Tasha had never worn a bathrobe before. Not like this. It has to be at least an inch thick, it's so fluffy. Katherine wears its sibling, sitting on the couch next to Tasha in the lounge. It's much easier to think of her as Katherine now instead of Katie Kaboom: the glossy metallic effects have been washed out, leaving golden-tan fur (which reminds Tasha of Aisha) and white hair - which she now knows to be bleached, after Katherine confided it was actually brown, and that she was jealous of Tasha's own golden-blond hair. She still has the same bright smile and eyes though.
"Your hot toddies," Mr. Invention says, serving both women a mug of something warm and sweet smelling - there's milk and honey and most certainly brandy in the mix. Probably more brandy than anything else, really.
"Thank you, Mr. I," Katherine says, taking the mug and looking out over the mostly-dark city. There are still plenty of lights, as the nocturnal shift begins.
Tasha gives the man a smile of her own as she accepts the drink. "Thank you, sir," she offers, then turns her head to follow Katherine's gaze out in to the city.
"Expedition City is really beautiful at night, isn't? All the artificial lightning against the starry sky, it's like we're stars floating in a kindof heaven." The red woman takes a sip, settling back in to her chair and exhaling. "There's nothing like night on Abaddon anywhere else in this system."
"I'd like to see the ring of Sinai someday," Katherine notes. "Who knows what the outer worlds are like. I hear one of them is like a giant mirror."
"Really? The Primus System is unique in our universe, as far as the ancients knew. When I look at the system charts of where we came from, I can't help but feel these worlds were all created for a purpose. And we're not the first, we ... " The blonde pauses, thinking back on her pursuit of the Progenitor artifacts and finding a cold chill running down her spine. We're not the first, all that remains of the those before us are ruins.// She frowns briefly, then has another sip to stave off her nerves. "A-anyway, it's very odd."
"The moons," Katherine says. "That was the tip-off, I think. No moons but incredibly stable planetary rotations. Moons keep rocky worlds from wobbling, you know. So why aren't the moonless worlds all wobbly?"
"Who knows," Tasha admits, giving a little shrug and smiling again. "Whoever made them, they knew what they were doing. I've had a hypothesis that they're-" The blonde misses a beat, making up for it by having another sip of her hot toddie, " T-that is, actively controlled. By active controls, I mean, that the system that is controlling them is still active."
I had almost forgotten about Abaddon, she realizing, watching the skyline. Another sip goes down, in the hopes it might chase away her anxiety.
A steady hand falls on Tasha's shoulder, and Katherine asks, "Why are you so tense, Tasha?"
The blonde tenses even more when touched and for a moment she just stares out at the city lights. A hard stare, afraid to look away. Afraid the city might disappear if she doesn't hold on hard enough.
After several seconds, Tasha throws back the entirety of her hot toddie and sets the glass down with a thump. She takes a deep breath afterwards, then turns and smiles, albiet forcedly. "Do you want to hear something pathetic? I'm afraid, Katie. I'm afraid of going back."
"Going back where?" the other woman asks, looking concerned. "To the Pit?"
Tasha chuckles at the guess, turning back to watch the city. Just when it begins to seem like she may not care to elaborate, she answers, "Not the Pit. I like the Pit, Katie. I like this city too. There's so many people here, all busy with their lives, interacting, helping each other -- or getting in their way. I love people, you know that, don't you, Katie?" She reaches for her drink, but finding it empty, simply frowns and puts it down again. "The people and their lives. Society. Culture. They're foundations, Katie. Foundations for our brief lives. They tell us what the boarders of our reality are. They give us a place where we belong, where things make sense. And they comfort us. They are us. And we are them, even if we forget some times. Our unassailable world. It feels like it will always be there. Until it isn't. And you want it to be, but you know you can never go back. Not like it used to be, and you know, if you go forward, you'll just be that farther away. But you can't stop."
Katie grins, and says, "I forget that you're still a teenager sometimes." She leans back and looks out of the tall windows for a moment. "Every stress is amplified, every risk misjudged. It's just the way your brain is. It's still developing the reasoning parts. Then, suddenly.. you just start evaluating things differently. It wasn't that long ago for me. I can look back and say 'wow I was such an idiot for trying that' - which should tell you something, given what I normally do now involving high-speed machines. But the past is the past, and it'll always be the past. I'm not sure it exists anymore, you know? You remember it, but it's not a place you can return to."
"When I was your age, the most important thing to me was impressing people," Katie admits. "Friends, family, strangers. Anyone. Didn't matter who."
Tasha turns back to listen, her eyes widening as Katherine goes on. "I had a conversation a few days ago about how my choice could potentially destroy a city," she notes in a dry, somewhat aggravatd tone. "I can only wish impressing people was the worst of my problems. Katie, I'm not like anyone in the world. I have-" The red woman stops herself, dropping back in to her chair and shaking her head. "Nevermind. I need another drink, and forget I said that."
Katie calls for Mr. Invention, who returns with.. a somewhat stronger hot toddy for Tasha. It's some sort of whiskey instead of brandy, from the smell. "You know, you don't have to make hard decisions on your own," Katie points out. "There must be others whose advice you trust, after all."
