11 Departure: the ship of broken dreams

The ship was two hundred meters tall and eight hundred meters long. Around it was the endless void: space. Small ships, large ships, space stations, satellites, all were far from view.

After all, space was vast!

One could easily see the blue oceans from the ship's monitors. But the ocean wouldn't have looked so blue if it weren't for the excess plasma waste in the air. If someone was really looking, they would have seen one small ship heading towards this monstrosity. The small ship had one average man with an impossible dream. Perhaps, it was time the impossible became possible.

Perhaps.

The name of the massive ship: Ainmester. The ship of broken dreams.

***

"Take care son."

An hour prior to that, Theo was in the facility bidding his goodbyes.

They were in an open area.

Rogers, Laura, and Sizzy were here. There were other people in the distance, but they didn't care.

'Looks like she didn't come after all.'

Theo was somewhat disappointed that his mother didn't even give a call.

'John won't come either?' John had only sent a mail saying he was sorry he couldn't show up. He had something urgent to do. 'But at least he said something.' Unlike his mother.

"I know Pops. I will."

Rogers sighed. "How many times do I have to tell you to call me papa? PAPA!"

"Forever, I guess?"

'Why hell should I call you something as embarrassing as that? I'd rather call you a Popsicle!' There was a reason why Theo had those thoughts. It's better no one knew about it.

Rogers didn't say anything. He furrowed his brows and stared.

"I will miss you two," Laura said.

"We haven't spent enough time to miss each other. And wait, two?" Theo caught on.

His father and Laura had rather peculiar grins.

"Yes, you and Sizzy."

"This isn't funny old man. I don't like where this is going."

"I'm not that old you know. And it's not funny either. I talked it out with the vice president. He gave his okay." Rogers' grin widened. "Besides, this is an opportunity, I can't let go."

Theo wasn't going to have any of it. "What the hell you mean by ok? The hell is wrong with you people!"

Rogers made a smug face. "You didn't think I'd let my son head off to danger without an insurance, did you?"

"You're telling me, she's going to protect me?" It wasn't that surprising. The R.I were quite capable. And they had grown rather complex as well. So she could protect Theo from various circumstances.

Sizzy had two brains in her and could make logical decisions and maybe some illogical ones…But that also meant she was just as much dangerous as any other human. What if she changed?

"She's quite capable I'll have you know."

But Theo wasn't convinced. Although the R.I were capable, they were vastly inferior to complex decisions. They could make decisions with ease and good calculation but they lacked the human touch. However, that wasn't the real reason why Theo was so wary. This R.I- Sizzy, was different. She was almost like a human but with better skills and capabilities: perhaps a bit naive. What if she gained self-awareness and became like the world-dominating AI of the past? "But she's-"

"No more words. Orders from your superiors. You have to obey," Rogers with another grin, flashed some Holo papers at Theo's face.

Theo knew that too. And he didn't have time to argue either. 'Just what kinds of strings did you pull?' In the end, he just sighed. "Fuc-fii...ne…." He controlled himself at the very last moment.

Rogers almost burst into laughter. "The ship leaves in ten minutes. But…. I really mean this son. Take care."

"For the last time old man, I know and I will." Creases appeared on Theo's forehead. Normally people would have gotten medicines or even surgeries to get rid of anything that made them look slightly aged. Theo didn't give a damn about it. 'What if she decides that humanity isn't worth it?'

Good and evil are just two sides of the coin after all.

So Theo's worries were valid.

Rogers turned to Sizzy, grabbed her shoulder, and sniffed. "Take care. And take care of him too."

"I will. Prof- no- father." Sizzy's response was almost humane and she seemed a little sad.

Roger's eyes glimmered some more.

"Oh my. That's some fine development." Laura grinned.

'Why are you acting like the father of a newlywed bride?' Theo rolled his eyes. All this drama was rubbing him the wrong way. "Hurry it up. I've got a ship to catch."

R.I could be programmed to address their creator however they wanted and sometimes even without their input- so Sizzy's 'father' wasn't the least bit surprising to Theo.

"You insensitive brat!" Rogers spat. He was almost on the verge of tears.

'Was this guy always this emotional?' To answer Theo's question, he wasn't. This was probably the only time Theo saw tears in his father's eyes.

"I will- protect him." Sizzy gave a confident answer.

And the two turned towards the small craft.

Laura meanwhile went close to Theo. "By the way, feel free to have fun with her. She needs all kinds of experience." She whispered and winked.

Theo grimaced and clicked his tongue. 'Hell no.' His glare suggested the very same.

With a smile, Laura went back to Rogers' side.

"Leaving without saying bye?" A high-pitched female voice came from just behind Theo.

A storm was coming- or rather, it was already here.

Sweat rolled off from his forehead. He didn't want to turn around. "Em-Emily. Hi!" He looked for ways he could run away. 'Can I outrun her?' He knew he couldn't.

It was too late.

Emily, Theo's younger sister, grinded her teeth. "You have a lot of nerve to say that."

"My flight's about to leave, so I'll just head over there." Theo tried to leave as organically as possible.

It wasn't organic at all.

"Oh no, you don't!" Emily grabbed Theo by the shoulder and grounded him. She was a lot stronger than Theo, almost the same stature as him.

Emily Black, Theo's youngest sister was almost sixteen. She was actually a few centimeters taller than Theo and probably had more to go. At first glance, anyone would have deemed her a black-haired beauty capable of swaying the hearts of men.

But that wasn't quite right.

She had two priorities in life. One, to be the cutest holo-idol, and two, sway her brother with her womanly charms: she didn't give a damn about other men. She also had a rather peculiar condition called bro-complex, which she had no idea about.

Theo pretended to be ignorant as well.

"TO think you'd leave me behind without even saying goodbye." Emily sulked and grumbled. She was mad but her veins didn't pop. One had to pay extra attention to maintain one's beauty after all.

At all times.

She didn't pay any attention to Rogers, as she wasn't his blood daughter. Theo's mother had remarried and Emily was the second child from her new husband. Hence Emily just ignored Theo's father altogether.

Unnecessary.

"Sorry about that. I didn't know much about things either. One day I got the job and-" And he tried his best not to let that information slip into his sister's domain.

Emily placed her index finger on Theo's lips. "SHH… I know you'd never hide things from me." She flashed a dazzling smile. "So I'll forgive you just this once."

'Don't worry. I hide so many things from you that you have no idea.'

Emily knew his brother was average and worthless in the eyes of society. And yet she liked him for various reasons.

An R.I signaled it was time for their departure.

"I'll send a mail every now and then, so don't worry," Theo reassured her. 'Oh, thank the heavens, we don't have time.'

"I-I'll call you."

"You know, I won't be buying any extra bandwidth. I wouldn't be able to hold even a normal call let alone a Holo one."

Emily chuckled. "Cheapo." And let him go.

Theo grinned and went towards the ship. Sizzy followed him. Both of them got on the ship and it levitated. Rogers and his assistant waved. Sizzy waved back.

Theo didn't.

He couldn't bring himself to. His father was the only person in his family who he respected and loved. He couldn't dare to say goodbye.

Emily just stood there with a smile; hands clasped tight. Theo loved his sister but she was a pain in some ways. After all, whenever his sister talked to him at home, he'd get a lot of stares from his stepfather and half-brothers. Snickers, condescending laughs….

Not the fondest of his memories.