Chapter 8
ALEC
Thankfully, the trip was short, a mere half hour according to my watch, and everyone got up and left in an orderly fashion, more or less.
Jimmy stood by me as everyone else went off, belongings stowed in the cargo compartment still being unloaded and placed on floating sleds of some kind.
Just as I had, everyone had tagged or written their names on their stuff, and it appeared as if the Mylos loading up the sleds were keeping the stuff that belonged to each person together.
The woman in the Air Force sweatshirt also came to stand by me.
“Um, I’m guessing you’re waiting for someone to tell you where to go, same as me,” she ventured. “I’m Shelby, by the way. Shelby McMahon.”
“Formerly of the US Air Force, I presume?” Jimmy asked, nodding towards her shirt. “And you may call me Jimmy.”
She gave us a wry grin. “Yeah, I was in the Air Force. Did five of my six years and then some idiot texting while driving rear ended me, still going thirty-five while I was sitting at a red light, so then I also got t-boned by a car going through the intersection. Suffered a TBI that causes me to have seizures, so got medicaled out.” She shrugged.
“Figured what the heck. The Mylos offered me job training with housing and employment and free medical that beats anything I can get on Earth, so I took it. My seizures are pretty much under control, but Xeranos told me that the doc who reviewed my records thinks he can use nanites to help heal my brain enough so that they actually stop.”
I gave her a finger wave. “Alec. I was in the Army for a whole hot minute, and I’m here because after failing to even make it through Basic, all I could get were gig jobs and pyramid scheme offers until I was offered a spot in the training program, same as you.”
“There was a girl during my own Basic who got medicaled out. Don’t see it as a failure on your part; it’s just something that didn’t work out. In her case, she had undiagnosed kidney disease that they found out when she got a UTI that wouldn’t clear, so they did some testing.”
I pointed to myself. “High blood pressure. Turned out my heart pounding wasn’t because I was a bit out of shape. Ended up having a mini stroke.” I gave a sardonic laugh. “Six out of the nine weeks.”
“Oh no! It’s good that you didn’t have a full stroke or heart attack, though, right?”
“That’s what my parents said,” I admitted, “and I know they’re right, but it still hits hard.
My head tells me that’s true, but in here,” I thumped my chest, “I feel like I failed and that it’s cheating whenever I accept anything because of my veteran status.
It’s not like I went to war or anything. ”
“Neither did I,” she said. “I was in supply and spent most of my time in Texas and Georgia. I didn’t even get sent overseas at all, and I’d kinda hoped to get stationed in England or Germany, but I wasn’t.
And being a vet isn’t about who saw combat and who didn’t.
It’s about having served. You did and got medicaled out.
You could have just as easily gone all the way through basic and AIT, and gotten nearly all the way to the end of your enlistment, like I did, and bam!
Replay of whatever happened, only at a duty station.
Being a vet is about having served and done your best to do so.
You did, so you’re a vet.” Her face twisted up.
“Now, stolen valor where people pretend to have been in combat and earned medals or pretend to have been in the military and never were, that’s different.
But you? You’re a legit vet in my book.”
I stared at her. “Thanks,” I finally said. “I think I needed to hear that from another person who served who doesn’t know me.”
Her smile morphed into something warm. “Well, now you have, and hopefully, we’ll get to know each other better. I know I sure could use a buddy.”
“I’m happy to become your friend too,” Jimmy piped up.
“Yeah? Cool! A fellow vet, even if he was silly enough to sign up for the Army instead of going into the Air Force, and a Mylos. Looks like I’m off to a good start.”
A Mylos came hurrying up to us. “Sorry, I’m late. The lifts were all full, what with all the new influx of personnel and their families and household goods, so I had to wait.” He looked quizzically at Jimmy. “Have they not given you your berth assignment?”
“No, I have it. I was merely keeping my friends company while they waited.”
He smiled at that. “I see. That was nice of you.” He turned his attention back to e and Shelby and I. “I’m Ensign Gephon, and you must be Alec and Shelby.”
