Maiden-Flight-To-LaLande

By E. de Shea

Covering both the science and personal problems involved in long range space travel, this tale of artificial intelligence is eerily written.

ISBN 1-59431-056–4 Science Fiction / Adventure

Cover Art/Maggie Dix

Also available in RTF and HTML formats.

Prologue

Fr those readng t’is yrs to come-‘member Ea’th stan’rd lang hasgone thru sum changz ova time und contend with yargon of midst-21st century as best ye can.

2040/yr95NE Awareness! Pseudo-Spider’s eyes flickered alert, gleamed crimson in the shadows under the emerald foliage of the rain forest. Sparkling pearls of moisture dripped from each bright leaf, caught by fragmented rays from the noon sun. She gazed at the encircling tropical scenery with wild interest, sensed the power curve of her storage batteries rising after the long rest in the half-light. Solar cells glimmered amidst the hairy black artificial fuzz-rug of her carapace. Despite the dim illumination, the thin strips that radiated from the highest point on her domed body had worked as designed.

Startlingly red pom-poms of an ‘ohi’a tree hung over her temporary hideout. They were nodding deliberately in the slight breeze, laden with the latest downpour. Sacred lehua blossoms, scarlet explosions dedicated to great Pele, the volcano goddess, relieved the monotony of wet-green, green-on-green. The newborn Spider-thing absorbed her surroundings, rapidly filed away a multiplicity of impressions. The atmospheric sampler tucked under her body pulled in a variety of tropical scents along with Earth standard percentages of oxygen and nitrogen. Although she’d been dropped into this habitat a week ago, it hadn’t been until the last few seconds that she’d begun to understand who she was. What she was. She’d long known the reasons for her creation, only now, only today, was she beginning to appreciate the fullness of autonomous being. Something was about to happen.

Her eight slender fibrous carbon-aluminum legs lengthened to over a meter. She stretched and wriggled them, one, then another. Raised herself higher off the soggy red-tan ground. Standing ready for action, she was more than a full human arm span across, half that high. Set solidly despite the tricky footing, gravity holding her tightly to her birth-island, she readied herself for a sortie.

Where? What?

Finger long fangs slid from twin slits located beneath her eye sockets, stopped, then moved further out, settled in place. Hinged, sharpened to a razor edge near their slashing tips and double, double deadly, the black anodized hollow stainless steel mini-sabers curved slightly downwards. The dark lacquered head-knob in which her pair of red lensed eyes were set seemed to brace itself.

Noise!

Clomping sounds from two sets of boots reached her, rippling the soporific calm. Her head swiveled smoothly on it’s Teflon-5 ring, attention focusing on the area from which the footsteps were approaching. The commotion came closer, she could hear accumulated duff being kicked off the narrow hillside trail.

Clumsy!

I must have subconsciously (?) registered their presence moments ago. Something alerted me.

Gradually the bird-twittering from within the tangled canopy on either side of the trail faded away. The ruby flashes of the ‘Apapani honeycreeper that she’d been enjoying watching feed on a ‘ohi’alehua, whose flowers matched it’s plumage, ceased. The feathered creature fled deeper into the gloom.

Spider’s body shifted as she balanced herself on her aft half-dozen legs, the two connected to the front section of her body raised. With six-on-the ground, she prepared to maneuver her thick but light body-disk, a disk nearly as wide as her legs were long.

Fight or Flight?

Eyes glittered, absorbed light, her photon-electron brain manipulated high-speed data at a sub-atomic level.

Fight!

Her fangs swung up, locked, ready to strike. At each of their bases, feeding the hollow swords, lay drug filled ducts closed off by magnetic valves. Miniature pump-rams lay behind each of the conduits.

To her Left!

She caught a glimpse of khaki cloth and pale skin. Processing programs sent the head on which the eyes were mounted moving back and forth, seeking more information. She sensed further movement. To her other side! There! Lock on!

A muscular native male Homo sapiens slipped swiftly out of cover twenty meters down the trail, at the bottom of a dip where the path took a sudden bend.

Thinking? Quick! Conclusion?

Possible target! One I should have picked up earlier. So much for meditation, could be hazardous.

The small, dark-complexioned, half naked man flung himself uphill. Moving almost soundlessly on the damp footway, he darted towards the pack laden brown-clad tourist couple who’d stomped their way close to the spider-shape without a clue she was there. They looked up suddenly. Froze in place, staring with mute horror at the onrushing figure, thin white faces aghast at the indecency of life.

The barefoot man held a machete aloft, distant Sol-light shimmered along the blade as he dashed in and out of the shadows thrown across the trail by encroaching trees.

Charging fast, his flower printed red and yellow loincloth flapping, he was almost on the couple before the lurker could decide on her course of action. A violent yell broke the deep hush. Hollering “Hawaii for Hawaiians!” he closed on his targets, lunging forwards to cross the final few meters.

Spider-she shifted into motion, all her legs working, engaged in propelling her ahead. Dead leaves sprayed from her scuttling feet as she attacked.

Strike!