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The end of the day was approaching and Call's mood was as moody as ever.
For the third time now, the analysis of her processor had produced the same result over and over again. No malfunctions detected. All systems were fully operational.
Motor and cognitive functions even reached 94.8% functionality, despite the damage caused by Wren's bullet to her chest eight weeks earlier.
It hadn't been easy, but with the help of Vriess and Ripley, most of the damage had been repaired and, apart from a slight yellowish shade to her skin, no one would have suspected she'd been shot. Hence the incomprehensibility of her moments of distraction, as she liked to call them, which manifested themselves with ever-increasing frequency.
They tended to take different forms, an unexplained loss of her words, an intense sensation of heat, a dissipated attention span, an inability to concentrate.
There was a common thread to all these factors, and that common thread was Ripley. It had taken Call some time to realize that all her moments only manifested themselves in Ripley's presence. At no time had the company of Vriess or Johner elicited the same reactions.
Call has a theory about the trouble that's taken hold of her. Needless to say, the first person she would have turned to to talk about it would naturally have been Ripley, except that in this case, Ripley was the subject of her distress.
Johner was clearly a definite no-no when it came to talking about her torment, so that left her with Vriess.
Call eventually found Vriess in the machine room. He was carrying out the latest maintenance operation on the thruster control devices.
“Hey Vriess!” exclaimed Call.
Vriess, perched on his new wheelchair recovered from the excursion to PV-701 a few days earlier, turned to Call.
“Hey Call! Have you come to give me a hand?” he asked with a slight smile.
Since Ripley's arrival on the ship, she and Call had been glued together. This had been even truer during the two weeks spent on Earth after the Auriga crash. To increase efficiency, the team had been split in two, with Johner and Vriess staying on the Betty to make progress on repairs, while Call and Ripley explored the surrounding area in search of supplies and repair parts.
The long hours spent together in a ruined Paris had brought the two women closer together.
However, Vriess had noticed that Call had been distancing herself from Ripley of late.
Sensing her discomfort, Vriess preferred to give Call time to express herself at her own pace and asked her to take the wrench and bring it to him. Call complied and handed the tool to Vriess.
The young woman was reluctant to approach the subject at hand. Despite their camaraderie and the fact that Vriess's attitude towards her hadn't changed despite the revelation of her true nature, talking about feelings made her uncomfortable. Even more so because of her robotic nature, which should have prevented her from having such feelings!
“Something on your mind?” asked Vriess.
“Yes.”
After a few moments of silence, Vriess decided to approach the problem directly.
“Wouldn't that something have to do with Ripley?”
Call suddenly raised her head to Vriess and looked at him in surprise.
“You know since Ripley came on board, your attitude has changed somewhat. You spend a lot of time together.”
Despite Vriess's tone of observation rather than accusation, Call felt compelled to defend herself.
“We spend a lot of time together because I want to help her acclimatize to life on the Betty. Ripley is different in many ways, as you know. We tend to forget about her because we see her as a strong person, but she has to live with the specters of Ellen Ripley's past, the USM's genetic experiments on her biology as well as the physical and memory legacy of the creatures. That's a lot for one person to handle.”
Vriess looked at Call attentively, realizing that the subject at hand was a sensitive one, but he preferred to keep quiet and let Call continue.
After a few moments' hesitation, the young woman spoke again.
“I came to see you because I've noticed some changes in my behavior, and after checking my functionalities, I haven't found a rational solution to my problem.»
“What kind of changes have you noticed? »
“Sometimes I forget my words, I find it hard to concentrate when I'm doing a task whether it's simple or complicated, I suddenly feel hot when the outside temperature has no impact on me, plus other little things here and there like daydreaming in the middle of the day and losing track of time...”
“Ah, I see,” exclaimed Vriess. “And you have no idea where the problem might come from?”
“Yes...it's just that my explanation seems unlikely, if not impossible.”
Call stood up and moved away from Vriess, the frustration of the conversation beginning to get to her. She hesitated before finally making her move.
“I think I've somehow developed feelings...of the love kind” she breathed. “Except that, given my own nature, that's impossible.”
“And why would that be impossible?” asked Vriess without judgment.
“Because I'm a robot, nothing more, nothing less!” exclaimed Call with tears in her eyes.
“Just a machine built by other machines. This kind of feeling is inaccessible to us. Only human beings are capable of this capacity to love.”
