Ask Alice Ch. 05

"Valentine Surrogate," Alice said.

"Saw an add you guys might be about," Georgia said. "Still giving away free fucks?"

"Georgia!" Alice barked aghast.

"I take no offense," the AI said. " I am giving out free sex."

"Really?" Alice asked surprised.

"Thirty model nines just like me are here in New Edo and New Fuji as a promotional launch. We will engage in safe standard copulation for free with any interested adults and only ask for an honest online review."

"Really?" Georgia asked intrigued.

"Hello?" came a female voice from their right.

It was an Asian girl with a pretty face and the same boyish bobbed hair cut as Georgia minus the blinking lights. She was from the group Georgia had run off. She wore a bulky sweatshirt with the letters FCU on the front. She had the disheveled look of a college student. Alice recalled looking just like that in her college days not to long ago ... if she didn't count in the hundreds of years of time travel. The college kid looked to be between eighteen to twenty.

In a nervous voice, college girl said to Alice, "My I ask you some questions?"

"Whatever for?" Georgia asked not bothering to hide her annoyance.

"It's for a university FTL blog on the return of sex robots after the debacle with the Dorian Class-X model five years ago," the girl said at a hundred miles an hour. She activated her light pad. "I'm studying advance AI thinking and psychology and—"

"Why ask me questions?" Alice said cutting across the girl. "Why don't you ask him?"

The girl looked bewildered. Apparently it never occurred to her to talk directly to the AI. "I assumed that ... um ... since are his owner ... or client ..."

"You assume too much," Georgia said.

Alice was annoyed at the assumption too. "I just happen to be standing next to ..." Alice trailed off, looked at the AI and asked, "What is your name, sir?"

"I like Valentino but Val will do" the AI said. A trace of a smile formed on his full blue lips, asking his name seem to please him.

"Hello, Val, pleased to meet you," Alice said giving the AI a polite bow. "I am Alice and this is Georgia we are—"

"Professional exotic dancers," Georgia said cutting in on the introduction. Alice suppressed a laugh at the bizarre little lie. "And you are?" Georgia asked college girl.

"Noki Bushi, a student at Fuji Capital University," the girl said with an automatic bow.

"There, we all know each other," Alice said. "So what are your questions for Val?"

Noki stood wide eyed acting like a deer in headlights. She cleared her throat, looked at her light pad and then at the AI.

As Noki tried to form a question, Alice gave the AI the once over too. If you put aside the color of his skin and eyes, he looked perfectly human, he was a little taller than Alice and Georgia and the same height as Noki at about five foot five. His features Asian. Under his blue coat, he wore a loose fitting white cotton outfit, the body beneath hinted at a stocky build. He stood relaxed with his legs slightly apart. His stance and longish dark hair made Alice think of Mongol horsemen. Her imagination kicked into high gear as she envisioned herself clinging to him from behind as they raced over grasslands on a bright blue horse ... no maroon! She wondered how blue he was under his clothes.

"Wonder if his dick is blue?" Georgia whispered to Alice.

Alice stifled a laugh as she was speculating on the same thing too.

Noki the college student still hadn't said a word.

"Why don't we start with my specifications?" Val suggested.

"Hope you're not majoring in journalism," Georgia said. Noki blushed at the insult.

Val gave Noki a perfect polite bow and said, "I am a Valentine Surrogate , manufactured by Duke Robotics for Vitruvian Entertainment, based on planet Nimitz."

"Um ... is it true?" Noki stammered. "That you are giving away free sex?"

"Within reason, yes," Val said. "If you are interested just hold your hand up for me to scan your health pad and—"

"No!" Noki said quickly. "I just want to ask some questions." The girl blushed deeper and tentatively looked over her shoulder back at the group of people she entered the platform with.

Alice lean into Georgia and whispered, "Bet naughty Noki is looking for a DEEPER interview with Val."

Georgia said to Noki, "Go tell your friends you bagged an interview with Alice and Val then we'll go to a bar I like in New Fuji and you can ask all the questions you like."

Red faced, the girl nodded and went back to her group to tell them.

Georgia looked at Val. "To acquire your services all I have to do is hold out my hand?"

"Yes," Val said. The AI held out his left hand to demonstrate. "Do you know that the open hand is the adopted symbol for Clara worshipers?"

"Everyone knows that," Georgia said. "Every female Clara devotee has the symbol of the open hand tattooed somewhere on their bodies I hear."

"The religion of the Goddess Clara was started on the island of Maui, Hawaii back on Earth at the end of the twentieth century," Val said.