"Oh, plenty. Everyone is full of advice," Tasha murmurs as she brings the next drink to her muzzle, tipping it back and then giving Mr. Invention a smile afterwards. She savors the flavor a moment, letting it sting her tongue and bring her closer to a place she used to be. "But in the end, we all make the hard decision on our own. And I will make it." She sips again, then asks, "Is it so bad that I want to hold on, a little longer?"
"Well, I don't know what this decision of yours is, but.. we all want to enjoy ourselves a bit now and then," Katie admits with a grin.
Tasha grins right back. "That's why I'm here! I'll be okay when I get back, and Hake can hate me tomorrow. Today, problems can wait." The young woman throws back her drink again, then sets it down with another thump. "You have the best drinks," she enthuses.
"I think Mr. I used to be a bartender," Katie notes. "And a barista, possibly a chef.. I think a bouncer too, or a soldier. Probably a soldier. My military training is likely less than yours, as far as actual combat goes. The Expedition doesn't actually let women fight."
After scootching closer to Katherine, Tasha admits, "See that's what I don't get. On Sinai, everyone fights ... I think. In Amazonia, all the women fight. And, I'm a Vartan! We used to be mercenaries, did you know that? We fought everyone for the Khattans." She has another, then uses her glass to point towards the city. "Every city has its own peculiar culture. That's part of the fun of seeing them, but then you wonder, is this a good thing? Should I interfere? I used to think you could answer problems with your fists, but then everything got complicated. The big joke is, the more powerful you are, the more you know, the less you think you should interfere. But when you're poor and angry, you dream of power. It's all very circular."
After a wry laugh, she then suddenly asks, "Mr. I used to be a ballista?"
"A what? No.." Katie says, and explains about.. fancy coffee. It sounds like something the military would develop, certainly, since it seemed a lot like bomb science.
"I had no idea coffee was so complicated. We don't even have coffee on Sinai! We do have ballistas though -- they're giant crossbows! -- so I was confused," the red woman explains. She takes another drink, then says, "We have mateh on Sinai. Gabriel hates the stuff. I prefer liquor, it's a family tradition! I guess your family tradition was the military?"
"Well, it's most Karnor family traditions to be honest," Katie notes with a chuckle. "Although I think the other big one is teaching, maybe. But yes, there has been a Vesuvius in every major conflict going back a thousand years or more."
"And now you're involved with me," Tasha points out, grinning widely. "You can tell everyoen you knew me after I'm dea-" She blinks, quickly takes another -- long -- sip before pressing on. "I mean, um, did you know my mother owns a tavern? She does. My father owns an airship, but he's my adoptive father, because my real father never came back to see me -- so who needs HIM? I don't. I have lots of people, you know. And robots. And people robots!" The hybrid turns and calls out to her datapad, left on the table nearby "Hey Harmonia! Want to say hi to Katherine Vesuvius?"
"I am uncertain of the nature of your request," the pad replies a moment later in Harmonia's synthetic voice. "Should I wish to greet her?"
"Wait, is that actually talking?" Katie asks, focusing on the device. "I thought it could only.. record things.."
"Say hi to her! She loves machines, you know. You're meeting a new person, it's best to be polite and friendly. And Katie is so nice!" Tasha explains in between sips. At Katherine's question, the blonde gives her host a funny look. "Of course it can talk. It's just set to emergency voice only. But that's not the datapad -- I mean it is the datapad, but it's Harmonia's voice. She's a robot! And you like robots don't you? Harmonia is a great robot. The shiniest."
"Hello. I am Katherine Vesuvius, ERA-F1343778, Karnor. How are you?" Katie asks in a very flat and careful tone.
"Greetings, Officer Vesuvius. I am Harmonia, Khattan Frigate, designation redacted," the datapad relays. "Is my pilot well? Her voice sounds slightly off."
"She's had a bit to drink," Katie notes. Then further explains, "A bit of alcohol that is."
Tasha gives her friend a another odd look, glances at her drink, shrugs, then has another sip. "I do not sounds /off/,/ she insists. "And this is hardly a /bit./ I drink more than this waking up!"
"Did you have any other requests for me, Captain?" Harmonia asks. Katie looks like she has questions, but holds back.
Then Tasha's ears suddenly perk. "I just realized, power ... control ... wanting to come back, the secret is drinkin-" She blinks when she notices Katherine staring at her, then asks, "Want to talk to Katherine Harmonia? Or maybe too shy? You can say no, I won't be mad! I can never be mad at you!"
And then, she takes another sip.
"Well, I've never spoken with an actual robot before," Katherine says. "Do you have arms and legs and a face?"
"Sometimes," Harmonia replies. "Tasha likes having a familiar form to address when she is inside of me."
"Do you dream? What do you think about money? Do you have a pet?" Katherine asks. Whether these are serious questions or she's trying to find the limits of the AI are anyone's guess.
