PBP Game Colony Ship EXODUS: Search for New Home

Alicia Lane

(OOC: Yeah, I thought that too, I just asked because, depending on the opponent, I guess it could be used to stun him.)

Alicia frowned, wondering why the boy was crying, although, judging by the icecream cone on the floor, she had a pretty good idea.

She crouched next to him. "Hello there, little one, what's wrong?" she asked with a smile.

 

Alicia Lane

The boy looked at her with tears in his eyes.

"M-my icecream! I dropped it when that mean man ran past here!"

He gave a pitiful little sniffle and his eyes watered again.

 

Dahlia

Dahlia took a chair next to Michael, a taking a moment to smile and nod at everyone. The casual atmosphere was relaxing, and she felt she might even dress down into one of her more ancient styles later. "I do feel honored in a way. What is on the agenda for today, Cindy?"

 

Alicia Lane

Alicia mentally cursed, he probably meant the man she and Sarah knocked down and Tammy took away in cuffs. She smiled again at the boy and ruffled his hair.

"Don't worry, the mean man won't bother you anymore. Tell me, what can I do to make you smile again?"

 

Dahlia

Cindy looks at her for a moment and sighs.

"The agenda is..... Delilah."

When she hears the name, Dahlia experiences more "Memories." Of a man dancing with her slowly. Of a small group similar to Cindy's sharing drinks around that very table. The first man smiling at her and saying "We'll make this work. Dahlia will be our hope."

Then more flooded in. She was holding a baby boy. The dancing man standing by her hospital bed, weeping tears of joy. "You did it honey! After so many tries!" Fast forward. Another image, the first she had experienced the day before. The little girl smiling up at her, and a voice coming from Dahlia that wasn't quite her's. "I missed you Cindy. We haven't seen each other since your father started his new job."

"I missed you too grandma! I want to hear more stories about your time as a scientist. Back before you had daddy."

"Oh? Which one?"

"I want to know more about Dahlia. Did you name her that because it sounds so much like your name?"

And then the flood of memories stopped and Dahlia found herself being watched by everyone in the room.

 

Alicia Lane

The boy gives her a pouty look before looking down at his ice cream.

"The shop isn't far from here... But momma only gave me enough money for one cone. I didn't even get to eat it."

He starts to sniffle again and a tear drops to the floor by the fallen ice cream.

 

Alicia Lane

Alicia exchanged a glance with Sarah and then turned back to the crying boy. "Tell you what, show me where this store is and I'll buy you a new cone, how about that?"

 

Alicia Lane

The boy's eyes lit up in a way that reminded Sarah of Mihoshi....

"Really? Thank you pretty lady!"

 

Dahlia

Delilah.

Her head spun. The memories flashed with such intensity and quickness that they seemed to lance her again and again, driving into her brain and stabbing at her very consciousness. Her soul was wracked, buffeted against the tempest, so that she had to scream.

Then it stopped. Her throat felt hoarse. Did she scream? Was it in her head? She moved her fingers, only to find them dug into the table, bent and warped around her imprints. Everyone stared at her, seemingly waiting for a response, but all she could at was Cindy. Her mind overlayed the image of the girl from her "memories" onto her, and wondered...

"Cindy..." she said in a voice she wasn't sure was her own. "Who... who am I? Why... do I feel like I know you... from... when you were a child...?"

 

Alicia Lane

Alicia nodded at the boy. "On second thought," she trailed, they already were on a tight schedule and she knew how much icecream cones cost around the residential areas. She dug into her purse and pulled out a few credits, extending it to the boy. "I'll give you the money, so you can buy whatever you want from the store. My sister and I are in a hurry."

 

Felix Brown

Felix wasted no time and initiated a video connection with Gloria as soon as he left the hospital.

 

Dahlia

Cindy got up from her chair and came over to Dahlia and.... Hugged her.

"You do know me. At least, you still have the memories. Michael, will you explain?"

Michael nodded and picked up where Cindy had left off.

"Back when the ship was first launched, there was a program to try and save the minds of the citizens that were true contributors to the safety of the ship. When these people were close to death, a scan was done of their minds and saved to a file separate from the main ship's network. The AH program was viewed as a way to finish the Phoenix program. But it didn't work. The AH gained human like emotions and quirks, but didn't gain sentience or revive as their previous selves. So they were recycled as laborers and pleasure workers. Part of the problem was that all the minds were saved on the same file. Delilah's was saved separate and placed in her greatest creation. Dahlia, you are Delilah's rebirth."

