Random Chance and the Paradise that is Earth by Shawn Michel de Montaigne Read Free Book Online

what his father wanted, and Random had no
intentions of going against his wishes.
    Jameson Chance guessed that his
son was special, and told him so via a hidden file Random
discovered shortly after. Random watched it on the occasions when
he was particularly low; he’d plug into a VSB port and find himself
back in his dad’s study. It was how he discovered The Pompatus ’ remarkable
features.
    “We had you implanted with the latest
nanotech, of course,” his dad said.
    Random would always sit next to him.
    “But there was something about
you,” Jameson Chance went on. “The tech behaved very oddly with
you. Strike that. It behaved extraordinarily with you. That’s the
proper word. Doctors and specialists couldn’t figure it out. It
organized itself in biomatrices never before seen, especially
here—” he put his hand on Random’s heart—and in your amygdala,
where humans feel emotions, especially love. They wanted to
experiment on you, cut into you. But I refused. You were very, very
lucky, son. I was in a position of power, and so the government
backed off. Had you been born in a less influential household, I
honestly don’t know what would’ve happened to you.”
    “What do you want me to do, Dad?”
    “I want you to live free,” said his father,
patting his knee emphatically. “I want you to take that turtle and
live free among the stars. Find a woman or a man—or hell, women and
men!—and make a life out there. That RV is big enough for a family
of five. It’s got solar tech and batteries that’ll last centuries.
The drive cells are self-upgrading. They’ll become more and more
efficient over time, provided you’ve got a friendly port to land
in.”
    He took a sip of whisky, his face lined with
worry.
    “Dad?”
    “That’s the big if. I’ve seen the
Oligarchy’s plans. They’re vicious. If carried out successfully,
humanity will be little more than slaves, and Earth will become a
dead and baked husk.”
    He brought his intimidating
gaze to bear on him. “You’ve got a gift, Random. I’m certain of it.
I don’t know its form or function or parameters, and neither does
anyone else, but I know—I know—it’s extraordinary and can be a
tremendous force for good. For peace. For freedom . So use it for all three …”
His hawkish features softened. “… please? For your old man?
Please?”
    It was possible to have full and original
conversations with his father. It was like he had never died. It
was possible to hug him, which he always did before disconnecting
from the port; and when parting, Dad always said, “Freedom love,
Mr. Chance.”
    “Freedom love,” whispered Random, coming
back to the present. Earth was slowly receding; a sliver of a new
moon shone over a brilliant backdrop of spilled stars. The Milky
Way painted a dusty jeweled path outbound.
    “Rand?”
    “Just thinkin’ of Dad, Hewey.”
    “Want me to fire up the port?”
    “Nah.”
    “Holdin’ steady at five-fifty kilos. I filed
Intent to Land at Vesta. We should be there in a week. And I’ve got
some good news for you.”
    “Yeah? What is it?”
    There was a brief bit of silence. “Hello,
friend Random.”
    “Cubey!”

Chapter
Seven Mia
~~*~~
    Vesta
    THE POMPATUS OF LOVE floated slowly down Shaft 18A as other spacecraft
floated up. The shaft was dug centuries ago and looked it. The
white metal shielding here and there had weathered countless
take-offs and landings, mostly from tremendous mining craft. As a
result much of it had dark burn streaks. Some of it was dented;
still more of it was in tatters. As technology advanced, the old
shielding became unnecessary. Nanobots used the sturdy and dense
iron-nickel crust of the asteroid to forge a working barrier to
space many times stronger and safer. As The Pompatus descended deeper and
deeper, the shielding slowly disappeared. Eventually they were
surrounded by nothing but stone on all sides, which nanobots had
reshaped into domes and inlets and pipes and