"Oh that reminds me! Harmonia, I'm sorry for projecting myself on to you, you can look however you want! I just thought you wanted to look like me because everything looks like me when it touches my firewall," Tasha insists.
A second later (as she seems to need the time to processs) Tasha adds, "I am sorry! I enjoyed our time together, too. I'm sorry if I'm not around much anymore."
"Yes, but not as you would understand it. I wonder about my own market value occasionally. I sometimes have a horse," Harmonia replies to Katherine, before addressing Tasha. "Tasha, my crew interface naturally will appear as something familiar and comforting to the crew. You are my only crew. Time does not pass for me in the same way that it does for you, either: the length of time between our interactions is meaningless."
"It's meaningful to me. I worry about everyone, all the time," the blonde admits before having another. She draws in a sharp breath, then tells Katherine, "Harmonia is like my ship annnd daughter, but she's smarter than I am -- like all my children! But I'm smarter than my mother! Well," she rolls her gaze away, ears lowering, "that one anyway. The other one is smarter than me. She should be here, I'm just the replacement. But I did what my creator wanted, so I made god happy! Isn't that nice?"
"What did Mr. Invention put in that drink?" Katherine has to ask, eyes wide and ears high.
"I don't know," Tasha mutters, looking at her drink. "I better find out. I am an explorer! Mr. I!" She waggles her empty drink towards the man.
"You do not have to worry about me, Tasha," Harmonia says. "I am a big girl. I admit to feeling a little nervous because of my guest, but I have dealt with that."
The enigmatic Mr. Invention appears, and looks at Tasha's cup. "More of the same, or something lighter perhaps?" he asks.
"Guest?" Tasha glances over to her datapad (while still waggling her empty drink in her hand) and asks, "Oh, Balthasar?" She pauses to give the fancy wolf a particularly aghast look. "Lighter?! I'ma Vartan! Same thing!"
A sigh later and Tasha is back to talking at her mechanical assistant. "Balthasar makes everyone nervous, but it's okay! I'll talk to him when I get back, we'll go take a walk and ... talk. I hope I don't have to kill him, that would be awful."
Katie doesn't comment on that, since she isn't sure who or what Tasha is talking about, but the mention of 'having to kill someone' and the early 'big decisions' comment seems to be giving her ideas.
"And Harmonia, don't connect to Sifran crystals, no matter how shiny they are, okay? I don't want to lose you either ... Oh! Do you know Ser Herafel?" The blonde rambles on.
"The name is Khattan, but I have no personal information on anyone who may have been involved in my launch, which is the reason I assume you bring up the name," the spacecraft replies.
Tasha blinksm turning towards Katherine. "See?! She's so smart!" The young woman smiles proudly as she turns back to datapad, saying, "He's the one who made the Magi, or, um, at least convinced Apollyon -- what a sexy bird he is! Um, oh! Um .. wait ... " the hybrid scrunches her face up, a moment, eventually seeming to get it. "Oh! Right! he doesn't know who you are, so that means ... it means ... he didn't send you!"
"I still have no data on him," Harmonia notes. "You speak of this person as being someone you have conversed with recently."
"He's in Melchior. We had a nice chat! And he was so surprised to meet me. I mean, I'm not Apollyon. He's dead, you know? I wish I could have met him ... Oh well." The younger woman sighs, head shaking. "Anyway he sent the Magi here. I need to talk to him again, for Balthasar. Poor Balthasar. Do you think I'm a terrible person for bringing him here? I wanted to give him a chance for a better life, like I did for you! Do ... Do you resent me too, Harmonia?"
"I do not resent you, Tasha," Harmonia claims. "I cannot speak for Balthasar. I have isolated him as much as I am able to and compensated for his passive disruption. Should there be any unexpected activity from him, I am prepared to enter full stasis."
"That's ... That's good. I'll, um, I'll work with him when I get back. I need to, um ... To do that before I go. I do. Um, Harmonia ... " Noticving her drink has been refilled, Tasha stops long enough to take one more, long sip before saying, "Harmonia, I want you to ... to ... Oh, to give Eli and Gabriel same-control. I mean, um, same-level control. So you have someone, for when I go. Okay? I don't want you to be alone or not be able to move -- have to finish everything before I go."
"That will be difficult without the pilot interface," Harmonia admits. "I will need you all to be present for such an imprinting."
"Hokay," Tasha says, more of an exhale than a proper word as she drps back against the couch. Craddling her drink in her hands, she grows quiet, staring across the room with her ears down.
"Are you okay?" Katherine asks, sitting next to Tasha again.. and petting the back of her head.
"No," the young woman admits in a quiet voice.
The woman keeps petting. It must be something that soothed her at some time. "Tell me what's wrong?" Katie prompts. "Is it because I look silly without my shininess?"
"Huh?" Tasha asks, turning to look at her host with wide eyes. "N-no, you're perfect. I'm just ... I ... " The younger woman looks down, searchingly, as if she might find her world between the cushions of the couch. "I think I'm going to die, Katie. But I shouldn't be afraid, I'm not the first or even the best. I don't deserve to be afraid. I can't be afraid. It's not so bad, is it? So many people came before me ... I'm just one more. But I have to. If I look away, it'll be worse. I just wanted to ... to forget about it for a little while. That's all. Am I ... Am I an embarassment, Katie?"
