Singularity: Book Two of the StarCruiser Brilliant Series Read online

  Singularity

  Book 2 of StarCruiser Brilliant

  Rick Lakin

  Copyright © 2019 Rick Lakin

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

  This is a work of fiction and all characters and events mentioned are imaginary.

  Ebook ISBN: 978-1-946739-06-3

  Printed in the United States of America

  Author Website: ricklakin.com

  Published by iCrew Digital Publishing

  Website: icrewdigitalpublishing.com

  e-mail: [email protected]

  Cover Design by Renata Lechner

  thelemadreamsart.deviantart.com/

  iCrew Digital Publishing is an independent publisher of digital works. We support the efforts of authors who wish to publish in the digital world.

  1046032719

  Created with Vellum

  To my father and my sister, Tiffany, who taught me to love typography and the written word.

  Contents

  Introduction

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Chapter 46

  Chapter 47

  Chapter 48

  Chapter 49

  Chapter 50

  Chapter 51

  Chapter 52

  Request for Review

  Glossary

  Acknowledgments

  About Rick Lakin

  Praise for Brilliant

  The Virtual Copa was a tour-de-force.

  Pendleton C. Wallace, Author of the Ted Higuera Thrillers

  This is not your deep thinking book or one that will challenge your life views. It will, however, entertain you and keep you turning pages until you run out of pages wishing for the next book already.

  AWE302, Amazon Reviewer

  Our world even in this time needs heroes we can walk beside. Brilliant isn’t just about the heroine’s talents or a unique spaceship. It is about good people in general and what they do with what they have. In Hollywood, you are only limited by your imagination.

  Sarah Char, executive producer

  Jennifer Gallagher is a truly unforgettable character, of this world, yet out of this world, an extraordinary young woman who is, in many ways, the best of us.

  Richard Lederer, New York Times best-selling language author

  I like this book. It’s what I call put your mind in neutral and read

  ctb77002, Amazon Reviewer

  Time travel? Space Opera? Intelligent Characters? This book has it all! A wonderful effort by a first time author.

  Randy Roark, Amazon Reviewer

  Introduction

  Gentle Readers, Singularity is set fifty years in the future a few weeks after the occurrences in Brilliant.

  1

  “Robots are not our friends, ladies and gentlemen,” Senator Ramona Curtwell said. Her eyes sparkled with passion. “When you look at those evil yellow eyes, look beyond the smile. That fake intelligence is looking back and scheming. How can I take your job? How can I steal your livelihood? How can my fellow robots and I replace your species at the pinnacle of society?”

  The high school gymnasium was sixty years old. The paint was fresh, but a closer look revealed many coats beneath. There was a bouquet of gym socks above the varnished hardwood floor. The balcony accommodated 2500 spectators for a basketball game but the bleachers behind the Senator were empty, and those before her seated eight hundred citizens split seventy-thirty between supporters and skeptics.

  The senator's blue eyes melted to show compassion. “I’m a simple senator from South Dakota. The citizens of my state, like you Iowans, help feed our country and our world. But I’m fifty-five. I am the same age as your friends who continue searching for jobs that are no longer there. Jobs that are now performed by mindless automatons. Jobs that cost employers nothing. Jobs that used to be done by human workers for whom they had to pay for health care.”

  “You tell 'em, sister,” a voice shouted from the crowd.

  “Citizens of the great state of Iowa, the Singularity is coming. If we don’t act immediately, each one of us will be replaced by an android that is greedier, more power-hungry, and stealthier than we are. They’ll also be smarter, faster and stronger. We must stop the attack of the abominable androids. We must resist the rampage of the robots. Friends, we must choose between the Singularity or our very survival.

  “Now is the time to go to the circuit breaker, reach for the wall outlet, and press that on/off switch one last time. Ladies and gentlemen, tell me what we must do?”

  As one, the crowd stood and roared, “Turn them off! Turn them off! Turn them off! Turn them off! Turn them off!”

  As she strutted across the stage, she showed off her well-toned runner’s physique, her perfect hair fashioned by an elite stylist, a face the plastic surgeon redesigned to show a combination of power and compassion and her riveting blue eyes that refused to betray the difference between her message and her true beliefs.

  “Citizens of Iowa, let’s work together to stop the scourge of the Singularity. I’m Ramona Curtwell, and I’m running for President.”

  The crowd continued cheering and shouting, “Ramona. Ramona. Ramona.”

  She waved to familiar faces and smiled, looking to the balcony and pointing and posing for cell phone cameras.