Vriess's gaze was filled with tenderness and melancholy as she looked away from the young man and sat down by the turbines. She seemed defeated by the situation.
Since Call's arrival on the Betty a few months earlier, Vriess had developed an affection for the Android that no longer existed. Call's determination, sensitivity and empathy had charmed him, and despite the discovery of her true nature, it hadn't changed a thing. However, he knew how to admit defeat and, above all, to recognize that Call had never shown the same attention to him that she had shown to Ripley.
Call was simply in love, and as her friend, it was important for him to help her discover and accept these new feelings. He'd have plenty of time to mope about his own feelings later.
“Call...The capacity to love is not linked to your biological nature but to that of your heart. And yes, your heart may be mechanical, but that doesn't invalidate your feelings. I think that what you call dysfunctions in your body are linked to the manifestation of your own emotions. Instead of fighting them, you should simply listen to them. I have no doubt that you've already understood what they were trying to tell you.”
Call looked at him thoughtfully. Except for Ripley, Vriess was his favorite human being. He carried that same kindness and empathy within him, and hadn't judged her when he discovered her robotic nature. He was, without a doubt, the best friend anyone could have dreamed of.
“Thank you,” Call said to Vriess, stepping towards him. “You're the best of the best.”
“I don't really have any competition with Johner,” Vriess laughed.
Call leaned over and kissed him on the cheek before standing up and smiling at him. A real moment of complicity had developed between them, a lasting friendship based on mutual respect.
_________________________________
A few hours later, Call was lying on her bench in her quarters, her thoughts returning tirelessly to Ripley.
That conversation with Vriess had opened Call's eyes. It was time to accept the truth and confront her feelings. After 108 years of existence, Call was in love, so this was a first! Unwittingly, the choice of her affections had fallen on a half-human, half-alien hybrid with a strong character.
Since their first meeting and that aborted murder attempt, the relationship between the two women had grown, matured and persevered despite their opposite personalities.
An indefinable bond had formed between them, based on a shared search for humanity for Call and the restoration of humanity for Ripley.
So it was decided, Call would talk to Ripley about her feelings without further delay. If anyone other than Vriess could understand her, it would be Ripley.
The next morning, Call arrived at the ship's catering quarters. Ripley, Johner and Vriess were already there, all silent, which was not Johner's habit.
As she approached them, a terrible feeling of anxiety took hold of Call. Her gaze automatically fell on Ripley.
After a few seconds' hesitation, Ripley told her the new :
“Call, you're just in time, I was just breaking the news to the team...I've decided to leave the Betty. I'll be leaving at our next supply stop.”
In just a few words, the world had come crumbling down around Call.
_________________________________
After spending the first few months of her life aboard the Auriga, she had finally returned to Earth. It had only taken her 200 years, one death and one resurrection to return! How ironic.
The Earth she had known in her first life no longer existed. When she had seen the desolate landscape left behind by mankind, a melancholy had come over her. Like her, the Earth had changed irrevocably. It had been sullied by man's boundless ambitions. Both she and Earth bore the physical scars of this ambition.
Alien-modified DNA for her and almost non-existent natural resources for the blue planet.
But as usual, Ripley had had little time to let her thoughts take over... she had to act fast. Once the Auriga attraction was over, the military would surely come and prowl around the Betty.
Naturally, she and Call had been put in charge of finding the parts needed to repair the Betty. Who better than a half-human/alien hybrid and a second-generation synthetic to roam the ruins of an apocalyptic world. Needless to say, Johner and Vriess wouldn't have lasted a day in this context.
And of all of them, Call was her favorite.
It hadn't taken Ripley long to understand why. She was the most human of all, despite the fact that she was a robot. An aberration of nature, a robot created by robots, themselves created by man.
Thanks to Call and the time spent together, Ripley was regaining her humanity. Little by little, Ellen Ripley's human qualities began to emerge: pragmatism, courage, empathy, self-sacrifice, charisma. Of course, certain characteristics of the other part of her genetic mutation were also manifesting themselves: aggression, domination, violence, irritability, possession.
A beast lay dormant inside her at all times, just waiting to come out and satisfy her desire for domination. It sometimes took immeasurable energy to tame the beast.
Call gave her the desire and strength to fight this unwanted coexistence. And her interest in Call had gone far beyond the bounds of mere friendship.