"No hon, you're just a young person who is afraid of going into battle.. whatever that battle may be," Katie says, and hugs Tasha. "I've had brothers be the same way, and.. oh.. countless others. But they all went on, and did what they had to, and most of them came back."
"Oh," says Tasha, who leans in to the hug, still looking a bit lost.
The hybrid rests her head against the older woman arm after, seemingly content to just rest there with someone there beside her. "I think I'm drunk. I-I should ... I should stop talking." A pause, then, "I'm sorry you had to hear that."
"Why?" Katie asks. "You keep apologizing but there's nothing to apologize for."
"Nora wouldn't," Tasha says, closing her eyes, her drink still craddled in her hands. "Everyone's suffering so much more, trying so much harder ... I can't. I can't ... give in. I don't want to be ... a ... ghost without a ... future. I'm so ... sorry ... "
"Who is Nora?" Katie asks, while Mr. Invention returns with.. coffee. It's got cream in it and it's swirled around to make a smiley-face.
The younger woman doesn't answer, but it's not because she's thinking, or even too tipsy to respond. After watching her for a while, it becomes apparent she's simply fallen asleep as the alcohol and comfort caught up with her.
"I suppose the coffee will have to wait," Mr. Invention says. "I can carry her."
"Thank you, Mr. I," Katie says, smiling. "I have a feeling that it wouldn't be good to leave her alone tonight.."
Tasha hasn't had a hangover in a while, but she's pretty familiar with them. The dry mouth, aching head.. "Signs that you shouldn't ever stop drinking," according to Old Soppy, one of the former crew on The Rake before Eyeshine took over. Soppy always had a flask of something at hand or hip. Tasha does not have a flask. She's having enough trouble trying to fight her way out of the too-comfortable sheets of Katie's bed.
Rubbing her face as if she could massage the nausea away, the young woman lays there for at least a minute more before finally deciding she really needs to get ready. Pushing herself up, she puts one hoof beside the other and gets out of bed, slipping in to Katie's bathrobe as she does. Then it's off to the shower for some hot water, shampoo, and teeth scrubbing.
It looks like Katie has already been up and taken care of her own ablutions (why else would that bathrobe be conveniently laying where it was?) so Tasha is uninterrupted, until she finally steps out of the bathroom. Mr. Invention waits in Katie's bedroom, holding a platter with a single clear glass full of something that looks like swirled up.. gack. "Good morning, Miss Argentine," the man says, eyeing the hybrid quickly to see if she is presentable or not.
Wrapped in a towelb two towels, Tasha isn't fit to be seen in public but she isn't showing anything either. "Hello Mr. Invention. Um, I see you have a hangover cure," she notes with a hint if trepidation. "And ... I said more than I should have last night, didn't I?"
"That depends on how much more you are willing to part with," Mr. I says, and presents the fortified protein 'shake' to Tasha. "I am authorized to bribe you with bacon if necessary."
Tasha sighs, eying the drink a little longer before holding her hand out. "I guess I owe her an explaination. Lets get this over with." Whether she means the talk or the hangover cure, it isn't clear.
The glass of goo is passed over. There definitely an egg in there. Maybe more than one kind. Who knows where they get eggs on Abaddon. There's even a whiff of honey, mint, vanilla.. and something else that the rest is clearly trying to cover up. Probably vitamins.
The young woman plugs her nose, then tips the drink back and has it down in one more go. Like so many things in life, she's realized it's better to get it over with quickly. The empty glass is handed back and Tasha nods. "Lets go see Katie."
"Do you want to put on any clothing first?" the Karnor asks. "Not that I mind, but you did just take a shower and probably shouldn't risk getting your fur dirty again so soon."
"Oh. I suppose I should, ummm ..," Tasha casts a glance around, then spots the clothing she arrived in several days ago, "We'll be headed to the Academy today, so ... " She wanders over to her neatly stacked casual atire and her armored undersuit, scooping the whole thing up and returning to the bathroom.
After a few minutes she's out, combed and dressed, looking like she did when she first stepped in to this apartment. "It seems like a lifetime ago that I first came here, but it's only been two days," she remarks as she joins the man, heading out to meet Katie. "It seems like my escape was successful, in that way."
"Escape, not escapade?" Mr. Invention asks, a bit satirically. Katie is in the dining room, with another feast before her - including a plate stacked high with bacon and sausage. "Ah, you're awake! Did you know that you grumble in your sleep sometimes?" Katie greets, waving a bit of bacon.
"I've been told," Tasha admits as she walks over and has a seat. She doesn't waste any time in stacking her plate, reaching for bacon, slices of toast, and other things not on the Katie Menu. "I haven't been sleeping all that well these days." She resumes acquiring food, only to pause and blink several seconds later. "Oh, um, good morning." She hesitates a second mroe then adds, "About last night ... "
"Oh, you actually remember it?" Katie asks, ears perking. "Maybe you weren't that drunk then after all!"