"That's an odd thing for a robot to know," Noki said overhearing as she rejoined Alice, Georgia and Val. She pulled her light pad out.

"I am programmed for casual conversation," he said, "Facts about the Goddess Clara is one of my key subject bundles. Do you know that at one time, the Goddess Clara was called Wahinelani?"

"Woman of heaven," Alice translated.

"I went on a pilgrimage to planet Pearl where they have a bronze statue of Clara cast from the original wood carving on Maui," Noki said.

"You a Clara follower?" Georgia asked with a raised eye brow.

Noki blushed.

"Holy shit, I was just kidding," Georgia said.

"Almost joined Nuns of Iao," the girl mumbled softly clearly not wanting her group of friends to hear. "But my parents put their foot down and insisted I finish college," she shrugged. "So here I am."

"Clara followers are way into sex right?" Alice asked in a whisper. Lucy mentioned the Church of Clara in their talk a couple of hours ago.

Noki blushed even deeper. "They believe in the healing power of sexual intimacy," she whispered back. "They believe in love ... in the joy that sex can bring. They call it love making because that is what comes of sex when it is right and perfect."

"Amen, sister," Georgia said. "So, Val, do you need to eat?"

"Not solid food," he said. "I only require an intake of sugary fluids to replenish what I've lost. I could use a good sweet drink."

"Busy night?" Georgia asked with a crooked smile.

"Yes," he said but did not elaborate.

"Not the kiss and tell type, huh?" Georgia said. "A good quality in a man ... and a robot."

Part Eleven-In New Fuji, a Toast to Strange Bedfellows

A blue skinned Valentine Surrogate robot, a wannabe Clara maiden, the famous daughter of a Cluster planet Senator and a refuge from another dimension, an odd group to say the least, sat at a padded booth in a bar near the New Fuji underground train station.

Val ordered a local soda called a Nova Cola, the women beers. Alice of course ordered a Bavarian 10. Noki searched all her pockets for various crumpled banknotes and scattered coins to pay for her drink. Alice shook her head, things hadn't changed much for students through the years, the chick was broke. Georgia rolled her eyes and paid for everybody with her FTL phone.

Alice sipped her beer and had to agree with old Mr. Takahashi that Bavarian 10 tasted better in zero gravity, but it was still a good beer even in normal gravitational conditions. Val sucked down three super gulp size sodas one after.

At first, the conversation was stiff and formal with Noki asking Val about his functions and duties as a sex-bot. He answered each question in detail with no hesitation, the only questions he would not answer was whom he had been with. He apologized to Noki for the omissions and told her she would have to show dire cause and then present a signed judge's court order to his company if she wanted to know the names of the people he had sex with.

"So," Georgia said, "if I sleep with you tonight, no one will know?"

"Not from me, even my parent company can not get at that information," Val said.

"I find that hard to believe," Noki said with a college student's ingrained skepticism of large corporations.

"It is true," Val answered. "It is one of my main selling points. Absolute privacy. I will erase all my memories before allowing any person or organization to get at intimate information."

"Like a suicide phone?" Alice asked thinking of Britt.

"Suicide phones are highly illegal and a bit roguish don't you think?" Val said.

"Roguish? Blue ass gigolo prick!" Britt said in Alice's ear.

Alice stifled a laugh and said, "Maybe you should work for the IIW, Val."

Georgia rolled her eyes. "Please, I've had enough of the IIW for one day."

"IIW?" Noki asked.

"The IIW, or Imperial Internal Workings," Val said, "is an ultra-secret Imperial Navy special unit originally formed to keep watch on Admiral Rudolf Kippler supporters after the failed coup at planet Denver thirty five years ago. In its current manifestation, the IIW is in charge of all things secret concerning the Imperial Navy. The IIW wields a great deal of power. They monitor the Navy's military police and even the Navy High Council."

Georgia shifted uncomfortably. She said guardedly at just above a whisper, "Very few people outside the Navy know about the IIW and here you are, a sex-bot with the subject built into your casual conversation program."

"You don't blink," Noki said to Val.

"I do not need too," Val said. "I can if you want me too." His eyes fluttered several times to demonstrate.

"Why aren't you simply programmed to blink?" Noki asked.

Both Georgia and Alice deflated a bit, glad for the change of subject.

"Two main reasons," Val said. "First, a blink is a very long time for me to keep my eyes closed, also, by law, I am not allowed to look too human. Experts have determined that blinking is an essential part of human expression and after the tragedy with the Dorian Class-X sex robots, my company added a number of quirks that make me appear less human, blue skin being the first and most obvious."