Although it had been over 200 years since Ripley's last feelings of love, she had become aware of the place Call had taken in her life. The android's presence was considerable, and in no way resembled that occupied by Johner and Vriess.
Strangely enough, a certain camaraderie had developed between her and Johner. He had accepted her dominant position in the food chain and understood that it was better to be in her good graces than against her.
As for Vriess, his attitude towards her was more neutral. No animosity, but no friendliness either. Their relationship was cordial and professional. Like two colleagues working side by side during the day, returning to their lives once the day was over. In the end, the closest thing they had to each other was Call.
Like Ripley, Call's true nature didn't bother Vriess. Only Johner, at the very beginning, had made a few unpleasant remarks towards Call, but he was quickly put in his place by Ripley and Vriess.
And finally, there was Call.
She'd never thought she could experience such feelings. But they were there. Call was an android, of course, but that in itself wasn't an issue for Ripley. There had always been something between her and robots.
Ash had tried to kill her, Bishop had become her ally, and Call was in a different league of her own. A light in the dark night, a compass to find her way back to her own heart.
However, the nature of such feelings could bring its own dangers.
The creature inside her wanted Call, but in a possessive, selfish and dangerous way, for what the creature couldn't have, she would want to destroy.
Ripley wasn't fooled; she had seen for herself that Call was drifting away from her and spending more and more time with Vriess.
She could still relive the joy on Call's face on the Auriga when she saw that Vriess was still alive. An expression and a feeling totally in contradiction with Call's own words to her. Call had wanted to abandon her.
“She's not human. She was part of the experiment. She can't be trusted.”
And in that moment, Call was right. The creature wanted to join her own kind, pushing Ripley again and again to join the nest, to answer the Queen's call.
In the end, her humanity and her own repulsion towards her creatures, her own brothers, had won the day.
She had chosen the humans and...Call. Only the Newborn's death had been a pain in itself, for he had been like her, an innocent creature, released into a corrupt world without free will.
Ripley had become aware of her feelings for Call when she had begun to pull away from her. Finally, the heart desired what the heart could not have. Even on a ship in space, Call was far from Ripley. The situation was hard for Ripley to cope with; she had to tell someone, and ironically only the object of her affection could hear her.
Ripley rose from her seat and left the cockpit in search of Call. Patience was not in the hybrid's nature, so she might as well talk to Call right away. The outcome of their conversation would help Ripley see things more clearly.
She began by going to Call's quarters without success.
Then she came across Johner, who told her to look in the engine room.
Following his advice, Ripley headed for the engine room with unusual anxiety. She wanted to see Call, but knew that the engine room was one of Vriess's favorite places. The anxiety of finding the two young people together was growing.
As she approached the entrance, she saw Call and Vriess deep in conversation. From where she stood, they couldn't see her. In the end, it was a blessing that she was hidden from the pair, for when Ripley saw Call lean over to kiss Vriess on the cheek, her heart stopped dead in her tracks.
Hope, doubt, sadness, anger, the emotions ran through Ripley at a frenetic pace. She took a few steps back and leaned against the wall to regain her composure. One of her greatest fears had just taken shape before her eyes.
After a few moments, she decided to retire and returned to her cabin.
Reflecting, she needed time to understand and surely accept what she had just seen. In eight weeks, she had never seen Call show any physical affection. Not to her, not to Vriess, not to anyone…
Ripley entered her cabin and started walking frantically.
What an idiot, she thought. The signs were there, but she'd refused to see them; Call and Vriess' relationship had gone beyond the simple stage of friendship. It was as simple as that.
Her feelings would never be reciprocated. She was living an impossible love.
This realization drained her of all energy. After sitting down on her bed, Ripley felt a tear roll down her cheek, then a second, and the flood of tears that followed overwhelmed her.
The last time she'd cried like this was when the hybrid had died. She had cried over the death of the creature just as she was crying over the death of her possible relationship with Call.
Despite the immense sadness, another emotion began to take place in Ripley's heart; the beast exulted in unprecedented rage and jealousy.
Ripley felt the beast's pain, she shared it, she communed with it in this difficult moment. However, the difference lay in the finality: Ripley could give up on Call if she was happy, but the creature would refuse to abdicate. The beast wanted to conquer and was ready to destroy anything that got in its way.
Ripley soon realized that she was becoming a danger not only to Call but also to Vriess.
