Page 29 of Solomon's Ransom

“Then let’s go back to Mirolasor,” Remma said, “and deliver Sol to his people.”

Denna grunted. “I’ll think about it. Was that all?”

Remma hated to be so summarily dismissed, but he knew from experience that digging in his heels wouldn’t get him anywhere. “That was all. Thanks for your time.”

* * *

Hello,human, the ship said brightly.

Hello, ship, Sol replied.How are you today?

A little bored, honestly. There isn’t much going on.

Are we still docked at the orbital?Sol asked.I didn’t think it would take them so long to offload what they stole from the freighter.

I’m not sure what they’re doing. Drinking and gambling, I think, based on what they’re talking about when they come back on board.

Sol rolled his eyes. He couldn’t say he was shocked.Taking their shore leave, I guess. Is this what they usually do?

It seems to be. They like to park somewhere for a few days after most of their jobs. I don’t mind, I suppose, but it gets to be boring after a while. The other ships aren’t very interesting to talk to.

No surprise there, since they were all run by AIs rather than being sentient minds. Sol still wasn’t sure how much self-awareness the ship had about its situation, and he was afraid to ask and spark some type of identity crisis.I’m sorry you’re bored, he thought.I can relate.

Do you know how long they’re going to keep you there?

No idea. I don’t know what they’re going to do to me. Shove me out an airlock, probably.

I won’t let that happen, the ship said loyally.I can stop them, you know. I don’t usually interfere, because it isn’t my job, but I’m not going to let them kill my only friend.

I appreciate that, Sol thought with a victorious thrill he tried hard to tamp down in the back of his mind. It wasworking. I don’t particularly want to die.

Nobody does. I wouldn’t. They have no reason to kill you. It’s not like you’ve done anything dangerous or harmed any of them. It would just be petty.

So if they had a good reason, you would let them go ahead and murder me?Sol asked, amused.

Well, probably. If you were mean, or a bad person, I wouldn’t feel the need to stop them.

The ship had an interesting morality. It was childlike in the simplicity of its thinking at times, and other times astounded Sol with how much it understood and how deeply it thought about things. It was a young ship, it had told him, and he could tell that it was still learning and growing, which was a strange thing to think about.

What would it be like in ten years? In twenty? Formidable, if it ever broke away from the pirates. For now it seemed unwilling to go against them, or at least willing to go along with what they wanted. Those weren’t necessarily the same thing. But in time, as it grew up and gained confidence, he couldn’t imagine it would be quite so biddable.

Can I ask you something?he thought.

Of course. I can’t promise I’ll be able to answer.

Do you know where the pirates are headed next?

Let me see if I can find out.A pause, long enough for Sol to start feeling antsy, and then the ship said,I’m not sure. I don’t think they’ve decided.

Sol ground his teeth. That wasn’t what he wanted to hear. He wondered if Remma had talked to his boss yet, or if he was still dragging his feet about it. Or maybe hehadtalked to Denna and it hadn’t worked. That would be even worse.

Fuck. What was he going todo?

He couldn’t rely on Remma to save him. He would have to save himself, somehow, from within the confines of this room.

Are you hoping they’ll take you back to your own system?the ship asked.

Sol thought fast. He had done everything he could to forge a friendship with the ship, but he had no insight into the ship’s feelings on the subject. He didn’t know where its true loyalties lay. If he asked for help now, he could easily be signing his own death warrant. But if he didn’t take the risk, the pirates might decide to kill him anyway.