Good Versus Evil

As you’re aware by now if you’ve been looking at my website, I’m a science fiction author. What you might not know is that I’m also a fantasy writer. What I enjoy about both of these genres is a little different: I usually find fantasy to be a codification of the epic battle between good and evil and science fiction to exist somewhere in the nebulous gray. Like LoTR, there are the ultimate good “hobbits” versus the ultimate evil “Sauron”, and eventually, as everything falls apart around them, you can reasonably expect the “good guys” to win.

This is not the case in science fiction. Right now, I’m thinking about 2001: The Space Odyssey, where the sentient HAL is fighting for control of the ship due to some questionable programming directives. In contrast to War Games (movie) where the sentient was the only one who really had the answer to solve our nuclear doomsday scenarios (recall: “the only way to win is not to play”). You really can’t tell which way the technological advances are going to go in much of sci-fi. More recently, NineFox Gambit by Yoon Ha Lee or Planetfall by Emma Newman, both of which feature main characters who walk a nebulous line between good and evil, teetering over onto both sides.

I’ve been talking a lot about Crooked V.2 lately, and I’m going to continue here for a minute. Eighteen of us authors got together and wrote some scandalous science fiction that takes that core concept much farther. In Crooked V.2, there aren’t any good guys, any more than there are bad guys. Noir-futures at every turn, super-criminals and confidants. That’s what I love about this anthology and why I keep talking about it. But you don’t have to take my word for it. This (bonus) interview between the main characters of Last Chance by Jessie Kwak does a great job of highlighting exactly what I’m talking about. Also, for the curious, yes. Last Chance is from the Nanshe Chronicles universe. (As a bonus, tomorrow you can join Jessie and hear about her work).

This is Alex Quiñones, award-winning champion reporter, writing for the Aymaya Apostles Gazette in Artemis City. Today, as part of the popular “Role Models” column which profiles the careers of former convent students, I’ll be interviewing my sister, the legendary Ruby Quiñ—

Ruby Quiñones: What do you mean, “champion reporter?” There’s a journalism championship now, is there?

Alex Quiñones: Roll with it, sis. Today I’ll be interviewing the legendary Ruby Quiñones, hacker extraordinaire. Since she graduated she’s been living a glamorous life in Artemis City working with—

RQ: If you actually print any of this, saints help me but I will kill you.

AQ: Relax. I’m not even recording, I swear.

RQ: *Pulls a device from her pocket, activates it; Alex’s recorder sizzles and smokes.* Now you’re not.

AQ: Hey! That was expensive! 

RQ: And I sincerely hope you actually paid for it. *Sighs.* You stole it, did you, love? 

AQ: I’m the one asking questions here. First up: How does it feel to be the proud big sister of the incredible Alexander? Kidding, ow! Actual first question: What have you been up to since graduating and leaving the convent twelve years ago?

RQ: Working.

AQ: …

RQ: …

AQ: And?

RQ: Working as a freelance data tech for several local Artemis City startups. 

AQ: See, that wasn’t so hard. What do you like about your job?

RQ: Solitude. 

AQ: Ruby, c’mon.

RQ: *Taking a deep breath.* Fine. I like solving puzzles, and hacking—freelancing as a data tech, I mean—is full of interesting puzzles. Solvable ones, which isn’t always the case in real life. A network may look like a tangled ball of numbers and strings if you don’t know what you’re doing, but it’s orderly, only. If you know which end to pull, the whole knot comes unraveled like a charm. 

AQ: Sounds satisfying. 

RQ: It is.

AQ: What are some of your favorite puzzles to solve?

RQ: Complicated ones. A lot of my clients bring me in when their in-house teams have been trying for a while to crack a particular problem, which means the solution is outside what you’d expect. Keeps things interesting. 

AQ: Or if it’s an illegal problem, right?

RQ: Alexander Abdul Quiñones! Saints give me strength not to murder you where you stand. 

AQ: What kinds of puzzles does Raj hire you to solve?

RQ: We’re absolutely not talking about Raj. You should never—

AQ: “—have even met him,” I know, I know. What advice would you have for other convent students who might be interested in a career as a quote-unquote freelance data tech who definitely doesn’t do crime for money? 

RQ: You’re a cheeky bastard, aren’t you. 

AQ: Runs in the family. 

RQ: My advice is to find a nice Pearls-based company as a full-time employer. Corporations from Arquelle will only offer indentures, and it’s not worth it. Stay with a local company and you won’t get caught in a shitty contract. Edit “shitty” out if the ayas are going to read this. 

AQ: I thought I couldn’t print any of it.

RQ: Correct answer.

AQ: Final question: Are you and Raj hiring? I know a very good thief-slash-award-winning-reporter who will be looking for a job when he graduates in a year.

RQ: Absolutely not. You’ll be finding yourself a boring, normal job right out of school and you’ll like it or so help me I’ll drag you back to the convent and make you take vows with the ayas. 

AQ: And that’ll do it, folks! Thank you for reading another fine installment of the “Role Models” column with the delightfully cheerful Ruby Quiñones. Love ya, sis.  

If you caught my last blog entry, then you saw another interview with equally dubious main characters. This is my favorite type of science fiction writing — no good guys, no bad guys, just people trying to get through life, hustling along with whatever skills they manage to find in themselves. Thieves, smugglers, general scallywags? Yes, please! If you’re like me, then download your copy of Crooked V.2 and find yourself immersed in a world of the morally gray.

Get Crooked V.2 Today!