If Ripley even inadvertently hurt Vriess or worse, Call would never forgive her. And Ripley would never forgive herself for hurting Call, even involuntarily.
So there was only one way out, and that was to leave. After all, Call was the main reason Ripley had stayed on the Betty.
Without Call, Ripley had no reason to stay. She had to leave, and as quickly as possible. It was decided, she would announce her departure to the crew this evening and leave the Betty at the next station.
_________________________________
Call froze, her gaze lost. The announcement of Ripley's departure had shaken her to the core.
Seeing no reaction from the young woman, Ripley moved towards the exit to leave the room. Vriess and Johner stood back, silent.
“Why?” asked Call as Ripley passed by her.
Ripley stopped and turned to Call. “I want to find what I lost over two years ago...a home, a place where I can be free to be myself. I thought I could find it on Earth, but I was wrong. The Earth Ellen Ripley knew is gone. Now I have to find my own way, and I can't do that by staying on a smuggler's ship.”
Call stared at Ripley. Her words made sense, even if it pained her, Ripley had every right to want to live her life fully, freely. If the USM was after her, perhaps the smuggler's life wasn't the best option for staying off the radar.
“When's the next supply run?”
“In three days. We'll be passing over the planet Pegasus, at which point I'll debark.”
“Very well, I'll leave the Betty with you then,” affirmed the android.
Ripley was surprised by the young woman's words. Call wanted to leave with her. That meant leaving the Betty, leaving Vriess. Given Call's self-imposed sense of sacrifice, Ripley had no doubt that Call's choice was purely altruistic. To leave the Betty and follow Ripley on her journey, to make sure she didn't go on any wild rampages across the galaxy. For Ripley, it was out of the question to let Call sacrifice her personal happiness for some pre-programmed semblance of a mission.
“No, you're not. You're not coming with me,” Ripley pointed out coldly. “Your mission is over, you can go live your life as you please. We part ways here.”
Without giving her time to reply, Ripley turned to leave the room.
Call tried to hold her back, but Ripley grabbed her hand before she could touch it and brought her other hand around the young woman's neck. She brought the young woman's face close to her own.
“Don't touch me,” Ripley growled. “And never forget what I am.”
Ripley's impulsive reaction paralyzed Call. Even during the most confrontational moments on the Auriga, Ripley had never shown such indifference and coldness towards her except on their first meeting. Just like that first time, it was as if the creature had taken Ripley's place. Dangerous, majestic, impulsive, fearsome. A force of nature ready to conquer.
Ripley released Call and left without a word or a glance for her companions.
Call watched her leave the room. Incomprehension, shock and pain overwhelmed her. Ripley was leaving the Betty and didn't want her in her life anymore.
________________________________
When Ripley arrived in the hangar, the tension inside her was at its height.
Her actions, her words to Call, had been harsh. It had been so easy to let the creature get the better of her. At that moment, Ripley had even felt relief at not having to do the dirty work herself, rejecting Call's offer to leave with her.
Ripley blamed herself, her own attitude disgusting her. Anger began to take hold of her mind, her emotions since the previous day were at their peak.
In a fit of frustration, Ripley struck the wall with her left fist. The force of the impact had been so powerful that a hole now appeared in the wall. This was nothing compared to the fact that Ripley's left hand was bleeding. Her acidic blood was gradually falling to the ground and beginning to eat away at the ground.
“What's going on, Ripley?” asked Call, who had just entered the hangar and seen the hole in the wall.
Ripley turned back to Call. The expression on the young woman's face was one of incomprehension. Seeing no response from Ripley, Call continued:
“Can you tell me exactly what you're doing? Just because you're leaving the Betty doesn't mean you have to leave us gaping holes in the wall as a parting gift, not to mention your blood gnawing at the floor!”
Call ranted about Ripley's attitude. Not a single word was uttered on her part. Ripley merely stared at her with her piercing eyes.
After a few moments, Call decided to act and handed the hybrid a towel retrieved from one of the storage crates.
“Thank you,” Ripley said, taking the towel and wiping her hand. Although the wound had already closed, it was better for the remaining blood to deteriorate the towel than the hangar floor.
“We need to talk...I need to talk to you,” Call added, looking at Ripley who had just turned her back to her.
“I'm listening.”
Finally having Ripley's attention, Call didn't know where to start....the unexpected departure, the hostile attitude, her own feelings...every subject had importance. Call decided on the most pressing subject: departure.
