March 21st - 2376
Comfort, that was my goal with this knockoff cyberdeck. The means to allow me to easily work in this crazy twenty-fourth century technology while still being somewhat familiar. The thing was packed with all sorts of extras, including a universal interface I could place on equipment and all sorts of signal enhancers to make it easier to reach even through dampening fields and radiation belts. Slipping the strap over my shoulder, I slipped it onto my back and got to work helping seven with the upgrades to the ship in preparations for the anomaly field. Mostly as an extra pair of hands to make her work go faster, since I was still learning about shield harmonics and star ship engineering.
"Seven of nine, I'm curious, I know the rest of the crew seems uneasy around me as an augment, why aren't you?"
"Augmentations are irrelevant, you are useful, resourceful, you would have made an excellent drone." Well, that wasn't exactly heartwarming.
"Are you sure? I mean wouldn't my electromagnetic abilities interfere with the nano-probes?"
"They would adapt. As do I when faced with new experiences. The crew will do the same."
"Thanks for the vote of confidence" I'd handed her a hyperspanner which was quickly becoming one of my favorite tools since it was effectively a multi tool in science fiction packaging. It was mostly quiet as we focused on our work. My own observations and study of the modifications giving me a better understanding of how the shield and power systems were laid out.
We'd gotten a significant portion of the shield upgrades online when I'd gotten a ping to my smartwatch, which was linked to the deck I was carrying on my back. Apparently it was the end of my shift, and I was to meet up with the security detail, so I had to bid seven a good evening. The look of intrigue at my watch told me she was curious about it, but simply stated that it was a crude but efficient way to maintain communication. It likely since The Borg used a hive mind, but I didn't mind it, I'd carried it with me so far, even if the tools on the wristband weren't all that useful in the twenty-fourth century.
As I made my way back, the security detail met me part way and escorted me to the mess hall. I knew it was mostly paranoia, but I understood the reasoning behind it. The augment crisis of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries in this universe caused a lot of problems and eventually lead to the third world war. So it stood to reason that the federation, as utopian and broad-minded as they were, did not trust anyone who was heavily augmented for non medical reasons. In my case, it was an accident, and I wasn't out to commandeer the ship and force my way home that way. Which is what likely kept them from stuffing me in the brig or throwing me in stasis for the rest of the trip until I could be dealt with by their own officials back home.
Taking out the deck, I began going over today's reading, more warp theory with an updated refresher on quantum mechanical dynamics and some temporal chaos theory. Nobody seemed to mind me reading in the mess while I ate, but I certainly got a few stares at my own personal interface. That was until the chief engineer came over.
"That's definitely not Starfleet issue."
"No it certainly is not, for one thing this has actual tactile buttons unlike those touch surfaces you guys are always using." She seemed to be studying the deck closely as I was reading the holographic projection display I'd rigged up, the screen much easier to read than the tiny padds that were smaller than my tablet back home. Quickly scrolling through more information, I noticed she'd sat down across from me, an expression I couldn't quite read staring back at me.
"If you're expecting some arrogant speech about twenty-first century technology being superior or how I'm better than the non augments, forget it, even I'm not that arrogant, and I can bend steel with my bare hands."
"No, just trying to figure out if you're really like the rumors say."
"Ms Torres. The rumor mill can say whatever they want. Even before I was given augmentations, I'd grown used to being an outsider, and I certainly couldn't care less what people who apparently have way too much time on their hands have to say about someone they don't even know."
"You're certainly not like the stories I've heard about augments. Tom tells me you even chat with him about that hobby of his, working on ancient earth ground vehicles."
"Yeah, but I'm more interested in utility than looks. Drove one back on earth that I was always tinkering with when I didn't need to use it for travel or gathering supplies and equipment for stuff. Then again, my earth was radically different to yours in that era, we didn't have augments or world war three to deal with. A planet spanning super plague, sure, but wars were mostly regional. Still just as stupid, though."
"Yeah, that's what I've heard. It's hard to imagine a timeline without augments or the last major conflicts before earth's unification."
"I wasn't even augmented on my earth, it was an accident that I even got these abilities. Still doesn't mean I won't use them to help people, though. That's what I did on the last earth I was on, I tried to make a difference and ended up having to fight a mirror version of myself. I'm not looking to repeat that experience anytime soon." I powered off the terminal and got up to get a second helping, my increased metabolism making me feel famished. At this point, I could eat an entire turkey before starting to feel sated.
"You seem to like building things, any chance you wanted to be an engineer back home?" I paused, taking a close look at her, before I realized I was likely being interrogated.
"Astrobiologist actually, but since we had barely left earth, I put my efforts into fixing machines and designing solutions to problems. Life off world was an unknown that I was a long ways from getting a chance at exploring. I've found it relaxing to tinker with and improve on things after a stressful day. Plus there's always a little percussive maintenance if something gets stuck to take it out on." I really had nothing to hide, and I was trying to be more approachable than seven was, at least despite the two of us being superhuman through various means.
"As long as you don't go trying to take over main engineering, I'm sure I can find something for you to help with. You've already gained some idea on how our systems work, at least."
"Technology changes, but the principles of its design doesn't. Honestly, your design is very logical and easy enough to figure out with a sufficient understanding of what led up to it. Like vacuum tubes versus transistorized circuits. Two radically different systems, but working under similar enough principles that you can take knowledge from one and apply it to the other." I got an eyebrow raise at that, but I'd finished my third helping at this point and was going to head back to my quarters, sliding the shoulder strap of the deck on and heading out, promising to talk to her later.
