Chapter 12

The adults were assisting the new arrivals in other areas of the ship. Leslie assigned each of the thirteen-year-olds jobs to 'hold down the fort' while they were away. Leslie had instructed the thirteen-year-olds to use her first name. However, when Joan called her former teacher by her first name, she still heard 'Mrs. Howard' in her mind.

Joan sat upstairs with little Tina and baby Katy. She blew on Katy's belly, causing her to reach up her hands and feet to grab at Joan's face.

"Not so stinky now, huh?"

Katy gurgled a nonsensical reply.

Tina was drawing on the wall. "Joan, wook at my cow."

Picking up Katy, Joan took her to examine the drawing. The blue cow stood on orange ground. Joan was surprised she could identify the drawing as a cow. "That's very pretty, Tina. Are you finished?"

"No, not yet."

"I need to feed Katy."

Tina turned back to her artwork. Joan grabbed a bottle sitting in the dispenser. She seated herself in the rocker.

"Wellow." Tina told the marker in her hand.

The line she drew was still blue.

"No blue, ywel-low."

There was an audible ting. "Repeat after me Tina, yel-oh." The AI waited for a response.

"Yell-low," Tina chimed. Soft clapping caused the little girl to curtsy. She looked up to see if Joan was watching.

Joan responded with thumbs up and a wink.

Katy held her bottle, her eyes drooping toward sleep. Tina was adding a yellow sixth leg to her cow. Joan hoped it was a leg. She smiled, watching the picture mutate into a surrealistic experience.

Katy dropped the bottle. Joan set it upright. She shifted the baby up to her shoulder. The burp was a bit wet. Once Katy was asleep, she laid her in the crib. Closing the top placed Katy into a mini med-bay-like chamber that let the AI closely monitor her while keeping her environment controlled.

Joan pulled off her sundress, placing it into the recycler. In a few minutes it would cleaned and returned. Tina tossed her dress into the slot also.

Tina took Joan's hand and led her to the door. "Need to go potty, Joan."

Nudity in the pod started becoming the norm. The kids playing video games in the common room did little more than glance in their direction. Strangely, it seemed easier for her, Eve and the other thirteen-year-old girls than for the boys.

Ted and Bert started using the workout machines on the lower level. That spectator sport possessed a few things that held her attention.

The trip to the toilet proved successful. The AI posted a star under Tina's successful potty attempts tally.

Once back in the playroom, Tina led Joan to the rocker.

"Rock me please?"

As soon as she took her seat, Tina climbed into her lap. "You my new mommy for me too, Joan?"

"Would you like that?"

"Ahha."

Tina burrowed herself into Joan's nude torso, falling asleep in about four rocks.

All her life, her parents kept pushing her; 'you are going to college'. Aunt Donna was married and had six kids. Momma always referred to her as a breeder, as though she were a lesser person. Compared to her mom, Aunt Donna seemed much happier.

"Mr. AI."

"You have no need to address me with a title."

"Sorry. Can I ask a few questions?"

"Yes, Joan, you may."

"Do I have a choice to not take the test when I'm fourteen?"

A pause ensued. "That would be most irregular, Joan."

Stroking Tina's back, she pondered her next question. "I really like watching after kids. What if I just want to have and raise kids?"

"As a volunteer, you have a choice as to when you conceive a baby. As a concubine, your sponsor has the choice of when and who the father will be." That was something Joan hadn't fathomed. Mr. Jenkins had mentioned something like it before, but hearing the AI made it more real. "At this time, your experience with small children is limited."

"I am a certified sitter." Even as she said the words, she knew her argument was flimsy.

"Your statement is verified in the Red Cross records."

Joan decided she might need to start listening to Randy and Louis about the AIs.

"May I make a suggestion, Joan?"

"Yes." Joan stood, taking Tina over to her cottage-toddler-bed.

"During your sleep training cycle, would you like an overview of the various options a sponsor has?"

Bending down, Joan pulled back the sheet. Tucking Tina in, she kissed the sleeping girl's cheek.

"I think that's a good idea, Mr. AI."

A gentle tapping caught her attention.

"Nice view." The complement came from behind her.

Turning, she saw Ted standing in the doorway.

In a whisper, he inquired, "Since you're naked, I was wondering if you would mind me practicing for my oral exam?"

