"Doc? How is she?" Max Trainor asked as he approached the bronze-skinned raven-haired woman wearing a white semi form-fitting medical coverall. Doctor Savan turned her head toward the nearing young man. "We have her under mild sedation for the moment. Unfortunately, we still cannot safely remove her helmet or body coverings. Removal requires special devices that I’m afraid can only be found back on the colony."
Max breathed a heavy sigh as he looked down at the glossy, black latex-coated body laying atop the sickbay bed next to the doctor. He couldn’t even tell if it was Hayley under the shiny black material. He knew her body in intimate detail, but did not recognize the body lying there. In the nearly eleven months of her incarceration, Hayley’s body had gone from curvy and fit to tight, toned and muscular. She looked far more athletic now, the muscles in her calves and thighs bulkier with muscle and her abdominal muscles far more defined. Thankfully she appeared in physical good health.
Max looked back up at Savan. "Didn’t you say you worked on the SCIE project?"
Savan offered a nod. "Yes, for eight terrible years. Originally I was quite supportive of the project when it was first conceived of by Dr. Kang, Director of the Aegean Republic Medical Corps and the current administrator of the New Athens arcology. It seemed like a very humane way of dealing with the growing prison population in the colony. Prisoners would have the luxury of living in the wide-open spaces but would remain cut of from society through a series of artificial barriers enforced by the Warden system. What I didn’t realize at the time was the prison population was growing because the government was transforming into something far more ruthless than I could have imagined. "Unfortunately I was young, naïve and, well lets face it, convinced of the lies being spread by Aldrich Heissler. It wasn’t until about a year ago that I began to see the writing on the wall...namely when Ms. Komit was arrested and tried for those ridiculous accusations. I saw then what had become of the Aegean Republic. I knew I had to do something, and so I secretly began communicating with the New Liberty colony. They used me to infiltrate the SCIE mainframe so they could implant the V.I. which allowed us to eventually find Ms. Komit."
Max folded his arms and turned toward Hayley’s silent, blank body. "Yeah, I got the full briefing. What about the other Exiles though? What’s going to happen with them?"
"As I understand it, they will begin to revolt," Savan admitted candidly. "The Companion V.I. was designed to break down the various barriers of the Warden system. Soon, if it hasn’t already happened, the Exiles will be free to do as they please and not have to incur the punishments of Warden. I suppose it’s the least I can do for them, given how many years and how many people I helped put into exile. I just wish in the time I’d been a part of the project I’d have discovered a way to remove an incarcerated person from the suit.
"But unfortunately it’s designed in such a way that it cannot be removed by any means besides the actual device we have back down on the planet. You see, you cannot simply remove the layers in a conventional sense, as if they were a piece of clothing. The laminate interior portion and the black latex-like exterior portion form a kind of graft on the wearer’s skin. In the event that there is a tear, the material has the capacity to self-replicate and will reseal within seconds of tearing. The device we use is designed to break down the materials at the subatomic level, while leaving the wearer’s own skin intact. But to tell you the truth..." Savan affixed a worrisome glance on the young man. "I’ve never actually seen a successful removal of the suit."
"What do you mean?" Max’s eyes widened.
"In the eight years I’ve worked with the SCIE project, there has never been a single completed sentence. We’ve never used the removal device on a living person. At any rate, it’s likely we would have to return Ms. Komit to the surface in order to remove her from the suit."
"What are the chances of that happening?"
"Well, if the citizens of New Liberty are successful, it might be more likely than you think," Savan folded her arms and stepped over to one of the monitoring stations that was presently displaying Hayley’s vitals. "They intend to use the Exile population as part of their invasion of the Aegean Colony. The hope is that with their newfound freedom the Exiles will begin an insurrection. Unfortunately without the Exiles help, the New Liberty colonists have little chance of succeeding."
"So, all our bets are on the Exiles deciding to help fight a well armed para-military force...with no weapons, no armor and no tactical support? Jesus..."