"I was close.. enough to feel it, but it takes more than that to make me forget everything," Tasha says. She picks up a piece of fruit she has clearly never seen before, tilting her head this way and that in a motion that seems more at home with birds than on her karnor head. Eventually she shrugs and adds it to her meal. "Half of it was stress," she says as she looks up, then asks, "Do you have questions? I guess it's too late to ask you not share any of this with anyone, is it?"
"Well.. who would I share it with, anyway?" Katie asks, pressing the fingers of her hands together and smiling innocently. "And I have lots of questions. I just don't know if you'll answer them. In which case, I can try getting you drunk again I suppose.."
"No, please ... nit that. I really do need to get things done. Hake has waited for me to snap out of my escapisim long enough. Go ahead and ask," the younger woman replies as she eyes her meal, now a metropolis of various meats, dairy, breads and fruits.
Katie seems to consider for a moment, then settles on, "Who is Nora?"
"Nora ..," Tasha murmurs. She remembers what she said well enough, but both her brain and mood are sour. At length, she decdies to just get it off her chest and damn the consequences. "Lt. Commander Nora Argentine, Terran Space Command officer, Karnor Elite, and my double. Nora died thousands of years ago. She was one of two second-in-commands aboard the TSS Fenris, which represented the best of the AI products of the humans: us. Well, half of me, but you get the idea. She was the woman Gabriel was with before we met. She died trying to secure the body of Chief Engineer Fred Kohler, but she never gave up longing to return -- not even in to death. There was only one person who could have accessed the Fenris's systems and she was dead. So her ghost found a workaround: make a copy. And here I am. Nora is my creator."
"How is that.. possible?" Katie asks, blinking and then sipping her coffee. "How did she.. do anything after being dead?"
"On Sinai, and maybe other worlds in this system, ghosts are very real. Sinai remembers us. We don't know exactly how or why, but it does. The living leave impressions. They gather the force kniwn as 'magic' around themselves as they die, and when the body fails, the magical impression lingers. And sometimes, very rarely, these impressions retain enough identity to keep going. The rarest ones begin to thrive, to change, they make plans and can exert a subtle influence -- like in the birth of a child. Nora would have been aware of the details of genetics, so so too her ghost. She made me, in the hopes I would some day carry what she could not. Now I am the Nora. I have her role, her mate, and her memories, given to me be the PersoCom system. But I am also myself, at least, I think I am."
Tasha tilts her head, then picks up a slice of bacon and munches on it as she thinks. After swallowing, she adds, "The original was a stronger person. More certain, with an iron will. One of the best. It's hard to live up to that."
"So, she was perfect?" Katie asks, looking skeptical. "I can see how you'd see her that way though, since.. you have a part of her I suppose."
"She's my creator. You can rightly call her my god. We both have similiar lives, but I know who would do better. I didn't grow up like she did -- I only became the Nora later, when I felt the call to the region the TSS Fenris slept." Tasha takes a bite of an apple, crunching away at it a moment before adding, "Don't think I resent her, or think I'm not good enough, exactly. I'm still me, and we're still different. It's just, I have a lot of major problems to deal with. I've lead people to a new world, and a new cause. I have the power to change the world. And sometimes, all the possibilities get to me. I wonder if I amde the right choice, or just lead people while chasing my naivette. Everything was new then, but when the rush settled, I saw the situation mroe clearly. And their following me is their choice, but I wonder at mine. And it's not over by a long shot."
"So, the honeymoon is over and you're wondering if you should have a baby or not, so to speak?" Katie asks. "Stay young and adventurous, or slow down, settle down and look for happiness?"
"If I live that long, which wasn't certain before, but is even less so now. In a few days I plan to have a nice long talk about the future with a interplanetary defense weapon with an unstable AI. After that, I've a person project to attend to. But the worst of it, inside, is realizing that I struggled so hard to try and create something good, to help make the world better, only to see the world doesn't need me to change it. That interference may do more harm then good, or worse, that ideal world doesn't and never will exist. Between the knowledge I may well die this month, and knowing my efforts were in vain, it's left me with just the JEF, my friends, and a few pleasures to fall back on. And I wonder, was it worth it," the young woman explains. She has a sip, then adds, "Oh, and my curiosity. But what I know, does the world deserve to know it too? I wonder."
"Are you even certain of what you know?" Katie has to ask. "What was it you were going to ask Dr. Cvinth about?"
"Oh, the gods. Not Nora, or my other god, but gods of the Progenitor pantheon," the cadet answers.
"Where they gods?" Katie asks, looking curious again. "I.. can't think of humans in that way, even if they did make us. Well, not exactly made us but.. cultivated us, sort of." She wiggles her fingers as if she's describing a magic spell.
Tasha smiles, even if just a little bit. "It seems to me, that whether something is a god or not depends on the observer. The definition and summation of 'deity' is complicated. But god is eas to use, and you know what I mean. They were considered gods once, so it's fitting enough. I've opinions that they may be just life us, which seems perfectly reasonable to me. After all, I've spoken with several gods and god-like beings, 'natural' and 'artificial,' and many of them are like us. A few were not -- and I am sure there are some that are incomprehensible to us."