  As she took in the accolades, the senator struck a presidential pose for everyone from the press trying to meet deadlines, to the old farmer coached by his wife, to the children holding up their phones.

  As she made her way down the rope line to shake hands, her aide snapped personal photos that were AirDropped to the subject’s phone while gathering contact information for that important follow-up campaign funding solicitation.

  After passing through the side door of the gym, her demeanor changed from a friendly smile to stern impatience. In the hallway leading to her car, the security woman handed her a briefcase.

  When she entered the black stretch limo, she reached for the rectangular device that was always attached to her hip.

  “You up, Harold?” A head and shoulders with an African-American face popped up into the air above the device. He resembled a wrestler-turned-movie star from a couple of decades before. His three-dimensional presence filled the space between her and the facing seat.
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  “Yes, Senator?” her virtual assistant asked.

  “How’d I do?”

  “When you grab 'em by their fears, their votes will follow.”

  “You’re so damned eloquent, Harold,” Senator Curtwell said. “You’re the best virtual speechwriter a senator could have. What’s our next stop?”

  “The Airport Hilton for a thirty-minute grip and grin with donors,” Harold said.

  More handshakes, more false smiles, she thought. At least there will be money to be collected.

  “It’ll be a thirty-minute stop and then your flight to Minneapolis. You’ve got reservations at the Marriott tonight and then a morning flight to Pierre.”

  “Remind me why I live in a state capital that has one commercial flight a day.”

  “Because South Dakota has the same number of senators as California.”

  “Thanks, Harold. You’re going to make sure no one is recording me when I meet the donors?”

  “Yes, Senator.”

  “Good,” Senator Curtwell said. “You know how politicians hate it when voters catch us telling the truth.”

  She looked at her aide in the seat next to her. “You and security are carrying the audio disruptors we received from Robotic Security Inc, right?” Senator Curtwell asked.

  The aide nodded.

  She looked back at Harold. “The folks at RSI are such loyal supporters.”

  “They should be,” Harold said. “You got them the contract to replace all the human guards at the nuclear sites in South Dakota.”

  “That was a tough call. It cost a lot of jobs,” she said. “I’ve got to tell my constituents I wasn’t able to stop that deal. I hope that's enough.”

  “It made good economic sense, Senator.”

  “I love you, Harold.”

  “Even if I'm evil, greedy and power-hungry?”

  “Even when you become the first virtual White House Chief of Staff.”

  The driver said, “We’ve arrived at the Hilton, Senator.”

  “Don't forget the sanitizer,” Harold said.

  “Are you monitoring?” Senator Curtwell asked.

  “Spy mode is on. I’ll let you know if someone says something you need to respond to.”

  “I hate these events. I have to be pawed by all of these uninteresting, powerless glad-handers who are willing to hand over a share of their tax breaks.”

  “George Bernard Shaw said, ‘The lack of money is the root of all political evil.’”

  She touched her ear to verify that her hidden earpiece was in place. “Will you be in my ear?”

  “Yes, Senator,” Harold said.

  On cue, she entered the room ready to smile, shake hands and gather checks. The walls of the hotel banquet room had large beige panels framed by ivory squares. The ceiling was dominated by a large chandelier in the center above the crimson and cream carpet. To her left was a well-appointed buffet provided by her campaign staff. The waitstaff passed through the crowd carrying trays of champagne. The senator took one of the offered flutes.

  “How much did we pay for the champagne, Harold?” she asked.

  “It was donated by a South Dakota constituent. His new vineyard is winning awards,” Harold said.

  “One of the few benefits of climate change,” she said.

  “That's James Claymore and his wife, Susan. His name is on the largest law firm in Des Moines, and their son Jeff got into the Air Force Academy,” Harold said in the senator's ear.

  “James, it’s great to see you. Susan, how is your law practice?” They shook hands and smiled for the photo by her aide.

  “Great, Senator,” Susan said.

  “I’m so proud of my wife,” James said. “It’s flattering that you remember us.”

  “Jeff will do well at Colorado Springs,” the senator said as the couple beamed.

  She moved near the buffet. As she picked up a melted manchego torta, two females approached.

  “The blonde is Mariana Axtell,” Harold said. “And her partner is Randi. MarTech just went public doing Medical AI.”

  “Mariana, congratulations on your IPO. Your company is making important breakthroughs. Have you and Randi picked out a new home yet?”

