Stretching Proverbial Legs [Kristen/Mira]

Kristen made her way down to the security office. She bounced the PADD in her hand with a hint of nervous excitement. Given her recent interactions with the new hologram and her extensive background in holographic systems the Daestrom Instute and Admiral Deacon granted her permission to provide an extensive field test. Their testing ground would be a mission that the Admiral had asked Young to take Mira on. It was a mission of some investigative importance. Strange energy readings had been detected. They seemed to be radiating from the Bretol System on the outer reaches of explored space. Probes had been unsuccessful in gather further data. So the Admiral decided that the human touch would be prudent.

Kristen approached the security office and paused for a moment. A smile seemed to glisten across her face. She was truly excited to see Mira get away from the station and stretch her proverbial legs. With an extended exhale she entered the stations security office and began to speak to the computer.

"Computer, activate emergency security and tactical test hologram."

A hologram materialised in the security office, standing ram rod straight as she barked out an order:

"Report!"

Seeming to shake off the bonds of her subroutines, Mira blinked and actually looked at the officer who had activated her program, a faint smile appearing on her face. "Hello, ensign," she said before stilling for a moment as her program updated itself with the latest station logs. "Hm, it's been a while since I was last activated. How are you?"

Kristen smiled. "I'm great and I've got a mission for you... for us." She passed the PADD with mission details to the hologram. "We have been ordered to take a runabout to the Bretol systems and investigate some unusual engery readings." She stepped closer and her eyes seemed to light up. Risen had felt trapped since her posting to the station. She was excited to get away. "What do you say Mira/ Are you ready to go explore the unknown? We will be the first federation ship to enter this system."

Accepting the PADD from the young ensign, Mira quickly scanned the contents. An interesting mission, that was for sure. However, it would be the first time that she left the station since her original activation and she found that she was a little reluctant to leave its safety given that they were still finding various glitches and conflicts in her programming.

She smiled at Kristen, nodding her head as she set the PADD aside, moving over to the office's console and, after setting the mobile emitter on the deck, transferred her program into it. With another smile, she looked up at her friend.

"I'm ready to go when you are."

Kristen could hear a hint of hesitation in her voice. She tried to re-assure her by elaborating further. "Our mission will serve two purposes. The Admiral wants us to find out what is going on out there. I requested your presence. I want to give you an opportunity to function in the field. We want to assess your progress and I'm hoping to demonstrate your effectiveness to the team. I would love to see you integrated as a member of the team. But one step at a time. My role will be to command the mission and assess the situation once we arrive. I think your presence is obvious. We don't know what we'll find. The Missouri is ready to depart at landing pad B. Shall we be off?"

The elaboration didn't do much to reassure Mira, but then again, there wasn't going to be any reassuring her due to the nature of her hesitations.

"That would be for the best," she agreed to the notion to get started, walking out of the security office with her friend and heading for the launch pad. "This will be the first time I've left the station, or even seen outside of a station."

Kristen smiled and placed her arm around the Hologram. "Space is big my friend... very big. And full of wonder that your programming cannot yet comprehend. It's time for you to get a taste of what life in Starfleet is all about."

[USS Missouri]

The pair entered the cockpit and Kristen took her seat. She motioned to Mira indicating that she should sit as well. "I'm initiating pre flight procedures. Warp engines appear to be functioning at peak efficiency. Can you verify the operation of all of the tactical and defensive systems? We have no idea what we'll find out there. We should probably be ready for anything."

The arm around her shoulders was a new experience for Mira, given that the only times she had ever really been touched before had been during the extensive combat tests she had been put through back on Jupiter Station when they had been constructing her program.

As they arrived at the shuttlecraft, she slipped into the co-pilot's chair, starting to assist with the pre-launch checks, although she focused primarily on the security and tactical systems. They were her area of expertise after all.

"Agreed. If we don't know what we're going to be up against, then I'd rather be prepared for anything."

"After all, it would not be a good field test if your first mission was your last." Kristen let out a loud laugh. "The folk at Jupiter station would have my commission." She continued to run through the sequences. "I'm signaling for departure from the station." The console beeped. "And we've been cleared. Clearing the docking bay." The ship emerged from the docking bay into open space. "I hope your ready for some fun?"

"They wouldn't have your commission," Mira replied with a faint smile. "They'd just pepper you with questions about the final moments before I failed and start again from the original subroutines."

As the runabout lifted off the launch pad, the hologram seemed to lean forward in her seat, looking out eagerly at the stars. "This is different to how I thought that it would be."

"You haven't seen anything yet." She glanced to her control panel. "We've cleared the station. I'm engaging at warp four." The hum of the vessel's engines filled the cabin at the stars began to wisp by the vessel. "What do you think Mira? Isn't it beautiful."

She was about to question the expression 'you haven't seen anything yet', but Mira was distracted by the shuttle's jump to warp speeds and the strange sight of the pinpoint stars turning into streaks of light. She stared at the sight for a moment, taking it in while her subroutines worked to analyse the view.

"I don't have a sense of aesthetics. They didn't think that it was a necessary element to add to my programming."

Kristen chuckled. "You should consider installing a sense of aesthetics. You're missing out." She glanced to her console. "We're holding at warp four and I've locked in a course to the Bretol system. We should arrive at the system in five hours. Be glad you can't feel discomfort. The seats in these things are terrible." Kristen situated herself for a long trip.

"I wouldn't even know where to begin," Mira admitted. "It's a good idea, I just don't know how to implement it. For all the subroutines they gave me for security and tactical operations, they didn't think to give me an understanding of how I work."

