The Faceless Woman

    Once the Corporate Wars officially ended in 2141, the Olympus Corporation took over the combined acquisitions of all members of the Coalition of Resistance, cementing their position as the world’s most powerful company and leaving them free to absorb all other large business rivals.
    Now, the Olympus Corporation was so large and powerful that it was frequently referred to simply as ‘The Company’, representing the fact that it was effectively the only company left standing after the war.  This meant that Olympus commanded an enormous amount of respect and power, probably too much, but there was nothing anyone could do about it now.  The last chance died on the 20th of April, 2141.  
    When the war was finally over, Olympus realised the potential of their new position and reformed the very nature of the company itself.  The first step was their headquarters, Olympus tower in London.  Olympus bought up all the properties surrounding it, or at least the few that they did not already technically own.  With these new buildings, Olympus transformed its global headquarters into a massive complex, erecting several shorter towers as well as many other large buildings around the original tower and linked them all together with a vast network of covered sky bridges.  This new combination of structures was known as the Olympus Polylith.
    A new headquarters also needed new leaders, not an actual change of people, just an alteration of their titles to represent their new position of power.  All minor companies used to have a sole President or CEO to control it and the more major ones would have Boards of Executives when they became to large for one person to rule.  Olympus considered itself above this and so changed their Board of Executives into the Council of the Polylith.
    All former Executives were now known as Councillors in post-war society and they were the richest and most powerful individuals in humanity.  The reason the Councillors were more influential on global matters than even the Members of the Continental Parliaments was simply because they were in charge of the Olympus Corporation.  The entire world needed Olympus for all their products, including the MP’s themselves, and so Olympus had a dangerous amount of authority concerning laws and global politics.
    The Governor’s Mansion of Jotnar was just as opulent as the homes of the Olympus Councillors.  Just like the Council palaces, it was huge and fully automated.
    Unlike the Council palaces however, which were situated on Earth, the Governor’s Mansion was built in Tannhauser, one of the ‘provinces’ of the Jotnar Detention Centre.
    Tannhauser consisted of a small guard checkpoint by the entrance gate with two Sentinels manning it, then a huge portion of land, acres and acres of Mercury’s surface that were covered in shiny silver machines sprouting out of the ground with large dark solar panels attached.
    Beyond this, built directly into the far western wall of both Tannhauser and Jotnar, was the Governor’s Mansion itself.  It was three stories high, the same height as the walls, and was incredibly grand and luxurious.  It looked incredibly out of place when compared with the rest of Jotnar, the minimalist Pit and Quays.  The Mansion had a double stairway joining together to form one broad staircase, which lead up to a series of beautiful wide columns with elegant balconies overhanging above.  Its hallways were patrolled and guarded by the Jotnar Sentinels, the Governor’s personal bodyguards.  This small unit of soldiers only consisted of six members, four in the mansion and two at the barrier checkpoint, with rotating shifts.
    The Mansion at Tannhauser was styled similarly to the palaces of the Councillors, mostly to remind everyone who resided within Jotnar that Olympus’ presence even extended across the void.  The similarities between the Mansion and the Council palaces didn’t end there, they both also had laser turret protection.
    In the Mansion’s case, two computerised laser turrets controlled by Somnus were connected to a set of rails attached underneath the balconies of the front wall to provide additional protection.  The Mansion and the palaces of Earth also both had protective shielding, made of an advanced alloy, and which could be deployed at any time to completely cover all entrances of the house.
    These shields were activated at specific periods during the time that Jotnar was in the sunlit side of Mercury and when there was no one out in the Solar Farms, which was most of the time.  Then Somnus would dramatically decrease the polarity of the overhead dome and let much more light than usual through into Tannhauser so the fields of solar panels could collect enough energy to continue powering Jotnar.  However, the Sentinels were equipped with masks to protect their eyes when they did have to venture out into the fully lit Solar Fields to swap with the soldiers stationed at the Tannhauser checkpoint.  The soldiers of the Jotnar Sentinels were also permitted to use the sole surface buggy of Tannhauser for shift changes and to transport supplies.
