The G. M. Os. - 24. Chapter 24 - Life Continues

Chapter 24
Ship Clock 262780
Life Continues

REGINALDO 53-943O; CCMD-NSDX-010-R5

ECOM 99X-6445C-4; ABNER 34-793K

GREETINGS . . .

STATUS REPORT; REQUESTED BRAIN SURGERY: EUGENUS 54-721C

HERCULES III BOT SURGICAL STAFF APPROVES SURGICAL REPAIR & REARRANGEMENT OF ARTERIAL ROUTING FOR EUGENUS 54-721C.

SURGERY SCHEDULED FOR THIRD MOONDAY STARRETH 262780.

EUGENUS 54-721C MUST BE AT RING 5 CENTRAL CITY MEDICAL CENTER NLT NOON THIRD DIOSDAY STARRETH 262780.

SURGERY AND ATTENDANT SERVICES WILL BE PROVIDED BY BOT SURGICAL STAFF; PENDING OUTCOME, DISCHARGE WILL OCCUR ON FIRST MARSDAY HALFTH 262780.

SINCERELY,

REGINALDO 53

Genie looked at the message and went out to the living room where Gene was sitting in his wingchair watching one of his ancient Earth Humphrey Bogart vids. She sat down in the side chair next to him. He ignored her, engrossed in the vid.

“Brother, we received a message about your brain surgery,” Genie said. “It’s been approved by Hercules III Surgical Staff. You’re scheduled next month. I printed it out so you can read it.”

“Huh, are you talking to me? I’m watching this vid. I’ll talk to you later.”

“Okay, Brother, you watch your vid and we’ll talk at lunch when Abe is here. Now, what are they sending?”

Genie went back to the office to answer the priority message alarm. She was thinking it was from the med center, probably sending a reschedule on the surgery. But, when it came up, she read in horror:

RING 3 BIRTHING RESEARCH LAB; BBRCRL-0001A-001A-R3

ECOM 99X-6445C-4; ABNER 34-793K; EUGENUS 54-721C

IT IS WITH EXTREME REGRET WE MUST INFORM YOU OF THE DEATH OF DONALDA 00-893N TODAY AT 1113.

DECEDENT COMMITTED SUICIDE BY JUMPING OFF LABORATORY BUILDING AND IMPACTING PAVEMENT, RESULTING IN CATASTROPHIC INJURIES; RESUSCITATION BY BOT EMERGENCY RESPONSE UNSUCCESSFUL.

DECEDENT LEFT MESSAGE:

ABE/GENE/DON/GENIE,

I AM SORRY, BUT I CANNOT CONTINUE. NO MATTER WHAT WE ATTEMPT NOTHING SEEMS TO REDUCE MUTATIONAL INCIDENTS IN BIRTHING PROCESS. THERE IS NOTHING LEFT FOR ME TO DO.

SEE YOU IN HEAVEN

DOEY

PLEASE SEND REQUEST FOR DECEDENT’S ASHES TO RING 3 SECOND CITY CORONERS OFFICE; SCCOR3-03021A-COR3.

WE WISH TO EXPRESS OUR CONDOLENCES TO THE FAMILY IN THIS TIME OF EXTREME GRIEF.

RING 3 BIRTHING RESEARCH LAB ADMINISTRATION

Genie stared at the message, hit PRINT, and picked up the paper from the bin. She limped out to the living room, pressed the pause button on Gene’s portable module, and sat down in the side chair.

“Hey! What did you do for?”

“Brother, read this.”

“I don’t want to read anything; I want to watch my vid. Now, go away.”

He moved to hit the play button, but Genie took the module away from him and handed him the paper. She waited while he read the message. He handed the paper back, stood up, took his cane, and with tears trickling down his cheeks, went back toward the master bedroom. Genie heard the door click shut.

She didn’t really know what to do, now. Abe would be back from the flower farm in a few minutes, so there was no point in going up there and getting him. She wanted Willy, she needed someone to hold her, but Willy was putting together a shipment of Chrysanthemums that the bots were going to pick up the day after tomorrow. She had a crew from the dormitories, but it was a large order and would require long hours for two and a half days. She had requested a catered lunch from the dining hall to keep the crew at the farm.

