Close Obsession (10 page)

* * *

The Krinar drew in a deep breath, glad that the first day of the trial was over. It had gone exactly as he’d expected.

Korum had demanded the ultimate punishment for the ones he regarded as traitors. If the K hadn’t taken precautions, he could have easily been the eighth figure standing there, being judged by the Council.

He had distanced himself from the Keiths just in time. Now nobody would suspect his involvement in the attack on the Centers.

He had made sure of that.

Chapter 6

Starving and mentally exhausted, Mia exited the virtual reality setting by telling her wristwatch-bracelet device to bring her back home. Her breakfast this morning had been light, just a mango-avocado smoothie, and she felt almost faint with hunger at this point. Opening her eyes, she got up from the couch where she had been sitting and went in search of food.

Approaching the refrigerator, she opened it decisively and stared at the various plant foods that occupied it. Some were familiar – she saw a couple of tomatoes and sweet peppers – but others were completely foreign. Mia wished that Korum were here, so he could make one of his delicious and filling concoctions. However, since he’d been at the trial in person, she figured he might be delayed for at least a while longer.

Suddenly, she got an idea. Korum had mentioned that one of the house’s functions was to prepare foods. Would it do it for her as well?

“Hey, house,” Mia said tentatively, feeling like an idiot, “can you please prepare me something to eat?”

For a second, nothing happened, and then a melodious female voice asked, “What would you like, Mia?”

Mia nearly jumped in excitement. “Oh my God, you talk! That’s great! Um . . . I’d like the same thing Korum made yesterday, especially if it can be prepared quickly.”

“Yes, Mia,” the female voice responded softly. “The shari salad will be ready in two minutes, and the kalfani stew will be done six minutes later.”

Grinning in amazement, Mia walked over to the sink to wash her hands. By the time she finished and sat down at the table, a part of the wall had opened and a bowl of salad emerged, floating calmly toward the table.

Mia watched in open-mouthed shock as the salad landed neatly in front of her. It was the perfect portion size for her, and the tong-like utensil was already inside the bowl. The dish was completely ready for her consumption.

“Um, thank you,” she said, trying to look around to see where the voice had been coming from. Was there a computer embedded somewhere in the ceiling?

“You’re welcome, Mia,” the female voice said again. “Please enjoy, and I will have the next dish ready for you within minutes.”

Grinning again, Mia dug into the food. So far, she was loving Krinar technology. It was everything that people had been fantasizing about in science fiction, yet it was entirely real – and had an almost magical twist to it that Mia found very appealing. She particularly appreciated how easy it was to operate everything. Natural language voice commands, simple hand gestures – it all seemed so intuitive.

By the time she finished the salad, the stew-like dish from yesterday had floated to the table as well. Mia greedily consumed it, feeling much of the earlier tiredness leaving her as her blood sugar levels stabilized. The food was as delicious as it had been yesterday, and Mia wondered again why Korum bothered learning how to cook when he had access to such remarkable technology in his house.

Finally replete, she cleaned up by bringing the dishes toward the wall – which opened up to accept them, just as it had for Korum – and went into the living room.

It seemed like as good a time as any to call the camp director in Orlando and let him know that she wouldn’t be starting on Monday.

* * *

By the time Korum arrived home an hour later, Mia had managed to get bored.

She’d spoken with the camp director and explained that unforeseen circumstances were preventing her from coming to Florida this summer. He had been disappointed, but surprisingly nice about the whole thing, which was a tremendous relief for Mia. Afterwards, she explored the house a bit and even tried talking to it, but the melodious female voice didn’t seem all that interested in carrying on a conversation. It did ask whether Mia was warm and comfortable (which she was) and if she desired anything to eat or drink (which she didn’t), but that was the extent of their interaction. There didn’t seem to be any books around or anything else for her to amuse herself with, either.

Sighing, Mia plopped down on the couch in the living room and stared at the greenery outside. She wished she were brave enough to venture out, but the thought of getting lost in a Costa Rican forest didn’t appeal to her. Studying the bracelet-like device on her wrist, Mia wondered if it would work like an actual computer, enabling her to get on the internet. She thought about trying it, but decided to wait for Korum to demonstrate more of its capabilities to her.

Finally, Korum walked in. He looked tense and a little tired, and Mia guessed that more politics had gone on behind the scenes after the trial had formally adjourned. Nevertheless, he smiled when he saw her sitting there.

“Hi,” she said, ridiculously glad to see him. Despite everything that had happened between them, despite the fact that she had just seen him treat his opponents almost cruelly, she couldn’t help the warm sensation that spread through her in his presence.

His smile widened. Walking over to join her on the couch, he kissed her softly and pulled her closer to him for a hug. Mia hugged him back, surprised, and mumbled into his shirt, “Is everything okay? Did anything happen?”

He shook his head and simply held her, burying his face in her hair and inhaling her scent. “No,” he murmured, “everything is good now.”

After a few more seconds, he pulled back and looked at her. “I hope you got something to eat? I programmed the house to respond to your verbal commands, to make sure you wouldn’t have any difficulties here.”

Mia smiled. “Yeah, I figured it out. Thanks for that.”

“Good,” he said softly, “I want you to feel comfortable here.”

Mia nodded slowly. “I’m starting to, a bit. But I actually wanted to ask you something . . .”

“Of course, what is it?”

“I’m bored,” Mia told him bluntly. “I don’t really have anything to do when you’re not here. At home, I have school, work, friends, books, TV –”

“Ah, I see,” Korum said, smiling. “I haven’t shown you everything that your little computer can do. Tell it that you would like to read something.”