Alice thought of her strange encounter with Lucy, and as far as she knew, Lucy was the only surviving Class-X Dorian sex-bot in the whole wide universe. She had wondered why Lucy had stared at her so intensely, the robot simply wasn't blinking. "Yeah, The Class-X doesn't blink either," Alice said without thinking

Noki and Georgia looked at Alice, apparently waiting for her to elaborate on her odd little comment.

"Not a good idea talking about Lucy to a journalist albeit an awful one," Britt said.

"I read about them online," Alice lied quickly.

"How long have you two been exotic dancers?" Noki asked out of the blue.

Alice looked at Noki blankly. Then she remembered Georgia's off the cuff lie.

Georgia looked at Val and asked, "Do you have facial recognition abilities?"

"Yes I do," Val said.

" Then you know who we are without introduction," Georgia said.

"That I do," he said simply.

He knows who Georgia is, Alice thought and if this gets back to her famous mother the poor girl was in deep shit. Alice decided to do Georgia a favor and end the interview. She turning to Noki and said, "You wanna make love to Val?"

The girl blushed, dropped her eyes to the table and didn't say a thing.

"I know this interview was total bullshit," Alice said. "I saw it in your eyes, you wanna fuck him."

Noki sat frozen on her side of the booth avoiding all eyes.

"What kind of Clara devotee is shy about fucking?" Georgia teased. "All you have to do is hold out your left hand and it's a done deal."

Without looking up, Noki slowly displayed her left hand palm out, fingers spread.

"I will find us a place to copulate," Val said cheerfully.

The girl went beet red. "I have to use the bathroom," Noki said and quickly left the booth.

Alice looked at her own left hand. Oddly, she had the exact same circle as Noki displayed. It was the size of a quarter. She discovered it on the ride up in the Space Elevator. Until this moment she thought it was the leftover edge of an unfinished tattoo.

"It is your health pad," Britt said in her ear. "The custom is to display your palm to show you are willing to engage in sex. If the pad is clear as Noki and yours are, it means your are healthy and using contraception. Same goes for men too."

Alice fingered the circle on her palm. This health pad thing would make life for women in her time SOOO much easier.

Georgia said, "You think college twit has it in her?"

"Don't know," Alice said. "You can take off before TMZ finds you."

"TMZ?" Georgia asked.

"Paparazzi, the gossip tabloids?"

Thanks, but it's too late for that," Georgia said. "Nadia says I'm already brain tube candy. Famous daughter of senior keeping company with of sex-bot. I'm already peaking and old news by midnight. Maybe YOU might wanna split though." She gave Alice a long serious look. "I don't know what you're about, Alice but I got this feeling that being with me is putting some weird pressure on you."

Maybe she is picking up some vibe because were both Liners, Alice thought, but kept quiet on that point. Alice's big plan was to part company with Georgia and the others then head deeper into the city of New Fuji, hold up somewhere and work out some plan of escape. But ever since running into Val, that distinctive tingling in her finger tips and toes started up something fierce. She looked at Val's handsome blue face and the tingling seem to intensify. Maybe my ticket out is right here in this booth, she thought.

"If Noki comes back I think I'll tag along ... just for kicks." Alice said.

"I just might too," Georgia said a slow simmering look.

Noki came back.

Part twelve-Pink Flesh, Blue Flesh

The blue AI led them to a posh hotel called the Jade Coast in the heart of downtown New Fuji.

"I can't afford this place," Noki said mortified.

"Poor Noki is a college student and more the Skylab Motel crowd," Georgia said.

"Not to worry," Val said. " Vitruvian is footing the bill. I will go make the arrangements for the room." The AI bowed and walked to the check in desk.

"Having a nice time?" Georgia asked Noki.

Noki nodded in her state of perpetual blush. The chick looked like she was ready to bolt. Georgia and Alice suppressed smiles.

A flash of gold caught Alice's eyes and her jaw dropped open when she saw Captain Kahakaloha of the INS Miami standing near the entrance of the hotel lobby. Then her surprise tuned into horror when Lieutenant Haiku of the IIW in her body fitting skin-suit stepped in and stood next to the captain.

Georgia saw them too. "Fuck me," Georgia whispered dropping her head to hide her face from Kahakaloha and Haiku. Alice did the same.

"I've always been curious," Noki said.

Georgia and Alice gave the girl a quick bewildered look. Apparently, Noki thought Georgia's exclamation was aimed at her.