There was nothing she could do. She got up and went out to the backyard and looked at the tulip tree Doey planted before she left for Ring 3 fifty-six years ago. Genie thought that would be a good place for Doey’s ashes, but she would have to discuss that with Abe and Gene. She heard the speeder come down the lane and went back into the rez.

Abe walked in the front door, took off his boots, and asked, “Where’s Gene?”

“In your bedroom,” Genie said, “probably crying.”

“Why would he do that?”

“Doey’s dead, she committed suicide this morning.”

“Oh, I’d better go to him. When are they going to send the ashes?”

“When I request them; the message is over there. She left a short note. I was thinking we could put her ashes under the tulip tree.”

“Yes, that way she’ll be close. Well, I’d better go.”

“Abe?”

“Yes?”

“They approved Gene’s operation; they’ll do it next month.”

“I’ll be with Gene; don’t worry about lunch.”

“Okay, Abe. I wish Willy was here, but I guess I’ll have to wait. Don’t worry, take care of Gene.”

She heard Abe walk down the hall and go into the bedroom. She stood there not knowing what to do. She sighed and went back to Doey’s bedroom. They kept it ready for whenever she came home on vacation, though lately she’d been staying in Second City with a man she met at the lab. She laid down on the bed and turned on her side. The emotion of the death welled up inside of her and she let the tears flow freely.

She thought of all those lessons Doey gave her when she first came to the commune two hundred and ten years ago without any memories. All those lessons and basic reading, arithmetic, and all the other things that distinguished humans from bots seemed so difficult in the beginning, but in time the spark of her genius lit up her mind and she voraciously read everything she could get her eyes on. Then fifty years ago she figured it was time to volunteer her mental capabilities to whatever the bots needed of her, but was surprised when they rebuffed her request. They said they did not want to put her through any vigorous mental work considering the state of her brain. They stated that since she had a stroke at such an early age and that Gene had experienced a number of transient ischemic events, it was likely she, too, would suffer more strokes and would, therefore, be of little use in long term research projects. They said that she was needed at home to help her brother cope with his ever increasing loss of physical and mental functions from his strokes.

It seemed a little drastic, but in time, she came to realize that the bots were releasing her to live without directly benefitting the ship as most humans were required to do. Then life became simpler and easier. All she had to do was come over here during the day and take care of her brother. In the evening she would return to stay with Willy as she had done since the beginning. After a few years they moved from roommates to lovers and then came to the realization they could freely join in matrimony. Since Willy was only a year older, age was not a problem. With Charity and Megan it had been different since Megan was five hundred ninety years older, but eventually, they too married and life in the community settled into a calm existence. Megan moved out of her rez and in with Charity. Bill and Jack took over Megan’s title keeping the community made up of gay and lesbian marrieds. With all the children moved off to new careers in various places on the ship, there was talk of adopting new sets of twins, but this time all of them wanted to bring in children of the same age.

And, now, with Doey’s death life had come full circle from birth to death. All of this ran through Genie’s mind as time ticked away until Abe would go back up to the flower farm and help Willy with her harvest. Finally, there were no tears left and Genie got up and went into the bathroom. She washed her face and then went into the office. She set the module to compose mode and began typing:

ECOM 99X-6445C-4; ABNER 34-793K; EUGENUS 54-721C

SCCOR3-03021A-COR3; RING 3 SECOND CITY CORONERS OFFICE

IN RE: DONALDA 00-893N

PLEASE SEND ASHES OF DECEDENT TO EDEN COMMUNE RING 5; R5C-4; ATTN ABNER 34-793K

THANK YOU

THE FAMILY OF DONALDA 00-893N

She hit send and waited for the receipt confirmation.

Quicker than she expected the bell rang on the module indicating a priority message.

BOT HQ RING 3; BHQR3-01A-0001A-1

ECOM 99X-6445C-4; ABNER 34-793K

ASHES OF DONALDA 00-893N WILL BE DELIVERED TOMORROW AT OR AROUND 1200 DIRECT TO RESIDENCE ID ECOM-AER4.