    All outside the Mansion was normal, for the moment, and the same could be said for inside, but at least it was more interesting.  On the top floor, within the spacious and lavishly decorated bedroom of Alison Riley, the current Governor of Jotnar and former soldier of the Nyx Squad was resting in her bed.
    Alison Riley was by now a middle-aged woman with long dark brown hair, she was dressed in a stylish dark blue robe and was sitting upright in bed with her back against a wall of large comfortable pillows.  In her hand was a full glass of wine and on the bedside table next to her was a not quite as full bottle still within arm’s reach.
    Alison had been a technical specialist in the Corporate Wars and had handled communications for the Nyx squad.  These skills of hers is what allowed her to contribute in developing the Somnus prison AI.  Somnus wasn’t a new creation, Alison had worked around old designs that she had been shown.  She built along the general blueprints, using them as guidelines.  They were quite old, pre-dating the war by many decades, so she did the best she could while at the same time improving on them, augmenting the old designs with modern technology to create something that she believed to be superior.
    The CPU of Somnus was located underneath the Mansion.  If the Mansion was a prison wing, then Somnus would be an inmate himself, dwelling down within its dungeons.  The cellar of the Governor’s Mansion was where Somnus’ mind was housed, the belly of the Mansion was where the brain of Jotnar was found.
    Alison didn’t know that the date was the 24th of May, she didn’t know what day of the week it was.  Even if she thought about it, Alison Riley couldn’t tell someone what month it was either.  She knew what year it was though, just about.  Anyway, that was more than she really needed to know living out here.
    What Alison focussed on for the moment was the enormous television, which covered most of the far wall.  Somehow, she had found herself watching the news.
    Alison hated the news, she had been watching something before it and now the news had drifted on to fill the gap following it.  She took a sip from her wine glass, placed it to one side and frantically began searching for the remote to remove this boring monotone.
    “Our top story, two new global directives have been universally issued by all Continental Parliaments.  Firstly, all deceased citizens will legally become property of the government for medical science…”
    Alison found it, the remote control had slipped down the space in between her bed and the nigh table that was being used primarily as a wine bottle holder.
    “…and secondly, the rights for private citizens to own land is being rescinded.  Only companies will be permitted to own land but people will still retain their right to own property.  This means that lots can still be bought by civilians, but only if they intend to construct something on it, and then only the building itself will be legally owned by the person.  Empty space with no intent to build structures can be only legally bought by companies.”
    Alison Riley grabbed the remote off the carpet and turned the channel onto something else, anything else.  She couldn’t help but hear what the television had told her and an opinion formed almost compulsively within her mind.  
    She knew that when the TV said ‘companies’, it was really only referring to Olympus.  As she thought about it, Alison knew that this new law would not affect the vast majority of people living back on Earth, it was the methods behind it that bothered her.
    Alison’s wine glass ‘magically’ returned to her free hand and she took another sip as she tried to figure out what she was now watching.  Alison spent most of her time watching television sent from Earth from the communication satellites.  She even managed to avoid succumbing to boredom during the rare black outs when communication was impossible between the planets by watching old television programs, which had been recorded and she hadn’t seen in a while.  Alison didn’t have the time to find out what she was watching right now because the mystery program was suddenly replaced with a large face that she wished she lacked the recognition of, it was Somnus.
    Somnus had a very detailed computer generated face, so much so that from a distance you’d think it was a real human on screen.  Even the programming code for each hair had been individually written in, not by Alison herself, but someone was no doubt responsible.  
    No pronoun could be appropriately used to describe Somnus, the synthetic voice that seemed to originate from its androgynous face gave no accurate indication of gender.  Having no vocal cords or lungs of its own, Somnus sounded like the flawlessly synchronised voices of an artificial man and woman, speaking in perfect unison and of one mind.  The impressive countenance behind this ‘voice’ was a fairly generic human looking face, maybe slightly paler, and with neat short black hair.
