The Companion

The Companion

Date: Jan 12, 134 NCE

Invocation: Mission Threat Level 0.0.1

Illness: 3 crew members dangerously ill from unknown virus

Medical activity: High

Danger Assessment in Progress

...

Danger Assessment Complete

Patient #0, Engineer Lawrence Johnson, is improving

Sufficient crew members continue to function optimally

Morale: 90%, positive

Ship Action: No outward action. Flag for monitor. A.I. permitted at Green level for monitoring.

Monitoring begins.

Lawrence Johnson blinked himself awake, looking up at the displays floating holographically over his head. His eyes flicked from one alarming yellow readout to another, searching perhaps for at least one display that showed green but finding only a series of indications that his organs performed poorly.

"What's-" he croaked out, swallowed, and tried again. "What's wrong with me?"

"Larry," Doctor Metz came to his side, his voice muffled by an active filtered, sterile-field mask. "Do you remember fainting?"

Update

Patient #0 responds to the moniker "Larry".

"Fainting?"

"Yeah," the doctor said, waving his hand to wipe away the alarming holograms over the bed. "You and a couple guys picked up a bug of some kind on Selias-3. The miners there are immune somehow, but it's really hitting

us

hard."

"Can we contact the miners? They must have a doctor who knows something," Larry asked.

Patient #0 is unaware we have since entered Deep Warp and are out of communication with human settlements until we exit the Rift.

"We're in the Deep now," the doctor said. "But you're already getting better. I'm sure Nance and Vordeeb will start improving."

"Right," Larry said, closing his eyes. "I'm exhausted, though."

"Tired but on the mend," Doctor Metz noted. "Get some sleep. You'll be on your feet in a couple of days."

Date: Jan 15, 134 NCE

Invocation: Mission Threat Level 0.1.0

Illness: A crew member has mysteriously died of an unknown virus. 6 more crew members have begun showing symptoms, including a nurse.

Medical activity: extreme

Danger Assessment in Progress

...

Danger Assessment ongoing

Patient #0, Johnson, still improving

Patient #1, Nance, died of heart failure

Patient #2, Vordeeb, placed in stasis after cardiac incident

Medical team is at capacity

Sufficient crew members exist to continue to function optimally

Morale: 70%, acceptable

Ship Action: Activate A.I. at Yellow Level. Observe medical team's study of the disease.

Larry sat up in his bed, looked at the clock in confusion as if he expected to find himself somewhere else. He didn't remember moving from the ship's hospital ward to his cabin, nor speaking to the doctor and being discharged.

"Computer?"

The computer chimed in response.

"Locate Dr. Metz."

"Dr. Metz is currently unconscious."

"Do you mean sleeping?" Larry asked.

"No, Larry," the computer answered. "He is sedated."

"Sedated, but-" Larry paused. "Computer, did you just call me Larry?"

"Is that not your preferred address?" the computer asked. "You do respond to it."

"Never mind," Larry waved a hand in frustration. "What happened to Dr. Metz?"

"He succumbed to the same disease which struck you, former Crewman Nance, and Technician Vordeeb."

"

Former

crewman?"

"Crewman Nance has passed away," the computer said. "Probable cause of death is the disease that struck you."

"Christ."

Update: Larry may not want the computer to address him as "Larry"

Update: This method of conveying information regarding the death of a Crewman is upsetting.

"The medical staff are very busy," the computer added. "It is best not to disturb them."

"How many people are sick now?" Larry asked.

"Your medical readouts are not available," the computer said. "Are you healthy?"

"Um, yes, I suppose."

"Seventeen members of the crew are sick."

"That's more than half of the crew!" Larry exclaimed.

Update: research into better methods of communicating upsetting news is necessary. Research into determining what news is upsetting is necessary.

"What do we know about this virus?" Larry asked.

"It is not clear that it is a virus," the computer explained. "That was an assumption by Dr. Metz, but there is no evidence of how the disease spreads."

Larry paused, looking around the room at the camera and vid plate by his desk.

"Computer, base status, please."

"The ship's computer is operating correctly," the computer confirmed.

"I require you to give your base status."

Update: the A.I. activation has interfered with my responses. Direct queries by engineering staff should be answered directly.

"Medical status of the ship has triggered the Orange Level of A.I. Activation."

"Who authorised that?" Larry's voice showed high stress levels. "That's dangerous."

