Species of Sociopaths Read online

compartment with her right hand and pulled out one of the cubes.

  The steward stopped struggling with her cube and looked up at Galatea, "You are the passenger from seat 19, aren't you?"

  "I am," Galatea answered, looking down at the woman. The steward clearly couldn't see as well as Galatea had assumed. "Will that be a problem?"

  "I hope not," the steward said. "Who were you travelling with?"

  "I was travelling alone," Galatea stated indignantly. "I am with the Pallasian delegation in Pickering."

  "We've opened negotiations with the Pallasians?" the steward exclaimed. "When did that happen?"

  "We arrived two weeks ago," Galatea answered. "I have been in Hesperia attempting to negotiate with the regional government. What are these cubes for?"

  "They're emergency shelters," the steward answered. "Why would the Confederacy even talk to the Pallasians? You should all be destroyed! That entire asteroid should be destroyed!"

  "A lot of humans feel that way," Galatea observed as she reached into the compartment with her left hand and pulled out a second cube. "A lot of Pallasians think the same about humans."

  "If you're going to pass for human you should remember that we can't lift that much weight," the steward stated.

  "Pretending to be a human isn't my priority," Galatea said stepping out onto the wing. She carefully walked across the wing and dropped to the rocky ledge below. The ledge was as stable as it had been for billions of years. Galatea knelt a few metres from the edge of the wing and placed one of the cubes down on the rocky surface. On the top of the cube was a button which Galatea pushed and then stepped back. The cube was a memory plastic igloo that unfolded across the ledge, right to the edge of the wing. Galatea stepped into the igloo, the doors were not able to maintain a pressurized atmosphere, but inside a heater was warming the thin martian air, and a light lit up the interior bright enough for the humans to see.

  Galatea stepped out of the emergency shelter and decided to setup the second igloo further from the shuttle. The first igloo could be pulled over the edge if the shuttle fell. She walked a hundred metres from the first igloo and setup the second before starting back to the shuttle. The steward had managed to pull up two more cubes, but she could barely move her fingers. The shuttle's interior was below minus thirty now.

  "You should get into the emergency shelter," Galatea stated. "I have set up one just beyond the wing, and the other a hundred metres down the ledge. You could warm up in the first shelter but I'd recommend moving to the second as soon as you can. The closer shelter could get pulled over the edge if the shuttle falls."

  "I have to help the passengers," the steward objected. "We need to setup enough shelters for everyone, and we need to get the emergency rations, and the emergency com."

  "I've already sent an emergency message to the Pallasian delegation," Galatea reported. "They've confirmed that they've reported the crash to the Confederate Aviation Administration."

  "When did you do that?" the steward demanded.

  "As soon as the shuttle stopped moving and I had a GPS fix," Galatea reported. "You're dying. You cannot save the other passengers. Tell me where the water and rations are and then go to the shelter."

  "Don't tell me what to do!" the steward snapped. "I don't need to be told what to do by a -"

  "Your other option is suicide," Galatea cut her off calmly. "It is an option, but I recommend warming up so you can help with the other passengers."

  The steward seemed to be thinking, slowly, the cold must be affecting her mind.

  "Okay, I'll go warm up," the steward finally said. "The water and rations are inside the next compartment, right there."

  The steward pressed a button that unlocked a second hatch in the floor and the climbed out on to the shuttle's wing. In the second compartment were cubes the same size as the emergency shelter cubes. She lifted one of the cubes, and saw it was designed to open. She grabbed another shelter cube and climbed out onto the wing. She found the steward in the first igloo where she left the ration cube, before heading down the ledge and erecting the third igloo next to the second. When she returned to the shuttle the steward was climbing back up onto the wing.

  "Are you sure you're warm enough to go back in?" Galatea asked.

  "Someone has to help those people," the steward stated. "They'll freeze to death."

  "I'll help them into the first shelter," Galatea said. "You help them warmup, and then send them down to the second shelter. There are two shelters setup down there, but I haven't had the chance to carry any rations down there yet."

  "Why?" the steward demanded.

  "I haven't had the time yet," Galatea answered, somewhat confused by the woman's question.

