"I hope that you understand..." Reverend Sevens looked
very pained as he was delivering what was obviously a prepared speech
to her.
Lisa simply nodded, not really seeing the news as a
surprise. It didn't seem odd to her that she was now in the very same
room she had first been briefed in, with the very same man who had
done the briefing. It seemed almost... fitting.
"Very well then. You'll have a visitor shortly, and then
you'll be escorted out."
True to what she had thought, Lisa's tenure in Neon Colony
had lasted all of three weeks.
After Lisa had first been briefed on the colony, she had
been relocated to an apartment building toward the edges. Gerald was
nearby, though not in the same building. This, according to the city
workers who apparently handled such things, was so that they'd still
be able to communicate with one another, but would also get to know
the locals and eventually become a functioning member of society.
It hadn't worked.
Reverend Sevens' admonition had been correct - the
personal communicator would flag her as an outsider. But it wasn't
the only thing. Her height, her build, her eyes, even her hair and
skin were subtly different from the natives of the colony. Her way of
speech instantly set her apart from everyone else.
And the people feared her. That was the part that
bothered her the most. From the books she'd seen, and the parts of
conversation that she had heard, those from Helium Colony were
portrayed as hedonists, wallowing in their own technology and
entertainment, never bothering to confront real issues.
It was hardly false, of course... Lisa's own goal was to
entertain, after all, and that had little to do with real issues. The
people in this colony could hardly claim moral superiority, however,
as they were too busy justifying their use of their own technology to
confront any real issues.
The technology here was less than she was used to, true,
but hardly the Pennsylvania Dutch atmosphere she had been expecting
after Seven's lectures. For one thing, as power was built into the
ship and therefore the buildings, electricity was readily
available. The Neon colonists made use of it sparsely, but the still
made use of it. And there were still receptors for radio signals
everywhere, though the population as a whole didn't seem to realize
the fact.
Lisa had found out about the receptors once she had
arrived in her new apartment. Lacking a computer console or any other
form of entertainment, she had decided to take a risk and contact
Alice.
Never before had the tinny voice of the ship's computer
sounded so good to her ears. "Lisa, I assume you are in a safe
place?" the computer had inquired, its voice seeming hushed.
After Lisa had assured the computer that she was, indeed,
quite well, she had spent a great deal of time getting to know the
layout of Neon Colony and the various idiosyncrasies of the people in
it.
Alice had very little information, only that after the
short bit of time that it took Helium Colonists to get acclimated to
their new home, Alice usually received less and less communication
from them. Of the people who had moved in a bit over a hundred years
before, their descendants didn't keep in touch. In short, Lisa was
Alice's best source of information. The irony of the role reversal
was not lost on Lisa.
It was soon afterward that she discovered that the tubes
were still working in some places, including a drop near her apartment. The
pneumatic tube system was a fast way to deliver small items - though
the colony had dismantled most of the visible drops, there were still
a few that were operational. Since the colonists never asked for
anything, they never knew that the tubes still existed. She didn't
have an immediate need for them, but it was good to know that they
were there.
It wasn't long, though, until she found a use.
She'd been talking to Alice more and more as time went
on - certainly more than she had when she had been home. It was odd -
back in Helium colony, Alice had just seemed like an NSAI.... She had
been just a typical computer, with the well-known limitations that all
NSAIs had. Now, it almost seemed like she had a personality.
Lisa's dependence on Alice is what earned a strike against
her in the eyes of the colony. Lisa had simply forgotten herself, and
spoken to the computer in a public place. She hadn't thought anyone
was around, but apparently they had been - and the personal
communicator had been taken from her.
The door chimed lightly. Lisa sighed and stood up, ready
to be taken away. "Come in" she said, softly.
The door opened and Gerald walked in, looking a bit
nervous. "Hey, Lisa...."
Lisa ran forward and hugged Gerald tightly. "Gerald! Oh,
thank God you're okay!" She stepped back and looked at him. "I'd
missed you, Gerald." She looked away momentarily, wondering why she
suddenly felt so emotional. "Gerald... whatever happens... I want you
to know that... you were always a good friend to me...."
"That's what I've come here to tell you, Lisa." Gerald
stood nervously, trying not to show how much Lisa's attention had
unnerved him. "I... I've decided to come along."
Lisa's eyes widened. "Gerald, no! You... you can't do
that. You'll die, along with me!" She looked back at him, half of
her hoping she wouldn't be able to talk him out of it, the other half
hating herself for thinking like that. Gerald had a future in Neon
Colony. She didn't.
"I don't care, Lisa. I know you - we've grown up
together. And what you did was the right thing - you do not deserve this
punishment. If this colony is a place where they'll excommunicate you
for doing what's right, then I don't want to be a part of it." He
took a deep, nervous breath before continuing. "I don't care what
happens to me after I leave. If I'm with you... I'll be okay."
Lisa was speechless, simply staring at her friend.
Slowly, she reached forward and gave him and held him close to her...
"Thank you, Gerald. Thank you so much...."
The door chimed, and Lisa broke off her embrace.
"Yes?"
Gentleman Gelas walked in, looking somber. "Lady Lisa,
Sir Gerald." he said, bowing slightly. "I want to personally thank
you, Miss Neff, for your efforts on behalf of this colony. As
Reverend Sevens has no doubt lectured you, what you did was against
the Guidanceship of our people." he paused. "I objected, in council,
to your excommunication. It's a matter of official record, though I
suppose that's of little consolation to you at this point. Miss Neff,
you have done a great service. I will be sad to see you go."
Lisa blinked. "Thank you... Gentleman Gelas." she
managed. She never did get a firm idea of where Gelas' place in
society was, only that he was a fairly powerful person. For him to
thank her... it was at least assuring. She had done the right
thing.