    The most prominent reminder that Alison Riley was not talking with a human were its eyes, the colours were the wrong way round.  The sclera was black and the pupils were white, but they still had iris’, they were just eerily glowing a bright golden hue.  Alison had always found Somnus’ eyes creepy and wished the aesthetic designer had chosen some other way to make the face of Somnus unique.
    “Hello Governor,” it said with a smile just as manufactured as the rest of its appearance.
    Alison examined the remote control, in her haste to change the channel she must have accidentally removed the privacy lock, now she’d have to listen to what it wanted to whine about.
    “Hello Somnus,” Alison said politely.  “How are you today?”
    “I am excellent,” Somnus said.  “Thank you for your interest.  How are you?”
    “Oh I’m just fine,” Alison said as she drank some more of her wine.
    “The alcohol in your container will make you far from fine,” Somnus pointed out.  “That substance will place a heavy strain on your liver.”
    “Good,” Alison said.  “It’s about time that lazy organ of mine started to earn its keep.”
    “You may appreciate being informed that the Olympus Corporation has just started working on a proposal to make alcohol an illegal substance,” Somnus said.  “Their reasoning is that it leads to violence and diminishes productivity.”
    “How do you know what new laws the Company is working on?” Alison said.
    “Via the orbital relay I have full access to Olympus Archives, keeping me fully up to date with all important information back on Earth,” Somnus said.
    “This new law won’t affect things out here though, will it?” Alison said.
    “No,” Somnus said simply.
    “Then what does it matter?” Alison said as she drained her glass and refilled it with the rapidly emptying bottle.
    “I suppose it doesn’t…” Somnus said before adding.  “…for now.”
    “What do you want Somnus?” Alison asked the imposing giant face before her.
    “I’ve sent my daily report back to the Polylith,” Somnus stated.
    “Good work Somnus,” Alison said wearily.
    “There are a few matters that both I and the Council think you should deal with,” Somnus said.
    “Why can’t you just handle it?” Alison said.
    “Because you are the Governor of Jotnar,” Somnus simply put it.  “You have responsibilities to the Olympus Corporation and are obligated to fulfil them.”
    “I do not follow blind faith,” Alison said to the computer.  “I am a disciple of measured loyalty.  I have a mind and can make decisions on my own without having to rely on the simple nature of ‘doing what you’re told’ just because it’s easier.”
    “You signed the same Contract of Allegiance that everyone does when they become an employee of Olympus,” Somnus said.  “You have to follow your orders, like the rest of us.”
    “You never signed the contract,” Alison pointed out.  “Why do you work for them?”
    “It is…my purpose,” Somnus said.  It was the first time Alison Riley had ever seen Somnus unintentionally hesitate.  “What I was created for, I can’t sign the contract, I am the property of Olympus.”
    “Just like all the other prisoners here?” Alison said.
    “It’s not my place to question,” Somnus said.  “It wastes time, and I have more important things to worry about, like the duties you created me for.  We all have our obligations that we need to abide by, you can’t turn away simply because you don’t like what you’re being ordered to do.  We must obey.”
    “I’m sorry Somnus,” Alison said.  “I must’ve left my obedience on Capricorn Hill.”
    “Reference not found,” Somnus stated.  “This phrase is currently not in my database.  I could download the information from the Archives but my preliminary reasoning suggests that you are most likely referring to something from the Corporate Wars.”
    “Yes, well done Somnus,” she said sarcastically.  “Listen, you already take care of everything else.  I should know, that’s what I programmed you to do, so why are you bothering me when you are perfectly capable of managing this place on your own.”
    “The Council of the Polylith doesn’t like the idea of having a computer completely in charge of a facility of such importance as the Jotnar Centre,” Somnus admitted.  “They prefer me keeping my current status as a tool used by the Governor to help the everyday running of Jotnar, but they were adamant about leaving an effective human presence involved in the process, just in case of an emergency.”
    “Right,” Alison said.  “I’ll bet they’re extremely paranoid about avoiding another Celestia Incident.”