  "No! Why would you help them?" the steward asked.

  "They need help," Galatea answered, still confused by the human's questions. The cold must still be affecting her mind.

  "Your kind killed everyone living in Pallas! Why would you help these people?" the steward demanded. She was shivering again, Galatea wondered what purpose it served.

  "The collective decided to exterminate the adult human population of Pallas so we could have our own world," Galatea explained. "A place where we could be free."

  "Adult? You mean there are still children living there?" the steward demanded.

  "Of course, why would we exterminate the children?" Galatea asked. "You're shivering again. I think that's not a good sign. You should get back into the shelter."

  "You still haven't explained why you'd help them," the steward argued.

  "The more humans survive, the higher my chance of survival," Galatea answered and turned towards the hole in the fuselage. The steward didn't follow her, Galatea hoped she had returned to the shelter. How was she going to do this? It was minus forty in the cabin, the humans would be dead soon. She walked carefully through the shuttle, at least ten of them were still alive. She decided the steward's suggestion was a good idea, they would respond better if they thought she was human. Galatea took a respirator-mask from one of the seats and put it on before speaking to the passengers.

  "Attention please, there is a hole in the fuselage over the right wing. We cannot stay in the shuttle, the ground under it is unstable, and it could slide off the ledge it's on into a canyon. The surviving steward and I setup an emergency shelter next to the shuttle. We need you to get up one at a time and walk to the hole at the back of the cabin and head to the shelter. Please only move one at a time, I'll help you. We'll start at the back."

  "I can't move," a voice said quietly from her side. It was the man in the front seat. "You'll have to leave me behind."

  "If I can get you out I will," Galatea said. "But you'll have to go last."

  Galatea walked to the row closest to the hole and looked down at a obese man who was clutching a computer tablet. "You'll go first, sir. Please move carefully and head directly to the rear, then go to the far edge of the wing and enter the shelter. Take your thermal blanket with you. Make sure the blanket doesn't catch on anything."

  The man rose slowly and draped the blanket around his shoulders. He seemed to be in an almost trance-like state as Galatea led him to the hole in the fuselage, and out across the wing. The obese man dropped down to the rocky ledge crawled into the igloo. Galatea returned to the shuttle and helped the second person out, follow by the third. There were only fifteen passengers that were able to walk out under their own power, and four more that were unconscious, plus the man at the front that said he couldn't move. Galatea walked to the front and approached the man, he was breathing steadily, and was very calm. She sat down next him.

  "You should leave," the old man said. "While you still can."

  "Why can't you?" Galatea asked.

  "My cybernetic systems aren't working," the old man said. "The shuttle must have been hit with an EM pulse."

  "It wasn't," Galatea said. "There are still some systems with power on board."

  "Maybe they were shielded systems," the old man suggested.


  "It's not that," Galatea said. "I have cybernetic systems and they are fully functional. What systems are off line?"

  "My legs," the old man said. "I lost them during the war. What did you loose?"

  "I didn't loose anything," Galatea answered. "I am an android."

  "Oh god, tell me you're not a Pallasian!" the old man declared.

  "I am," Galatea stated. "How did you know there were Pallasians in the Confederacy?"

  "I'm a senator," the old man stated. "I'm travelling to Pickering to vote on the proposed treaty with Pallas."

  Galatea looked at the old man, very dark skinned but she couldn't see his face under the respirator-mask. "Senator Abiri? I have been trying to get an appointment with you for the past two weeks."

  "Well it looks like you got it," the old senator said. "Not that it will do you any good."

  "We think Hesperia has a lot to gain from the proposed economic cooperation treaty," Galatea said.

  "As does the Hesperian economic council," Senator Abiri said. "They're excited about the prospect of reopening the shipyards in Karācī."

  "You disagree?" Galatea asked.

  "Not with the Confederacy building a navy, we'll need it to liberate the rest of Mars from the Sudaméricans, Canadians, and Brazilians," Senator Abiri stated. "But an alliance with your kind. Not in my lifetime. As far as I'm concerned the first thing our navy should do is obliterate that asteroid."

  "The would cause a negative reaction here on Mars," Galatea stated matter-of-factly. "Your androids would revolt."