PLEASE PROVIDE AUTHORIZED HUMAN TO RECEIPT PACKAGE.

BOT SECURITY RING 3

********

Don was older, now, twenty-six years into age 18 and already a trauma center resident at Central City Medical Center. He had a long future ahead of him. Gene was very proud of his son and looked forward to attending Don’s marriage to his fiancée Maia. So, he waited impatiently down at Commune Center for the omnibus to come in from Central City. Abe was there with him as Gene could no longer drive the speeder or the community cruiser. The bots hadn’t taken away his license, but they told him not to drive and, for Gene, that was as good as permanently cancelling his driving privileges.

The deep hum of the omnibus filled the air as it came down from the general transport track high above the commune. There was a noticeable crackling sound as the landing gear deployed and the omnibus settled onto its belly pads. The driver came off first, soon followed by Don. He was alone. He collected his bag from the driver, gave him a slip of paper, and came over to where Gene and Abe were standing.

“Where’s Maia?” Gene asked.

“She couldn’t come,” Don said, sadly.

“She couldn’t get away from work?” Abe asked.

“No, Bot Security picked her up yesterday. Turns out, Maia and her family were machos. The bots told me they intercepted a message from Maia’s parents telling her to get up in the night and murder us in our sleep. I guess we’re lucky the bots were able to get that message or tomorrow we’d all be dead. Shame, though, Maia was a nice girl. How’s Genie?”

“Like us, shocked,” Abe said. “Though, she seems to be holding up better than us. She’s up at the rez waiting for the ashes to arrive from Ring 3. The bots are bringing Doey home. How are you doing?”

“Shocked, but I am happy to be able to get off work. I’ll be home for a week, unless they call me back sooner. Where will you put Doey?”

“Under the tulip tree she planted in the backyard,” Gene said. “She’ll like it there and she’ll be close to home. Jack has ordered an engraved stone to place beside the tree.”

“Come on, Don, let’s get you home,” Abe said. “I’ve got to get back to work. Willy has a big order going out tomorrow.”

Don looked around Commune Center taking in his bearings and remembering from the last time he was here thirty-five years ago. That was the problem when pursuing a position in the medical field these days; Bot Medical Services required excellent progress all the way through the pre-med portion and the never ending successions of internships. When he finally received a residency here on Ring 5 at the Central City Medical Center he figured he could take some time off, but that was not to be and, now, although he was desperately needed, he was able to get at least three days off. He hoped they wouldn’t call him back because he was looking forward to spending the whole ten days at home.

Of course, there was also the secret he would keep as long as possible, maybe not revealing it until after the funeral. Though Genie would probably ask what he had planned and then he’d have no option to reveal what he was carrying close to his heart. He had to tell someone and Genie was the logical choice. She pretty much ran the family and, now, with Doey gone Genie might be able to get back in with the bots. They had always been nice to Abe, other than that time when he was put in prison, and that carried over to Gene. There were so many possibilities ahead and with his secret, well, there seemed to be no end in sight.

When they came in to land at the rez there was a four place Bot Security speeder in the parking area and a Bot Security officer at the door talking to Genie. She was holding a small, plain wooden box. Abe coasted into his parking slot and everybody climbed out. Don came around to the other side and retrieved his bag. The bot at the door flew down to its speeder, but landed in front of Don.

“Donaldus 00-893m, I express Bot Security’s condolences for your loss,” it said. “Have you informed your family of your new posting?”

“No, I was going to wait until after the funeral.”

“Yes, maybe, that would be best. Bot Security looks forward to having you here close to your family. We are sorry your future with Maia 04-999t had to end, but machos cannot be tolerated as I am sure you know. Is there anything Bot Security can do for you in the future?”

“You know, my Aunt Genie used to communicate with the bots on a regular basis before she had her stroke, it might be nice if some bot hierarchy could use her mental capacities for something other than a stressful situation that may lead to another ischemic event. Maybe she could do something like reviewing theses for students wishing to pursue advanced degrees in physics. After all, she was a physics genius.”

“Yes, that will be forwarded to the bot scientific educational hierarchy. Yes, she does have the talent, but we are worried about the physical condition of her brain. She may not survive another ischemic event.”

