My name is Lagtoo and I live on a place far out in space called Star Station 78, I am 16 and I have green eyes and short black hair, I am mostly human and the parts that are nano technology aren't noticeable to others for I have been told many times that I could pass for all human if I wanted to. I didn't do well on my exams, so I was shipped off to Star Station 78 to be an intergalactic courier, in other words a space gopher. I am known as Space Gopher 223 and no one has used my given name of Lagtoo in months. I am not sure if I miss the sound of it or not. The nano part of me has been programed to work for days at a time with minimal rest, so it seems strange that I am confused when I contemplate whether or not I miss my name, or home. I grew up in a group nano kid colony, and I don't ever remember anyone being overly nice or cruel. We were just there to be fed and taught to work, however there was one person that was kind to all of us. His name is Spinkey, and he is a 19 year old Space Gopher, and a pretty nice guy for being all human. He is not stuck up or anything. When I think of Spinky, I feel tightness in my chest, and it suddenly occurs to me that I miss him. It seems silly to think of these things now, for I along will all the other Space Gophers were taken hostage yesterday.
Space pirates kidnap Space Gophers on a regular basis, so I am not surprised or afraid. I will be put to work in a mine or a techno lab. I won't make any credits but as the old earth saying goes, "What does a nano need with credits, aren't they just machines?" I never thought that expression was funny and I don't know if it's because I am a nano or not, for we are not supposed to have a sense of humor. The cargo ship I am on grinds to a halt and I can think of nothing else as we are all herded out on to a dirty, metal oil stained platform. I know we are not supposed to feel fear, but I am afraid and wonder whether my programmer configured my fear levels incorrectly. I hope not, for I do not want to be worked on in this place. As a man comes towards me and my human heart pounds for I have heard that some slavers take the women nanos and sell them for nefarious purposes, the man is standing in front of me and God he stinks of body odor, machine oil and some other substance that I can't identify. "Mines," he screams as he takes me by the back of the neck and shoves me in another line. For some reason my mind goes numb and I think of the human kid taunts that assailed me as a child, "I know you are but what am I," they would say over and over.
A sort of grinding sound brings me back to the present and all of a sudden the platform breaks out in chaos, disruptor guns take out two of the guards, and the nano kid in front of me just collapses in a tangled heap, her wide staring eyes don't look that much different than when she was alive. I run for safety and for the first time in my life, I am terrified, as I whimper and crawl into a corner of the room that is not taken up with debris from the blasts. All of sudden someone grabs my arm. I pull back my fist to pound whoever it is and to my surprise I am looking into the green eyes of Spinky. He grins, holds out his hand and says, "I thought I'd drop in to see how you were." When I don't answer he laughs, "In case you haven't figured it out this is a rescue."
I am so surprised that my speech chip gets messed up and I say the last thought that took more than 10 seconds to remember,"I know you but what am I?" I say two or three times in a row. I want to cry but everything is so messed up and I just stand there.
Spinky smiles and takes my chin in his hand, "You are my special someone and as much as you rescued me in the past I am rescuing you now, Lagtoo."
I throw my arms around his neck and let him carry me to safety.