Arty's heart raced so fast it made his chest ache. He had just committed an act of felony so great the High Council could even decide to have him executed for it in their recent mood. Every ancient text and word of the Earth they had never had the chance to know was saved on the tiny drive tucked in his palm, and if his ally in the programming sector had failed to hide his activities, his brothers and sisters of the armed sector would already be searching for him.
He had to hide the texts somewhere they could be found by the right person and not a member of the council. The Church was set to be torn down and rebuilt, and by now, all those important texts had been erased from the system. If he lost the drive in his hand, they would be lost forever. He couldn't bear the thought of the Earth being forgotten that way.
His Sector had been re-purposed, and he no longer had a place there. But Arty refused to turn himself in for reassignment. There were rumours of what happened to the people who did, and those rumours included everything from brainwashing to death and imprisonment. He did not want to end up like the people the High Council had sentenced to death when he was still a boy.
There was only one place he could think to hide the drive. The office of his former mentor, Father Emvee. He slipped into the office, past as many of the frightened and frantic members of his sector as he could get through unnoticed, and tucked the drive away in his notebook. He would have to find a new one to try and recreate what was lost in. The Broken Texts that had never been put in digital form. But it was time to let go of this one. He had to trust that whatever Higher Power watched over the ever migrant humans in space would look after the drive, and the future of his people.
With the drive secure in the notebook, he tucked it away in the Father's hidden safe and locked it tight. He managed to replace the panel hiding it from view, just as one of the Discontentment Management Guards broke into the room.
"Don't attempt to flee, Citizen. You are being collected for reassignment. There is nothing to fear." The words offered Arty little comfort, but at least the drive would be safe, there. And perhaps Father Emvee would be able to find it, if he ever emerged from hiding.
"Very well, Sister." He offered his former sector sibling a thin smile and got to his feet. Better to face his enemies with grace than anger. It was not their fault they were being misguided. His smile was met with an unnecessarily rough slam of the handle of her biopistol to his temple, and Arty's world went black.
Memory for Hardison
He had to hide the texts somewhere they could be found by the right person and not a member of the council. The Church was set to be torn down and rebuilt, and by now, all those important texts had been erased from the system. If he lost the drive in his hand, they would be lost forever. He couldn't bear the thought of the Earth being forgotten that way.
His Sector had been re-purposed, and he no longer had a place there. But Arty refused to turn himself in for reassignment. There were rumours of what happened to the people who did, and those rumours included everything from brainwashing to death and imprisonment. He did not want to end up like the people the High Council had sentenced to death when he was still a boy.
There was only one place he could think to hide the drive. The office of his former mentor, Father Emvee. He slipped into the office, past as many of the frightened and frantic members of his sector as he could get through unnoticed, and tucked the drive away in his notebook. He would have to find a new one to try and recreate what was lost in. The Broken Texts that had never been put in digital form. But it was time to let go of this one. He had to trust that whatever Higher Power watched over the ever migrant humans in space would look after the drive, and the future of his people.
With the drive secure in the notebook, he tucked it away in the Father's hidden safe and locked it tight. He managed to replace the panel hiding it from view, just as one of the Discontentment Management Guards broke into the room.
"Don't attempt to flee, Citizen. You are being collected for reassignment. There is nothing to fear." The words offered Arty little comfort, but at least the drive would be safe, there. And perhaps Father Emvee would be able to find it, if he ever emerged from hiding.
"Very well, Sister." He offered his former sector sibling a thin smile and got to his feet. Better to face his enemies with grace than anger. It was not their fault they were being misguided. His smile was met with an unnecessarily rough slam of the handle of her biopistol to his temple, and Arty's world went black.