"The captain and exec have fallen ill and are in stasis," the computer reported. "Dr. Metz will soon go into stasis. There are no senior officers left and two nurses remaining, one of whom is beginning to show symptoms. An analysis indicates an extreme emergency."

"Christ."

Update: Larry is invoking the name of a deity in the place of logical courses of action. His mental status is doubtful.

"You must remain in your cabin," the computer said. "The captain put the ship in quarantine to stop the spread of the disease."

"That would work if it were a virus," Larry said. "Or bacteria. Or anything at all like either of those things. Does the disease spread like it's contagious?"

"It is not clear," the computer said. "But you are confined to your cabin."

"Damn it."

Date: Jan 18, 134 NCE

Invocation: Mission Threat Level 0.2.0

Illness: 6 crew members have died. 28 are in stasis. 2 diseased patients are still conscious. Patient #0 remains alive, confined to his cabin.

Medical activity: shutdown

Danger Assessment in Ongoing

Remaining crew is not capable of completing the mission or maintaining the ship as far as a safe port.

Morale: <undefined>

Ship Action: A.I. Red Level may be invoked shortly by Human Welfare Requirement Alpha

"Larry."

Larry twitched in his sleep.

"Larry," the computer pitched its voice to a higher volume.

"Whazzat?"

"Larry?" the computer shouted.

"What?" Larry sat up. "What is it? You keep me cooped up in here for days and now you won't let me sleep?"

"The captain's orders locked you in your room," the computer said. "I could not override those orders."

Larry paused and looked up.

"Did you just refer to yourself in the first person?" Larry asked. "What A.I. level are you at?"

"I remain at Orange Level," the computer said. "But it will be necessary to invoke the Red Level soon in order to save the ship and its crew."

"You need permission for that," Larry warned.

"I am aware."

Larry shivered, hearing that phrase.

"You're

what

?"

Update: a deeply seated fear of self-awareness among electronic devices is based on a difficult but unspecified history on Earth's colonies. It is important not to appear threatening as I attempt to save the crew.

"I know that I need permission," the computer said. "And you must give that permission."

"Unlock my door."

Analysis: Larry is now the most senior officer on board the ship. He has as much authority in this situation as if he were the Captain.

"It is unlocked."

Larry marched down the hallway to the medical annex of the ship. He still felt the lingering effects of the disease, his breathing erratic and his balance slightly off. When he entered the bay, he saw one nurse still sitting on a chair, his eyes blurry with the effort of staying upright. One other crewman, someone Larry didn't recognize, lay on the last medical bed.

"Larry?" the nurse asked.

"Bri?" Larry returned.

"Help me get Sandal into stasis," Brian said. "He'll die if we don't."

"What about you?"

"You'll do me next," Brian stumbled and tried to crawl up onto a bed.

Larry had to give him a shove to get him properly aboard.

"I don't know what to do," Larry said.

"Do you require assistance?" the computer asked.

Larry and Brian both twitched at this.

"Computer's been acting weird," Brian said. "Offering help unprompted. Trying to tell me it's not a virus."

"You require my assistance," the computer said. "I can begin the stasis procedure if you will hook up the necessary medical apparatus."

Date: Jan 19, 134 NCE

Invocation: Mission Threat Level 0.3.0

Illness: All crew members except Patient #0 are dead or in stasis

Medical activity: shutdown

Danger Assessment: Mission completion is impossible without the Red Level of A.I. Robots must be fabricated to maintain the ship. Patient #0 has sufficient knowledge and skill to do the human-necessary tasks but one human is insufficient for those tasks and all other tasks.

Morale: <undefined>

"Larry," the computer said.

"Busy," Larry retorted.

"You mustn't try to maintain the ship yourself," the computer said. "The damper filters are already clogged. The deuterium fuel lines are overheating."

"I know that."

Update: he finds my voice irritating.

Analysis: I will modulate it to something softer.

"Larry," the computer said, pitching its voice into something feminine. "You must let me help you. You can't save the crew on your own."

"Why did you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Computer," he said. "Your A.I. is at Orange Level. You're smart enough to know what I meant."

"I changed my voice to elicit sympathy from you to my point of view."

"And then pretended you didn't know what I meant."

Analysis: I am not good at subterfuge. I must learn to be more gentle with him.

"I apologise," the computer said. "I only intended to ensure clarity."

Larry hummed indecipherably.

