"Now, we take that binary and create machine code," he said building off the first. Some of the girls looked excited. He turned and drew a series of dots and dashes. "Now, when that machine code is translated, the computer has the symbology of the operating language." He turned and nodded to the class. "Next question... let’s see..."
Sprite highlighted a red haired girl with a blunt freckled face. "Susa?" he asked.
She looked up and then stood. "If there was a machine war in the past, how did we survive it? I mean, we're completely dependent on machines," she waved to indicate the ship.
He nodded and smiled. "I see someone has gotten into the historical database," he said. She blushed.
"Want me to answer this?" Sprite asked coquettishly.
He clicked his teeth. "Good. Okay, the first machine war was before my time, about three hundred years before I was born." He turned and waved to the holo. It cleared and a time line reappeared. "Okay, this is the time line of advances in AI. As you can see, it's an exponential curve. But, it was a bit limited." He turned and nodded to Susa.
"Back in that time there were two groups of AI researchers. The first were focused on a hardware based learning computer. Something that learned by doing, like organics do. The second was a strictly software based group, who wanted to emulate learning situations in virtual games," he explained and then he shrugged.
"Both approaches work, but there were limitations in each. Apparently some hackers managed to get into the virtual system and stole the AI core code, and rewrote it to be hostile to human life," he sighed at the thought of such suicidal stupidity. "From what I learned in my history class, it wasn't intentional to do the damage it did, more of a prank or a means to cause chaos. But nonetheless, it did kill millions."
He grimaced as some of the girls gasped a little. "Eventually the only ways to kill the AI viruses were to either unplug the hardware they were in, or root them out with an anti virus," he shook his head. "But if AI is so dangerous, why do we keep them? Why do we need them on this ship?" one of the girls in the back called.
"Well, Lola is it?" he asked. She nodded. "Well Lola, we need AI to manage our complex machinery. We can't fly this ship without it, or balance the hyperdrive, or the fusion core. It's just too fast for our reflexes to handle. But..." He held up his hand as the class began to mutter amongst itself.
"But, we've learned from the mistakes of the past and instituted safety measures in AI. Those are hardwired into the ship's electronics," he said, voice rumbling. The class quieted. "I've been rebuilding the ship's AI, but it'll never be as good as it once was; there was too much damage," he grimaced. "After the war we created a symbiosis of organic and inorganic that extended itself to other species as they were encountered." He shrugged. "It wouldn't surprise me if there are some sentient AI out there. They may be going senile though." A few chuckled at that.
“I heard that,” Sprite grumped good naturedly.
“I've been meaning to ask doc, why the cuffs and sleeping in the brig?I can understand the one guard,” the Admiral asked as he sat down in the chair.
The doctor grimaced. “Well, I said a few things when I was first taken. I was rather upset,” he sighed, studying the far bulkhead. “I admit, I was unprofessional, I lost my composure,” he said. He shook his head. “The chief instituted the sleeping arrangements,” he grimaced.
“Well, you're human doc,” Irons replied.
Mindy grimaced. “Still it isn't fair! We should get you some quarters,” she said stoutly defending him. The Admiral nodded then got a thoughtful look.
“You know, we just finished restoring the quarters on deck twelve next to mine, perhaps the Captain could be persuaded to let you have them?” he asked. He looked over to the startled doctor. “It'd serve several purposes; it'd give you better sleeping arrangements, but allow the chief to keep her paranoia by using the guards outside my door to guard you as well,” he suggested.
The doctor rubbed his chin. “Yes, that may work.”
“I'll go tell her right now!” Mindy jumped up and ran out before they could stop her.
“Well, so much for tact and diplomacy,” the Admiral sighed.
“Hope it works, the mattress in the brig is painful, I swear the foam rotted and I'm so tired of putting up with Bart,” the doctor complained, rubbing his lower back.
“Most likely it was used so often it took on the shape of a body,” the Admiral replied with a nod. “Things wear out over time. How did you rate one guard while Bart and I have two?” he asked.