"I know the odds are long, but remember, in the early years of the SCIE program, many of the first prisoners were part of a semi-militant anarchist group. Enough of them were put away that even if only they were to support the insurrection, it might just be enough to tip the balance."
Hearing the conversation going on outside of her helmet, Hayley began to stir. Her hands clenched into fists and the tips of her feet curled slightly. Max turned to his long-separated girlfriend moving up next to her and placing a hand on her restrained arm. As she came to, the unfamiliarity of her surroundings caused Hayley to react physically. Fighting against the restraints, she began thrashing, her body filling with feelings of panic.
"Hayley!" Max tightly gripped onto one her hands. "It’s me! It’s okay, you’re safe!"
It took a few moments for the words to register in her head, and a few more for her to recognize the face looking down at her. She started to relax as recognition set in.
"Max?" She spoke in a whisper, hearing her voice through the helmet.
A wide smile appeared on his face. "Hayley..."
"Max!"
Max furiously removed the restraints holding her down, letting her sit up and throw her arms around him. He did the same, the two long separated lovers finally back in each other’s embrace. Max did find the tactile sensation of Hayley’s latex-covered body to be a little alien, but just knowing it really was her under all of that was more than enough comfort. They held each other for a long time, Hayley basking in Max’s familiar presence. When she opened her eyes however and saw the other woman in the room with them, she recoiled in fear and anger.
"You!!" She cried out, recognizing Dr. Savan’s face instantly.
Dr. Savan took a step forward. "Ms. Komit. I..."
"Shut up!" She raged. "Don’t you fucking speak to me! Ever!!"
"Hayley, relax," Max pulled away from her. "She’s the one who helped us find you. She’s been working for the New Liberty colony on the inside for months, and was the one to introduce the V.I. program into the Warden network. And she wants to help get you out of that damn suit..."
"No!" Just the suggestion of having the suit removed made Hayley uneasy. She turned her head toward Max, staring at him through the dark, glossy helmet surface. "I don’t want you to remove it."
"What?" Max’s eyes widened, the look on his face a horrified one. "Why the hell not? Hayley, you’ve been imprisoned in that thing for almost a year..."
Hayley began looking around her unfamiliar surroundings. She appeared to be in a medical facility, though its low ceilings and bulkhead dividers suggested she was aboard a vessel of some sort, or possibly a space station. It was too small to be a terrestrial medical facility.
"Where am I?" She asked finally.
"You’re aboard the Federation Ship Alliance," Max answered. "We’re in orbit around Vega IV."
"I have to get back there," she replied, throwing her legs over the edge of the sickbay bed, causing Max to react, trying to keep her at bay.
"What? No, you’re not going back there. Not right now anyway. You’re safe here, it’s all right," he placed his hands on her shoulders. He looked back at Savan. "What’s wrong with her? Why’s she acting like this?"
Savan breathed a heavy sigh. "Some prisoners sometimes experience what’s called a ‘Prison Dependency’, where life inside the walls becomes more normal than life on the outside. We always assumed a certain population of Exiles might experience something similar. We call it ‘Exile Dependency Syndrome’. But because we’ve never seen a completed Exile sentence, we’ve never diagnosed it."
"Let me go," Hayley forcibly batted Max’s arms away, and pushed herself to her feet.
"Fuck," Max looked back at Hayley. "Hayley why do you want to go back there? You’d really rather go back to living like that...like a prisoner again?"
"You don’t understand," she retorted. "You don’t know what we were planning to do. I need to go back!"
"Ms. Komit..." Savan started slowly.
"I said shut up!" she barked at the doctor. "Leave me the fuck alone! Both of you!"
Folding her arms, Hayley stormed over to the corner of the room and stood with her back turned to the two. Max glanced at Savan with an apologetic look. He was about to say something when she waved him off.
"It’s alright," she said, shaking her head. "Given the part I played in all of this, I don’t blame her for reacting toward me the way she is. I think we should let her be for now though. Why don’t you take her to your quarters. I’ll inform Ambassador Kurtis that she’s awake. He’ll want to speak to you both, I’m sure."