"What was the weirdest one you've met?" Katie asks, looking for a good story. She nibbles on a sausage as well.
"Extradimensional beings. No ... Extra-universal. They were brought here from another universe entirely. They are as alien as alien may be. I don't know if they even follow the same laws of physics as we do. That is probably why they avoided visual contact -- we may not be able to process their physicality," Tasha answers as she butters her toast. "The machine-gods are more comprehensible, but equally alien in thought. I have linked myself to a high-grade Expedition-era AI on numerous occassions, and I was able to glimpse their realities, even if my mind is too small to retain the memories in whole. There are things we cannot understand as we are. We're just too limited, physically."
"Well, man-made gods should be a bit comprehensible," Katie asserts. "But.. another reality? How did they.. get here? Did they have tentacles?"
"Yes, in fact. As for how, the Sifran technology of Abaddon appears to have brought them here. I have a hypothesis that each world contains an active planetary controller -- perhaps multiple controllers -- that are AIs charged with the planet's management, possibly even carrying out orders from another source. I think Sinai's controller cut a rift between universes and brought them here, but I do not know the purpose. What I do know is that I have seen the same thing here, and I think I do know the purpose: terraforming. Of course, I also suspect we are in the way," the hybrid explains.
"Wait.. Abaddon is being terraformed?" Katie asks, sounding very surprised. "Where? Can we see it?"
"Far to the north. There are beings with excavation abilities and the ability to manipulate their mass, though they now appear to be uncontrolled as the being that guided them has been destroyed by another. I've been thinking about returning there and seeing if we can utilize them, but they would need to be studied carefully. They are alien, and may be a biological danger, which would preclude inviting them in to places that might be inhabited. And as they are from another universe, precisely estimating their risk is a very complicated issue. We can control them, but we do not understand them. And I, for one, have quite enough things I can control but do not understand at the moment," the red woman says. She starts putting bacon on toast, then puts the eggs on it as well, creating a bacon and egg sandwich. "The voice of the ancients once told me, there will be beings who I cannot comprehend. Who do not share our sentimentality. I am beginning ti understand what it was trying to tell me."
"Ah, so at least one of them talks to people. And I always suspected that ancient horrors from beyond the stars would have tentacles. Or be made out of tentacles. I don't suppose you took any picture?" Katie asks next. "And yet none of these mind-bending horrors are as dire and dark as the questions of our own humanity!" This last bit is definitely spoken in an overly dramatic way - like something from a bad space opera. But then, Katie loves bad space opera apparently.
"Oh I wouldn't call him a horror. Really, the fear it engendered was that it was was so different, not because it was hostile. Calling it a 'horror from beyond the stars' is rude, I think. Very rude. Or more accurately, small-minded. I found it to be quite personable and interesting, even helpful. We helped each other, and in the end, that's mroe than I can say for some beings I comprehend very well," the young woman chastizes. She shakes a finger, then pops a strip of bacon in her mouth and grins. After swallowing, she adds, "It asked I not talk too much about it, so I'll honor that now and not say more. As for the questions of humanity -- as dramatic as you make it sound -- I think you may be right. Do we even understand ourselves? I don't, not really. But I am very curious, and I don't give up easily. I know that. So I gues I can still say, I'm a good explorer. I may just not be the best person."
"Well, nobody is the best person," Katie says, then pauses and whispers, "Except maybe Mr. I. I haven't got him figured out yet." In her normal voice, she says, "Humans made the Karnors to try and understand themselves better, so the legends go, by finding out just what it was that makes a human a human. Of course, they didn't really learn anything like that in the end, just that if you mix a wolf and a human you get a Karnor and they're pretty human so let's just drop the whole problem of defining what makes a human. And except for certain groups, that's pretty much what everyone did."
Tasha grins and nods empathetically at the whisper about Mr. Invention. "We should all have a Mr. I, maybe that should be my project to make the world better." She winks, then leans back and begins cutting up some fruit. "I know the Silent-Ones refused to believe Karnors had souls, seeing them as little more than organic machines designed to simulate personhood. And of course, for all their talk of the Star, they fell to power-grabbing and self-indulgence just like the other groups. As for the Kampfengruppe, I have an apointment with them, in fact. Speaking of which, are you ready to go? have more questions?"
"Oh, lots more, but they can wait," Katie says, smiling. "I didn't ask about the machines since.. that's probably more sensitive information than your personal stuff."
"Oh the machines... Well, Harmonia is a sentient spacecraft, that I currently pilot. She has claimed sentience after watching us for thousands of years, probably as a spy for a group of the Khattan Trade Emirate observing the other. My Titan is one of three, and one of them was reworked and is now far more dangerous, but also unstable. I need to talk to him, and soon, to see what path we can both take to ensure our safe and productive future. The hard part is ... That is, the part that I was talking about last night is, I promised him we would find a better way. I refused to accept that the only answer to vast power is abstinance or destruction -- both because of /our/ weakness! We use them, then we have the nerve to be afraid of them, and to /throw them away/ if they scare us even a little bit, or don't do as we say. I chose to believe power could be used for better ends, responsibily. That we cannot destroy entities just to feel safe. So they handed him to me, and now he's my responsibility. I am /dr
eading/ that he will turn, like so many hybrids of Sifran technology, against us. I want to know /why./ I want him to tell me." Tasha puts her fork down, apparently having had enough. She twists her muzzle, gazing out the window. "I want ... I want to be right. For him, for me, and for us all."