“How about we bring her into the Medical Center in Central City and give her an intensive workup of her brain. She hasn’t had one in over forty-five years that I know of, maybe if the arterial structures are sound she can be given something to do. At the very least, such a diagnostic study might reveal any current defects that need to be addressed by bot surgical staff.”

“Yes, I will include that in my report. Donaldus 00-893m, it has been nice speaking with you. If we do not meet again, have a good life.”

“Thank you.”

The bot flew up into the speeder and it flew away. Don sighed, picked up his bag, and went up and into the rez. Inside everyone was sitting in their favorite chair, so Don set his bag down and went over to the sofa and sat down.

“Okay, what did the bot want from you?” Genie asked.

“Yeah, what are you doing talking to bots?” Gene asked. “That’s Abe’s and my territory around here.”

“I’m a trauma center physician; I speak with bots all the time. This one expressed sympathy over Doey’s death and Maia’s arrest. Then it, well, said it was happy Hercules III Bot Medical Services was posting me here to be the new night shift emergency room physician.”

“You are?” Genie asked. “Don, that’s great!”

“Son, how did you swing that one?” Abe asked.

“I didn’t, it came in last week from on high and, well, it was from the bots, so I certainly wasn’t going to complain. And I’m sure you need a night shift emergency doctor. I guess I was the logical choice, since I’m from here. I know what it means to live on a commune, especially one the size of Eden. I was hoping not to have to say anything until after the funeral, but things like this happen. Oh, and we did talk about you, Aunt Genie.”

“What about me?”

“Well, you know you’re a genius and probably aren’t being utilized here on the ship to the full extent of your mental abilities, so I suggested you could be useful doing something like reviewing physics theses. You know, use your mental talents for something that isn’t too stressful, while at the same time being useful to the ship. Then I suggested we take you into the Medical Center and do a workup on your brain to see if there is anything wrong with your arteries. I don’t know if any of this will work out, but I figured it was worth a try since the bot asked me if there was anything Bot Security could do for me.”

“How about that, after all these years they still like us,” Gene said. “It’s nice to know we’re still in their good graces. Genie, I think those were good suggestions. You need to be doing something other than sitting around here waiting for me to trip on something and fall.”

“If you’d get out more, you wouldn’t have a problem tripping, but I don’t know about having to just review term papers. There should be something more vital here on the ship for me to do than that.”

“Aunt Genie, they’re worried about the physical condition of your brain and what might occur if you were put into another stressful environment. Otherwise, they’re just going to keep you here watching Father.”

“Don, I thought I told you a long, long time ago not to say that word when referring to me,” Gene said.

“I’m sorry Gene, but you are, like it or not, my father and I’ve never been comfortable calling you by your name. I can see what you felt about being called Dadi, but, come on, having your son call you Father can’t be that bad, can it?”

“Well, if you put it that way, I guess it is okay, but what are you going to call Abe?”

“Abe, what else would I call him?”

“That doesn’t make sense,” Abe said.

“Maybe not to you, but it does to me. If you remember, Father was the only one who kissed his children.”

“Oh yeah, I didn’t did I? Um, no, it just didn’t feel right to me.”

“Letting us sleep with you with all of us not wearing pajamas was okay?”

“That’s what your psychiatrist said.”

“He did?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, well, it kind of does make sense, but, no, I guess it wouldn’t have made a difference with Doey, either. There certainly weren’t any hang-ups with us kids about what an adult male body looked like and later what an adolescent female body looked like. I think both Doey and I turned out pretty good in that regard.”

“See, sometimes fathers know best,” Gene said. “You know, Abe, it’s really nice having you here to talk with Don, but don’t you think you should get back up to the flower farm and help Willy and her crew?”

“Yeah, okay, I’ll see you guys later, around supper time. Genie, what are we having?”

“A barbecue over at Ben and Peter’s, and tomorrow you’ll be having supper with Charity and Megan. Willy and I will stay home tomorrow night. So, do we plan on having the service the day after tomorrow?”

“I think that’s best, in case I have to go back to work,” Don said.

“You just got here,” Gene said.

“Father, I’m important, okay? They need me there and they aren’t too happy that I’ll be leaving in six months.”

