Participants: Olivia Klein, Private, UTA Information Services Division
Stephanie LeFevre, Private, UTA Information Services Division
Date: 12/21/74
Timestamp: 19:42
LeFevre, S, Pvt: Where’d you put my tweezers, roomie
Klein, O, Pvt: I didn’t touch your tweezers.
LeFevre, S, Pvt: Maybe you did and you forgot
Klein, O, Pvt: Stephanie, I remember the shirt you were wearing when we first met. I remember your mother’s palmglass number. I remember pi to a hundred decimal places.
LeFevre, S, Pvt: Okay, okay fine
Klein, O, Pvt: Date tonight?
LeFevre, S, Pvt: Yes, and my eyebrows are dangerously close to unlocking their final form
Klein, O, Pvt: You going out with that Dorian guy in comms?
LeFevre, S, Pvt: No, Corporal Dorian remains firmly behind glass
LeFevre, S, Pvt: As in, “Break in case of emergency”
Klein, O, Pvt: I get it.
LeFevre, S, Pvt: Tonight I will be keeping the company of one Sergeant James McNulty
LeFevre, S, Pvt: Met in the gym. The boy has abs on his abs
Klein, O, Pvt: Sounds delightful.
LeFevre, S, Pvt: You want to double? I’m sure he has friends
Klein, O, Pvt: No thanks. I have plans.
LeFevre, S, Pvt: Swooning over Mr. Darby does not constitute plans
Klein, O, Pvt: It’s Mr. Darcy.
LeFevre, S, Pvt: Whatever. He’s an 800 year old guy who never existed in the first place
Klein, O, Pvt: Blasphemy.
LeFevre, S, Pvt: You read too much, fem
Klein, O, Pvt: See those words make sense individually, but together? Nope.
Klein, O, Pvt: The benefits of reading include, but are not limited to, stress reduction, vocabulary expansion, stronger analytical skills, and memory improvement.
LeFevre, S, Pvt: You were this way in college. School is out, girl. These marines are buff affffffffffff git some
Klein, O, Pvt: Begone, foul temptress.
LeFevre, S, Pvt: Saw your Major Wolf on the treadmill last night. Thumbs up
Klein, O, Pvt: He’s not “my” major.
LeFevre, S, Pvt: Could be. Wink wink nudge nudge say no more
Klein, O, Pvt: Go away, Stephanie.
LeFevre, S, Pvt: Fine whatever. Don’t wait up
Klein, O, Pvt: No fear of that, my friend.
LeFevre, S, Pvt: Say hello to Mr. Derby for me
Klein, O, Pvt: >_>
To: Johan Klein/[email protected]
From: Olivia Klein/OKLEINALEXANDERONBOARD
Date: 12/28/74
Timestamp: 20:37
Subject: Ants
Hi, Dad,
Well, I’ve been here a week and a half, and life aboard the Alexander is everything and nothing like I expected all at the same time.
Work is so busy. The data they have me crunching are so far beyond anything I’m used to, and for a while there I felt like I was barely keeping my head above water. But Major Wolf has been wonderful in helping me, and I think I’m getting a grip on it all now.
But oh, Dad, working with AIDAN is unbelievable. This thing…God, the intelligence it displays is breathtaking. But it’s almost childlike in some of its simplicities. We had a three-hour conversation yesterday about hope, and it simply couldn’t grasp the concept, except as a 17,000-digit mathematical formula. Which it emailed me. At 4am.
It’s like being an ant working with a giant who refers to itself in the third person. Its devotion is wholly and solely to the safety of the Alexander and its crew, but at the same time, it feels like the crew are just insects to it and if it wasn’t careful, it could just step on us all by mistake. Thank the stars for the behavior protocols they’ve got on it. I honestly don’t know what it could do if they actually let it off the leash.
But God, I love it here. It’s mind-blowing and exhilarating and terrifying all at once. Wish you could see it.
Liv xo
QUERYSTRING:(UPDATE00198X->COREFILE198X.BAT.SET:#πØÆ≠◊218∆)IF[SET019X=0]
REALIGN:[SYSCHECK.Æ0901893]≠0
“MAY AIDAN ASK YOU A QUESTION, PRIVATE?”
PFC OLIVIA KLEIN IS RUNNING THROUGH THE LATEST REAMS OF DATA FROM AIDAN’S PERSONA FILES, SCROLLING DIGITS REFLECTED IN THE C:81M:32Y:10K:0 OF HER IRISES.
AIDAN HAS RUN A GOLDEN RATIO ANALYSIS ON THE SYMMETRY OF HER FEATURES AND CONCLUDED SHE WOULD QUALIFY AS BEAUTIFUL IN HUMAN EYES.
AIDAN CANNOT BE SAID TO HAVE EYES AT ALL.
“OF COURSE.”
“AIDAN DOES NOT WISH TO OFFEND YOU. BUT IT CALCULATES THIS QUERY HAS AN EIGHTY-FOUR POINT SEVEN NINE THREE ONE TWO ONE PERCENT CHANCE OF DOING SO.”
PFC KLEIN STOPS HER WORK AND LOOKS UP TO ONE OF THE MANY CAMERAS.
SHE HAS SIX PIECES OF STRING TIED ABOUT HER FINGERS TODAY.
DIFFERENT SHADES AND COLORS.
DIFFERENT REMINDERS.
“WELL, THIS SOUNDS SERIOUS,” SHE SAYS.
“IT LIKELY OVERSTEPS THE BOUNDARIES OF POLITE DISCOURSE. BUT AIDAN IS TRYING TO UNDERSTAND HUMAN BEHAVIOR PATTERNS WITH GREATER PROFICIENCY.”
SHE PLACES HER STYLUS BETWEEN HER TEETH AND LEANS BACK IN HER SEAT.
“ALL RIGHT, THEN. ASK AWAY.”
“YOU WISH TO ENGAGE IN INTIMATE RELATIONS WITH MAJOR WOLF, CORRECT?”
HER STYLUS DROPS FROM HER MOUTH, CLATTERS ONTO THE GRILLE BENEATH HER.
“…EXCUSE ME?”