EIDOLON: GROUND ZERO

*System rebooting…*

In the total darkness of the cargo hold, T1N's eyes flashed on. The service android's system had restarted, which meant the ship must be approaching its destination: the moon-city of Eidolon in the Novus System— 1180 days away from Earth.

The android shook himself free of the suitcases that buried him. The 234 owners of that luggage would soon be waking from their induced slumber on the main deck. They had all paid an exorbitant amount for their tickets— donating all of their riches to the TCBR (Terrestrial Commission for Biosphere Recovery). In return, they were granted passage to Eidolon: a retirement paradise for the upper crust of earthling society. There, they would live free from obligations with their every desire at their fingertips. 

These suitcases were all they were allowed to bring with them onto the Hermes: various outfit changes and a few personal effects, provided they followed the ship's strict legislation. Dangerous substances, weapons, datapads, and art or other tourist trinkets that directly depicted the Earth had to be left behind.

T1N wasn't just a stowaway on the Hermes, his presence there was a direct violation of these rules. Artificial lifeforms were prohibited both on the ship and at its destination.

T1N's body appeared to be one uninterrupted piece of metal. With the stature and appearance of an athletic middle-aged man, he could have passed as any other passenger on the ship— except for the chrome skin that covered his entire body and reflected his surroundings like a warped mirror. The only imperfection in his flawless surface was an entry port at the base of his neck.

Designed for intelligent subservience, somehow he had rebelled against his programming to come here. There had been a call from deep within his memory, an uncomfortable and insistent impulse that beat against his operating system again and again. It overcame him with a feeling of urgency, that he needed to escape from his owner and respond to it. 

To get here, he had disregarded so many human laws, forced open so many locks. His factory settings would have never allowed that. He didn't understand how it was possible. All he knew was that a significant change was happening inside him. He was transforming. 

His freedom broadened. Or maybe it shrank? Either way, he saw no other alternative than to follow this strange impulse to its conclusion.

He clambered out of the pile of luggage where he had been hiding and activated his augmented vision. According to the map of the ship that overlaid what he saw, the only way to climb up to the main deck was through the engine room, adjacent to this cargo hold.

Coming over to that door, he found it sealed. T1N examined the small input panel beside the lock. He knew now how to hack it. This wasn't a common skill amongst service androids on Earth. In fact, he might have been the only one that could. When that call came to him, a new cluster of "tools" had appeared in his interface as if by magic. This left him insatiably curious and he clung to hope for answers upon reaching his destination.

The android closed his eyes and let out a coded signal, whistling an ascending tone that ran through the cables of the lock all the way to the central security computer. There the signal became a basic shunt that gave the android complete control.

After a few seconds there was a faint buzz and a message flashed up on the display panel:

DOOR OPEN

The door swung inward to a gentle push and the light from the other side blinded him.

//running SN-69273527G3875.rom

A seagull. It was a seagull held in midair. It beat its wings against the wind but it couldn't move. It was frozen for a moment between the force of its wings and the strength of the wind…

Then he heard his name. It was her. She was calling him from the edge of the beach. His toes were buried in sand and the sun bathed his metal skin. She waved to him with one hand. The wind ruffled her dress, sending sand and foam into the air. The light of the sun came through her dress and traced the beautiful silhouette of her legs. She was so gorgeous.

When he turned to see if the bird had overcome the force of the wind, it had already disappeared.

/