but my mind can't process the number of years of the sentence.
“How many years?” I ask the robot.
“Eighteen earth years and six earth months. Would you like to hear the number in days, hours, minutes or the conversion into years of another planet?”
“No, no, thanks. I think I understood. Yes, I want to appeal.”
I turn towards Narios. He's sitting on the stool, with his head in his hands, crying.
I get up and hug him. I want to reassure him: “Come on, we'll find a solution.”
“No, there is no solution. Sorry, Germil. You just got the worst news of your life and you shouldn't be over here trying to console me.” He's crying desperately. “This is impossible! What the hell kind of system is this? They're murdering you!”
“Narios, I'm alive. There are other options. The Court of Cassation is another kind of court, with other judges. I'm sure my wife will do everything she can to get me out of here.”
“Sorry, Germil. I'm by your side, I have been since the beginning. Forgive me, you shouldn't have to deal with my whimpering.”
“Narios, you've been here for twenty years and you're a really good person. If I learn how to be as great a person as you've become in eighteen years, then these won't be years spent in vain.”
Nobody has ever bothered to try and erase Narios' memory.
10
“No, it's okay, I don't need any drinks, I'm here to do what you want and I always will.”
Ally looks at me, proud.
“Germil, do you really mean it?”
“Ally, my place is at your side, under your feet, under your whip, between your thighs. My only desire is to not have any other desires aside from yours. When I'm in my cell, I only think of when I'll be with you again. I want to be an object in your hands. You can use me and throw me away as you please. I want to feel your will replace my own. I'm yours. I belong to you.”
“Germil, I adore you. Do you know how happy you made me today? Good, I'm glad that you don't want to drink that stuff any more. It does strange things to your long-term memory. It's better this way.”
Her black knee-high boots look great. She's a beautiful woman.
This time we only fuck, without any torture. She lies down on the little table. Her head and hair hang over the edge. I take her vigorously. The heels of her boots push into my thighs. Afterwards, we smoke together.
“I don't know what I'd do without you, Germil. Nobody has ever made me feel so much pleasure.”
I'm curious to know if she used to fuck other prisoners before me, but I'd rather not ask.
“And I'm very happy to hear your decision. You know, you'd never have gotten out of here anyway. At least now I know that you're staying here out of your own free will.”
I kiss her, passionately. What the fuck are you saying, you ugly bitch? What does that mean, that I'd never have gotten out of here anyway?
I smile at her, as if I'm in love. “Being with you is the best thing that ever happened to me and I can't imagine life any other way.”
“I did help move things along a little...” She smiles, like a bratty little kid. “Well, unfortunately, considering the serious errors you made and your terrible behavior in prison, the second-level Judge decided to triple your sentence. And it seems to me that, after looking at what you've been up to lately, the Court of Cassation will give you a life sentence.”
I open my eyes wide and give her a passionate kiss. “You're diabolical!” I whisper.
“It's getting late. I think you need to go back to your cell. Um...you're doing just a little too well today. Tomorrow I'll have you picked up a little earlier so I can have more time to take care of you.”
“Did you get the anal dilator you ordered?” I ask her. “I can't wait!”
“You little pig, I told you you'll have to wait until next week. You can't find these things everywhere. And there are always other methods, as you know full well!”
She kisses me tenderly and the two robots materialize to take me outside.
I'll never get out of here! I'm in the hands of an insane person and a legal system created and run by her peers.
I had a wife – this I remember – and two beautiful children who I loved to death. She was named Sofia, I think. I can't remember their names, exactly. I think I was an engineer. I worked somewhere that had something to do with energy. I had good friends, but I don't remember any of them now. Narios and I are really close. He's the closest human being to me and I love him like a brother. Maybe if he doesn't see me come back, he'll think I was released. Nobody knows what's going on down in the chasm. He'll always wonder if I'm happy, at home with my family, celebrating a promotion or my kids' good grades from school.
This is what I think about as I cross the short corridor that leads to the platform. I jump up and feel the hands of the robots grab my arms. We fly down. When it seems like we're more or less in the middle of the giant hole, I rip their arms off of me and let myself fall into the void. I'll never see my family again, I'll never get my life back. But now at least that shitty psychopath won't have me either.
As I fall into the void, everything seems to slow down. I see the cells, thousands of cells carved into the rock. I can still make out, in the shadows, the outlines of the faces of prisoners, zoo animals that pace back and forth in an existence that's no longer worth anything. Most of them will never get out of here and those that do leave will always have this place in their hearts. It's life in prison for everyone. The human soul is destroyed here. All that's left is a black hole in your mind that will suck away your energy for the rest of your existence.
I feel that, just a few hundred feet below, the walls will end, and so will my life.
Suddenly I feel the will to live. I don't care how or where. I just want to live. The thoughts vanish. Everything accelerates. My heart races and seems to jump out of my chest. I see, out of the corner of my eye, two robots flying towards me. Do they want to save me?
Then everything goes dark. I'm dead.
