Solsan added, “I support your desire to take the time to know yourself fully. It’s an important decision, and it’s also valid not to choose. For some, both feel right, or neither. We respect your care in this regard.”

It was such a kind answer, and all her mothers wriggled their head tendrils, showing agreement with the sentiment. She had never loved them more.

“We only ask that you respect our Qalu and treat her well. Can you do that?” Beh-latan asked, somehow tender and steely at the same time.

“At this time, Qalu is the most important person in my world,” Helix said with remarkable sincerity. “I will never deceive her, never harm her voluntarily. And I will strive to increase her happiness in any manner available to me.”

She quivered and tried not to wish he meant it, that this wasn’t the facsimile of fondness she had solicited. He shouldn’t be so good at it, not proficient enough to make her believe their convenient fiction.

Khrelasa let out a happy breath. “That’s the right answer. We won’t ask for promises at this stage, better to take it slowly than suffer for it later. Would you be open to adding others to your love group? It’s much healthier, less stressful, more social value, and—”

“Alt-mother!” Briefly, she contemplated imitating Aevi and vanishing beneath some of the furniture.

“I have no objections,” Helix said.

“Excellent. Though I was skeptical at first, especially after the way you rushed me out last time, I may have been hasty in that judgment,” Inatol said.

“What is your chosen path?” Khrelasa asked.

Since Helix would have no idea that she was inquiring what he did for a living, Qalu answered quickly, “He’s an artist. Not well known yet, but he’s quite talented.”

Solsan stifled an amused noise. “You’re speaking from bias, my dear daughter, but I’m so pleased to see it. We had feared…” Her alt-mother stopped there, before the hurtful words emerged.

She’d heard them from her foremother often enough. That I wouldn’t find anyone, ever. That I’m born to live and die alone.

They would be so disappointed when she unveiled Helix as her greatest achievement in bio-synthetic life, not someone who loved her.

[  5  ]

The visit ended soon after, much to Helix’s relief.

Every moment that Qalu’s mothers lingered, he expected one of them to shout, “Imposter!” And accuse of him of being an AI pretending to be Tiralan. Which was accurate.

“You did amazingly well,” Qalu said.

“I lack sufficient data to determine whether that appraisal is correct, so I must trust your assessment.”

“They liked you.”

“Truly?” Until awakening in this strange situation, he hadn’t devoted processing resources to analyzing such subjective considerations. Indeed, it had never occurred to him to question if he was “likable.” Instead, all his internal imperatives clamored for him to be productive and useful.