"Like so many hybrids of Sifran technology," Katie repeats. "So many, you say. How many? Other than yourself, I mean, if your origins are as you describe."
Tasha's ears flick, and she glances back, "Wait, what did you say?"
"You're a hybrid, created by Sifran technology," Katie says. "You said so yourself: it was Nora's Sifran-powered ghost that gave you the tweak needed to be born. You call it 'magic' but really what else could it be?"
Tasha leans back, then smacks her forehead. "That's it! That's the connection I need! I'm like him. Maybe that will be enough to get through to him, but it's worth a shot. I like people, and I like this world, and ... Wait ... " The young woamn tilts her head, then her eyes widen. "I've interfaced with Sifran technology before! I don't know if that's a coincidence or not, but I've never heard of anyone communicating with Sifran crystal without interfaces or kludges before. But one answered me. Maybe ... Maybe I can talk to Balthasar that way. Maybe he'll see we're alike. Maybe ... Maybe that can save us." She glances over, grinning. "You're very smart, Katie. Thank you. And to answer you question: a few. The Silent-Ones have tried, but the results have been catastrophe. A Sifran linked Mind-of-Light murdered Nora, and then tried to kill me and the others later. An Archon is quite mad at me for doing what I plan to do, in fact. I don't blame his fear, but I'm going to do it."
"Well.. you're welcome?" Katie offers, her voice echoing slightly from inside her coffee mug. "So Balthasar is thinks like a Silent-Ones computer then?"
"Mostly. I got the distinct feeling he was simply tolerating me. He appears to have a very simple personality built for warefare, but behind his simple words, beep in the glimmer of those crystals they remade him with, I could feel and ocean of complexity. A dark ocean, one that did not appreciate my presence. To talk to Balthasar is to be in clear weather, with a storm upon the horizon, always looming, threatening to pull you in to that deep, dark ocean and destroy you. To pilot him is to sit upon the throne of a god, to be judger and judged both, with power to break the world. In all ways, there is an immensity about him, even in the simpliest exchange. And I know, even though he answers to me, it is a tenuous alliance at best. He accepted my logic, but only just," Tasha explains.
"And.. you want to use him to plow fields, essentially?" Katie asks, wide-eyed. "What if people start worshipping it?"
"I don't want to use him. I want to help find a path for him, but that doesn't necessarily mean he should help us. I'd like to walk with him, but if he choses to leave us, I will help him do that. I only ask he not bring harm to anyone -- I owe this world protection just as I owe it to him. If he choses to help us, if he thinks it is the best path, then I will help him do that too. It is up to him. I am still not completely sure he has a sentient personality, so I must also consider how I may direct him if he cannot chose for himself. I intend to find a positive direction, and I will not sacrifice him because he is potentially dangerous. That may be the ethics of others, but it is not my way. I can only hope I don't end up butting heads with other parties as well," says the hybrid, who then dabs her muzzle with a napkin and wipes her fingers off.
"As for worship ... I don't know what to do about that. He is what he is, and who am I to tell people what is a god? No, it's more that certain groups would have me not allow something that could contest their beliefs. But I am not their priestess, and I am not here to protect their faith. The only faith I am worried about is the faith placed in me, which I intend to honor. They can deal with heir own faith," she adds.
"Sooo.. he doesn't need a pilot then? Your Harmonia seems to need one, from the conversation and setting up others to take over for you," Katie notes.
"I'm uncertain. Balthasar's capabilities are unknown. He may need one or not. We will find out," Tasha answers.
"Maybe.. you shouldn't ask him, just in case it gives him ideas," Katie suggests. "At least until you.. know his heart or whatever."
"Perhaps not. It feels manipulative, but it doesn't hurt to help someone sort out their feelings before mentioning an extreme decision. I'll try that. Anyway," Tasha stands, straightening out her clothes before looking up and ask, "Ready to go? Hake is going to be mad at me, by the way. I'm sure you understand why. And I hope dragging you in to my life hasn't been too unpleasant. I'll admit, I chased after you to find an escape from my problems, more than anything."
"It's been ages since I've been to the student dorms," Katie notes, and stands up. She's wearing a pretty simple, conservative outfit that makes her look like a librarian. A supermodel librarian. "Nobody should notice me without my makeup, right?" she asks, perfectly straight-faced.
"I ... " Tasha eyes Katie up and down, having a sudden and particularly hard time keeping her thoughts straight as Katie look at her. "Well, anything is possible right?"
"Hokay, sometimes you're so beautiful it hurts," Tasha admits, ears going askew. "But we can hope for the best right?"
