The night was quiet, the new day young, as the Andromeda Ascendant orbited a gas giant in an uninhabited star system in the Perseus Arm.
Back during the old Commonwealth, its thousands of crew members meant that the ship maintained full operational capacity during all shifts of the day. But with the current grand total crew of six, necessity dictated a different sort of arrangement — the human crew had just one shift. They relied on Andromeda, the ship's AI, to keep a watchful eye for any danger and developments, and her veritable army of service droids and drones to do the bulk of the maintenance work. Without them, Captain Dylan Hunt and his tiny crew would have been hopelessly overstretched.
There was a night shift, however, one consisting of the two people who needed no sleep — the non-humans of the crew. One was the android avatar of the ship's AI, the other being the questionably biological avatar of a distant sun.
The humans slept in safety, thanks to the vigilance of their two friends and colleagues — each of the latter contributing in her own way. Rommie through her constant link with Andromeda, her AI core… while Trance Gemini had a rather different method. One that she was currently engaged in.
In a nutshell, Trance was in a trance. Sitting next to her beloved plants in the ship's hydroponic garden, her eyes closed, the ginger-haired woman sifted through the many possible futures that were likely to happen soon.
Suddenly, Trance frowned. Something had shifted, and the probabilities went haywire. She was looking down a new family of closely related near future scenarios — well, not new as such, just much more likely now and therefore rising to her attention.
Her eyes flew open. "Oh," she murmured.
Sometimes, she saw a great danger approaching, for instance unstoppable alien soldiers or an impending natural disaster. The more signs of warning she noticed in the present, the more it helped make her predictions accurate.
But this time, it was no mortal peril that she was looking at. Yet the rush of jumbled emotion was no lesser.
Looking around the arboretum, so many thoughts of the past joined those of the future. Trance was at a loss for what to do, which path to take.
After a while, she decided to stop worrying and just let things take their course. They would come to her; with a smile, she decided that this was probably for the best. Other people should have their own initiative in choosing what happens; especially when it came to something like this.
It was late morning, and Rommie sported one of her classic wide-eyed frowns. The sort she usually reserved for particularly confusing spatial phenomena and inexplicable organic behavior, like Harper dancing with her droids or Beka getting philosophical.
Rommie looked at a screen with the visual representation of Andromeda, her core AI. The latter was giving Rommie a deadpan look, one associated with disapproval… and, sometimes, with Harper shenanigans.
"What?" Rommie asked her electronically through the shipwide network, in but a tiny fraction of a second. When her crewmates were in the vicinity, though, she tended to verbalize such inquiries. It wouldn't be right to keep them out of the loop, after all.
Andromeda just shook her head on the screen. Of course, Rommie knew full well why.
"Hey, it can happen to anyone on the crew," Rommie countered.
Andromeda raised an eyebrow.
"Present company excluded," Rommie conceded.
Andromeda blinked. She still looked less than enthused at her avatar's state.
Rommie found it ironic that her relatively unemotional core AI was using human facial expressions to communicate with her, while Rommie was the one utilizing efficient machine methods.
Raising a finger, Rommie declared, this time verbally, "Well, I'm going to consult with the relevant authority and life expert. He'll know what to do."
The core AI now considered Rommie with a non-committal expression, lips pouted and both eyebrows raised slightly.
Rommie opened a channel. "Captain, do you have a moment?"
With a genial smile, Captain Dylan Hunt indicated the chair on the opposite side of his desk. Setting his fingers into a pyramid gesture, he began, "What is it, Rommie?"
Having taken the proferred seat, the ship's physical avatar blinked. Judging from her face and posture, Dylan thought that she looked… nervous. This was highly unusual for the normally impeccably confident and composed android. That worried him, though he did his best not to show it. He doubted that it fooled the extremely perceptive Rommie for even a moment, though.
"I have a… problem," Rommie hesitantly began.
"Ah," Dylan nodded languidly. Having a feeling that this was a sensitive matter, he did what he would with a human crew member in the same position. Looking up, he said, "Andromeda, engage privacy mode."