“Okay,” Mia said dubiously, looking at her bracelet, “I would like to read something . . .”

Almost immediately, one of the walls parted, revealing a section hidden inside – a shelf of some kind. And as Mia watched, an object that looked like a thick sheet of paper floated out toward her.

“How does all this stuff float?” Mia asked in amazement, plucking the object out of thin air. “Plates, chairs, now this . . .”

“The premise is similar to the shields we use to protect our settlements,” Korum explained. “It’s a type of force-field technology, just applied on a much smaller scale.”

“Oh, I see,” Mia said, as if that told her anything. A technology whizz she definitely wasn’t. Studying the sheet in her hands, she saw that it was actually made of some plastic-like material.

“This is something you can entertain yourself with,” he said, sitting down next to her. “It’s a little like your computer tablets. You can read any book – human or Krinar – that’s ever been written, and you can watch any kind of film you want. This will also work with verbal commands, so you can just tell it what you want to see or read.”

“Can I use it to learn more about the Krinar? To read some history books or something?” asked Mia, staring at the object with excitement.

“Sure. You can use it for whatever purpose you want.”

Mia grinned. “That’s great, thanks!”

He smiled back at her. “Of course. I don’t want you to be bored here.”

Something suddenly occurred to Mia. “Wait, you said it works by verbal commands, but I’ve never seen or heard you using verbal commands on anything. How do
you
control all your technology?”

“I have a very powerful computer that essentially allows me to control everything through a specific type of thinking,” Korum explained, holding up his palm. “It’s a type of highly advanced brain-computer interface. I use some gestures too, but that’s just out of habit.”

Mia stared at him. “So you control electronics with your mind?”

“Krinar electronics, yes. Human technology is not designed for that.”

“What about the others? Is that how they do it too?”

Korum nodded. “Many of them, yes. Some still prefer the old-fashioned way, which is voice commands and gestures, but most have switched over. The majority of our technology is designed to accommodate both ways of doing things because our children and young ones only use the first method.”

“Why?” Mia asked, looking at him in fascination.

“Because their brains aren’t fully formed and developed, and because there’s a learning curve involved with using brain-computer interfaces. That’s why I’m setting up everything with voice capabilities for you for now – it’s much easier for a beginner to master. Later on, when you understand our technology and society better, I can set you up with the new interface.”

Mia’s eyes widened. He would give her the ability to control Krinar technology with her mind? The possibilities were simply unimaginable. “That sounds . . .”

“Like a little too much right now?” Korum guessed, and Mia nodded.

“Hence the voice commands for now,” he said. “Your society has advanced far enough that you can easily understand that type of interface, and it’s very intuitive.”

“So for now, I’ll be like one of your children?” Mia asked wryly.

His lips curved into a smile. “If you were Krinar, you would actually be considered an adolescent, age-wise.”

“I see.” Mia gave him a small frown. “And at what age do you become adults?”

“Well, physically, we attain our adult characteristics right around the same age as humans, somewhere in the late teens or early twenties. However, it’s only around a couple of hundred years of age that a Krinar is considered mature enough to be a fully functioning member of our society – although it could be sooner if they make some type of extraordinary contribution.”

For some reason, that upset her. Mia didn’t know why it mattered to her that she would not be considered a fully functioning member of Krinar society at any point within her lifetime. It’s not like they would ever view a human as such anyway. And besides, she had no idea how long her relationship with Korum would last. Still, it rankled her somewhat, the fact that Ks would always consider her little more than a child.

Not wanting to dwell on that topic, she asked, “So did the trial today go as you expected?”

Korum shrugged. “Just about. Loris will try to twist everything, to make it seem like I made the whole thing up. But there’s too much evidence of their betrayal, and I don’t think anything can save them at this point.”

“What does complete rehabilitation mean?” Mia asked, unbearably curious. “Everyone seemed shocked when you suggested it.”

“It’s our most extreme form of punishment for criminals,” Korum said, his eyes narrowing slightly. “It’s used in cases when an individual poses a severe danger to society – as these traitors clearly do.”

“Okay . . . but what is it?”

“Saret can do a better job of explaining it to you,” Korum said. “The exact mechanics of it fall within his area of expertise. But essentially, whatever it was that made them act that way – that personality trait will be thoroughly eradicated.”

Mia’s eyes widened. “How?”

Korum sighed. “Like I said, it’s not my area of expertise. But from what I know as a layman, it involves wiping out a lot of their memories and creating a new personality for them. It’s only done when there’s no other choice because it’s very invasive for the mind. The rehabilitated are never the same afterwards – which is exactly the point in this case.”

“So they wouldn’t remember who they are?” That did seem pretty horrible to Mia.

“They might remember bits and pieces, so they wouldn’t be completely blank slates, but the essence of their personality – and that part that made them commit the crime – would be gone.”

Mia swallowed. “That does seem harsh . . .”

His eyes narrowed again. “It’s better than what your kind does to criminals. At least we don’t have capital punishment.”

“You don’t?” Mia wasn’t sure why she was so surprised to hear that. Perhaps it had to do with the popular image of the Ks as a violent species, arising primarily from the bloody fights during the Great Panic.

“No, Mia, we don’t,” Korum told her sardonically. “We’re really not the monsters you’ve imagined us to be.”

“I never said your people were,” Mia protested, and he laughed.

“No, just me, right?”

Mia lowered her eyes, unable to bear the mockery in his gaze. “I don’t think you’re a monster,” she told him quietly. “But I do think it’s wrong for you to treat me like a possession just because I’m human. I’m a person with feelings and desires, and I did have a life before you came into it –”