"What if I put on my reading glasses?" Katie asks, patting the vest pocket where the lenses reside.
"That just makes you look smart and sexy. I think I almost tripped when I walked in on you reading. It was a effort to concentrate on what I had to say," the younger woman admits as she walks towards the door. "But we are what we are, right? You're beutiful and I'm a Sifran produce Karnor-Vartan-robot. We just have to make the best of it. Come on."
"At least neither of us is weaponized yet," Katie offers, and off they go to find Hakeber..
"Go away!" is the reply to the knock on Clemson's door, spoken with a sort of desperation that only somebody overexposed to someone like Hakeber can express.
"Should we knock again?" Katie asks Tasha.
"I'll handle it," tasha replies. Banging on the door, Tasha announces, "Is that any way to talk to your soon-ton-be superior officer? Open the door, recruit!"
"Nora," the red woman whispers to her companion, then winks.
There's a bit of commotion, and then the door is opened by a disheveled young Karnor clutching closed a bathrobe that has seen better days. "Tash-" Clemson starts to say, already sounding apologetic, until he opens the door enough to see who is standing next to her. "Hurrrg-gg-ggur!" the Ancient Technologies student sputters, and hunches over as if in pain.
"Clemson is ... Well he's not used to attention, female attention in particular," Tasha explains to Katie as she allows herself in, patting the man's shoulder as she goes. "Hake!"
"Damn it, Tasha," Hakeber yells from the bedroom. "Your timing sucks rocks!" A very naked and mussed-furred wolfess storms out of the bedroom. "Do you know how hard it was to get him this far?" she demands, ignoring the third woman in the room.
"I think I can guess. And I know, my timing is terrible. I'm a walking danger zone, you should know that by now. And I'm sorry; I freaked out over what we're doing and what could happen, and I needed to get away from it all for a while. I wanted you to know that," Tasha replies, folding her hands behind her back and doing her best to act like everything is perfectly normal.
"Oh," she adds a second later, "and let me introduce you: this is Katherine Vesuvius."
"Oh.. I didn't recognize her without her fawning mob of fans," Hakeber says, a bit angrily. Then she seems to snap out of it, and says, "Ah.. that is.. It's nice to meet you. I watch you race sometimes. The beer floats are good there. I'm afraid you've broken Clemson though. I'm pretty sure he was imagining you while he was with me.."
"Do you need any help?" Katie asks, offering the embarrassed wolf-boy a hand. This causes him to whimper and pass out.
"Uh.. excuse me a moment," Hakeber mutters and hurries back to the bedroom, presumably to put clothes on.
Tasha glances back to Katie and the fainted man, back to the retreating Hake, and then skyward. How did I end up in a love triangle with two other people when I'm supposed to be in a commited relationship?
"Tasha, I think.. uh.. he's soiled himself," Katie whispers to Tasha from where she's kneeling next to Clemson. "Number 3 I think. I suppose he was pretty worked up with your friend. She's cute, by the way, if a bit gamma-bitchy."
"Welcome to my world of interesting people and world shattering disasters. This isactually one of the mroe normal things that happens in my life. I'd actually call this relaxing," the red woman admits as she walks over, picks up the man up by his arms and legs, and carries him in to the bedroom and out of sight. "Hopefully the loss of conciousness will make him forget he embarassed himself. He's going to need some real toughening up if he expects to be an explorer."
"What is his field of study?" the model asks, getting up and casually going over to one of her own posters hanging on the wall, and produces a pen. "And how do you spell his name?"
"C L E M S O N, I think. He's a ancient technologies major -- something we really need, what with our big pile of them," Tasha answers. "He's a smart young man, he just needs to work on getting along with people. He's definitely got one of the worst Omega-complexes I've ever seen."
"I should get a poster of you," she then remarks, grinning. "I really wanted one when I was struggling to meet you, but the real you is even better."
"Well, the art department is working on one for you," Katie notes, as she signs the poster with a flourish. Hakeber emerges from the bedroom looking like she's actually bathed even though that didn't happen. It must be her special skill. "Okay! I have a meeting with our contact later tonight, but your note mentioned Dr. Cvinth, my advisor?"
"That's right. And Hake: I'm sorry. Everything got me, and I needed to get away. The truth is, I thought Katie was inaccessible. I never imagined we'd meet and I wasn't prepared for it. I just wanted to get lost in the crowd for once, to just be a regular person and forget what was happening, if just for a little. But I'm over that, and I'm sorry you had to suffer because of it." Tasha steps aside so Hake can lead the way, waving Katie to follow. "It's not Katie's fault. As it turns out, she's a fan of mine, which completely through me for a loop. She's really in to tech."
"I never would have guessed from the racing bikes," Hakeber says, then grins and punches Tasha in the arm. "At least you didn't steal my boyfriend, if I had one. I've done that a few times to others and they really seemed upset about it. I'll take you to Cvinth, but you have to promise to not mention mustard."
"I'm sure I can avoid it," Tasha says with a smile. "Alright, lets go before Clemson wakes up. We don't want to compound his embarassment."