“Why do you wish to leave?...I could be wrong, but everything was going well until a few days ago. You never showed any desire to leave, I even had the feeling that you were beginning to enjoy life on the Betty with us...with me. I know everything isn't perfect, but if something was wrong, would you tell me?”
Call was desperate to get closer to Ripley, but after the altercation earlier, she decided to give the clone some space.
“Ripley?” she added at the young woman's lack of reaction.
“Some things have changed,” Ripley announced. “My presence on the Betty is no longer necessary.”
“What things?”
“I've become a danger to the Betty and to you. I'm finding it more and more difficult to control this creature I'm living with. What happened earlier could happen again with far more serious consequences,” Ripley explained, turning her back to Call.
Ripley was devastated not to be able to confess her feelings to Call, and to lie to her about the real reasons for her departure. Call, who had been the first person to show her empathy, who was her friend, the person she was closest to. No longer seeing her on a daily basis, no longer being close to her would be torture in itself.
That's bullshit,” protested Call. Call's language surprised Ripley. Call had her moments when she could be bitchy, but never were they directed at her.
“There haven't been any incidents since you joined the Betty. There's only been one and that was after you announced you were leaving. Why don't you try telling me the truth instead of bullshitting me?”
In order to get Call to let go of the real reasons for her departure, Ripley decided to do it the hard way.
“It's because of you,” Ripley mentioned. “I don't want to stay on the Betty because of you. Since I arrived, you've devoted yourself to me in order to give meaning to your life. You need a mission to justify your pitiful existence, you've gone from your crusade against the Aliens to me but guess what! I don't need some fucking babysitter telling me what to do with my life!” raged Ripley.
Call could feel the tears welling up in her eyes. His mechanical heart had been racing during the hybrid's speech. Ripley had a low opinion of her, at what point could she have thought her feelings could have been shared.
But it didn't matter what she'd thought, because it was all coming to an end now. Soon Ripley would be gone and life would return to normal.
“Message well received, you can go to hell if you like!” blurted Call before leaving.
_________________________________
The following days were fraught with unbearable tension for the crew. Call and Ripley carried on with their daily tasks while minimizing their interaction. Call even more refused to look Ripley in the eye and left the room as soon as Ripley arrived.
As for Ripley, she was in a foul mood. All pretense of sympathy had disappeared from her exchanges with Johner and Vriess, and she was now looking forward to the next supply run in order to escape this situation of her own making.
She'd suspected that losing Call would be difficult, but she'd never imagined how painful it would be.
“You're such a bitch,” Johner announced.
Ripley, having forgotten his presence in the room, turned to him. Everything about Ripley's attitude was threatening. Johner's sense of self-preservation was almost non-existent if he hadn't realized that this was no time to be looking for the hybrid.
“I don't know exactly how you did it, but you broke our little Astro, the Robot,” said Johner of the new sobriquet he was enjoying using to name Call. Ripley hated him.
“I've never seen our little Call like that, I didn't even know a robot could be in such a state...sad, pathetic, miserable...you did a hell of a job! Well done!” he laughed.
In an instant, Ripley was on him, grabbing him by the throat and lifting him several inches off the ground. Johner put his hands around Ripley's wrists to make her let go, but it was no use.
“You were saying?” asked Ripley, straining her ear toward him. “You can say that again, because I can't hear you.” After several days of frustration, the creature inside her finally had a chance to come out. She wasn't going to miss a minute of it.
“Maybe I should give Call a present after all. What do you think? A mute Johner might be a nice parting gift,” Ripley announced with a menacing smile.
“Let him go now, Ripley!” demanded Vriess as he advanced into the room.
Ripley finally let go of Johner, who fell heavily to the floor.
“Bitch!” he let out before getting to his feet. His pride wounded, he got to his feet and left the room without a second thought.
Ripley returned to her work. Vriess didn't want to leave it at that:
“What happened, Ripley? I know Johner's an asshole, but you could have killed him.”
“It wouldn't have been much of a loss to humanity,” Ripley pointed out.
“Is this how it's going to be now? Are we all going to have to sleep on one ear? Are you going to take it out on all of us before you leave? First Call, then Johner, am I next on the list?”
“Maybe if you took care of putting Johner in his place yourself, I wouldn't have to.”
“What exactly does that mean?” asked Vriess.
