CHAPTER FIFTEEN
The door to the library refused to open.
Liora stood on the landing, her hand still pressed against the access panel, watching the soft red glow pulse where green should have been. Behind her, Baylin waited with his characteristic patience, his arms crossed over his broad chest.
“Ari,” she said. “Open the door, please.”
“I apologize, Liora. The library is currently undergoing environmental recalibration. Access will be restored shortly.”
She frowned. “You didn’t mention any recalibration this morning.”
“The need arose unexpectedly.”
“What kind of recalibration?”
An almost imperceptible pause, but she’d spent twenty-one years learning ARIS’s rhythms. The AI was calculating.
“Humidity adjustment. The older texts require precise atmospheric conditions.”
“The humidity has been fine for years.”
“Conditions change.”
She glanced back at Baylin, who raised one dark eyebrow. He didn’t say anything—he rarely did when ARIS was involved—but his expression spoke volumes.
Again,that look said.Third time today.
She turned back to the panel. “Ari, I want to show Baylin the star maps in the archive section. The ones my father collected.”
“Perhaps tomorrow would be more suitable.”
“You said that yesterday.”
“The recalibration is extensive.”
“I don’t care. Open the door.”
Another pause, longer this time. Then the light flickered from red to green, and the door slid open with a soft hiss.
“Please be mindful of the environmental controls,” ARIS said. “They are... sensitive.”
She stepped through without acknowledging the warning. She’d spent countless hours in the library. Learning. Dreaming. Imagining worlds beyond the ones described on those pages.
Now she had one of those worlds standing beside her, and her AI seemed determined to keep them apart.
“The star maps are on the shelves on the back wall,” she said, leading him towards the relevant stacks. The lights in the back half of the library flickered off.
“Ari.”
“A minor power fluctuation. I am rerouting energy to more critical systems.”
“Turn the lights back on.”
“The front half of the room remains fully illuminated. Perhaps you could begin your exploration there.”
Her jaw tightened. This wasn’t the first time ARIS had played these games. Over the past three days, the AI had found countless ways to restrict his access. Doors that wouldn’t open. Lights that malfunctioned. Entire sections that suddenly required “maintenance” or “recalibration” whenever he tried to enter them.
The first day, she’d dismissed it as coincidence. The second day, she’d been annoyed. Now, on the third day, with the back half of the library plunged into darkness while she stood at the front with a male the AI clearly didn’t trust...