Trent cut in here.

"You were made because Delilah couldn't produce children. Her body always caused a miscarriage because of a rare genetic disorder. You were originally supposed to be Dahlia MH000. MH for Motherhood. You were going to be a midwife AH that could also carry a child to term in place of the actual mother. Your body was made specially to carry a child and expend as it grows, just like a normal pregnant woman. You were going to give women with problems having children a chance to be mothers. But then a miracle happened. Delilah carried a child to term. Cindy's father was born. During Delilah's maternity leave, you were handed over to another scientist without her consent. He saw no need for an AH of your capabilities and had your project shut down. You were put in storage for a long time. By the time Delilah learned what had happened, your fate was out of her hands. Her body was aging and she wasn't part of the R&D anymore. Her body was also failing her, so her mind was scanned and placed in you, the last key needed to bring you to life."

Nathan spoke up then.

"It was probably your connection to Delilah that allowed you to begin gaining sentience, though I've found a few others that may be like you."

Here, Abigail joined the conversation.

"You are so hot."

The others stared at Abigail like she was nuts....

 

Alicia Lane

"Thank you lady!"

the boy held out his hands, a happy smile on his face and his eyes shining.

 

Felix Brown

Gloria answered on the first ring.

"Doctor, hello! Are you ready for our meeting?"

Perkiness factor was back to 11.

 

Alicia Lane

Alicia smiled at the boy and handed him the money. "Here you go, kid," she said. "Don't go dropping it again, you hear me?"

The blonde teacher then began to walk away.

 

Felix Brown

"I am ready. " Felix couldn't understand how a real human being can be so friendly. She was like some pleasure AH ready to care for any need but Gloria was real "But... I don't really know how will we do it. I want to... you know... play with you. But I don't want to hurt you for real. You are so sweet"

 

Dahlia

Delilah... Dahlia... Of course... How could I have... She looked up into Cindy's eyes. Her hand moved on her own accord, cupping her face and caressing her cheek. It traveled upwards through her blonde locks, stopping at the sides of her head. "Pigtails..." Her voice still wasn't quite right to Dahlia, it seemed to speak-- "Cindy, you had pigtails, I thought they were so cute. But of course you're grown up now, you're a big girl." Something-- no, someone, was using Dahlia's mouth and vocalizer, reshaping it for herself, as if she knew precisely what to-- "I'm so very proud of you Cindy. Thank you for--"

Then Abigail spoke. The spell shattered, and Dahlia returned to her inner monologue. Seeing her hand in Cindy's hair, she recoiled slightly, looking panicked.

"I--I-I'm sorry, Cindy, I... I don't..." She looked nervously to Michael and took his hand. "Well... no, I do know. Now." She paused, her mouth twitching. "So... I have... my creator's mind. Delilah's mind. We share a soul... as it were. Will more of these memories come back? What will I become?" She looked to Michael. "I don't want to lose what I have." Pausing again, she continued. "And I can... carry a fetus to term?"

 

Alicia Lane

(Encounter 10)

As the girls kept walking, Sarah stopped her a little ways down from where they left the boy.

"Sis, I need to pee! Look, a bathroom. Want to come in with me?"

 

Felix Brown

"Well I don't want you to hurt me either," Gloria said with a giggle.

"Look, why don't you give me directions to your place and we can see how this works. I'm... I'm nervous. But I want to help you. Maybe we can get this out of your system."

 

Delilah er wait, Dahlia

Michael took her into his arms.

"You and Delilah have always been one person. The memories were already in you, just sleeping. More may come, but you will always be you."

Cindy smiled at her.

"You're the first. The first to really be reborn. Dahlia, you can change everything. You can show the whole ship that there is more to circuitry to the AH."

Then Michael laughed.

"And yes, you can carry a fetus to term. You were made to help women give birth, be it through helping them with their pregnancy or being pregnant for them. And now that you are sentient, you could find a pregnant woman who doesn't want their child and become its mother. We could be parents one day if that is your desire."