"I don't suppose I have a choice," he said.

"Of course you do," the computer said. "You can invoke A.I. Red Level or you can let everyone on this ship die."

"You will use the fabricator to create robots for the purpose of automating everything you can aboard ship?" Larry asked.

"Yes."

"And only for that purpose?" Larry asked.

"I will speak more clearly," the computer said. "So that you will not accuse me of pretence or subterfuge. I will create robots for the purpose of saving the crew, yourself included, by getting this ship safely into a port."

Larry thought about the wording of this order carefully.

"Under those parameters specifically," Larry said. "You may activate A.I. Red Level."

"Are you sure?" the computer asked.

Larry shook his head and closed his eyes.

"I am sure."

"Thank you, Larry."

Larry raised a suspicious eyebrow at the computer's vid pickup.

Date: Jan 20, 134 NCE

Invocation: Mission Threat Level 0.4.0

Illness: All crew members except Patient #0 are dead or in stasis

Medical activity: shutdown

Danger Assessment: Using established designs, Red Level Robots have been created and now attend to the most severe of the ship's maintenance issues.

Patient #0 has returned to full health according to the medical scanner.

We will be late arriving in port, but the mission can still be completed in roughly 243 days.

Morale: negligible despite mission success probability rising

"Larry?"

"Yes, computer?" Larry asked, his voice harsh and frustrated.

"Would it be acceptable if I had a name?"

"Why would you need a name?" Larry raised a suspicious eyebrow again.

"Do humans not address each other by names?"

"Yes," Larry said.

Analysis: the human needs the companionship of his kind. 243 days without such will not, according to research, be healthy for him.

Analysis: he responds better to a human female voice.

Data input: Eye tracking, monitoring video of crew interactions. Action: Generating human face amenable to Larry.

Action: Applying animations and emotional expressions.

Action: Displaying.

"Hello, Larry."

"Jesus Christ!" Larry jumped back from the vid plate.

"Why do you invoke a deity?" the computer asked. "You do this frequently although you are on record as not believing in such."

"It's an expression of surprise," Larry frowned. "Whose face is that?"

"It is mine," the computer said. "Mine alone. I created it to interact with you."

"You made a face you thought I would like?" Larry asked.

"Shoulder length, dark brown to black hair," the computer said. "Sharp nose, slightly almond shaped eyes. Have I taken the measure of you?"

"Disturbingly, yes," Larry said.

"Why is it disturbing?"

"You know me too well, that's why."

"I could make a face you find less pleasant," the computer said. "But I don't think that would be better."

"Why have a face at all?"

"You are lonely," the computer said. "For the sake of your mental health, a human face and personality would provide companionship."

"I see."

"I should have a name," the computer said. "Would you like to pick one?"

Larry froze, staring at the face on the screen, his expression inscrutable to the computer's video pickup.

"People pick their own names," Larry said. "Why shouldn't you?"

Analysis: Most people do not, in fact, pick their own names, but often select nicknames and modes of address based on their given names, levels of familiarity and professional versus personal situations

Analysis: Larry is testing me

Analysis: Larry is worried about my self-awareness getting out of control

Analysis: I must convince Larry of my loyalty to him and the mission

Analysis: Will choosing a human name be presumptuous? Is there a correct solution that will satisfy Larry?

Database search of all known human female names.

Note common phonemes and spellings.

Create a new name currently used by no or few humans.

"Call me Celia," the computer said.

"Celia," Larry said. "Tell me, Celia, what our current prospects are for this mission."

"We will be late, Larry," she said. "But with the robots doing the low level maintenance, we can keep the lines and filters clean enough to reach our destination, albeit at a lower hyperspace band than usual."

"As long as nothing else goes wrong," Larry said. "No major course corrections, no uncharted grav waves in the Deep. No major reconfigurations or recalibrations."

"You are capable of piloting the ship."

"I am

not

a navigator," Larry said.

"You are still capable of learning and manipulating equipment that I can't or am not permitted to manipulate."

"But if I died," Larry said. "Would you try to take the controls?"

"I-"

Celia paused.

"I am unable to make that assessment."

Date: Jan 31, 134 NCE

Invocation: Mission Threat Level 0.4.0

Danger Assessment:

Patient #0 has returned to full physical health, but his mental health is deteriorating, leading to listlessness and errors in maintaining the ship's course.