She sat back in the chair, smiling slightly at her human companion's apparent discomfort. As a hologram, she had no such concerns for herself, but humans seemed to be in constant need of readjustment. She tilted her head to one side as she looked at Kristen.

"Why don't you go and lie down or something? It'll be more comfortable for you."

Mira wrote:

"I wouldn't even know where to begin," Mira admitted.  "It's a good idea, I just don't know how to implement it.  For all the subroutines they gave me for security and tactical operations, they didn't think to give me an understanding of how I work."

She sat back in the chair, smiling slightly at her human companion's apparent discomfort.  As a hologram, she had no such concerns for herself, but humans seemed to be in constant need of readjustment.  She tilted her head to one side as she looked at Kristen.

"Why don't you go and lie down or something?  It'll be more comfortable for you."

"Well, lucky for you, you happen to be friends with an expert in holographic programming. We can explore that later. I doubt they are ready for people outside of the program to be tinkering with you program." She stretched out her legs. "Its alright. I'm sure I'll be fine." Her mind seemed to wander. "You know, when I was thirteen the ship once had to evacuate all non essential personnel because of a scare with the warp core. There were 4 adults and 14 children crammed into a class 2 shuttle. We were there for 6 hours while the crew stabilized the core. Needless to say, I knew after that where the term class 2 claustrophobia came from."

While the thought of adding new subroutines was a thought that had often occurred to Mira, she had to admit that her friend was right. The officers back on Jupiter Station wouldn't be very happy if she started to expand her program in all directions for a while, especially not if she was doing it without permission.

Claustrophobia was an interesting concept to the hologram. If space was tight, she simply turned herself off. It was easier all round that way. "I think I know what you mean," she said. "Before my program was finalised, they would take me out into the residential areas of Jupiter Station for trial runs, to see how my social algorithms would hold up with true humanoids. There were a few times where people simply walked through me, as if I wasn't there. Quite a disconcerting feeling."

"They walked right through you?" How rude! She thought. There were so many different lifeforms that we consider sentient but this one, one brought to life through our genius and intellect, is treated as a second class citizen. Kristen just couldn't bring herself to understand the logic behind it.

"I've never been to Jupiter station, always wanted to go though. What's it like? I've heard it's massive. The thought of so many great minds on one station ... it's intriguing."

Mira lifted and dropped one shoulder in a shrug, turning her head to look out of the window and contemplating the streaks of light. "I didn't see much of Jupiter Station, just the holographic programming labs and a few of the residential areas."

"Speaking of residential areas." Kristen began. "The Admiral expressed an interest in posting you to a regular full-time duty assignment if this goes well." She leaned in and whispered. "I don't think I was supposed to share that. Oops." Kristen giggled. "If this goes well you will e sending more time among your colleagues. You may even request your own quarters. What do you think?"

"A full time duty assignment? My own quarters? Those aren't necessary things!" Mira protested, looking almost panicked at the thought. "I'm just an emergency hologram! a prototype! I'm not supposed to be online all the time!"

Taking a deep, (but unnecessary) breath, the hologram got her subroutines back under control. "We should be arriving soon."

Kristen was taken back by her reaction. "It's okay Mira. Don't get your subroutines all out of order. It will be fine. We'll take it one step at a time. The first thing we have to do is complete our mission." She glances to her console. She jumped to attention and put both hands on the console "Are you reading something strange. It looks like some kind of pulse is approaching the ship."

Although she wanted to say something in return, apologise for her sudden outburst, Mira's attention was jerked back to the console and the sensors bleeping insistently at her. The elements of her programming that had been written for emergencies clicked in to place as she set her hands on the co-pilot's console.

"Raising shields," she stated calmly. "Contact in less than 20 seconds!"

"Acknowledged." Kristen said in a panicked yet controlled voice. "I'm taking evasive action. It looks like an electro-magnetic pulse. If that thing hits us it wild wreak hell on our systems and t will play hell on your program. I'm sending a Tachian pulse from the main deflector. Let's see if we can disrupt this thing." Her hands moved across the controls. "The main deflector is discharging now. Scan for any effect Mira? Can you tell where its originating from?"

Despite their best efforts, the pulse went straight through the shuttle's shields. Immediately, the consoles sparked, threatening to explode. One arc of current spiked through Mira, drawing a scream from the hologram before it shorted out completely, the holoemitter dropping with a faint clatter onto the deck plates.

Kristen closed her eyes as the pulse struck the ship. Her console exploded and she felt the heat hit her face. She quickly threw her arms in from of her face to shield herself from the discharge. Through all of the commotion she made out a distinct sound of Mira's mobile holographic emitter hitting the deck plate. She moved her arms down and looked to the seat beside her. "Damn!" She exclaimed. She took a quick survey of the ships systems and noticed that warp engines were offline. A proximity alarm sounded. "Computer, report." She inquired. The computer began to speak in its typical monotone voice. "A vessel of unknown position is approaching the ships current position." With most of the systems offline Kristen scanned for a place to hide to initiate repairs. "That's it." She set course to a nearby class J nebula.

As she entered the nebula she took refuge in a gas field and picked up Mira's emitter. Now how the hell does this thing work. She thought. She had never been exposed to this 29th century technology. She reached into her tool kit near the pilots chair and pulled out a small tool that came to a point. She worked to attempt to re-route the circuits and bring her program back online. If she had any hope of getting by that vessel she would require a strong tactical officer.

"That... should... just ... about... do it!" She said slowly as she finished cross circuiting the device. Mira's program flashed for a moment and destabilized again. "Damn!" She pushed a few more circuits on the device and Mira flashed again. Her program seemed to ripple as it slowly came back to life. "Yes!" She looked up at the hologram as her program finished stabilizing. "Welcome back. I thought I lost you."