11
“Germil, darling. Germil... Gegi, are you awake?”
Gegi? Only she calls me that. Yes, I'm awake, but how can I tell her? Everything is dark. I try to open my eyes. Do I still have eyes? Yes, I do.
The face of my wife Sofia seems to light up the room. I turn towards her hand, which caresses my cheek. The scent of flowers from our garden and soap. I look at her. She's more beautiful than ever: blonde, shiny short hair. She's wearing the pearl necklace I gave her. It was for...I don't remember.
But Sofia, yes, I could never forget her. She's the woman who gave birth to our children, the woman I promised my life to.
“My darling,” I tell her, my eyes full of tears. “I thought I'd never see you again. I love you.”
She kisses me passionately, then looks around her, worried. “But you need to hurry now. You need to go to them. They said they can't wait and that I'd have to wake you up.”
Them?
“Who are they? What do they want?”
I sit up on the bed. She hands me a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. Are these my clothes? Yes, they are. Sofia bought me the jeans and I got the t-shirt from a market near the lake. The lake? The one where the whole family would go on days when it was gorgeous outside.
“Kids!” Her voice sounds like music to my ears.
They run into the room like two furies.
“Daddy, daddy, you came back!” the older one says, jumping on me with a momentum that makes me fall back onto the bed. The little one hugs my thigh, full of emotion.
“Daddy, you're finished with work, right? You're not leaving again, right?”
“Children,” Sofia interrupts, “your father needs to go see his friends and then he'll be with you as long as you want.”
They hand me the t-shirt that fell on the floor and a pair of socks. They bring me shoes and a belt, carefully chosen by the older of the two.
“Alright, now let him be,
go play. Daddy will be there soon.” They're not too convinced but they follow their mom's instructions. I don't remember them being so obedient.
When I walk into the living room, a man and a woman stand up and hold out their hands. He's wearing a grey suit. His face is square, he's balding, short and a little overweight. She's wearing a blouse and a blue skirt down to the middle of her calves and is holding a holobook. Her chin is small, her cheeks sunken and her nose long. Her skin is opaque and her hair tinged with grey.
I shake the woman's hand first, then the man's, and invite them to sit down.
“Mr. Isiek, we have a lot of information to give you and not a lot of time. Please listen carefully and stop us anytime something isn't sufficiently clear. If you don't follow these rules, it could cost you dearly.”
His face shows no emotion as he speaks. I feel like there's a prison robot in front of me.
“We were appointed by Judge Majistis to give you the instructions you'll need to follow for the rest of your life. You were declared mentally ill after your suicide attempt. The prison guards came to your aid before you hit the ground and brought you to the hospital where, upon the judge's orders, a few devices were implanted in you to prevent such a situation from happening again.
You are under orders to resume your position in society. Your new status requires a few small limitations to your freedom. The new contraptions in your body will help protect your safety. The first is connected to the optic nerve. It records everything your eyes see and sends it to the server. Automatic processing of this data will allow us to know what you're doing and be sure that you won't try to commit suicide again, or other crimes for that matter.”
Incredulous, I try to say something. The pudgy guy raises his hand. But shouldn't I stop them if I have any questions?
“Questions at the end, please. In the past, there have been a few cases of mentally ill people who, preferring to do without this type of control, spent several months blind. If you, while awake, spend too much time with your eyes closed, a team will be sent to check on you and take any measures necessary.
Secondly, you are expressly forbidden from contacting anyone you know from prison or your legal problems.
The second device was implanted in your throat to record every word. The processor will automatically monitor this data to make sure you're not violating this regulation.
The third device is in your heart. If it detects a danger you're creating for yourself or others, it will trigger a drastic and urgent intervention. The device will block your heartbeat without further warning.
Naturally, these three devices will continuously communicate your exact position. That's it. We have a few minutes for questions.”
“You're telling me that, after I tried to kill myself, I was set free despite being sentenced to eighteen years in prison?” I try to adjust to his lack of expression.
“You're not free. You're on probation.”
“So everyone who attempts suicide in prison gets the same treatment?”
“I'm not authorized to provide that sort of information.”
“Okay, let's talk about the devices. Are you sure that the data sent from my body will be processed correctly and won't make me die from a heart attack while I'm fishing at the lake?”
“Mr. Isiek, these systems were developed by the most respected legal experts. There is no doubt that they will function properly and there has never been a case of error.”
“And how would you verify a case of error?”
“We are not authorized to provide that sort of information.”
The woman still hasn't opened her mouth. She listens, impassible.
“One last thing. Can you tell me why I was imprisoned in the first place?”
“The appropriate clarifications were surely provided in Varcoria, on Plezis III. It's not our job to get into that subject.”
“I assure you that I received absolutely no information on the subject. I must insist that you answer my question,” I answer.
“In this case I suggest that you contact the office of Judge Majioris. Remember, however, that your status prevents you from discussing the matter with others, including your wife, children and attorney. Is that all?”
