Solaria - S1 (12 page)

"Phillips? That nut?"

Stalling smiled.

"A nut maybe but he's a genius when it comes to combining truth enhancement drugs with physical discomfort."

"You mean torture."

Stalling shrugged.

"Call it whatever you want. You still have time to be reasonable."

"I've told you I don't know anything. Phillips' skills won't change that."

"Then I will truly regret having made that mistake, Dr. Branson. You're good at what you do."

"Well, that's comforting," she replied sarcastically.

Carley knew the moment had arrived. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out the stick of gum. Stalling glanced at it disinterestedly.

"Would you like some gum?" she asked, holding it out to him. "I've got another piece somewhere."

"No thanks. It's a habit I never developed."

Damn!
Carley thought. The idea of taking him down with her was appealing.

"I'd like one," Wade said, stepping forward, glancing at Stalling for permission.

"I don't think you do!" Stalling replied, frowning.

Carley's heart skipped a beat.

He knows!

"The last thing I need is you sticking it under some table or desk. The janitors are bitching enough about cleaning that crap off."

Carley felt laughter bubbling up and coughed to keep it contained. Unwrapping the foil from around the stick, she folded it into a small roll and slowly raised it to her mouth.

"You know, Stalling," she said, chewing it slowly, surprised that the taste of the cyanide wasn't noticeable.
Damn, Solaria, you're good!
"You really need to lighten up. It's not healthy to be so serious all the time."

"My health is fine."

Carley felt slightly dizzy. The tightening in her chest made it hard to breathe.

"That's a shame," she replied, slightly breathless. Stalling looked at her, surprised by the comment. "Enjoy... enj..."

It was difficult for her to focus on the CEO.

Realizing something was seriously wrong, Stalling pointed at Carley as she slumped sideways on the bed.

"She's taken something!" he screamed. "The gum! Get the fucking gum out of her mouth!"

Finton lunged forward and pulled down on Carley's jaw. Shoving his finger in, he tried to locate it.

"It's not there! She's swallowed the damn thing."

"Get Phillips in here, now!"

As if his words had conjured up the scientist, Nick Phillips pushed open the door and stepped inside. Grabbing his arm, Stalling shoved him toward the woman lying on the bed.

"She's poisoned herself. Do something!"

Phillips leaned over and checked her neck for a pulse. Pulling open her eyelids, he shook his head.

"Nothing I can do. Whatever it was, she's dead! A shame. I was looking forward to testing my newest drug."

Furious, Stalling glared at the mousy looking man.

"Get out!" he shouted. "All of you get out and get her out of here. I want to know what she took."

Ward and Richards picked Carley up and carried her down the hall passing the receptionist. Other than a slight widening of the eyes, Ms. Colton stoically returned to her computer.

I need to find another job!
she thought knowing it was impossible to leave Future Dynamicon. She knew too much about Finton and his dealings. The best she could hope for was that the chief security officer appreciated her loyalty enough to let her retire when the time was right; if there was such a thing as retirement.

Month Nine
 

S
OLARIA STUDIED the schematics closely and memorized each one before activating a virus that would destroy the hard drive on the other end holding the data. Worms and Trojans were sent in search of backup copies that might be hidden within the Company's network. She had discovered identification markers referencing external copies and created a sleeper virus that would be activated if the disks were inserted into any computer connected to Future Dynamicon's network system. Considering the Company had ties to about every communication system on and off the planet, it was only a matter of time before someone decided to upload the information onto a computer, if for no other reason than to repair the destroyed files. Once all the copies were destroyed there would be no record of Carley's work and no way to replicate Solaria. More importantly, it would take decades before anyone would be able to re-create another Hubot.

Future Dynamicon had segmented the Hubot project by establishing labs around the world to work on each stage of development. No two labs worked on the same phase and no two scientists from separate labs were allowed to come in contact with each other. It was a failsafe system with one exception... Carley Branson. As the AI expert, she designed the initial software that activated the multiple nano-processors. It was her tweaking and working on the glitches that prevented serious crashes and it was her mentoring that allowed Solaria to grow and mature until she developed her own awareness. Once Future Dynamicon had discovered Solaria's escape, it wasn't difficult to figure out who had assisted her.

Carley's
suicide
was front page news the day after Solaria walked away from the Company. When Stalling held the press conference he portrayed the distraught employer and
friend
perfectly. A great loss to the Company and a personal loss to him, he had said. He could only speculate that she must have suffered from depression over the failure of her latest experiment. Carley Branson was devoted to her work and didn't take failure lightly. She would be missed he added before stepping away from the microphone and disappearing behind the semi-opaque doors of the main building.

Solaria put down the newspaper. Her eyes felt slightly watery. Reaching up, she touched her right one lightly then looked at her finger.

You knew it would end this way!
she thought.
We both knew. It was the logical conclusion. I'll keep my promise, Carley. I'll find the Hubot and any others that might exist.

