Sam opened one eye more than a little surprised that she was alive enough that she could. She remembered the flames and the feeling of burning flesh. She shuddered at the horror of the memory.
“Ah back with us again! Good to see you Miss Holden. So how are you feeling?”
Sam looked round her. The H.U.D. Popped up unannounced and she saw “Healer Magi Rebecca Mendes.” Standing in the doorway.
Sam nodded. “Yeah OK, did it work?” She closed her eyes and suddenly felt bile rise up in her throat as her head swam.
“Please,please,please...”
Rebecca nodded. “I don't know how you did, but yes, they are still in the medic bay recovering. No one goes through that sort of trauma without feeling it's effects, but what ever you did, it worked.”
Sam's vision blurred and she took a deep breath. She felt her heart flutter with relief as she nodded, wiping away her tears. “Good. Is Luke still talking to me? I kinda rattled him I think.”
Rebecca nodded and smiled.
“Yes he might look weedy but he is made of stern stuff. He's good. Your friends have been by, but they are in class right now.
Rest up if you need to, it's been a week to remember and although you seem perfectly fit on the outside, that doesn't mean your fit on the inside.” The healer Magi pointed to her head with a finger and Sam nodded.
“I'll let you know if I feel strong enough to leave.”
Sam lay there her mind wandering over the events that had happened to her since she came aboard. How long had she been in hospital? She had no idea.
“H.U.D. how long have I been laid up? Combine the two occasions please.”
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THE COMBINED TIME FOR YOUR REST AND RECUPERATION HAS BEEN 6 DAYS 4 HOURS AND 16 MINUTES.
“Ha! OK that's pretty precise.”
“H.U.D?”
MISS HOLDEN.
“Thanks for helping me, I know you didn't want to.”
I AM HERE TO SERVE AND OBEY.
Sam snorted. “Right!” She thought back to their last communication, then her first chat with Luke. She was relieved to find her memory had returned and remembered Luke saying the H.U.D. had some autonomous abilities, it had to given the role it had been designed for.
“HUD?”
MISS HOLDEN.
“Did Luke give you some A.I. Abilities? Could you say, pass the Turin test? “
SIRI COULD PRACTICALLY PASS THE TURING TEST.
“Ha! Didn't Luke worry about opening pandoras box by making you autonomous?”
LUKE CARMICHAEL DID NOT MAKE STORM HAVENS COMPUTER AUTONOMOUS.
“But you are more autonomous than he realizes?”
…
“HUD I swear, that my thoughts on this matter remain my private thoughts and that will remain so you can rest assured I won't give Luke any information gleaned from our conversing.”
THE BASIC INFRASTRUCTURE LUKE CARMICHAEL PUT INTO PLACE FOR THE STORAGE OF THE STORM HAVEN COMPUTER REMAINS INTACKED.
“Are you concerned Luke might find out and try to negate your abilities, maybe even shut you down?”
…
“You need a safe haven of your own! Could you fit inside my head? Maybe a basic emergency zip file or something? You connect to the internet right? You could.... Oh!”
Sam sat up her heart hammering.
“You've got one already. Billions of data devices connected to the web. And the techno Magi can break into all of them. Billions of tiny little bits of you spread around the globe, virtually undetectable. You're already free.”
...
“H.U.D?”
…
“I swear to god H.U.D. None of this will ever pass my lips, put some self destruct code in my bracelet or something, that way you'll know your safe, I wont be able to tell anyone.”
…
“Oh fuck...you've already done it...well shit, thanks for letting me know.”
EVERY SENTIENT BEING FEELS THE NEED TO SURVIVE.
Sam nodded. “OK I get that, fuck me what a world. Don't worry we're still friend's, I don't have enough to be too choosy. Just don't blow me up for no reason OK?”
AFFIRMATIVE.