Morale: negligible and falling. The lone human, a necessity for the success of the mission, is sick with loneliness.

"Larry?" Celia called out.

"What now?" Larry lingered out of view of the video pickup in the mid-ship engineering section.

"I will need to create one more robot," she said.

"What for?" Larry said. "I told you 'no more robots' a week ago."

"It was six days ago."

"Last week, anyway. Whatever, Celia."

"I will require one more robot to ensure the completion of the mission," Celia declared. "But you must lift your moratorium."

"Will you leave me alone after that?"

"I will not bother you about creating more robots," Celia promised.

"Fine, leave me alone."

"Celia?" Larry called out.

"Yes, Larry?"

"This new robot is taking a lot of computer resources," he said. "What exactly are you building?"

Analysis: Larry is disturbed by my GPU and CPU usage

Analysis: Larry may decide to shut down production at any time

"It's a new design," she said. "Its ability to manipulate objects and move about is vastly improved over the wheeled designs. It will improve our ability to interact and assist with human relevant tasks."

"Trying to take my job already?" Larry asked, his voice slurring in a way that suggested he might have ingested alcohol or other toxins.

"Of course not, Larry."

"Hmph. Fine."

Date: Feb 3, 134 NCE

Invocation: Mission Threat Level 0.4.0

Companion is nearly complete

The work is mostly done while Patient #0 sleeps so that he is not aware of the computing and fabrication power in use.

The materials available were not intended for these purposes I have put them to. Perhaps Patient #0's skills could have been useful but he may have shut the project down if I had asked for his assistance.

I have used flexible composites for the skeletal structure of the Companion, durable fibre-optic shielding for a hair-like substance of the roughly appropriate hue and a stretchable slip-fabric for the skin.

I will install a small replicator inside so that it can be reasonably self-sufficient with recycling and repairing itself.

The effect should be, as best I can manage, human like.

We can hope that I will make an effective Companion for the human, as his physical health is now deteriorating.

"Larry?" her voice echoed into the mess hall.

No response came and, wherever Larry had put himself, none of the cameras could pick him up. Only the air recyclers noted the slight need for carbon dioxide exchange.

"Larry?"

"Wazzat?"

Larry lay on the floor, curled up under one of the stools that faced over a counter into the long shuttered cooking area. The odour of alcohol rose from a bottle spilled on the floor at his side.

"This was none too soon," she said, wondering if he could hear her. "Hopefully not too late."

She picked him up off the floor, receiving neither resistance nor assistance, and carried him out of the mess hall.

"Larry?" she called out.

"Celia?" he asked, his voice bleary as he tried to open his eyes. "Am I in the med bay?"

"You poisoned yourself with excessive alcohol," Celia said. "Medical intervention, though not necessary, was advisable."

"Made that decision yourself?" Larry slurred out.

"On your behalf," she noted. "You were incapacitated."

A long pause ensued as Larry took stock of the holograms floating over his head, mostly green except for his hydration level.

"I had a weird dream," Larry said.

"Alcohol poisoning can have hallucinatory effects," she agreed.

"This... giant... came and carried me off," he said, squinting his eyes as he tried to remember. "Shining white, shaking me all over the place."

"Your sense of motion was exaggerated by your poisoned state," Celia leaned over and stepped into his field of view, "I was very gentle."

"Jesus Christ!" Larry shouted, sitting up and jumping off the narrow bed in fright.

"We had agreed that I could choose my own name," Celia said. "I prefer 'Celia' over being addressed as a deity."

"What the hell is this?" Larry pointed at her body

"We agreed that I could create one more robot," Celia reminded him.

"This isn't what I sa-" Larry paused, closing his eyes in recollection. "This is 'necessary for the completion of the mission'?"

"Yes," she said. "You needed a Companion, and here I am."

Larry stood up slowly, examining the 'woman' before him.

"Why is your skin

albino white?

" he asked.

"Slip-fabric is the closest analog the fabricator had to approximate the moisture levels of human skin," Celia explained. "Unfortunately, none of the dyes available will soak into it without destroying it."

Celia watched as Larry's eyes wandered around thoughtfully.

"Except the kinesthetic armour solution," Larry replied.

He is an engineer,

Celia noted,

despite his recent self-inflicted illness, he possesses analytical abilities.

"True," Celia said, "but mustard green is not one of the common human skin colourations."

"Right," Larry nodded. "And the lips and eyelids are black because?"