Among Stars

Sciencing

Perez was leaning against the elevator's doorframe, looking into the bridge, which had been transformed into a makeshift science station -- or at least that was what it looked like. There were datapads, screens, data storage modules, pens, and papers absolutely everywhere. The bridge's large screen was constantly displaying seemingly random numbers, charts, and functions.

Naina and Mizuni were sitting on the floor with various devices, and things spread around them. They were constantly taking glances at one or two of the screens and writing something down on a paper or a datapad. They would occasionally discuss something excitedly, point at some screen or a paper, nod, and then continue working.

"Have they slept at all?" Perez asked.

"Not really," Quera answered. "Dr. Mizuni took a few hours of rest last night. Captain Melcey slept an hour this morning."

"At least they have eaten," Perez said and looked at a small pile of fruit peels and empty packs of Meals.

"Only after they have been reminded a couple of times," Quera said.

Perez smiled at them. "There is a frighteningly large amount of genius-level knowledge and ideas in those two heads," he said. "I'm not sure this galaxy is ready for them to be together," he laughed.

"I have observed the same, Captain Perez," Quera said. "I have much faster processing time than them, but even in my upgraded state, I cannot understand how those minds work."

"Quera," Perez said slightly more seriously. "You don't have to answer, but I would like to know. What are you? And don't say ship controller. We both know that is not the case."

"Well observed, Captain Perez," Quera said. "I... am not sure what I currently am. Captain Melcey has upgraded my core many times during our years together, and now this new platforms allows me to grow more, but I'm still tied to my programming. So to your unspoken question, no. I'm not a 'true' AI. At least in my current state."

"Thank you, Quera," Perez said. "Do you think the girls can get us out of here?"

"I have no doubts about it," Quera said. "I'm fairly sure Captain Melcey could figure this out herself, but with Dr. Mizuni here, there's no doubt about it. Pack your gear, Captain Perez. It's only a matter of time."

Perez nodded. "Noted. What's your take on the rest of the people in the pods? Are they just lying to themselves about their survival, or do they actually have a chance?" he asked.

"If we can get out of here, and into the Empire space, their survival chances are 99.9976 percent. Barring complications or personal errors, they have no expected problems being woken up. The pods are designed to do this," Quera said.

Perez sighed out of sheer relief. "Boy, am I glad to hear that!" he said. "But... what about the rest? The ones that I... I..." he said and trailed into silence.

"I cannot know. But looking at the logs, I'd estimate that the chance of survival for everyone on board, if you hadn't shut down the pods, would have been 4.87 percent. Most of you would by now have had severe complications, and your estimated life expectancy would have been 23.19 percent from your current ones," Quera said.

"So, I did the right thing?" Perez asked, with hope quivering in his voice.

"That I cannot say, Captain Perez," Quera said. "That is for you to decide, if one outcome is preferable to the other. I don't have the capability of judging that."n

"That's it! Mizuni yelled suddenly and jumped up. "I figured it out! Look, Naina!" she said and pointed at her datapad, then at several screens.

Naina got up and walked next to her. She looked at the data, and a wide smile formed on her lips. "That's genius," she said admiringly. "Using the Polarizers as a make-shift scoop, and then wiring them back to normal after the reserves are full? It's a bold move, and I wouldn't have been able to figure the procedures out, but you did it, Valera!" she said and hugged her tightly.

Mizuni threw her hands around Naina and hugged her back. "We're going home!" she squealed.

They spun around a few times, with their bodies entangled together. Then they stopped, realized what they were doing, and pulled back just a little. Naina looked into Mizuni's eyes, that were just inches from hers. She swallowed, and felt her cheeks getting flushed, and her ears getting hotter.

Mizuni glanced down at Naina's lips and swallowed with great difficulty. Her ears turned darker, and her cheeks took on a now-familiar peacock blue color. She turned her gaze down and turned slightly to the side. Naina did the same thing, turning in the opposite direction.

Naina grabbed the datapad and concentrated on it like it was the most interesting thing in the universe. "Uh... yes... We... we should.... Get to work?" she said with a faltering voice.

Mizuni's ears were almost blue, and she squeezed her pieces of paper like her life depended on it. "Yes, get to work. Of course," she said, her voice shaking. "I'll... I'll get to programming, and you do the re-wiring?" she said and grinned very nervously at Naina, her cheeks still blazing.

Naina nodded, and hurried out of the room with her ears more closely resembling Mizuni's blazing red hair, than her normal pale skin color.

Mizuni sat down in front of a console, tapped it a couple of times with little enthusiasm, and then leaned backwards and sighed deeply. She fanned herself with a piece of paper.

Perez walked next to her, smiling so widely it must have almost hurt. "Stunning woman, that Melcey, isn't she hija?" he said, barely able to hide is amusement of the situation.

Mizuni nodded enthusiastically, even slightly more than she meant. "She is!" she said, and then made a face. "I mean... she is," she said, a little more toned down. "She's brilliant, and skillful, and, and..."

"And beautiful," Perez added.

Mizuni turned slightly less dark than a good cup of coffee, and slightly more blue than an ocean. She buried her face in her hands, but her dark ears revealed her blushing.

"Papá, what am I doing?" she asked quietly.

Perez lowered her hand on Mizuni's shoulder and gently patted her. "That I can't help you with, Valera," he said, smiling. "You'll have to deal with this all by yourself."