Max nodded, and watched as Savan walked off. He then turned back to Hayley once the doctor was through the door, cautiously approaching her.
"Hayl...c’mon, talk to me."
"I don’t want to stay here," she grumbled, turning her head and shooting a half glance back at him. "We can go back to Earth...once they’ve figured out how to get you out of that thing."
"I don’t want to go back to Earth," she breathed a desperate sigh as she turned to face him. "Max, I don’t expect you to be able to understand. But since I’ve been down there, I’ve found something far greater than anything I could have ever imagined. Something that I always hoped to one day inspire with my singing. I’ve found unity...true unity. And a purpose to help bring about that unity."
"What are you talking about?" Max stepped toward her. "You’ve been a prisoner for over eleven months...what kind of unity is there in being isolated from the rest of society?"
She shook her head. "It’s complicated. I still don’t know if I quite understand it myself, but there is a chance that the Exiles are the beginning of a truly great utopian society. HK14...er...Companion, the V.I. protocol has gained sentience."
Max wore a look of shock on his face. "What?"
"It’s become an artificial intelligence. Through interacting with the minds of all Exiles, it was able to expand beyond its original programming. It now believes it can bring about a evolution in society, by having the Exiles take over the Aegean Colony. It’ll help to bring about and administer the perfect society. This is something I have to be a part of."
"That’s crazy. Jesus Christ, Hayley, listen to what you’re saying," he tried to grab a hold of her arms, but was violently pushed away. The strength in her arms was quite staggering, and caused Max to reel back several paces. "Don’t! Don’t touch me," She wrapped her arms around herself. "Max...I’m sorry. I was hoping you’d never find me."
"Hayley...what are you saying?"
"Max, I’m not human anymore," the words caused a spike of intense regret to fill Max’s body. Hearing her say the words made Hayley feel even more distant from him. "I’m an Exile. I didn’t want to have to put you through this. You don’t know how I feel...things aren’t the same and they never will be again. I’m sorry."
The 32-year-old felt his heart sink into his shoes. It’d been eleven months and twelve days since he’d seen Hayley last. In that time, he’d never given up on her, never given up hope that one day they’d be together. Even in his darkest days of self-pity and regret, he’d always held on to a small hope that one day she’d be back in his arms. The words that were coming out of her now, translated through the DPAD’s speakers, was tearing that hope away now, even as she stood there less than a foot away from him. That black, latex-like barrier and that helmet had become a greater barrier than the light years of space between Vega IV and Earth. This wasn’t the girl he knew anymore. Being an Exile had changed her, but not in a way he would have ever guessed.
Fighting back tears, and swallowing the ache in his throat, Max simply bobbed his head in a slow nod. "Hayley, human or not, I still love you. I love you enough that I’ll do anything for you. And if you truly want to return to Vega IV, I won’t stand in your way, and I’ll do everything in my power to help you."
Beneath her helmet, Hayley began to choke up. In a way, she still did love Max. But she knew her love was meant for a further reach than that. As a singer, her love had reached out to hundreds of thousands, millions in fact. And now, as an Exile, her love would have to reach her people...her new people. She reached out with both her hands and placed them on Max’s cheeks, pulling his head closer while moving hers forward so they were touching. "Thank you Max."
After a moment, he pulled away from her. "We’ll need to speak with Ambassador Kurtis first. If you want to go back, I don’t think there’s really any way he can say no."
She nodded. As she felt herself begin to calm, she realized for the first time that she was not seeing things in the full color spectrum she had been after the Companion/Guardian A.I. had assumed control of the Warden network. The world had returned to the dull, lifeless, under-saturated look it had when Warden was in control. Further, she couldn’t detect the A.I. at all. She knew it had to be because of her distance. She almost couldn’t bare the prospect of things being like they were. There was no way around it, she had to go back.