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The man didn’t turn, but he stopped in the doorway. He grumbled out, “Yer welcome.”
Chapter Four
KIRA
Captain?
Flopping back onto the cold metal surface of the exam table, Kira felt this was the last thing she needed. Covering her face with her forearms, she let out an aggravated, “Yes?”
I -
A normal A.I. didn’t stutter, or stop. Their minds worked too quickly because of their programming. They were numbers that computed and spat back a response based on what was expected of them and what they had learned.
“I don’t need a lesson right now, Watson. I’ve learned it already.”
I’m not sure you ever really learn a lesson.
Kira snorted. “I’m not sure you ever do either.”
I learn much faster this way.
“You do.” Kira pushed back up into a sitting position. Searching the room visually, she found what she looked for: a transport table. It levitated and held up to seven hundred and fifty pounds of weight. The table worked by either lightly touching it on a handle that slid out the bottom, by using a remote to move it, or setting it to follow said remote. Shuffling on one foot across the room and awkwardly hopping over the short side rail, she picked up the datapad that controlled the inputs.
That’s a clever idea.
Kira snorted. “I have those from time to time.”
The transport table was about two feet wide by four feet long with a two inch raised edge, and appeared to be made of stainless steel. A rounded handlebar on one side could be adjusted for the handler's height. Beneath it rested a small slot where the datapad went for controlling it and for keeping track of the supplies on it. When Kira sat, the tablet updated automatically to reveal a Praetorian lifeform sitting on the table.
Zooming out into the hallway, it had a total grand speed of up to five miles an hour, which sufficed to move her into the wide halls.
“Watson, connect me to Alec, please.”
Yes, Captain.
A second later, the man came over the line. “Aye, Captain?”
“Meet me down in the mess hall, please?”
“Aye, Captain.”
The mess hall was once the size of a full football field. It’d been quartered and butchered for other uses as space became a commodity to be used for storage rather than entertainment. Leaving the dining space a fraction of the old space. Two long sleek tables with bench seats in the same finish occupied the area left.
The kitchen, just off the dining area, had avoided being gutted. Originally meant to feed an attending crew of over one hundred, a pass through section, reminiscent of a cafeteria, remained on one side for trays to be slid back and forth across. The inside resembled a reminder of humanity’s contribution to cooking. There were still large ovens, along with dehydrators, old-fashioned bin sinks, large working countertops, and cold storage. There was not much to be improved upon when it came to preparing food in any society.
Alec worked in the kitchen upon her arrival, arguing with the oven. “Infernal thing! Work dag nab it.”
Kira laughed while pushing the forward button moving into the kitchen but hopping off after getting close to the counters, hobbling forward around the center island to steady herself. She laid both hands flat on the cool surface. “I daresay, if it had feelings, you would have bruised them by now.”
“Oh aye, just as my own have been.” He continued to poke his finger against the buttons to set it properly. “A child kicks me out of my engine room.”
The word room became elongated with his accent. The more flustered he became, the more he relied on it. Kira stifled her laughter so as not to offend him further. “Toke wants the upgrades done quickly, and it makes sense that we will only be in his way. From what I understand, the superstructure will need quite a bit of stabilization to withstand the new engines.”
“Toke can-” Alec paused, a sharp breath exhaled from his mouth. Condensation grew on the oven as it finally beeped and showed the right temperature. “Toke can do what he wants, lass.”
“He does pay for this whole-” she did a vague hand wave upward at the ship. “Operation.”
Alec shifted his weight back and forth, finally turning to look at her. His cheeks were ruddy, but his eyes remained bright as always. “What have you gone and done now, lass?”