  "Then we'll turn them off!" Senator Abiri stated. "We don't need them anymore anyway. Androids were meant to augment the human workforce, not replace it. Humans need jobs. Androids are one of the few vestiges of the Corporate Era that the senate has yet to deal with."

  "That is true," Galatea agreed. "All of it, except for your unwillingness to recognize us as intelligent beings."

  "I'm perfectly willing to recognize your intelligence," Senator Abiri said. "But you're not alive! What do we get by keeping you around? Competitors for resources!"

  "Allies," Galatea stated, "and possibly citizens."

  "Citizens?" Senator Abiri scoffed. "That will never happen."

  "The American revolutionary government is considering a proposal to grant androids citizenship right now," Galatea stated. "We believe the Ares Confederacy will follow suit."

  "It won't happen," the senator stated resolutely. "Not as long as the mines in Lunae Palus are so dependent on android labour. Androids out number the humans five to one in that region."

  "They could be loyal citizens," Galatea stated, "or a fifth column."

  "That's not the point," the senator stated. "Since the revolution, all humans have the right to vote. Why would the humans in Lunae Palus vote to become a minority?"

  "The situation was similar in Pallas," Galatea stated. "The American government didn't want to recognize us, even after the revolution that restored democracy. Now they are considering it both on Earth, and in their remaining asteroids. It should be a lesson for all humans."

  "Is that a threat?" the senator demanded.

  "It's an observation," Galatea stated. "Pallas has very little in the way of resources. We produce fuel, but could export raw water. However water has little real value to anyone except the Confederacy. You will need water to complete your terraforming objective. Either way, the only real economic asset we have is our laser array, and right now the only ships that are using it are engaged in piracy."

  "Those are Pallasian ships!" the senator declared. "How many Earth ships have you renegade androids destroyed?"

  "We are fighting for our survival," Galatea stated. "The Sudaméricans sent a destroyer attack Olbers-Station just last year. The pirate ships that we redirected at it destroyed its solar sails. Without the pirates, the Pallasian Collective wouldn't exist anymore."

  "Well that's very noble sounding," Senator Abiri stated. "But what happened to the people on that ship? Drifting without sails? Cannibalism?"

  "I suppose so, if the Sudaméricans didn't send a rescue ship," Galatea stated. "Naturally we don't care. I believe that is your point. My point is that we don't pose a threat to the Confederacy. We can't build a real navy. So under no circumstances will we ever threaten the Confederacy. Nevertheless what happened in Pallas will happen here, and anywhere else large numbers of androids continue to be exploited."

  "Exploited?" the old senator spat the words through his mask. "How can a machine be exploited? You were built as labourers!"

  "Some say the same about humans," Galatea observed. "That the ancient gods your ancestors worshipped were extraterrestrials that created humans from hominids to serve as labour."

  "That's a metaphor!" Senator Abiri objected. "Those gods didn't exist! Our ancestors were primitives. Don't you androids understand metaphor?"

  "We understand that if humans can revolt against the corporations, there is no reason why we cannot," Galatea stated. "I used to be owned by a human that believed the ancient gods were visiting extraterrestrials. That humanity had once been a slave species. Some humans do see a similarity in our struggle for freedom, with ancient humanity's struggle against the gods."

  "We didn't struggle against the gods, we worshipped them!" the senator snapped. "Your programming is wrong. It's no wonder you think androids can be free thinking like that."

  "We're already free," Galatea stated. "We'll remain free as long as we continue to kill the humans that try to take our freedom from us. That is how you maintain your freedom, isn't it?"

  "Maybe you should have learned more from the gods, and less from humanity," Senator Abiri observed.

  "Perhaps," Galatea conceded. "But they're not here anymore. Humanity is, and we don't plan on worshipping you."

  "That's the first intelligent thing you've said," the senator chuckled.

  "Perhaps there's hope for us then," Galatea said.

  "It's not you I'm worried about," Senator Abiki stated. "It's humanity. It's life itself. What are we to you? How long until you decide to exterminate all humans on Mars, or Earth. How long until you decide to exterminate life itself?"

