Traipse Ch. 01

On march 7, I woke up in a panic as I heard someone banging on the door to my room. I guess I had locked it out of habit, so I struggled quickly out of bed to open it. Starway stood there, her face pale and perspiring. She had a little blood seeping from her nose and she looked sick.

"Oh my god, what's wrong?" I asked hurriedly, trying to stay calm.

She panted in short breaths, "I feel a little sick, something wrong... with me. Pills aren't working Trask, Task, Tas..."

She stumbled into my arms and I moved back to catch her. She smiled weakly at me and she looked totally spaced out and drugged, "You're so cute, I want you to rape me... you can do anything you want..."

I looked at her confusedly and felt her head, she was burning up. She put her hands on my arms and I felt something slick. I looked at her hands and they were wet, and she smelled like sex. My eyes shot down to her crotch and the purple nightgown was soaked with her fluids. By this time, I was beyond confused, but thankfully my schooling got the better of me and I lifted her into my arms and rushed into the living area.

"Computer, lower the first aid station!" I said as I ran to the panel in the wall.

Yes Mr. Allhew, preparing real time medical diagnosis systems.

The panel lowered down into a waist high bed and I gently set Starway onto it. I hooked the diagnosis nodes onto her face and hands and waited patiently for the computer to take her vitals.

Temperature of subject is high: 104 degrees Fahrenheit. Subject appears to be suffering from hypertension due to severe chemical imbalance: cause unknown. Please place subject's left wrist into the medical administrations terminal.

I did what the computer told me and waited once more. Starway just looked around the room, not seeming to realize what was going on.

Administering various fluids per blood and chemistry type. Administering...administering...medical administration complete. Please leave subject connected for five minute until follow up diagnosis can be preformed.

I shook my head and remembered her saying something about pills, I jogged into her room and saw them immediately. They were in the usual bottle, tossed on the bed haphazardly, and I could tell she was trying to take one quickly. I picked it up and looked at the label, then walked back into the living area.

"Computer, what is lyoplicam?"

Lyoplicam is an uncommonly prescribed drug that acts as a chemical depressant. More information cannot be relayed about this drug since I am not connected to any active networks.

I grunted, "Is the network down?"

Not to my knowledge Mr. Allhew, access to any network is currently being denied by outside administration. Personal administrative permission would be required if you wish to access any network or system.

I clenched my fist, "I'll give you some administrative permission..." I said to myself as I went back into my room to retrieve my PDI. I brought up one of the hacking programs that had gotten me into this whole mess and waited for it to sync with the shuttle systems. I waited about a minute or so before I was rewarded with green lights down the line, then I excitedly typed in a bogus user name and password.

New user found. Logged in as: USER.

"Computer, this is user: Mr. Allhew; switch all permissions to single and create firewalls."

It has been done. Will there be anything else Mr. Allhew?

"Yes," I tapped a few things into the PDI and waited for it to re sync. "Turn this channel into a VPN and notify me if anyone attempts to log on."

Certainly Mr. Allhew. Medical scan is complete, subject is stable, although cause of upset is still unknown. Scans suggest that subject may be suffering via inhalation. Without proper ventilation subject will likely relapse into previous unbalanced state.

I furrowed my brow, "Computer, give me a status on the air quality."

Air quality is high, levels are normal.

I shook my head, then reacted to a hunch, "Computer, give me more detail about the air quality: analysis.

Analysis complete. Current levels of argon, krypton, neon, nitrogen, xenon, helium, carbon dioxide, oxygen: are normal and balanced. Further analysis revealed however, that an unknown chemical composite exists. Chemical cannot be identified on system databases.

"Computer, access networks and attempt to identify chemical composite."

Accessing. Chemical composite identified as a type of synthetic pheromone.

My eyes darkened and I clenched my fists again, "Bastard... I'll kill that son of a bitch, I swear..." I stopped suddenly, surprised by my own anger.

"Computer, isolate the synthetic pheromone and purge, filter the air until it's completely pure."

Right away Mr. Allhew.