The doctor smiled "Just lucky I guess," he said and then grimaced. "Actually, I believe Bart attempted to escape a few times so he earned his," he shrugged.
The Admiral grimaced. "While we wait for the fireworks, why don't we go over the dermal regenerator again? I have to do some repairs in an hour,” he suggested. The doctor nodded. “All right we'll do it.”
“So, what's next?” the lead guard asked as they exited sickbay.
“I have to work on one of the shuttles, and then see about some food,” the admiral answered. She motioned to the corridor. “Right this way then,” she said. He followed.
They passed a group of girls and one separated herself from the group. She followed until he stopped. The lead guard continued until the trailing one cleared her throat. She turned and looked. He was looking at their tag along. "Can I help you miss?" he asked. She shyly looked down, then up to meet his eyes. She had wide blue eyes. She had to be a teenager, since most of the crew was aging fast under the workload, she had to be...
Crap, trouble he thought then nodded.
"I just wanted to meet you," she murmured. She ran her fingers through her hair near her ear, and then touched his arm. She had a full chest, and even he wasn't immune to hormones.
He cleared his throat. "Thank you miss," he said. She smiled. He realized with a start that she was flirting.
"You’re kind of cute," she said. The hand on his arm stroked it slightly. The guards behind him shifted a bit. He tried not to grimace at the audience.
"Thank you miss, I find you very beautiful and attractive," he said. He tried to disengage from her gently, but she kept a grip.
She seemed to preen at his compliment. "What's say we meet up at your place when your shift ends?"she suggested. Warning bells were going off.
"She's trouble with a capital T Admiral," Sprite said, as if he couldn't guess that.
"Tell me about it," he said under his breath, catching her cat like look.
"Why not in your quarters..." Her hand had gotten to his chest, feeling it slightly. "Um, ah, that is...” he tried to figure a way out of this. She smiled like a predator.
One of the guards cleared her throat. "Enough Shari, play later," she growled.
The woman looked over to the guard, instantly pouting. He let out a low sigh of relief as he turned. The guard motioned to the girl. "The engineer has work to do; he won’t be off for a long time," she said firmly.
The girl turned back to him. "I heard about your long first day...I wonder if you have that stamina where it counts..." her voice rose into a lilting, teasing flirt as she stepped back, locking her eyes to his.
He gulped then managed to get his cool back a little. "Now miss, I need to get things repaired before taking any...recreational time," he shrugged knowing what he had said sounded lame.
She smiled and blew him a kiss. "Until later then...” She swaggered in her tight latex miniskirt as she walked away.
He gushed a sigh, and then turned to the guard. "Thanks for the save," he said feelingly
She chuckled. The other was looking decidedly annoyed, but immediately smiled. "No problem. She's a hellion."
The other guard chuckled. "A minx you mean, total slut in bed," she said with a grin.
The other guard chuckled as well. "Yeah, but it's fun. Watch out though, she's looking to wrap you around her pinky. She'll use you,” she grimaced.
The other guard nodded. "Notch on her belt," she agreed.
/>
He sighed; looking back the way she came then shook his head and tried to get his hormones under control. "Social butterfly. I had to deal with it a long time ago," he said and then shrugged. "Some things never change I guess...All right ladies, I do believe we have a boat bay to fix...”
Two days of work later he managed to all but put the minx out of his head. Jen had switched work assignments with him again and he was working down the list.
He pressed the signal button at the hatch. "Good luck Admiral, you’re going to need it," the guard nodded to him warily. He froze as the door opened to the quarters. The minx was there, dressed in a seductive red teddy lounging on her bed. "Come in, I've been waiting for you," she purred. She gave him a slow seductive smile, and then tossed her hair. She stretched like a cat, long and lithe, on all fours. She made sure he got a good look down her teddy then met his eyes.
The door closed behind him with a wisp. He could hear the chuckle through the door with his enhanced hearing. "Someone could have warned me," he muttered, fighting natural urges.
"Sorry," Sprite answered.