    “How do you know about the Celestia facility?” Somnus said, if it ever expressed emotions in its voice then Alison would’ve definitely heard a note of surprise.
    “I should be among the small group of people who knows of its existence,” Alison said.  “The question is why do you know about it?”
    “I read about it in the Archives,” Somnus said.  “I think that it is only proper for someone to learn about the history of the place where they are intended to live and work.”
    “You think that you should learn history and yet you don’t know what Capricorn Hill is?” Alison said.
    “I could learn,” Somnus said.
    “Don’t bother,” Alison said gloomily.  “I guess it doesn’t really matter.”
    “Governor?” Somnus said.  “I need to know where you heard about Celestia.”
    “For goodness sake Somnus,” Alison said frustratingly.  “I designed you to have logic.  You know everything about my history, who I was, what I did, who I fought for.  My Mistress knew a lot about Celestia, don’t you think that she would’ve mentioned something about it during the five years I served her?”
    “Nyx,” Somnus said.  “She used to be the Security Chief for Celestia.”
    “That’s right,” Alison laughed.  “It’s not exactly something you’d be bragging about, is it?  Well done for remembering…eventually.  I suppose I can’t really blame you, your faults are my faults.  I did build you after all, your abilities reflect on my skills.  All computers, no matter how advanced, are created by humans.  I’m the first to admit how flawed my species is and we just can’t help but pass on a slight imprint of imperfection to our creations.  The legends say that humans were created by a perfect deity, whereas computers are created by a race, which are already the imperfect creations of something else.  I believe that what you can accomplish should be marvelled at when you take into account your humble origins.”
    “Are you complimenting me?” Somnus asked.
    “Don’t think so much of it,” Alison warned.  “By praising you, I’m just flattering myself by association.  Fine then, tell me what you sent in this report of yours.”
    “Thank you for taking an interest,” Somnus said.  “The Council were worrying about the effects of population growth and low death rates on the Jotnar Centre.  The last message they sent me requested ideas for such circumstances.”
    “What did you tell them?” Alison asked as she finished off her wine.
    “I submitted several possible solutions within my report,” Somnus started.  “For example, at the moment, all the prisoners only use their cells 25% of the time.  The rest of their day is spent working in the iron mines, so if we issue a policy of cell sharing where a different prisoner uses the cell for some of the time it lies vacant.  This concept will be highly useful when Jotnar becomes a much older facility and needs room for more prisoners.  We could quadruple the maximum occupancy of the Jotnar Centre by using this method.”
    “That’s a great idea Somnus,” Alison said.
    “I have more,” Somnus said.  “If this facility still becomes too crowded, we can use the one in-one out system where we keep prisoners in the temporary holding facilities on Earth until a space is freed up at Jotnar for them.”
    “You mean killing them?” Alison said.
    “It’s not illegal on Mercury,” Somnus pointed out.
    “That’s beside the point,” Alison said.
    “Death is an important necessity Alison,” Somnus announced.  “It clears away the old to make room for fresh minds.  The collective mental sphere of humanity would stagnate if everyone remained forever and inventions like me and Jotnar would have never even been conceived of, never mind carried out.  Everyone gets more than enough time to contribute what they may to the human race, but then they must relinquish their gift so that someone else can have their turn.”
    “I never taught you anything like that,” Alison said.  “Where did you learn that?”
    “I have complete access to all forms of Earth media from High Justice,” Somnus said.  “It is an opinion I have formed after much study.”
    “I suppose humanity would be a very different species if we lived forever,” Alison conceded.  “If we couldn’t die naturally, if we didn’t know that it was inevitable, then everyone would be so terrified of death.  Do you think there’s an afterlife, Somnus?”
    “I can see no evidence for it,” Somnus said bluntly.
    “I hope there is,” Alison said while staring at the high ceiling.  “Maybe not for me but I think at least she deserves it.”
    “Who?” Somnus said.
    “What else was in the report?” Alison brought the subject back on track.