Alice dared to peeked at Haiku and Kahakaloha. Kahakaloha stood talking in his FTL as Haiku headed to the front desk. "Think they're looking for us?" Alice whispered.

"Whose looking for us?" Noki asked.

Ignoring Noki, Georgia said to Alice, "Look what Haiku's doing."

Alice looked. "She's checking into a room you think?"

"Knew they were doing it," Georgia said. "They haven't seen us yet. Let's get out of here."

"You can't just leave me alone with Val!" Noki said panicked.

"You go," Alice said to Georgia. "I kind of what to check out Val myself."

Noki looked relieved.

"Dirty girl," Georgia said with a leer. Then she did the most unexpected thing, she stepped toward Noki and pulled the girl in for rough kiss. Noki made a sound of protest but didn't pull away. The kiss ended abruptly and Georgia said, "That's what you're missing college girl." Georgia said it while looking at Alice. Georgia slipped off in the direction of the hotel restaurant away from the lobby. Noki and Alice stared after her.

Val returned. "Where is Georgia?"

"She had a thing to go to," Alice lied. When she saw Haiku walking back to Kahakaloha, her resolve slipped a little and nearly bolted after Georgia. But the tingling was too persistent. Val and Noki had to be her ticket out. "Take us to the room," Alice said. She took Val by the arm and briskly walked in the direction of the elevators, Noki was nearly running to keep up. Alice slapped at the up button and willed one of the three elevators to open up. It took forever. Alice rolled her eyes and tapped her foot in nervous frustration.

Britt, her suicide phone said, "Humans can zap a person across the galaxy through wormholes, make a faster than light communications network, create a massive gravity defying transport system to move goods and people to space without using big dumb rockets, terraform whole planets to their liking, but can't make an elevator in a hotel show up at a reasonable interval."

On her right peripheral, Alice spied Kahakaloha and Haiku saddling up to wait for an elevator too. Kahakaloha was still on the phone and Haiku was now on hers too. As of yet, neither were aware of her. Alice hoped that in full makeup, she looked different enough not to be recognized.

Kahakaloha pulled his phone from his ear and said to Haiku, "This miserable call will take a little while longer I'm afraid, you go on ahead and I'll be up momentarily. What is the room number?"

"Seven four two," Haiku said. "I'll wait, my call will take time too."

Kahakaloha nodded and drifted back to the center of the lobby for privacy. Haiku put her phone back to her ear.

The elevator arrived and Alice piled in with Noki and Val. She watched Val hit the number seven, same floor as Kahakaloha's. "Shit in an airlock," Alice mumbled picking up on one of Georgia's favorite cuss phases.

At the seventh floor, They turned right at the elevator nook and walked to room number seven thirty eight close to the end of the hall. Noki looked at Alice expectantly, probably wondering if Alice was into girls like Georgia. There was a wholesomeness about Noki that Alice found interesting. She pushed her curiosity aside, though. Haiku being so close made her too fucking jumpy and she decided it was best to cut and run.

Val ordered the door to open and just when Alice was about to say her goodbyes, a couple turned the corner from down the hall and headed right at them. It was Kahakaloha and Haiku. Alice quickly pushed Noki ahead of her into the room and stepped in behind her.

Like at the Waikiki Grand at the space station, the room was devoid of furniture, even windows.

"Full holo and space liner hideaway," Val said.

"Pretty classy," Noki said.

"Wall one balcony overlooking New Fuji," Val said. A grand view of the New Fuji night skyline filled one wall. "Sofa for three, wet bar." A light blue sofa grew out of one wall, a small wet bar grew out of another wall. "You pick the music," Val said to Alice.

Miles Davis?" Alice said with an internal cringe. Thankfully, familiar melancholy trumpet filled the air.

"Pick the atmosphere," Val said to Noki.

"The glade of the Goddess Clara on Maui," Noki said.

Dappled warm light blanketed the walls, ceiling and floor of the room making it feel like they were standing in a glade surrounded by trees. There was something oddly familiar about the place to Alice.

"Cool," Noki said. "This music is interesting too."

"My friend Joy is a big Miles Davis fan," Alice said, although she didn't know if the Joy of this world was too. Alice lower herself onto the sofa.

Noki walked over to tiny bar and opened the little fridge. "Lots of Nova Cola and beer. Noki held out a black bottle with a bright red planet Mars on it. "Martian Red Vodka. Looks like your company knows how to party." the girl's cheer seemed forced, she was nervous and it showed. She sat on the sofa next to Alice.