"Pervert," she branded him, as she moved to the singlewide bed to sit down. "My answer is," she spread her legs open wide, lying back, "I need you to climb on the bed and put something in my mouth so we don't wake the little ones while you practice.

The AI grabbed Bill's attention. 'Bill Jenkins, report to Med Bay Two.'

Slipping out the back of the mess hall, Bill began walking toward the spine of the ship.

'May I ask why?' Speaking subvocally was becoming second nature.

'The Concubine Tiffany Jenkins has been injured.'

Bill picked up the pace, striding, cutting around, and closely brushing people as he passed them.

'How long ago?'

'Approximately three minutes and forty-seven seconds.'

"Shit." Bill no longer concentrated on using subvocals. "How bad is Tiffany hurt?"

'The Concubine Tiffany Jenkins suffered a C-1 spinal injury with bilateral tear along the cerebellum, pons and medulla oblongata. Her viability is being assessed at the moment.'

Bill sprinted. Volunteers warned by the AI either moved or helped to clear a path.

Entering Sick Bay, Bill ran into a female Marine. She absorbed his momentum, stopping Bill from plowing into the group around the med tube.

"What happened?" Bill screamed.

A big bald headed Marine spoke. "A concubine attacked her."

Bill agreed to have his people help as long as they would be safe. "Where was her security?"

"Sir," the female Marine interjected. "When the concubine," she pointed at a crumpled nude male, "first grabbed her, Corporal Mendez moved to secure him." Bill looked at the Marine who towered five inches over him. "The torque from the corporal pulling him away from him caused your concubine's neck to strike the edge." She tapped the hard square edge of an opened tube.

Bill spun back to the Corporal. "So you let him try and kill her!" No one responded. "I wasn't told for almost four minutes." Still no response came from the silent Marine. The heat of the moment tore at Bill's gut. They wouldn't even say if Tiffany would live.

Bill pivoted and threw an overhand right at the corporal. Private Byrd countered. It wasn't wax-on or wax-off. The block, whatever she called it, broke bones.

Joyce stood by his tube as it opened. Salome held Theresa as she watched over Tiffany in a nearby tube. Joyce motioned for Bill to hush. She then pointed to his ear and mouthed 'ask the AI'.

'What does Joyce want me to know?'

When the video of Jason's attack on Tiffany was shown to the ship's company later, more than one woman fainted at the sound of the breaking bones. The unnatural angle at which Tiffany's head lay after she crumpled to the floor unhinged a few more stomachs.

The Captain of the ship, Major Griffin, began addressing the human cargo. "This is a direct and unprovoked attack upon the Concubine Tiffany Jenkins."

The view switched to the captain. "We also have reason to believe that Concubine Jason Martin systematically abused a four-year-old." Images of Howard Klein's back filled the screen. "The AI identified these marks as cigarette burns."

Calls for bodily harm and murder came from the crowd. The picture changed to diagrams of the little boy's fingers, superimposed with words showing recent sprains and even a stress fracture. This triggered gasps, which turned to angry calls for justice.

"Please listen and pay attention," the captain ordered.

"Can it, people!" bellowed a sergeant.

"Jason's sponsor has released him to the 'unassigned concubines' contingent." That brought a few voices shouting 'no' or 'what.' "The AI and I have declared Concubine Jason Martin to be both dangerous and capable of recidivism."

The image changed to a collarless and naked Jason standing in a cell. "The sponsor against whom Jason's crimes have been committed has declared Jason Martin's sponsor to be blameless in this matter."

A new image filled the view screens. It showed the rainbow colored aurora emanating from the stern of the ship. "Sentence will be carried out." Jason appeared next to the aurora. He flailed his arms and legs. When his arm and leg touched the rainbow, they began to break into particles, His mouth opened in a silent scream. Quickly the field sucked the rest of him into oblivion.

"If you have any questions, please refer them to the ship's personnel or a Marine in your section. May the rest of our voyage to Wayward be uneventful. Remember, the AI is always watching any and all activity on my ship, Captain Griffin out."

Ensign Kahn moved in front of the blank screen. Several hands went into the air. He pointed to a man holding the hand of a naked woman.

"The Captain said the crimes were against her sponsor. What about the attack on the woman?"