"Privacy mode engaged," came the ship AI's response.
Gazing back at Rommie, he continued, "So, problem. Go on," Dylan splayed both hands ahead in a gesture of giving Rommie the proverbial floor.
"It already happened before, Dylan. I think I know what I should do about it, and my… other selves agree that it's the right course. On the other hand, I don't want to do it, and I have an… impression, if that's the right word for it, that if I do it, I could squander the chance for something great."
Dylan wasn't used to this sort of vagueness from his typically precise android officer. He considered her for several moments, then leaned forward, arms resting on top of the desk. "Well, that's a pretty common problem to have, Rommie," he grinned. "I'm quite familiar with those sorts of dilemmas."
Rommie continued. "Instead of the logical and safe choice, I want to do something that I don't even know if it can work, let alone if it'll do good or harm. And it makes me wonder if I'm too unreliable and unstable to remain connected to the ship," she said with an undertone of dejection.
Dylan frowned. "Now, Rommie, we've already talked about this. I told you that I don't want you to suppress your emotions, and I stand by that. Of course, I also hold you to the same standards of self-control that I would anyone else on this crew. So as long as you keep things within reason, I'm sure you'll do fine. More than fine," he emphasized. "I have the utmost trust in you, Rommie," he smiled reassuringly.
"Thank you, Captain," she replied.
"But I can't help you if you don't tell me what this is about," he added. "Well?" Dylan raised both eyebrows.
After a moment of silence, Rommie responded, "The closest analogue would be what happened when Gabriel came aboard. Emotions of that nature and intensity."
"Ooh," Dylan nodded several times. "I see," he stated with a sigh.
"I don't want to make a mistake and endanger the crew, Dylan. I know it was not quite the same situation, but again, I don't want to end up like the Pax Magellanic." She was referring to the High Guard ship whose AI avatar fell in love with her captain, entered a relationship with him, lost her crew, and went insane. "And… even without that, I know how much pain it could cause if things go wrong," Rommie reasoned.
Dylan took a few moments to consider what she had said. Then, "Well, Rommie, I don't think I can tell you anything that I already haven't, or that you don't already know. I know that what you're feeling is amazing, and I sympathize fully, but… those Commonwealth regs exist for a reason. And for that same reason, I can't be a part of what you hope for. I'm sorry, Rommie," he finished somberly.
Rommie frowned, and inclined her head sideways. "Dylan… I wasn't referring to you," she noted.
"Oh!" Dylan's eyebrows shot up, his mouth turning into a comical 'O'. A moment later, he grinned and responded, "Huh. Nevermind, I got you wrong." He seemed relieved. "So, who's the lucky guy?"
Rommie blinked. "Trance."
Dylan made another surprised 'O'. "Trance," he repeated.
Rommie nodded rapidly several times.
The Captain took a long breath, glancing to the side. "Wow. Didn't see that one coming," he remarked.
Rommie had nothing to say to that.
Then, considering the android avatar with a kind smile, Dylan began, "I suppose it does make sense, though."
"It does?" Rommie had a look of mild confusion.
"Sure," Dylan chuckled. "Is there anyone who doesn't like Trance?" He splayed his hands. "She's our ray of sunshine!" Dylan guffawed, then added with a whisper, "Literally." He winked.
Rommie pursed her lips, her head swaying a little sideways and back in a silent "I suppose so."
Taking a long sigh and a pause to think, Dylan spoke more seriously. "I have no idea how Trance handles these sorts of things, if she ever does at all. She's not like us; her natural form is a star, of all things, and she only took on the body she has in order to interact with us. How far does she take that, I don't know." Dylan's hands shot up momentarily for emphasis, before he dropped them on his legs with a thud. "I guess it's up to you to find out," he quipped, grinning at Rommie again.
The android had the look of a deer in headlights.
In the Eureka Maru's mess hall, First Officer Beka Valentine belly-laughed, and kept going at it, to the wide-eyed frown of a perplexed Rommie.
"What?" Rommie asked.