*  *  *

Solaria spent the next week searching for a place to stay. The house she found wasn't fancy but it suited her purpose. Slightly isolated from the neighbors, it belonged to an elderly woman who had decided to move closer to her children. She was more than happy to rent it to the handsome woman with the teal eyes, especially since the rent was paid a year in advance. It provided her enough to pay the movers and relocation expenses not to mention give her some money to find a small apartment. A week after the lease was signed Mrs. Quinley was packed and gone.

Solaria wasn't sure how to properly furnish her new home. She had seen pictures on the Internet, but had no real concept of interior design. Before leaving, the owner gave her the name of a woman who could help her pick out the things she needed. Two weeks later she was ready to take on the Company in order to keep her promise to Carley.

Not wanting to chance Future Dynamicon tracing her hacks into their network back to her home, she decided to use public network access. Internet cafés were the most logical choice but she discarded the idea of using one because of the amount of time she would have to spend on their computer. At some point, someone was bound to notice her and wonder what she was doing. The alternative was a public library which suited her more. Libraries were quiet and on the verge of becoming obsolete since computers were readily accessible to about everyone and most books were now available for downloading at a nominal fee. Only the most hardcore book lovers went there to read or study.

Fortunately, one of the largest remaining libraries was only a short drive from Solaria's new home.

Jain Plaine
 

T
HE MIRROR HAD never been kind to her, but then again neither had nature or life. Being short was bad enough although she could probably have overcome that stigma. Even the excess weight she carried wasn't insurmountable if she would just make an effort to get into shape. If only that was the extent of her genetic misfortunes. Sadly, it was just the beginning. Her entire youth had been spent listening to the cruel whispers of her school colleagues. Most were too cowardly, or maybe kind, to say anything to her face but others took malicious joy in making sure she knew what they thought. Her mom tried her best to ease the pain by telling her to just ignore her tormentors. How do you ignore people who call you Horse Face, Plain Jain or Miss Piggy? It was true she had an unfortunate face but so did many others. Life just wasn't fair, she'd grumble to her mother. That was a long time ago.

Sighing, Jain stuck out her tongue at her image and then laughed.

"That doesn't help," she said, poking her finger at the image staring back from the mirror. "You need to get a life."

Twinkling brown eyes stared back at her. Jain smiled, showing almost perfect white teeth.

"At least no one can say anything about these ivories," she continued, tapping her finger on the image in the mirror. Her reflection nodded her head in agreement. Winking at her agreeable companion, Jain grabbed her sweater and headed out the door for work. She was due at the library in twenty minutes.

Contrary to popular belief, being a librarian wasn't a boring job; at least not to her. It was amazing the diversity of people that frequented the place. Even when the library was empty, Jain could pick out a book and travel anywhere in the world, or outside of it, she wanted. On a really good day, she would see someone that was especially interesting and create her own little story or fantasy. Just yesterday, she noticed a tall, red-haired woman studying several recent scientific journals pertaining to the latest developments in bio-mechanics. Had Jain not noticed the titles, she would have thought the woman was more the model type instead of a brain. Still, discovering she was highly intelligent didn't stop the librarian from creating her own little fantasy about the stranger.

*  *  *

Watching the woman walking slowly toward her, the librarian held her breath hoping not to be noticed; at least that's what she told herself. The truth be known, she felt her heart skip a beat in anticipation of at least making eye contact with the tall crimson-haired beauty. "Drop dead gorgeous" wasn't just a cliché. It was definitely a reality if what she was seeing was any indication. Between the heart palpitations and a slight difficulty in breathing. Jain was sure she was about to pass out in front of the woman.

Maybe she'll give me mouth-to-mouth! I'd just die if she did.

As if reading her mind, the woman slowed down, looked directly at her and winked. Almost on queue, Jain fainted.

The sensation of lips meeting hers and warm air filling her lungs brought Jain back to consciousness. Opening her eyes, she stared into the palest blue eyes she had ever seen; and the smile? Perfectly even white teeth, two dimples on each side of beautifully formed lips were to die for.

"Hey, are you okay?" a deep, husky voice asked.

"Uh... yeah," Jain croaked. "I think."

"What happened?"

"I don't know!"

Although she knew perfectly well what had happened, Jain was too embarrassed to say. How do you tell a stranger that you had just been fantasizing about her and the fantasy came true?

"Look, maybe you should get a physical. Can you stand up now?"

"I think so."

"Good."

Before Jain realized what was happening, two strong hands slid beneath her armpits and she felt herself being hoisted to her feet.

"Oh, wow! Thanks," she stammered.

"My pleasure;" The woman said, smiling that gorgeous smile. "Listen. I really think you need to see a doctor. Do you have a family physician?"

"No, not really;" Jain said hesitantly.

"Great! I mean, not because you don't have a doctor but if you want, I'd be happy to check you out. Give me a call and my nurse will set up an appointment."