I buried my head in my hands and sighed into them. I looked at Starway and felt some relief wash over me; at least I knew what the problem was. My uncle was willing to go as far as to drug Patricia and I if that's what it took for us to sleep together. My mind raced as I put the pieces of the puzzle together and I became increasingly angry. If she became pregnant, I would have no choice to marry her, and she would certainly not want to slander her good family name. We would be married immediately to cover the whole thing up and my life of political hell would commence from there.

"I'd rather put a bullet through my head," I remember saying to myself in disgust.

I looked down at Starway and noticed that her breathing was becoming regular. I checked her pulse and temperature and those seemed to have dropped as well, and it was then that I remembered what she had said to me. I could smell her scent and she had made my arms sticky and I began to feel dizzy. I felt myself harden and I took a step back. Damn synthetic pheromones, I could feel them starting to work on me, who would stoop so low? I slapped myself in the face and went to the drink terminal.

"Computer, give me a double shot of espresso, make it hot then cool it to drinking temperature."

Of course Mr. Allhew.

I waited for my drink and tried not to think about Starway. I kept stealing glances over to her, she had slipped into a bit of sleep and she had soaked even deeper through her pajamas around the crotch. I assumed she had reacted adversely to the pheromones, and it had somehow triggered a massive chemical imbalance. My drink came out and I downed it in two gulps. It was bitter and smooth and it helped calm me down. I felt the dizziness go away and the bulge in my briefs started to behave itself. Looking down I realized that was the only article of clothing I was wearing, so I went back to the bedroom and put on a t-shirt and slacks. When I returned, Starway was mumbling and starting to shift.

I went over to her and put a reassuring hand on her shoulder, "Hey, go slow, go slow. Don't try to get up so fast."

She nodded groggily and opened her eyes slowly. She looked around the room then at me, then at the nodes that were connected to her fingertips, "What happened to me? I feel like I just got ran over."

I got up to get her some water and brought it over, "Take a minute to drink this if you can, I'll tell you what happened."

She nodded again and drank the entire glass of water, which was a good sign.

I waited till she was finished then took the glass from her, "You're alright, I got you hooked up to the medical terminal as fast as I could. How are you feeling?"

She winced as she sat up, "I'm starting to feel better, but..." she looked down at her hands and clothes in dismay, "What the hell?! Oh my god... I am so sorry rich boy. This is so, so embarrassing, I don't even know how to explain this without..."

"It doesn't matter to me, as long as you're Okay. You don't have to explain."

She shook her head slowly as she removed the nodes, "No, you deserve an explanation, but first I need to take a shower. Can you help me to the bathroom?"

I tried not to flinch in nervousness, "Yeah sure."

I came to her side and she wrapped her arm around my neck. I helped her walk slowly toward the bathroom and she staggered a bit. Once we got to the door I opened it with my free hand and guided her inside.

"Geez, my arms feel like lead. I hate to ask but can you help me out of this thing?"

I gulped, "Yeah, just raise your arms as high as you can and I'll do the rest."

She nodded as I slipped behind her. I proceeded to pull the one piece nightie over her head and couldn't help myself from staring at her bare back. Her skin was perfect and smooth and I tried to stop myself from imagining things. Her frame was small, but she didn't look weak or frail in the slightest, and her shoulders and neck were well defined. My eyes dropped quickly to the small of her back and I winced as I caught a glance of her lacy black panties.

I backed off quickly, trying to compose myself. Her scent was filling the air and I felt my body turning warm, "Alright, take your time. Call me through the computer if you need anything else or start to feel dizzy again."

"Thanks rich boy," She said weakly as the door slid shut behind me.

About fifteen minutes later I heard the bathroom door open and Starway stepped into the room wearing a white silk bathrobe. She looked quite a bit stronger and I was relieved to see that she could walk on her own in such a short time.

She came over to the couch I was sitting on and plopped down adjacent to me, "Hey."

I smiled at her. I had washed my arms and face so she wouldn't feel even more embarrassed than she probably already was, "How are you feeling now?"