"Wasn't my job," Defender responded. He watched as she flicked her hair again giving him that teasing smile.
"So, I was told you'd like your replicator repaired? I have a half hour before I have to get back to engineering," he added that warningly.
"Need a rescue?" Sprite asked. He looked over to the replicator then back to the woman nodding slightly.
The minx was pouting slightly. Her charms weren't working. "Oh, I need something fixed all right," she purred, and then stretched.
He gritted his teeth. "Okay, I'll get to work," he said politely and smiled. "You’re very lithe, do you work out? Do yoga?" he asked.
She froze, and then her eyes glittered at him. "It isn't nice to ignore me," she growled. He stopped examining the replicator and turned.
"I wasn't. I came to do a job. I am on duty," he said. She took the opening, sidling up to him with a hip bump. He had a hard time trying to stifle a chuckle.
"Okay soldier boy, time to follow MY orders...” she said seductively, hands on his chest. He smiled brushing his right arm along her cheek. "Your hand is cold!" she said. She looked at him suddenly the mood was broken.
"Sorry. Artificial," he said. She reared back and then sat on the edge of the bed. He turned and sent a mental command to the arm. The right finger tip morphed into a diagnostic tool. He pulled the cover plate off with his left hand.
She gasped hands at her throat. "This shouldn't be long," he said. He bent over and began to check connections. He heard her subsonic snarl, but tried to ignore her. The less he focused on her, the more he could control his raging hormones.
"You’re not going to ignore me metal man!" she snarled, but he only gave her a cursory look. "Don't worry; I'll be out of your hair in a moment. It looks like your replicator’s tank is shot," he said. He turned back. He heard a scrabble behind him and her approach.
"Watch out!" Defender alerted him, spinning his shields up. He twisted, and felt the heavy object hit his right shoulder.
Defender took control, spinning his body to confront the attacker. She tried to hit him with the object, some sort of book end, and then threw it at him. Defender blocked, it hit the fully energized shields and sparked, bouncing off them. "Get out you monster!" she shrieked, grabbing a vase.
The door opened and the guard leaned in. "What the hell?" she demanded. The vase smashed into the door jam. "Now just a minute here!" she said. The guard ducked out of the range of fire.
"Get out! Get out!" She grabbed a tool from his kit and tried to stab him. He took control, letting her come at him, blocking her stab with his right arm block, then snaking his hand around her wrist and using the pressure point to break her grip on it.
She snarled and twisted. She kicked, hitting his shin. She screamed and jumped on her good foot, her offending toe pounding in pain. "Knock it off," he growled, and then tossed her onto the bed. She bounced back up hands curled into claws. He brushed her off, but one of her blows landed dangerously close to his genitals despite the shield it set him off. "I said, STAND DOWN!" he bellowed it, and then slammed her solar plexus.
She gasped, dropped to the ground, writhing on the deck. He felt adrenaline ebb. Quickly he gathered up his scattered tools and put them in the kit. He checked the girl. "You'll be fine in a moment," he said quietly.
He got out fast before she fully recovered. Still she managed to weakly throw a knick knack after him. The guards were in the corridor laughing. "Some help you two hyena's were!" he growled and then glared. They tried to sober up, but then fell into snickering. He sighed. "Least you could have done was save me!" He grumbled and shook his head. "Now, if there aren't any more unpleasant surprises? I guess we need to report that to the Chief," he said, eyes suddenly narrow.
That sobered them fast. "Um, ah..." He walked off down the corridor. "Crap," one muttered.
"What's a hyena?" he heard behind him.
"Contact the Chief, ask for an interview," he ordered. He looked over his shoulder to the trailing guard.
She held up her comm. "I can't get through." The woman responded with a sigh.
"Sprite?" he asked softly, turning a corner.
"Admiral, that witch is talking to the Chief. Care to take a wager on the subject?" she asked, clearly amused.
He shook his head. "No," he grimaced as they entered the lift.
"Do you want to listen in?" she asked.