Gelas turned to Gerald. "You're going with her, are you
not?" Gerald merely nodded, and Gelas smiled slightly. "You are an
honorable person, Sir Gerald."
Turning, the Gentleman began to leave the room. "The
Reverend will be here momentarily, to escort you to the northern
corridor. I... I shall be there to see you off."
Lisa could only watch the man leave. Counting their first
meeting when she had arrived at the colony, she had now seen him
twice. Still, it was nice to have someone believe in her.
The incident that led to her current troubles had happened
only three days before. She had finally decided to go out, having
been cooped up in her apartment for too long. She hadn't asked Gerald
along because... well, because it seemed he had his own things to
do.
Gerald had taken to Neon Colony much better than Lisa
had. Everywhere he went, he saw a chance for designing and building
improvements. The people were generally in favor of this, so long as
they used their own technology to do so. She had felt him getting
more distant as the time had passed - which was one of the reasons she
was so surprised to have him visit.
Sure, she'd talked to him once or twice after their
arrival. Mostly about his architectural ideas - improvements and new
buildings to be made on the 'South Side'. He avoided the northern
end, where Neon Colony would eventually give way to Argon.
Apparently, everyone avoided that end... the buildings there were
supposedly not structurally sound, according to Gerald. According to
hearsay, the Northern areas were avoided for other reasons, chief
among them that they were 'spooky'.
So Lisa had decided to go to the northern ends, simply to
see what the fuss was about. She never did make it, though.
It was a long hike, and at what she estimated was about
the halfway point, she had arrived in the park. She remembered smiling
then, as it reminded her of Helium's recreation areas, perhaps even slightly
better.
She had taken her time, simply relaxing. She didn't have to go
north on that day, she had all the time in the world to simply enjoy
things. For the first time since she had arrived, she had felt
comfortable.
A child had approached her, looking a little tentative, but
curious. "Hello." he had said, keeping his distance.
Lisa remembered smiling. "Hi!"
"You're... that lady from the other place, aren't
you?"
"Yes..." the entire thing had seemed very amusing to her
at the time - the kid was clearly curious, but also incredibly
wary.
"My name's Stephen." he had offered his hand then, and
Lisa had shook it gladly. Apparently having decided that she was
safe, he had taken a spot on the bench next to her.
"Good to meet you Stephen, my name's Lisa."
Stephen had looked like he was about to make some
comment... Lisa would never forget it, because at the moment the only
thing he had said was "Ow".
And a single bee had flown off.
Stephen's eyes had grown wide, then, as he began gasping
for air. Lisa stood, having instantly recognizing it - an allergic
reaction. Lisa ran then, shouting. Only she didn't shout for a
doctor, or any other member of Neon Colony. She had shouted for
Alice.
There was a Tube dropoff close to the park, Lisa recalled,
though she didn't remember whether it was working or not. She prayed
it was. Shouting, over and over again "Alice, an allergy!", hoping
that the computer had a pickup somewhere, and was hearing her, and
could figure out what was happening.
Luck had been with her - when she arrived at the dropoff,
between two buildings that seemed disused, there had been a syringe
filled with some liquid in the box. A small square of paper gave
instructions on administering it.
Lisa had saved the boy's life in moments, but she had
called on the ship's computer to do so. It was that which got the
attention of the Guidanceship, and that which was earning her
excommunication.
Lisa frowned to herself as she marched northward. She'd
wanted to see the northern lands, but this wasn't quite what she had
in mind. She was being escorted by a group that could have been the
very same people who had escorted her into the colony initially.
Large, burly, and armored, they surrounded her and Gerald
silently.
Looking up, Lisa could see why the locals didn't like the
area very much. The lights which were normally brilliant and uniform
over the top of the colony were flickering and in some places broken
completely. Through gaps, she could see the structure of supports
that presumably held up another level of the colony. They were
twisted subtly, but the deformation increased the further north they
went.
Finally, the group stopped, and the escort fanned out, two
of the armed guards staying near Lisa and Gerald, and the rest moving
to what seemed to be predetermined places.
When the guards first disbursed, Lisa had wondered why she
hadn't noticed them entering the building which normally housed the
corridor - she soon found the answer. Looking south, the could see
where the tunnel would normally have continued from Helium colony -
the structure had seemed stable when she had initially arrived weeks
ago - but at this end of the colony, it was a different story indeed.
The building had collapsed some time back, looking to have been
twisted like the rest of the scenery. Where the building was, there
was only a gaping hull in the bulkhead, leading toward the corridor
which would take them to Argon. Lisa shivered involuntarily, and
Gerald took her hand.
"Lisa Neff -" Reverend Sevens, looking extremely
displeased at having to go through all this trouble just to kick out a few
heathens, read from a book he held in one hand. "you have
violated the Guidanceship of this colony by contacting the NSAI. As
you are a newcomer, your behavior is tolerated to a certain extent.
However, communications with the ship's computer is forbidden, and
cannot be excused. The council, excepting only Gentleman Stephen
Gelas Sr., has ruled that you must be excommunicated from our
colony. Have you anything to say?"
"I did the right thing." Lisa said simply.
Sevens did not seem impressed. "Very well. Your
companion has elected to go with you, and we have no intention of
persuading him otherwise. Go now, and never return."
The Reverend turned his back and began marching southward,
along with a few of the guards. The rest remained to make sure that
Lisa and Gerald did, in fact, leave and not return. Gentleman Gelas
nodded at them, then turned and left himself.
"You ready?" Gerald asked quietly.
"As ready as I'm going to be." Lisa replied.
With that, the two walked toward the corridor.
[Neon] Part II -
Contents
Geocities