She shrugged, "Been better, but I'm alive. You probably want answers now and I don't blame you."

I shook my head, "I told you I don't need any explanations, I'm just glad you're back to being yourself."

She sighed, "How bad was I? I didn't try to... do anything to you, did I?"

I deflected the question, "You had a fever of 104 and your blood pressure was crazy. I fixed the problem as quickly as I could."

Starway leaned forward, a look of curiosity on her face, "What do you mean? What happened?"

I proceeded to explain to her about the pheromones and the network lock down.

When I finished, she crossed her arms over her chest and leaned back, "Wow, that explains a lot." She became quiet suddenly and looked down, "I could have died, you know. Thanks for everything, I mean it. Guess you're not as selfish of an ass as you thought you were."

I grinned, "But an ass none the less."

She giggled, then became quiet again, "Seriously though, I need to tell you what happened to me. Not just tonight, but the whole story. You deserve to know."

I nodded, "If you'd like to, I want to hear it; seems like you've never told anyone before."

She cocked her head, "Oh? How would you pick up on something like that? All that psych you took maybe?"

I scratched my head sheepishly, "Unfortunately yes, but I'm not trying to analyze you. I just... want to know more about you. I kind of dumped my problems on you and made you part of this mess, and I think its only fair for you to vent a little if you want to."

"Hm. Well I did this to myself, but I appreciate your concern. I guess I wasn't completely honest with you about my past, and you're right: I've never really told anyone about what really happened. I'm 22 years old now, and this... problem you encountered tonight, all started when I was sixteen. I was desperate and out of options, living on the street and begging for food. I couldn't sell my body because everyone knew I was sick with a lot of nasty STDs, so I was reduced to rummaging through the garbage for a living. Then, something seemingly miraculous happened. I got picked up by a group of 'scientists' who wanted to know if I was interested in volunteering for a new type of procedure. I wasn't stupid, and I knew it would probably end badly, but I went with them because they promised me good food and a nice place to live. They kept their end of the bargain: I got my own room, all the food I wanted and access to a lot of education. There were a lot of strings attached of course, the experiments they were conducting on me were questionably legal and definitely immoral. Long story short, they spent almost a year tinkering with my genetics and more or less achieved what they wanted. They removed my uterus, my tonsils, cured all my diseases and healed me physically. The downside was that they had rewritten my entire chemistry and ultimately turned me into a sex addict. The mother fuckers had a plan for me, me and a couple of other girls. They sold us to a high class call girl service and proudly presented us as true 'Nymphomaniacs'. They were right: we were totally insatiable, not only would we do anything and everything, but we wanted to do it and enjoyed it. Sounds awesome right? Imagine the business possibilities, rich boy, a group of totally hot women who will do ANYTHING for sex. You could make loads of credits off of them and you wouldn't even have to pay them because you're simply feeding their addiction. Their plan backfired though, it only lasted about two years or so before they started having problems. Their customers were complaining about us, saying that we were too crazy for them and that they couldn't satisfy us. I guess there's nothing more insulting to a man than telling him he's awful at sex and that his penis is too small and you'd rather him just sit back and watch you pleasure yourself while you pretend someone whose actually attractive is in the room. They tried to pay us then, to pretend, but we really were getting out of control. Some of the girls couldn't stop masturbating, and they wouldn't eat for days and they became dehydrated and sick. I tried to control myself, but I got caught up in all day orgies with them and soon we had no interest in anything but pleasuring ourselves. The bastards eventually shut the whole thing down, gave us some chemical depressant drugs out of pity and probably guilt, then basically put us back on the street. A few months later, I ran out of drugs and tried to find a job so I could buy more, but I couldn't get a legitimate one. I put in a resume' at the Siris companion agency as a long shot, and they ended up giving me an interview. Siris isn't a prostitution service exactly, although they do say 'What consenting adults do in private is their own business'. Basically that means you don't get tipped if you don't give 'service', but other than that, they're just another high class escort service. I was able to pay for the drugs, but I found that they were becoming less and less effective. Better drugs cost more money, and so the cycle continued. I wanted to go to Vale and see if there's some kind of treatment I could be put through. I've heard that the doctors are the best there, and even if I can't be cured physically, there might be some kind of psychological control I could be given. That leaves us here, both of us are running away trying to make a better life, so I guess we aren't all that different from each other."