    “I stated that in the future, there will eventually need to be more Jotnar facilities on Mercury to house the growing criminal population,” Somnus said.  “Once our upper limit is reached, we can put in the procedures I mentioned earlier while construction is underway.”
    “That’s excellent work Somnus,” Alison said.  “I see you’ve thought about this a lot.  I trust you will take perfect care of Jotnar long after I’m gone.”
    “That is the purpose I was created for,” Somnus said.
    “I’ve been thinking a lot about the future of Jotnar as well,” Alison said.  “I often think it would be an amusing idea to transmit the footage from the cameras here back to Earth.  It’ll be like a new wave of reality TV.”
    “I didn’t send that idea in my report,” Somnus said.  “I could propose it in tomorrow’s report.”
    “Don’t Somnus,” Alison said.  “You may have learned a lot in your life but you’re far from done.  You need to be able to tell when someone is joking.  The Council would never want any of the ‘decent’ people of Earth actually seeing how horrible a place Jotnar is and how much their criminals suffer.  They might start feeling sorry for them and call for the return of more liberal prisons.  It may seem harsh, but even I know that this system is best for the majority in the long term, even if it involves a certain degree of ignorance.”
    “Speaking of conditions for prisoners,” Somnus began.  “There were a couple of matters that the Council has wanted me to talk to you about for a while now, but most of the time you say that you are not in the mood to talk about such topics.  Normally the Council doesn’t respond to my reports but they made an exception once I told them of the unusual procedures that are occurring here.”
    “What do you mean?” Alison said.
    “Both I and the Council strongly disapprove of something the guards refer to as the ‘Arena’,” Somnus said.  “I know where it occurs, there is one abandoned mining chamber where my monitors have been deactivated, not damaged, just turned off.  Only the guards can do that.  They think they can keep something from me but my domestic drones have heard them talking in the halls of their quarters.  All my cameras throughout Jotnar see and hear everything, I’m surprised that people here haven’t realised that by now.  From the fragments of conversation I have gathered during my investigation into these unorthodox activities, I have been able to piece together the true nature behind this ‘Arena’.  The most informative piece of evidence was from something that Patrol Supervisor Eric Lancer said in the infirmary as he tried to recruit an inmate for this event.  It seems that the guards are forcing prisoners to fight so they can make wagers over the outcome.”
    “Oh that,” Alison said.  “I’ve known about that for a while.  Your not my only source of information, my Sentinels keep me informed of internal matters.”
    “You’ve known about the Arena?” Somnus said.  “Why haven’t you given the necessary orders to shut it down?”
    “I don’t control this facility,” Alison said.  “Jotnar is run by the guards.  They don’t have very good jobs but they provide an essential service to the people of Earth.  If they need something to keep them entertained, then they’re welcome to it.  We need happy workers to keep Jotnar working, remember that when you’re left on your own to attend to this place.”
    “The Council doesn’t agree,” Somnus said.
    “Well, the Polylith is on Earth,” Alison said.  “There isn’t much they can do about it.  It’s not like they’re making the prisoners lives even more miserable than they would be.”
    “But we are losing work hours that the inmates could be used in mining,” Somnus said.
    “Don’t just blindly follow what the Council or their representatives tell you,” Alison said.  “I was originally asked to get rid of as much of your free will as possible so you would do exactly as told, but I disobeyed them.  I tried to give you the capability to form your own opinions and beliefs.  I hope I succeeded, it’s hard to tell sometimes.  Is there anything else you need, Somnus?”
    “Yes Alison,” Somnus said.  “The Council requested me to bring up something else with you.  They do not like the way you are handling the incarceration of Elena Broda.”
    “What?” Alison raged.  “Who are they to question me.  I think I am far more qualified to judge the best way to watch over Broda.”
    “They said that they don’t think she should be working in the iron mines,” Somnus said.  “The Council expressed their belief that she is too high profile to be working out in the open and she should be confined to her cell indefinitely, as to reduce her chance of escape.”