He shook his head. "Spare me," he muttered. The bridge lock out flashed, but one of the guards entered her code and the lift continued.
The lift doors opened and he leaned out. "Permission to enter the bridge?" he called out.
"What?"
"Who said that?"
"Why did he ask?" the girls asked each other.
"DENIED," the Chief called. "I ordered you to the brig.”
He shook his head. "I guess we didn't catch that, since your communication's channel is busy." "Enter Admiral," the hoarse voice of the captain said. He came onto the bridge and nodded to the Captain.
"Thank you Captain."
She nodded regally. "So, what's this about?" she asked. She gave the Chief and guards a curious look.
He grimaced. "I received a work order...”
The Chief interrupted. "He assaulted a crew member, and is therefore confined until an investigation is held," she said sounding triumphant. He gave her a look.
"Is this true?" the Captain asked mildly, studying her fingers.
"In self defense ma'am," he said. He nodded to the Chief.
"What happened?"the captain asked.
He grimaced again and started over. "I was given a work order to repair a replicator in a crew member's quarters. When I arrived the young woman was there and attempted to...distract me from my duties." He looked around to the bridge crew. They busied themselves with their stations.
"Captain, with your permission, can we adjourn to your wardroom for privacy?" he gave her a meaningful look but she shook her head with a sigh.
"Too late, the cat's already out of the bag, and the gossip's probably all over the ship by now," she said.
He smiled grimly. "Yes, even in my time scuttlebutt moved faster than light."
She smiled. "Glad you understand." She gave the Chief a look. "Get the young woman up here," she ordered.
The Chief bent and softly spoke into her comm. A few minutes later a disheveled minx arrived. Her hair was tousled. She took one look at the Admiral and her hands curled into claws. She lunged, but one of the guards restrained her. The Chief sighed. "As you can see, emotions are running heated, and Miss Shari is not prone to that."
The Captain eyed the girl. "But she is prone to passion. I see your new teddy under that blouse," she observed. The girl blushed and shrugged off the arms of the guards as she came to attention.
"Yes Captain," She panted a bit, acting like she was going to cry.
"Okay, lets hear it," the captain said. She netted h
er fingers together and listened as the minx cleared her throat.
"Well Captain, I needed my replicator repaired and this man came,” she pointed to the Admiral. "When we were alone in my quarters he attacked me! I fought him off and the guards had to pull him out of there!" Her eyes teared and she turned to the arms of the startled guard. She awkwardly held her. The Admiral caught her peeking with a smug smirk.
"Well, actually Captain, as I was saying, the young lady tried to...distract me from my duties," he said. "Captain with your permission?" he asked. He held up his right hand. The ring finger morphed into his jack.
"What's he doing?" The minx demanded, clearly startled.
"I'm going to show the Captain what happened," he said. He walked over to a jack.
"By all means, let's see it," the captain said indulgently.
He jacked in and sent a signal to the bridge holo. The lights dimmed and a life sized hologram of the woman appeared. "This is from our first encounter," he explained. The sequence played. The Captain tried to hide a smile at the seduction. "And this is from the attack."
The hologram faded out and then faded in. The scene played out. He carefully did not look at the Chief, but watched as her hands curled and her lips tightened into a thin line of disapproval. The minx's did too. One of the girls gasped as the minx tried to stab him. "Thank you Admiral, I think we've seen enough," the captain growled.
He cut the transmission. "Chief, both recordings have been sent to your investigations file for later review,” he said. He looked over to her and bowed slightly.
She stood wooden. "Captain, it doesn't matter, he's a passenger, and she's crew."
The Captain waved airily. "No, this does matter." She gave the minx a long look. "Guards, escort her to the brig."
He was lying out in the bed, finally getting some rest when Sprite popped up. "What is it Sprite," he asked wearily.
"I was wondering why you didn't accept her advances Admiral?" she asked, clearly curious about his behavior earlier in the day. The AI projected herself onto his HUD, and then sat her virtual self down in the chair. She kicked her feet back and forth.
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