“Six months, it’s going to be that long?” Gene asked.

“Yes, Father, I’m that important to them.”

“Wow, and Doey was the genius.”

********

The barbecue wasn’t as somber as the situation might have made it. They talked in little clumps, spreading themselves among others so as not to be close to husbands and wives. Peter and Gene happened to be talking to Bill.

“We got word from the bots that they’ve approved us for a set of twins,” Bill said. “I was kind of surprised, but since you two had your own sets, I guess I shouldn’t be. I don’t know, I’m just a little nervous about having a girl in the rez.”

“Don’t be, she’s only going to be first year age five,” Gene said. “My only suggestion right off is to make her comfortable with seeing you and Jack naked. Let her make the choice if she wants to be nude, but, whatever you do, do not force either of the children to do something they might find uncomfortable. That first night for Doey and Don, I was in the med center, and Abe had the kids to himself. Don wouldn’t go to sleep because he was scared so Abe took Don to bed with him. Since Abe and I sleep nude, Abe just took his clothes off and lay down. Don asked what he should do and Abe said he could whatever he wanted, so Don took off his pajamas and crawled in next to Abe. Later, Doey woke up screaming and Abe went to comfort her. She wanted to know why he was nude and he calmly told her. She took off her pajamas and came to bed with Abe. After that, they all slept together. When I came home and Abe got out of prison, Abe and I would be on the outside with the two kids in the middle. It went on like that for a couple years until the kids finally went back to their own beds.”

“If I might ask, what did you guys do for sex?” Peter asked. “Ben and I never did that, so we were fairly free to do what we wanted, but how did you guys work it out?”

“Well, you make time or take advantage of opportunities. Sometimes when we were out at the farm, we’d go into the office and take care of things there. Or when we came back for lunch we’d do a quickie in the bedroom. Once the kids were in their own beds, well we went back to the way we were doing it, but still being careful not to do anything that would wake a child and get it to asking questions that weren’t appropriate for their age. Of course, with Don we had to be extra careful considering he had been severely abused at the rearing center.”

“Boy, this is all so difficult,” Bill said. “I just hope we get a good set. Though it is kind of strange, but in their response they asked us if we would accept two identical twin boys. I’ve never heard of that, have either of you?”

“Not me,” Peter said.

“Me either,” Gene said. “Maybe, the bots have changed their birthing processes. Maybe a twin set of the same sex will be a new option. It certainly is something to consider. I don’t know if Abe and I are going to adopt this time around considering my health, but I do know he kind of wants to.”

“Don’t worry about it, Gene,” Peter said. “Abe will listen to you if you really are unsure about adopting. Would you take two boys?”

“I don’t know, we had pretty good luck with Doey, so I can’t see the advantage of having only boys. Just maybe the bots are thinking it would be easier if two gay men raised only boys. You never know what they’re thinking.”

“There could be that, too,” Bill said. “Jack wasn’t too sure he wanted only boys, either. He’s afraid if we had only boys one of them would turn out gay and then what would we do?”

Over by the grill Abe and Don were talking with Megan who seemed rather bubbly for the first time in weeks.

“We just got approved to adopt two twin girls,” Megan said. “Abe, are you and Gene going to adopt next year?”

“I want to, but I think Gene is worried about his health affecting our relationship with the kids. How do you get only girls?”

“It’s a new option for adopting. I guess it’s old technology that they’ve allowed to come back so they’re not interfering with the natural process of creating fetuses.”

“I wonder if it works for boys, too. Though we did okay with Doey, but she was exceptional in her own way, so she might have made it easier. Of course, Gene might not think he’d be able to handle two rambunctious boys running around the rez. I suppose I’d have to adjust my work schedule so in the beginning he wouldn’t be alone with them too much. I suppose we’ll have to talk about it. Don, would you adopt only boys?”

“You know, if I had the right person to marry, I might consider it; though it is a little early for me in that regard. I’m only age eighteen and the earliest you can adopt these days is when you’re age nineteen and five hundred seventy-five years old. Of course, I would have to have someone in the rez with me. I know the bots will allow singles to adopt in the cities, but I don’t know about out here on farms.”