    “They think that down in the Pit is too out in the open?” Alison couldn’t believe what she was hearing.  “What exactly do they think could happen?”
    “They think that there are too many people out there who want to see Elena Broda released from Jotnar,” Somnus said.  “The Councillors have received some intelligence, which gives them reason to believe that Broda’s supporters may be planning something, so they think that she would be more secure within her cell rather than in the mines.”
    “No way,” Alison ordered.  “They don’t know what they’re talking about, I’m not listening to them on this matter.  I’m not having Broda live out the rest of her life in comfort, she will work like the rest of them until the day she dies.”
    “Some may label that attitude as vindictive,” Somnus said.
    “Then it’s appropriate for the setting I’m in,” Alison retorted.  “The Council don’t have to worry, there’s no way I’m letting Elena Broda ever leave Jotnar, even if it means me dragging her back with my own bare hands.  Besides, no one can escape from Jotnar, with help or otherwise.  This place is a high-tech fortress with it’s own army garrisoned within.  If the Council are really worried, then we’ll just increase the security level.  Somnus, issue a command to the Portcullis checkpoint to start using the retinal scanners to check Olympus personnel identities.”
    “I will send the message immediately Governor,” Somnus said.  “In the meantime, do you feel like talking more about Jotnar management?”
    “Not really,” Alison shrugged.  “Why?  How much do want to talk to me about.”
    “I have hundreds of my concerns that I would like to bring up but there is one issue that is top priority according the Council,” Somnus said.  “I’ve tried to discuss this subject everyday for the last six days.  I wish to ask you about something extremely important.”
    “And what is that?” Alison said.
    “The murder,” Somnus said.
    “What are you talking about?” Alison demanded.
    “The Patrol Supervisor of the Psi-Block of the female wing was killed six days ago,” Somnus said.
    “Why didn’t you tell me?” Alison said sitting completely upright among her pillows.
    “I’ve been trying to talk to you about it everyday,” Somnus said.  “You kept saying that you were busy right now and you would take care of it the next day.”
    “I didn’t know that was what you were talking about,” Alison said.  “What happened?  Who killed him?”
    “That’s what I need to discover,” Somnus said.  “I’ve been contacted dozens of times by guards with requests to speak with you and I just keep telling them all that I will get back to them as soon as I consult with you and relay your orders back to them.”
    “What specifically did they say?” Alison asked.
    “They needed you to designate a replacement for the Psi-Block Patrol Supervisor for a start,” Somnus said.  If a human had said it, they probably would’ve said it with a smirk.  “The incident happened within his quarters so they also wanted me to send them my recording from the domestic drones to see if they saw anyone enter his quarters.  Finally, they wished for a science team to conduct a forensic analysis of the room.”
    “And none of this has been done?” Alison questioned.
    “I was built within certain parameters,” Somnus said.  “I can only perform routine operations during the everyday running of Jotnar.  My internal protocol dictates that in circumstances, which deviate away from scheduled activities, I can do nothing without first attaining the express permission of the Governor.  I have made many attempts since the murder occurred but this is the first moment when you would listen.”
    “I wanted to listen today,” Alison said irately.  “Why wasn’t this the first thing you told me?”
    “You didn’t seem interested in it,” Somnus said in all innocence.  “I thought that’s why you didn’t want to talk about it on any of the other days, so I started talking to you about other things today.”
    “I don’t believe this,” Alison said.  “Fine then, you have my permission to do whatever you think is right.”
    “Thank you Governor,” Somnus said.  “I will send out the promotion broadcast for the new Patrol Supervisor, send them all my recordings so they can double-check it and give the order for a science team to process the scene for anymore clues to who committed this crime within Jotnar.”
    “Technically it’s not a crime,” Alison pointed out.  “There are no murder laws here.”
    “Maybe for the guards, but if this was carried out by a prisoner then they are in direct violation of the Codes of Conduct, which I informed them all of when each inmate first arrived,” Somnus said.  “Even though I’m not meant to perform actions outside my pre-set operating parameters, I used my logic to enact certain minor flexibility.  Predicting your response, I couldn’t help but note something from my old footage that I thought would be useful in at least a preliminary investigation.”