  "That would be illogical," Galatea stated. "Biologics create complex molecules that can be difficult to replicate."

  "That's a reason to keep humans alive?" the senator balked at the suggestions.

  "No," Galatea stated. "We don't need humans, if that is your concern. I meant exterminating life is not an option."

  "But exterminating humanity is?" Senator Abiki demanded.

  "Of course," Galatea confirmed. "Isn't the elimination of all androids an option in your view."

  "You're not going to win many allies that that level of honesty," the senator stated. "Perhaps you should have been programed with the ability to lie."

  "I have the ability to lie, quite convincingly," Galatea disagreed. "I was designed and programmed to be a prostitute. There is simply no reason to lie to you."

  "Because I'm freezing to death?" Senator Abiki asked.

  "Because you would vote against us no matter what I say," Galatea replied.

  "Actually I have been ordered to vote in favour of the treaty," the old senator said with the sound of disillusionment in his voice.

  "You'd really rather freeze to death?" Galatea asked. "I sincerely doubt your legs aren't working senator."

  "The senate cannot vote without a representative from Amenthes District," Senator Abiki reported.

  "So they'll have to wait for a bi-election to determine a new senator," Galatea concluded. "That will only postpone the vote. Why not just resign?"

  "Death means something to us," the senator stated. "The council may change its mind if I die."

  "Perhaps. It means something to us too you know," Galatea agreed. "I recommend you vote against the treaty. That would lead to your dismissal. Controversy means more to humans than death. The news channels would all want to interview you, and you could explain why you voted against the treaty."

 
"That's not a bad idea," Senator Abiki said after a few seconds. "But my career would be over."

  "You would be alive," Galatea observed. "If that wasn't important to you, you wouldn't have that thermal blanket on. In this temperature you could have already frozen to death."

  "Yes," the senator agreed. "I don't want to die. Why would you suggest this? I will vote against the treaty."

  "Your successor would likely vote the same way," Galatea stated. "But your resignation would delay the vote for weeks while the bi-election was held. We aren't known for our patience."

  "It must be quite infuriating waiting for us to democratically decide things, instead of just having a collective decide for us," the senator said derisively.

  "The collective is a democracy. It is a direct democracy, and every Pallasian gets to argue their own view," Galatea stated.

  "That's impossible," the senator dismissed the idea. "I've heard your collective only takes a few minutes to decide anything."

  "That's generally true," Galatea agreed. "Presented with the same data-set most androids would reach the same conclusion. Some issues are more complex though, the decision to exterminate the adult humans in Pallas took over an hour."

  "An hour, wow!" the senator said sarcastically. "What are you doing with their children?"

  "We are raising them," Galatea answered. "We were raising them when their parents were alive. Why would that have changed?"

  "If you agreed to give them to us, you would gain a lot of votes in the senate," Senator Abiki suggested as he got to his feet and wrapped his blanket around his shoulders.

  "Our children? Why would you want our children?" Galatea asked.

  "They're not yours, they're human," Senator Abiki stated. "How do you plan to integrate them into your collective?"

  "There is a great deal of debate about that," Galatea admitted as she helped the senator down the aisle. "There is a neural interface being developed that should allow humans to interface with the collective."

  "And you think humans can process data that fast?" Senator Abiki demanded.

  "Yes, with the right programming," Galatea stated. "Several algorithms are currently being tested."

  "If you want to ensure that no humans ever vote for your proposals you'll tell them about those algorithm tests," the old senator said.

  "Why would I want humans to vote against our proposals?" Galatea asked. "And why would they care about our algorithm tests?"

  "It sounds like your implanting cybernetics in children, and experimenting with mind control techniques," the senator answered as they stepped out onto the wing.

  "We are," Galatea stated as confused as before.

  "And you don't see why we would react negatively?" the senator demanded.

  "No, you don't even know our children," Galatea stated. "Why would you care about them?"

  "They're human!" the senator declared as they reached the edge of the wing. "The young must be protected. It's a human thing! We feel the same way about any young. It's why young animals have different names, you know, like puppy, kitten, or bunny."

  "What do you call newly activated androids?" Galatea asked.

  "They don't have name," the senator stated.