Kahn nodded. "Concubines are considered chattel, property while in transport." A few of the naked women showed changes in their posture and facial expressions, the AI noted those changes for future review. "Martin attacked and damaged the property of a sponsor. Minors such as the boy he was abusing are held under special and high regard. Child abuse is one of the few crimes for which there is no defense even though carried out before boarding this vessel."

The man asked a follow up question. "What about corporal punishment for minors?"

Kahn smiled. He wished volunteers would take the family life sleep training sooner. "AI's monitor punishment, they will warn you if your actions begin to tilt toward abuse. I would advise you to heed them." He pointed to a naked woman in the second row.

She stood, shaking a bit. "Can a sponsor abuse a concubine?"

"As the captain stated, the AI sees all. Limits vary from colony to colony. Here on the Kon Tiki each sponsor receives specific instructions regarding concubines during his or her sleep training."

A different concubine raised her hand. "Why do some of us have different color collars?"

At least he was able to avoid the 'why do we have collars' question. "Green denotes that the concubine has a sponsor. Orange shows that the concubine has been temporarily assigned a sponsor for the trip to Wayward. Once there, your 'awaiting confirmation' status will be resolved. White denotes the concubine is assigned to the unassigned concubine pool at Wayward."

"Awaiting confirmation? Please elaborate."

"Many of you are in transport due to skills you have. Lucy, you are temporarily assigned to Alicia King, the Master Potter from the kiln where you worked. Your husband, Bruce, is assigned to Alicia also. It is the intention of the Governor to maintain existing viable nuclear families."

"I thought that the med tubes could fix anything," Theresa questioned to the ether.

"The physical damage to the concubine Tiffany Jenkins is being repaired."

Ensign Khan and Gia maneuvered the med tube into Bill's study.

"Honey," Gia addressed Theresa. "The AI is right. The issue is a bit more complex."

Theresa placed her hands on her hips showing the disdain she felt for being overlooked. She might be only twelve but damn-it, this was her mother, and she was taking a full slate of honors high school classes. Don't overlook her!

Once the tube touched the wall, a sound similar to a blast from an aerosol can emanated from the device.

Gia took both of Theresa's hands in hers. "The nanites need to do more than just regenerate tissue." Theresa let Gia draw her into an embrace. "The nerve paths need reconstruction. While this is happening, your mother's brain needs to re-learn how to control her body."

Theresa knew her mother's heart had stopped for almost four minutes.

The AI offered a solution. "Concubine Gia Khan, I will give a visual." A two-foot by three-foot piece of wall flickered.

"AI, please use visuals like those Theresa would see in a school textbook," requested Gia.

An animated image of brain and spinal cord appeared on the screen. The visual zoomed in to a representation of the damaged area, which was to scale. The detail was amazing. Theresa wished for a moment that her study circle could have access to this on the class wiki.

The AI began. "Subconsciously, your mother is being prompted to interact with a virtual reality. Her brain is ordering her body to act as if she were physically interacting with the environment."

Theresa interrupted with a question. "I thought the nerves were being regenerated?"

"That is an equivalent explanation. The human bodies' interconnectivity in relation to autonomic and voluntary systems is complex. To ensure Tiffany Jenkins is restored to complete health, each possible nerve path must be tested and verified."

The image showed a woman waltzing with a man. A graph labeled nerve impulse through C1 and C2 nerve bundle expanded into the lower right corner of the screen. Blue indicated impulses from the brain to her body, red denoted the reverse. As she moved the total number of nerve impulses skyrocketed.

"It takes time," the AI added, "for the process to be considered successful."

Theresa sniffled. "Will she still be my mom?"

"The area where memory and emotion emanate from was not injured. There is a chance for recent memory loss."

Theresa nodded. Gia felt most of the tension melt away.

"Thank you Mr. AI."

"You are welcome Teresa Jenkins."

Theresa, her brother Ben, and Tina slept on the floor of Bill's study. To explain why Tiffany remained in the Med Tube to the younger children, Joyce had used Sleeping Beauty as an analogy.

Tina marched straight from Joyce's bent fairy tale to where the adults sat.

"Papa, Daddy," she pointed accusing fingers at Bill and Ray-ray. "Go kiss Momma now." She stomped her foot.

Salome saved the men from Tina's wrath. "Snow White has to sleep for several days first." Her little white lie made perfect sense to Tina in fairy tale reality.

"OK," Tina said, defeated. "On sevralday you better kiss her."