“It means I won't be around much longer, and it'll be up to you to take care of Call. Against the Johners, against all the jerks who might come after her!” snapped Ripley.
“Call is big enough to take care of herself, Ripley. You know that as well as I do. What's really going on?”
“Promise me you'll always take care of her, Vriess,” Ripley demanded after a few moments.
The threatening Ripley had given way to a dejected Ripley. This sudden change of attitude and Ripley's request disconcerted Vriess.
“You could do it yourself, you know, take care of Call. No matter what's happened between you, nothing's irreparable. You can still fix everything.”
“It's too late now. The best thing to do now is to leave. I'm not really cut out for long-term cohabitation with humans. I'm not part of that species anymore,” Ripley ironized.
“The only company you really need is Call's...and the only company she needs is yours.
Even if Vriess's words surprised her, Ripley couldn't fool herself with a gleam of hope.
“The only person Call needs is you.”
“And how did you come to that conclusion? Did Call tell you? Because it didn't come from me.”
“I didn't need to be told, I just know, actions speak louder than words.”
Vriess was becoming increasingly confused by their conversation. Ripley's words made no sense.
“You're going to have to be a little more explicit than that Ripley, because right now I don't understand what you're getting at?”
Even if it cost her, Ripley decided to confront what she thought was reality.
“You and Call are together. It's up to you to take care of her.”
Vriess didn't want to upset Ripley, but he burst out laughing. He and Call together, while Call only had eyes for Ripley. He'd just understood the reason for Ripley's behavior and it had to do with a big misunderstanding.
“Call and I are not together. We're friends, nothing more.” Vriess indicated, regaining his serious tone.
“I saw you together in the engine room, you were...close, too close.”
Ripley slowly approached Vriess. Suddenly the temperature in the room had dropped ten degrees, Ripley's alien DNA was beginning to show.
This conversation was really starting to annoy her. Everyone on this ship was seriously testing her patience.
Vriess began to back up in his wheelchair. He was well aware of Ripley's abilities and had seen only moments ago that the clone had not been a prime example of stability lately. In desperation, and hoping that Call could forgive him, he decided to tell Ripley the truth.
“It's you!” he said quickly. “It's you Call wants, only you, no one else! She's in love with you.”
Ripley stopped dead in her tracks at Vriess's last words. Call was in love with her. The news shocked Ripley deeply, how could she have been so wrong about the situation?
Turning on her heels and leaving Vriess still stunned by their exchange, Ripley went in search of Call to find out the truth.
_________________________________
Call was in the hangar upgrading the latest versions of the storage platform's functions when she heard someone enter.
“Ah, it's you!” said Call, turning and seeing Ripley.
The hybrid looked at the young woman intensely wondering where to start, an apology seemed a good place to start.
“I'm sorry, Call...for my attitude over the last few days, for my actions, my words. I shouldn't have taken it out on you or even the others the way I did...I...”
“Apology accepted,” Call cut in coldly as she turned away... “ You may leave now Ripley.”
The Auton resumed her work, closing the door on any discussion.
Ripley knew this was going to be a complicated conversation, but she hadn't anticipated that Call would be so intransigent and cold towards her. She realized just how much she had hurt the young woman, and perhaps there was no turning back now. Her attitude had completely changed their relationship.
The hybrid moved towards the hangar window, the same one where the Newborn had been sucked into space. Ripley contemplated the glass, which had been repaired on Earth to ensure their departure from the blue planet.
“On this day, I have chosen you”, the clone announced sadly.
Call understood Ripley's sentence immediately. Only one event has ever taken place here....the death of the Newborn. That day, Call had seen the sadness and regret on Ripley's face. The Newborn had taken Ripley for his mother, and Ripley had exterminated him in the most horrible way. Out of respect and probably modesty, Call had never discussed the subject with Ripley; she'd always thought it was for the hybrid to bring up. Ripley had never done so.
“Why?...Why did you choose me that day?”
Ripley turned with tears in her eyes, the last few hours had been emotionally intense and the next few whatever the outcome of this conversation with Call would be just as much so.
“He was violent and dangerous...no matter what our relationship, I could never have kept him under control. Even if some of his DNA came from me, most of it came from them. He would have ended up killing all of you...killing you. It was a monstrous act, but above all an act of mercy.”