  “Thank you, Senator,” Mariana said. “We’re not ready to cash in. Our success may be short-lived if HumanAI Corp puts robot doctors in hospitals.”

  “I hear you, sister,” the Senator said. “If my bill passes, it will be almost impossible for the Hollywood high-tech people to get a fake doctor in a free clinic.”

  Senator Curtwell made her way around the room. “Wrap it up, Senator, you need to leave now to catch your flight,” Harold said.

  She greeted several other donors as she closed the circle to where she entered the room.

  As she walked through the hotel lobby she said, “Harold, remind me why I'm not on a private jet?”

  “You co-sponsored the bill that required Congress members to take the new high-speed trains until two months before elections.”

  She left the hotel and climbed into the black SUV. “Harold, any updates on my bill?”

  “Senator, you now have twenty co-sponsors, but the president’s party is whipping more votes. He got elected on fixing the national shortage of doctors,” Harold said. “HumanAI Corp can put a doctor on staff for half the cost of educating a human doctor.”

  “We need to protect our employees from technology. Otherwise, robots will take over the world.” She looked at Harold with a mix of anger and sadness. “Robots took my father’s job and then his life.”

  “Your position is admirable, Senator,” Harold said.

  “My bill will stop androids from taking jobs from doctors in publicly funded hospitals,” she said.

  “POTUS ran on fixing the doctor shortage using technology,” Harold said. “Your bill will face staunch opposition from the President’s party.”

  “As you say, Harold,” she said, “we need to grab 'em by their fears.”

  2

  The next day, Dandy Lion was on the prowl at Tovar Studios. The striped tabby with the golden fur was well-known on the lot.

  Hollywood studios were high-stress environments. Dandy often showed up during those awkward moments. He’d land on the lap of an actor or crew member who faced a difficult task or had to curtly explain to a subordinate how to correctly perform a function.

  In the few weeks that Dandy was on the lot, the counselors in the HR department noticed a marked decrease in complaints. The supervisor of the department certified Dandy as their official therapy cat.

  At other times, Dandy stayed out of the way of the busy filmmakers. Except when tourists were on the lot. Tovar Studios tour guides were always on the alert for Dandy Lion.

  Dandy crossed the alley in front of the tram between Sound Stages One and Five. Tell the story, and I'll move. Dandy thought.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce Dandy Lion, StarCruiser Brilliant's ship's cat,” the tour guide said. “Legend has it that Dandy saved Jennifer Gallagher, a studio intern, from a flaming meteor that blew up the home of Dandy’s family,”

  At the heart of every legend is a grain of truth. The truth is that Jennifer saved Dandy from the meteor.

  Of course, Dandy preferred the legend. After he heard the story adequately repeated, he made his way back to Brilliant.

  Jennifer Gallagher was in the captain’s ready room of StarCruiser Brilliant perusing the script for Attack of the Hoclarth Alliance. At seventeen, she was way too young to be a screenwriter and Second Unit Director on a large budget film. Of course, she was also too young to be a best-selling author, the Founder and Chief Technology Officer of a high-tech startup, a doctoral candidate in mathematics at the University of Van Nuys, and the first officer of StarCruiser Brilliant.

  Jennifer possessed an IQ of 206, an eidetic memory, and the ability to solve problems by creating a movie in her head that would accurately predict the outcome of any complex issue. Like a master juggler, she was able to keep several b
alls in the air at the same time.

  Starting her senior year at Harry Ford High School, the teachers and administrators at the elite private school recognized that she long since completed the graduation requirements, but they allowed her to attend school to participate in senior activities. The school also appreciated that she and her tennis partner Rena Dale would bring home the SoCal tennis doubles championship for the third year in a row.

  Jennifer stood five-foot-nine with dark crimson hair that she got from her Irish mother and the high cheekbones she got from her eastern European father. Her Hollywood looks would make her feel at home on the cover of any fashion magazine.

  Like many senior girls, she had an older boyfriend. Hers happened to be a movie star and the pilot of StarCruiser Brilliant.

  Going over the final battle scene of Attack once more, she was programming her new system to cover the difficult scene using forty drones the size of cellphones able to capture cinematic images in three dimensions. The biggest problem was keeping them far enough from the untrained extras so they wouldn't swat them like bugs. They lost three drones during the last rehearsal alone. Attack was the first major motion picture that utilized VirtualLocation40, JennaTech's first product release. Jennifer designed the system specifically to photograph the three-dimensional battle scene using forty miniature cinedrones networked to a sophisticated video production truck.