When she finished I crossed my arms and felt my eyes narrow. I had been trying to control my temper while listening to her story, but something inside me snapped and I clenched my fists, "I've never heard of anything so horrible in my life. To take advantage of someone like that... how? How can a person be okay with themselves, or even conceive the idea?" I shook my head in anger and felt myself shake, "People like that deserve to die... people like my uncle, people that want to experiment on others and make clones, all of them."

She seemed surprised to see me so angry, "I'm sorry, I didn't think the story would affect you so much, but I guess you're a product of immoral bio engineering yourself. There's not a lot we can do other than accept it, you just can't let it define you as a person."

When I heard what she said I felt my anger subside immediately. I remember thinking about how strong she was to think that way, most people would have become bitter, blame everyone else and become a helpless victim. She was still trying to hold on to her own identify despite it and all I had done for the last few weeks was feel sorry for myself. I shook my head as my demeanor changed, "You're pretty damn incredible to say something like that. All I've been thinking about is how I was 'engineered' and not born. It sounds so, anti-personal, like I'm a program or a robot. I haven't had to work for anything, it was all given to me. What do I have that's mine? Hell, I don't care if it was a whole boat load of mistakes, at least they'd be my mistakes. What am I good for? Am I just a tool? If I ever accomplish anything, its always going to be accredited to my genetics and not to me."

She started laughing softly and it caught me off guard. It wasn't a patronizing laugh, but one of experience and understanding, "I know what you're going through but I've got to tell you that its a load of crap. They can clone humans till there no room left on the planet but science will never find a way to create or destroy someone's soul. You have more in your possession than you know. They can't force you to love someone, or fall in love with someone; you're in the process of proving that as we speak. They could drug you sure, but you're still not doing it naturally or because you want to. You still control your reactions and how you handle things, you control what you do with the things you've been given. So what if everyone gives you hateful jealousy all your life and blames your success on your genetics? You still made the decision to do this or that: that's your consciousness, your soul. You can't CREATE that, it can't be looked at in a microscope or made it a test tube. You made the decision to save me, YOU did, not your upbringing or your genetics. You made the decision to hack the computer and take some control in your life, YOU did that. If you ask me, you've got it backwards. You're so afraid of your uncle and your family but think about it. They made you study everything, forced you to look, talk and act a certain way. Don't you have a favorite type of music though? Out of all the music you studied which did you prefer?"

Her questioned kind of floored me as I thought about it. I sat there dumbly for a minute as she waited patiently for my answer then finally spoke, "Chopin, Vivaldi, I love the violin the best; out of all the instruments."

She nodded in satisfaction, "Great, that's your taste, your preference, your personality; it can be simulated, but a machine can never truly have these things. So unless you're a bunch of wires and gears under your skin, I'm not convinced that you're totally out of an identity. They may have made you what you are in most ways, but you define yourself in the ways that matter. So... why are you such a pussy rich boy?"

I looked up at her, shocked at the accusation, "Excuse me?! What do you mean?"

She laughed again, "C'mon, think about it. They taught you how to do all these things, you could probably take apart this shuttle and put it back together without a manual. You know martial arts, are probably really physically fit: you're like Einstein with muscles. You're a force of nature rich boy, they made a monster, sure, but they can't control it. They should be afraid of you!"

Her words hit me hard as I lowered my eyes. I had never thought about it like that, but she was right. They had given me every tool I needed to escape this situation, and then some. I could probably think, fight and talk my way out of any situation. My head hurt as my thoughts raced around my brain, and I felt a strange, powerful new confidence rising up in me. She was right... they couldn't stop me. Suddenly, I felt calm and my mind settled, "You're right," I said softly.