Call had seen the whole scene play out before her eyes. The connection between Ripley and the Newborn was played out on a different level of consciousness than she understood. They were both the fruit of a genetic crossbreed, existing in a league of their own. Murdering the only being to share such a parentage must have been difficult for Ripley.
I'm sorry, Ripley, that you had to make this choice and come to this”...Call's compassion, even if she was angry with the clone, was still there.
Ripley slowly approached Call, giving the young woman the choice of moving away if necessary. When she showed no further hostility towards her, Ripley took Call's hands in hers.
“I'm in love with you, Call.”
“What?” gasped Call in surprise. The room was now charged with an entirely different energy.
Ripley hadn't moved an inch, watching the young woman had intensity.
“You heard me just fine...unless one of your neurotransmitters was fried” teased Ripley.
The last remark had brought Cal back to her senses, and she pulled away from Ripley in a new rage. If Ripley wanted to play her before leaving, she wouldn't let her.
“What's the idea now, Ripley? You come over, apologize, make a big statement and laugh at me in the process?” snapped Call. Ripley, even if she hadn't meant to, had still managed to get on the young woman's nerves. It was becoming a habit she didn't necessarily want to keep.
“Sorry...I'm going about this all wrong...it's the first time I've done this...let's just say Ellen Ripley's memories aren't exactly helpful in this particular case.”
Call softened, seeing an adult Ripley one sometimes forgot that the clone had only a few months of existence and sporadic memories of a previous life for any help regarding so-called social situations.
“Do you really mean it? What you told me?” asked Call shyly.
“Yes,” said Ripley with a crooked smile. The same smirk that was so typical of Ripley, at once charming and provocative, and which had been directed at her many times.
Call made a choice, the only choice that made sense to her at the moment. She walked over to Ripley, threw her arms around her neck, stood a few inches on tiptoe and kissed her passionately.
Ripley remained impassive for a few moments, but soon showed just as much ardor in this kiss as Call. Call was an android and Ripley a half-human/half-alien hybrid, neither of them needing to breathe as much as a human being.
Their kiss slowed and ended naturally. The two young women looked at each other smiling, a weight had just been lifted.
However, Call pulled away from the hybrid and slapped her hard across the face.
Ripley immediately put a hand to her cheek, even with her augmented physiology, Call's strength was greater than that of a human.
“What's this?” Ripley frowned.
Call brought her hands to her hips and explained:
“You've behaved like a fool these last few days! You've been horrible to everyone, to me, your words have been cruel...It's deserved!”
“Put like that, I guess it is, but it still hurts,” Ripley complained, her hand still on her cheek.
Remembering the abject words spoken to Call, Ripley pulled herself together, “I'm really sorry...I didn't mean what I said. And even less about you and why you wanted to go with me...I know now why you wanted to come with me.”
Call softened, Ripley's apology sounding sincere.
“And besides, why did you behave like that? Why did you want to leave?”
Ripley knew this subject was coming but wasn't necessarily thrilled to bring it up, so she might as well be direct and not beat around the bush.
“I thought you and Vriess were together and since I couldn't stand it, I preferred to leave...”
“Oh...why did you think I was with Vriess?...asked Call. The whole situation was perplexing her.
“I saw you two kissing a few days ago.”
” Uh no...we've never kissed.”
“On the cheek.”
“On the cheek?!...it was a friendly gesture Ripley and nothing more. There's nothing between Vriess and me, only friendship.”
“Since you spent so much time with him and not so much with me, I thought your relationship had changed. And it was too hard for me to see you together.”
“Was it jealousy?”
“Yes...let's just say the other side of my DNA isn't sure what it's sharing or even giving up. If I'd stayed, I'd have been a danger to Vriess and you, and that was completely out of the question,” Ripley pointed out with shame.
Call realized at that moment just how alone Ripley had been with her own thoughts and emotions. For her part, Vriess had been there to help her sort out her own feelings, but Ripley hadn't had the same support. In the end, it wasn't so surprising that things had gotten so out of hand.
“I'm sorry too,” announced Call, taking Ripley in her arms.
“Why?”
“I should have insisted more.”
“Especially not...I'd have ended up exploding” indicated Ripley, placing her hand on Call's cheek. “It's a good thing you stayed away.”
Call and Ripley looked at each other affectionately, all doubts resolved. All that remained was a confession to Call.
“Oh, and for the record, I love you too,” the young woman announced with a radiant smile.
“I know,” announced the hybrid before placing her lips on those of the young woman.