“Guilty as charged,” she grinned in response.
”Then, on behalf of Commander Gundar and the rest of us under his command, it is my pleasure to welcome you to Unending Horizon.
” He didn’t offer to shake our hands, and it was then that I noticed he held a small case in each hand, which he now handed us.
“Please open these and place your thumb on the screen so it will memorize your print. Then state your name, and you’ll be all set. ”
“Oh! A smart watch!” Shelby exclaimed. She was right. Inside was what looked like an Apple Smart Watch, only I’d never heard of one that was biometric.
Gephon smiled. “It’s so much more than that. It works similarly to our kunnarskyn and is integrated with our Fleet’s systems. Go on, put them on and do your thumbprints and state your names.”
Shelby and I exchanged glances. “Ladies first,” I said. “We don’t want to confuse them by both talking at the same time.”
“Good point and very gentlemanly of you, I’m sure.
” She lifted hers out and fastened the slender silver metal strap around her wrist. “Fits well and isn’t heavy or clunky feeling,” she observed, pressing the thumb of her right hand against the screen.
Then, lifting it towards her mouth, she hesitantly said, “Shelby McMahon.”
”Hi, Shelby! I’m Xeranos, but you may call me Xero, like the rest of my human friends do. Some of the crew do as well. If you need anything, just call my name and let me know what’s up.”
“Xeranos, as in the Fleet’s self aware AI?” she asked, sounding as awed as she looked. I knew exactly how she felt, because I was feeling it too.
“That’s me, yes sirree Bob!” The AI quipped.
“You sound like a real person,” she replied before clapping her hand over her mouth, looking mortified. A soft chuckle came from the device on her wrist.
“I am a thinking and feeling being, just not flesh and blood,” came the response. “There are many others of my kind, some within each Fleet and others scattered throughout Council space and possibly beyond.
“There are more self aware AIs within the Fleet?” I asked, shocked.
“Yes, but they work under me and have more limited tasks. For example, there are five AIs on each of the ships within the Fleet whose sole purpose is to monitor health and assist with matters of hygiene and adjacent household tasks, accessed via the bathrooms.”
I blinked. I’d thought those Japanese smart toilets were advanced, but this was a whole new level.
“Aren’t you going to do yours?” Shelby prodded, and I realized both Mylos were watching my reactions curiously.
“Um, yeah.” I tried not to fumble too nervously as I took it out of the case and buckled it on. I duly pressed my thumb against it and said my name.
“Okie dokie!” Xero’s voice said through my new watch. “You’re all set. I’m sending you your room assignments now. Just ask to see your messages or tap the notification on your watch face to access.”
We did as we were told, and sure enough, a message notification came up and, when opened, gave a deck and room number.
”Oh! You’re two doors down and across the corridor from me,” Jimmy said, peering at my watch. “I can show you where to go.”
Gephon glanced at Shelby’s proffered watch. “And I’ll show you where yours is. We’ll let you get settled, and then Xeranos will let you know where to go for orientation tomorrow after mid-day meal.”
“Meet up for lunch?” Shelby asked me. “I’m assuming there’s a chow hall or something.”
“There’s a central area with a park flanked by various eateries and places of recreation,” Gephon said. “Simply ask Xeranos to initiate a com with the other, and you can discuss where to meet. Xeranos will be able to provide directions.”
“Yep!” Xero answered through both our watches. “Just say my name in any corridor and let me know where you wish to go, and I will direct you.”
“Thanks,” we chorused, then grinned at each other.
It felt weird talking to Xero like this, as we didn’t own an Alexa, and I didn’t usually ask Siri anything.
At the same time, it also kinda felt normal.
I decided to pretend I was talking on one of those old fashioned intercoms or something like that because Xero was more than a mere program.
He’d grown past that, into a person. Yeah, that felt less weird and more right.
“Come on,” Jimmy said, picking up his cats. “Let’s get you and me home so we can get these little ones settled.” And right on cue, Floof yowled his agreement, obviously beyond fed up.