Finding it difficult to catch her breath, Beka managed to gather herself enough to say, "Oh, Rebecca Valentine. That shows you, for not taking the plunge when you had the chance."
Rommie blinked. "Excuse me?"
Beka's eyes twinkled merrily as she smiled. "Gotta say, you've got good taste, Rommie. Way better than what my usual picks tend to turn out like. This time, though… it just turns out I'm late to the party," she concluded.
Rommie narrowed her eyes, in a display of uncertainty and attempting to understand. "Are you saying that you've felt the same? For Trance?"
Beka shrugged, wiggling her eyebrows. Raising a hand, she held a couple of fingers close to each other, grinning, "Just a smidgen."
Looking to the side with a thoughtful frown, Rommie mused, "I did notice something, but it seemed inconclusive… Oh!" Rommie exclaimed, eyes wide and staring back at Beka. "Should I… pull back then? If you—"
"What? No!" Beka interrupted, frowning. Suddenly very serious, she approached Rommie with a threatening finger. "Don't you dare. If you do that, then I swear on the Maru, I will have Harper hack you so that you can only speak through quoting Friedrich Nietzsche." She nodded fiercely for emphasis as she held Rommie's gaze.
The android raised her eyebrows, giving Beka her patented "organics are confusing" stare.
"Don't even think about it," Beka finally warned, poking the air in front of Rommie with the finger.
"Right," Rommie said.
"So… Trance," Bekka mused as she started pacing back and forth. Puckering her lips, she made a popping sound. "That's gonna be different," she stated sheepishly.
Still standing in place with her hands behind her back, Rommie blinked twice as she followed Beka's trajectory.
Coming to a halt, Beka turned towards Rommie. "I'm not sure how that'll work, to tell you the truth. Trance is… kind of out there," she opined vaguely. "I don't think any of my relationships resembled anything you might have with Trance."
"Assuming she would even want a relationship," Rommie noted.
"Hey, no defeatism!" Beka exclaimed.
"That's not what I meant," Rommie replied. "As you said, Trance is different. And in all her time on the Andromeda, I've never seen any indication of her being… romantically inclined, for lack of a better term."
Beka sighed, resting her hands on her hips. "I suppose you're right," she conceded. "Still, you won't know until you try."
Rommie nodded.
"Besides… what have you got to lose?" Beka added brightly. "She's our Trance. Whatever happens, she will never hurt you. Hell, you two are the least messed up people on this boat. You'll do fine," Beka winked as she clapped Rommie's upper arm encouragingly.
Rommie had a slight smile. She was glad they had this conversation.
As Rommie entered the observation lounge, she walked past the plants and the seats, making her way to the chamber's single current occupant, whose back was turned to the entrance as she stared out at the stars.
Of course, Rommie knew where to find her. Given her access to every sensor on the ship, she was aware of where her crewmates were at all times.
Trance, conversely, knew that Rommie was very likely coming. The branches of possible near futures tended to extend in that direction, like one of the tall black poplar trees she recently saw on the surface of a human colony planet which they had been sent to on Commonwealth business. So, when Trance heard footsteps unhurriedly approaching, she didn't need to turn to see who it was.
"Hello, Rommie."
"Trance."
Rommie came to a stop at Trance's side. For several minutes, the ship's avatar and the avatar of a sun just stood together quietly, watching the space beyond the Andromeda.
Finally, Rommie broke the silence. "Do you know why I'm here?" she asked softly.
Trance looked sideways to consider her, and Rommie did likewise. "Do you know why you're here?" Trance rebounded. She had a warm smile, though spiced with what may have been a slight note of mischief.
Rommie blinked several times in succession. Inclining her head for a moment, she said, "I know the why. Just not the how or the what or even the if of it. Does that make sense?" Rommie queried.
Her core AI would never be that vague and imprecise, but Rommie had had practice with Rev Bem… and Trance. She knew how to convey a lot by saying little… sometimes. Other times, Harper made a face and said "Huh?"
But Trance beamed at her. "It does."
"Come," Trance told Rommie, taking her by the hand as they turned to leave the observation lounge.