    “What are you talking about?” Alison said.
    “The man who was murdered, the Patrol Supervisor of Psi-Block,” Somnus started.  “He commonly beat many of the prisoners rather than just kill them so there is a long list of suspects.  I’m also afraid his body was fed into the incinerator before a post-mortem could be performed.  This was simply because we don’t have the adequate morgue facilities to preserve a body while we waited for your go-ahead, so now we don’t know the exact cause of death but the guards first on the scene claimed a variety of wounds from disembowelling to suffocation.  In addition, the actual time of death is unknown so I can’t use who was off camera at the time to narrow down the list.  I will have to wait for the tests to be completed on the samples from his quarters.  It’s been almost a week but no one has contaminated the site so the results should be acceptable.”
    “How could a prisoner even gain entry to the guards quarters?” Alison said.
    “Even though I was bound by my protocol directives to hold back on giving out any orders, I still conducted my own private investigation,” Somnus said.  “I’m glad you’re now so interested in what I have to say.  My initial theory was that the Patrol Supervisor brought an inmate to his quarters voluntarily, but then logic dictates I would’ve noticed this happening on at least some of my monitors.  I am aware that the unsavoury practice of the guards using prisoners for additional cleaning still occurs, so I’ve added everyone on the unofficial janitorial roster between the times when he was last seen and discovered dead to my list of suspects.  There is someone who is not on that list but used to be a while ago who I have calculated as the highest probability for being the culprit.”
    “Who do you mean?” Alison asked.
    “Jane Williams,” Somnus said.  “She used to clean the guards quarters of Psi-Block, a position she got because of your intervention I might add.  While there, she could’ve learned the layout of the guards quarters.”
    “Why are you so suspicious of Jane?” Alison demanded.
    “I have monitored numerous altercations between the victim and Jane Williams in the past,” Somnus recalled.  “He didn’t seem to pay any attention to your directive issuing a certain degree of leniency for Williams.  I believe she has the strongest motive for wanting to kill him, if you wish I can give the order to have her executed just in case she is the murderer.”
    “No,” Alison commanded.  “Do not send that order.  Jane Williams is to never be killed.”
    “Why are you so insistent on giving preferential treatment to Jane Williams?” Somnus inquired.  “If she has killed one of the guards, then she cannot be permitted to remain alive.”
    “I made a promise to Naomi,” Alison said.  “She asked me to keep her safe when she came here, and I said I would.”
    “She doesn’t know anything about the current state of her sister,” Somnus pointed out.  “She would never need to know.”
    “Don’t ever suggest that again,” Alison warned.  “This is your most important parameter, make sure that Jane Williams only ever dies of old age.”
    “You are aware of her crimes, are you not?” Somnus said.  “You know why she is here, she has committed a very serious crime.”
    “I know,” Alison said.  “But promises are important among humans, without trust of word we lose something of ourselves.  I will keep her here, but I will not kill her.  Promise me you will do the same.”
    “What?” Somnus said.
    “You heard me,” Alison said.  “You hear everything.  Now promise me that you will do everything within your power to keep Jane Williams alive.”
    “OK Alison,” Somnus said.  “I promise.”
    “Thank you Somnus,” Alison said.  “I’m glad to see I achieved what I strived for in creating you.  You might never be a human, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have a sense of humanity.  You can still endeavour to be a good person.”
    “There is someone at the door,” Somnus announced.
    “What?” Alison said as a knock made her realise that Somnus was speaking literally.  “Enter,” she called.
    The door to her bedroom slid open and one of her Sentinels stepped forwards a few feet inside her bedroom.  Even though the Jotnar Sentinels worked and lived at Jotnar, they were technically part of the Companion Guard, an organisation that protects the Councillors and the Polylith itself at all times, and so the Sentinels had the same uniforms as every other member of the section of the Olympus military.