“What would you want, a boy and a girl or two of the same sex, if you were to adopt when you were single?” Megan asked.

“Well, to be honest, I’d probably go with two boys if I was single. Oh, Megan, you don’t know I’m coming out here.”

“No, why?”

“Bot Medical Services is transferring me to the clinic here to be the night shift emergency room doctor.”

“Hey, that’s great! Will you be staying in the dormitories or are you going to try to get a rez. There is an open lot next to Bill and Jack’s place.”

“I think I’ll go into the dormitories to start out, but that will put me off shift from the other residents, so it might be better if I did have a rez. I’ll have to ask Bot Medical if that will be possible. Personally, I think I’d like to be out here.”

“Son, I know Gene would be happy if you were out here,” Abe said.

“I know I’d like a doctor in the neighborhood,” Megan said.

“I don’t do house calls,” Don said.

“Not for me, for the kids,” Megan said.

“Oh, yeah, that might be nice, except if I’m working nights, I won’t be happy having some parent knocking on my door wanting me to fix a boo-boo. Of course, working nights kind of puts off the idea of having kids, too. Sure, they’d be at daycare, but what would I do about nighttime?”

“If Gene and I don’t get kids, you could leave them with us,” Abe said.

“Yeah, but that still leaves me neglecting them. No, I think I’ll wait until I’ve got enough seniority here and then try to convince the bots to let me set up a primary care practice out here so families don’t have to go into town.”

“That’s a good idea, you should take that up with them now,” Megan said. “You know, give them the idea and then after a few years, maybe they will let you do that. I’m sure Freddy will be happy if we’re able to expand the clinic. Right now it’s mostly just an emergency room. Yes, I think that might be an idea that might be something they haven’t thought of. You could send a message tomorrow morning saying someone here mentioned it would be a good idea if we did set up a primary care clinic.”

“You know, I think I’ll let Aunt Genie send that message. I know the bots really like her.”

“Don, you’d better hold off on that until somebody talks to Freddy,” Abe said.

“Oh, that’s right, she definitely wouldn’t appreciate it she was out of the loop on something like this,” Megan said. “I’ll talk to her tomorrow. Maybe she can send the message to the bots.”

“And, that would make it sound like I wasn’t trying to get out of being the night shift emergency room doctor,” Don said.

Over by the bar Ben, Charity, Jack, Willy, and Genie were in a loose clump generally talking among themselves as a group and separately as the conversation moved across many topics.

“So, you were saying Don is coming here in six months to work in the emergency room?” Ben asked.

“Yes, he’s rather excited about it,” Genie said.

“We should get the bots to make him a regular doctor so we didn’t have to go all the way into town to see our primary care there,” Charity said. “When we start getting new sets of kids I’m not going to be looking forward to taking hours out of my day ferrying kids to town for referrals from the emergency room up here, like we had to do with Petr and Petra.”

“Did you ever find out what happened to Petr?” Jack asked. “Did he come through the brain erasure okay?”

“No, when the bots gave him re-schooling to refill his mind, he quickly reverted to macho tendencies. They euthanized him and dispersed his ashes wherever they do that. At least they were kind enough to let me know. From what they told me, they’re beginning to think machoism is a mutational disorder. Genie, wasn’t that something they were having Doey work on?”

“Yes, but she said they couldn’t detect anything until the child was at the minimum of forty-seven years old and by that time whatever indoctrination the child was receiving from his or her macho parents would cloud whatever mutational effects showed in the genes.”

“So, then it always boils down to children raised by macho parents holding back on their tendencies until they become eligible to adopt and spoil their children’s futures,” Jack said. “Charity, do you think Dorcas was macho when you met her?”

“No, how could she be, she was a lesbian. But, I did notice something change when Ben and Peter adopted. It was as if she was against gays adopting, but she never really came right out and expressed those feelings to me. It was something I felt. You know, sometimes when you meet someone for the first time, but you know right off there’s something about them you don’t like. Then when Abe and Gene adopted, well then it got to be real uncomfortable. Our love life plummeted to zero, but I couldn’t figure it out. I just wish she hadn’t poisoned Petr, maybe it would’ve turned out differently. Ben, can we get this barbecue going because if we keep talking like this, I’m going to go home.”