Yes, that's all. Not even a telepath could get anything out of these two bureaucrats.
“Thank you very much. Goodbye.”
“Goodbye,” they both respond. Now I know the woman has a voice, too.
As soon as our guests leave, I head straight towards the kids' bedroom.
“Where are my little kittens?” I get down on my hands and knees to catch them in a big bear hug. They raise their heads from their game, spread out all over the floor.
“Daddy!”
Forms of Love
1
I've chased her halfway around the galaxy, but I can't do it anymore. I'm tired, in pain, worn out. It was all in vain. I feel like I just wasted the last few years of my life, the ones I've spent doing nothing but running after her.
I'm a police officer. My successful career has made me famous.
I've appeared in the news on civilized planets throughout the galaxy so many times I've lost count. They gave me the toughest cases and put me in charge of catching the worst criminals. Then they asked me to nab her.
For me, it was a job just like any other: bring one insipid mutant female to the maximum security prison.
After routing out bands of criminals who leeched off the inhabitants of their native planets, I thought it would be the easiest job imaginable. I figured I'd be in the news again, her in handcuffs, me smiling.
Now I'm still in this mess, on a spaceship that's badly in need of maintenance, ready to eject me in a rescue module once it finally falls apart.
And once again, she's ahead of me. It's almost as if she can anticipate my every move. I think she's toying with me.
It's all a game: she lets me get one step away from her and, just when I'm sure I've got her, she loves to flee from me.
It's like she enjoys feeling my breath on her neck.
She's a mutant, she can take on any form at any moment.
In theory, this shouldn't help her all that much: we police officers are equipped with biometric scanners and wide-range DNA detectors. No matter where she goes, her genes can be picked up by local readers. I know when she touches down on a planet.
“Captain, look!”
Eianus is talking. He's a young police officer they recently paired me up with. The FoW, or Federation of Worlds, is so exasperated with my failure that it decided to send me this kid. Tall, blonde, blue eyes, a perfect university record, first in every advanced class of the police training course, he's got a thorough knowledge of the most modern technologies.
“It looks like Ipsia suddenly changed course,” Eianus says.
We're hot on her heels, if you could say that about pursuing someone who's still a few light years away.
In the middle of the room, between Eianus and I, there's a hologram we can use to trace the position of Ipsia's spaceship as well as many other objects moving through space.
“It went into the Mx-311 solar system. From what I see, the only planet she could land on is Mx-311-d,” Einaus adds.
“What kind of planet is that?” I ask.
“It's a quarter sea and three quarters emerged land, covered with thick vegetation. Life is still in a primitive and wild stage.”
“Hmm, so no scanners or local readers. We need to go there to use our detectors. I wonder why she chose that one. There's nothing interesting for someone who steals galactic secrets.”
“Captain, we've been so close behind her that she hasn't been able to refuel for weeks. It could just be that she's running on empty.”
Ipsia, the elusive mutant, captured because she's out of gas. That would be just too funny!
2
In a world dominated by wild nature, it's not that hard to trace a spacecraft. After a mere quarter rotation around the planet, we identify Ipsia's spaceship and
land beside it. The clouds above us form a dark greenish layer. The area is swampy, her vehicle is partially submerged. We put on our space suits and microrespirators and leave through the upper hatch. The suits are close-fitting and self-pressurized. We have nanotranslators in our ears and throat, loaded with most of the languages spoken on the planets in the galaxy. We can understand and talk to anyone.
We detect the presence of particularly aggressive life forms around us. Augmented reality is constantly analyzing the surrounding environment, generating data that, directly projected onto our irises, appears fused with what we actually see. In just a few moments, our DNA detectors reveal the maximum probability of Ipsia's presence just a few hundred miles away from us. We quickly fly towards the indicated point.
Below us, the swampy areas are interspersed with denser forest areas. The battlefield microsystems identify and disintegrate the few dangers we face, including a few large predatory birds. We catch a glimpse of an enormous river and, right where it appears Ipsia stopped, a giant waterfall spills down that's, according to our AR information, two point four miles high. A hologram of the territory appears right before our eyes and, about a mile up, we see a cavern with a bright dot indicating the mutant's presence inside.
“It's too easy, Eianus. I don't like this,” I say. “Every time this bitch lets us come close, she's got an ace up her sleeve.”
“Captain, maybe this time Ipsia has simply run out of possibilities. Maybe she doesn't think she can keep running anymore,” the boy responds.
“I don't like this,” I reply, shaking my head.
We go down to the waterfall where the cavern is located. We pass the wall of water and come face to face with the most marvelous creature I could ever imagine.
“Go back to your natural state, Ipsia. You're under arrest for crimes committed against the Federation of Worlds. You'll spend the rest of your existence in prison. Eianus, put the restrictive security suit on her,” I order.
The security suit is a lot like ours, but we control its movement. Once someone is wearing it, it adheres to the prisoner's body naturally and the microflares guide it behind us wherever we go.