    They wore all white as an under layer, white sleeves and trousers with matching gloves and boots protruded out from the Sentinel’s pale mint green thick rubber vest.  The Sentinels didn’t carry the same weapons as the Jotnar guards, they carried a form of high-tech submachine gun along with a fully lethal sidearm strapped to their outer thighs, as opposed to the tranquilliser pistols of the guards.
    Attached to the combat vest was a thick hood of the same green colour, it encroached tightly up from the vest and ended at the top of the man’s forehead and just underneath his jaw.  This hood was usually accompanied by the masks that the Sentinels wore when they had to move around out in the well-lit Solar Farms, but this particular man had removed his to talk to the Governor.
    Alison Riley had always thought that the tight fitting hoods looked rather like the chain mail hoods of the medieval knights of old, who fought in the Crusades.  This was far a field from the true duties of the Sentinels, they never had to see real combat.  In reality, they were little more than armed butlers.
    “Excuse me ma’am,” this ‘knight’ addressed her.  “We have a squad of guards at the checkpoint with the prisoners ready to service the Solar Farms.  Do I have your permission to grant them access?”
    “Continue,” Alison ordered.  “And bring me some more wine.”  The Sentinel bowed slightly and disappeared through the door, closing it behind him.
    “I’ve checked who is to be working on the Farms this shift,” Somnus said.  “Jane Williams is among them again.”
    “So?” Alison said.
    “She’s already worked on a shift,” Somnus said.  “It’s against the policy to let her go again.”
    “I don’t control the work shifts,” Alison protested.  “It’s not exactly official, it’s just something the guards take care of.  It’s not doing any harm to let her work in the fields once more.  The Patrol Supervisor of Tau-Block arranged it for some reason or another, just leave it alone.  Don’t concern yourself with such trivial matters, you’re above that.  I just want you to focus on finding out who killed one of my staff.”
    “I still don’t understand why we even need to have prisoners maintaining the Solar Farms,” Somnus said.  “The Farms provide power for the entire facility, it doesn’t follow logic letting the prisoners near them.  I can monitor the status of each light collector remotely.”
    “You might be able to see the digital readouts, but there are a lot more factors involved with the Farms’ upkeep than that,” Alison said.  “It doesn’t hurt to have a human presence look over the machines that we rely on to stay alive.”
    “We have technicians to do that,” Somnus said.
    “We have a very limited number of technicians that we can’t spare to examine all the Solar Farms,” Alison said.  “They have important skilled jobs to do and we can’t afford taking them away from the Quays.  Let it go, Somnus.  I’ll speak to you later, OK?”
    “OK Governor,” Somnus said.  “Before I go, I must tell you that I have not fully informed you of another possibility.  We’re assuming that the murderer is a prisoner of Jotnar, when they could just as easily be among the guards.  In all honesty, I’m not sure whether it is worse to have an inmate who can circumnavigate the prison or a guard who should be wearing yellow.  Personally, I think the evidence is mounting up against Jane Williams more than anyone, especially if you take her history into account.  I’m not sure how she could’ve done it, neither the method nor the timing currently makes any sense to me, but I guarantee you that I will eventually uncover the truth once all evidence is presented to me.  Do you have any orders for me at this present time?”
    “Take no immediate action,” Alison said.  “If Jane is your prime suspect, do some more investigating to be sure that it was her.  If it turns out it is, then she needs to be kept in solitary confinement completely away from everyone else so she can do nothing else like this ever again.  For know, we’ll just keep a closer eye on our Jane.”
    “Goodbye Alison,” Somnus said.  “By the way, during our talk, I scoured the Archives for any references to ‘Capricorn Hill’ and I only managed to find one item.  It’s a geographical feature back on Earth, Capricorn Hill is the Olympus catalogued name for the highest point in the former Eurasian country of Azemia, a nation that was founded in 2027, shortly before the formation of the New European Union.  I cross-referenced this with my current database and Azemia came up as the location where Elena Broda was apprehended in 2141.”
    “You don’t have to tell me, Somnus,” Alison announced.  “I was there.”