“Charity, I’m sorry if I upset you,” Jack said.

“No, I’m just glad I’ve got Megan and next year we’ll be getting two girls, so we’ll start out fresh, again. It’s like when Dorcas died and they took away Petr. Petra asked what we were going to do. I said we get on with our lives and make do and that’s what we did. I think it all turned out okay. Petra is on Ring 8 with a husband and two wonderful kids and that’s all a parent can ask for. Ben, are you going to get this barbecue going? If not, give me a belt of rye, I’m in a sour mood.”

********

Attendees at the funeral service included the three direct family members, Genie, Willy, Ben, Peter, Charity, Megan, Jack, Bill, Freddy, Marcy, two of Doey’s coworkers, and, strangely, a security bot and an unidentified bot.

Abe started the service, “I want to thank everyone for coming to this celebration of Dona’s life. Back when she first came to Eden Commune she impressed me as someone quite unique. When she told one of our community’s daughters that she had an IQ over one hundred forty I didn’t realize what that would lead to. When she asked me if I was a homosexual, I told her I was gay and asked her if she had a problem with that. As would be typical of Dona, she told me that the workers at the rearing center told her homosexuals were bad men who did naughty things to children, but then she said she didn’t believe them because she knew it was pedophiles who preyed on children and pedophiles were not homosexuals. Then she said she was a fan of the fiction writer Megana who writes very adult fiction. Later, I called Don ‘son’ and Dona wanted to know why I didn’t use an endearing word for her. I offered something, but she said she didn’t like it and then she suggested I call her Doey. Those were the first memories I had of Doey.

“A few days later, after I had gone with Don to the Central City med center so he could see a psychiatrist, I came home and I received an update on Gene’s condition. Doey read the message with me, but she didn’t understand some of the words, so we looked them up. And that was the way Doey began to use her genius abilities. Often I would come into the home office and she would be reading a technical publication and writing down the words she didn’t understand. Then she would bring up the dictionary utility and research all the words.

“Those are my fondest memories of Doey. Gene, your turn.”

“Thank you, Abe, I was in the med center when Doey came into our lives and I didn’t meet her until after Abe was sent to prison. From the very beginning she impressed me as much as my sister. Both are geniuses in their own way. Genie’s field was theoretical physics and then astrophysics. Doey was directed toward studying the reasons for mutations in the birthing process. I don’t think any of us really understood what was going on in Doey’s mind. She was so complex, so beyond the understanding of the rest of us that when I learned of her tragic death, I couldn’t function. She brought a light to my heart and I will never forget her because she’ll be right here close to all of us. Don would you like to say some words about your sister?”

“Thank you, Father. Although Dona and I are twins, she was very much an older sister because of her high intelligence. She was so far beyond me I never expected to succeed in my chosen field, but she never lorded her genius over me. Except in the beginning when I had a speech impediment and she kept bugging me in my inability to say any word with a ‘t’ in it. But I think we got along very well as brother and sister. She knew she was smarter, but kept encouraging me to extend myself and go for goals I never imagined I could achieve. I will miss you Dona. Auntie Genie, you’re next.”

“Doey was very special to me. I came here after having a stroke at the dark matter lab and was given a total brain erasure so I couldn’t remember what I had been working on. I couldn’t read, do simple arithmetic, understand what words went with what objects, and more complex concepts such as love, hate, and being alive. Doey gave me my genius back. She enabled me to go back into academics and fill my mind with concepts I had learned as a child as she had learned her field as a child. Doey, you died too young and for whatever reason, it should not have been. Doey, you gave me life and I will miss you very much. Abe?”

“Thank you, Genie,” Abe said as he held the bag containing Doey’s ashes. “Over fifty years ago, Doey planted this tree before going off to use her genius and we feel it is appropriate that she remain here where she will be loved for as long as we live. Goodbye, Doey.”

He opened the bag and began to walk around the tree spreading his daughter’s ashes on the soil. When he came back to the front he hugged Gene, then Don, and finally Genie. Jack came up and gave Abe the stone for Doey’s tree. Abe placed it at the base of the tree:

Dona “Doey”
Given life, genius, hope
Rest in eternal peace

Willy placed a bouquet of baby’s breath in front of the stone. She turned and gave Don a hug. He thanked her and then they seemed at a loss for words, as if neither wanted to make light of the somber atmosphere.

********

The unidentified bot, followed by the security bot, came over to Don and asked, “Donaldus 00-893m, could we speak alone? I have important news for you.”

“Sure, come into my room.” He led them inside and back to his bedroom. He allowed them to enter first, and then shut the door, and asked, “So, what can I do for you?”

“It’s not what you can do for me, it’s what I will do for you,” the unidentified bot said. “I am Bot 44454AK334YKA8893-4256M. I am the external representation of Bot Medical Services. This security bot is my escort. It comes with me whenever I leave my facility. Yesterday, we received a request from the commune manager here at Eden Commune asking if it was possible for us to expand the clinical facilities to include a primary care physician. Did you offer your services in that capacity knowing you are being posted here to be an emergency services physician?”

“The night before yesterday we had a gathering here of the residents in our neighborhood and the subject of my posting came up. One of the residents suggested that I might be better used as a primary care physician because I have roots here at the commune. I told her that it would not look right if I made that suggestion and it would be better if that suggestion came from the commune manager instead of a resident.”

“Very good, we suspected that would occur when we posted you to this location. We have decided to send a different physician to be the new emergency services doctor. We will expand the clinical facility to make room for a primary care section and staff it with a certified nurse practitioner and two associate nurses to assist a physician. You will be that physician. Your assignment will begin immediately. Will you require separate living quarters or do you desire to live in the dormitories?”

“I think it would be better if I lived separately, if only to lessen interference of my free time by a plethora of medical complaints from dormitory residents. It was suggested I request a residence installed in the empty lot across the lane.”

“Yes, that is an excellent suggestion. We will effect immediate construction of that facility. You may remain here until the residence and clinic additions are installed and brought up to operating condition.”

“What about my personal belongings at my apartment?”

“Those are being gathered at this moment and will be delivered tomorrow. Also, we are aware of your true sexual orientation and your secret purpose of marrying that human female. Do not fear, you need not hide that fact anymore. If at such time you find a compatible homosexual partner and wish to join in a committed relationship, we will not stand in your way. There are many homosexuals, both male and female, here at Eden Commune and we are certain you will be more comfortable here than in Central City.”

“Thank you.”

“We will leave now. Have a good life.”

Don showed them out the front door and watched their speeder fly away. He went over to the green wingchair and sat down. He wondered how they found out about him being gay. He was so careful, only going to a specific bar, only associating with a specific group of men, but it was obvious one of them was a bot informant. He heard the patio door open and Abe came in and sat in the red wingchair next to him.

“What did the bots want?” Abe asked.

“To tell me that I will be the new primary care doctor here and that they’ll be installing a residence for me across the lane. I guess I’ll be staying here until everything is set up. Also, they told me something else, something I was certain was a secret.”

“And, what is that?”

“Abe, I’m gay.”

“So, you’re finally willing to admit it. Gene and I were wondering when you were going to get up the nerve to say something. So, what’s your plan?”

“Live here and let life do its thing. In the city I might have had a chance to meet someone, but here, well, that’s going to be rather difficult, isn’t it?”

“No, once the women in the dormitories find out you’re unavailable, the word will get out and some men will come knocking on your door.”

“Well, I will have to be careful, anyway. I’m a professional who deals with people. I can’t have patients staying away from me if they find out I’m gay.”

“I don’t know, we’re pretty liberal here now that the bots have gotten the idea machos might be attracted to a place like ours because of the seclusion it offers. We haven’t had an incident since your and Doey’s attacks. If you provide a service here and don’t go out of your way to advertise your sexuality in an offensive way, I think mothers won’t have any qualms about bringing their children to see you.”

“Well, I hope that’s true.”

“So, what was with the security bot?”

“Oh, it was the other bot’s escort. The bot that spoke with me is the external representation of Bot Medical Services. I guess it’s so important that it requires protection, not that anyone would know what it is.”