I spun around, now face to face with the young woman I'd seen at the meeting. The titanium thermos she'd thrown spun between us.

MAJ ASHLEY KUBA — age 34 — C-7 clearance

Four off-world combat tours

Novak Cross w/ cluster

"Youngest line-officer to hold the seat."

Instead of her full military uniform, she wore charcoal cargo slacks and a grey compression T-shirt with a tiny rank tab on the collar. Loose strands of hair whipped across her cheek as she stopped short. "What the—"

<<External threat level: High. Recommend compliance.>>

My body froze, pinned under the weight of her glare.

"State your authorisation code," her voice level as a laser.

One breath. "Uh…" I stammered. "I… uh… was just…"

"Or you can try explaining yourself before JAG gets here."

Her eyes flicked to Doli.

"I'm sorry," I tried.

"Sorry? You have no idea what you've stumbled into," she said, lowering her voice and glancing toward the door. "If it had been anyone else who found you here..." She trailed off, checking something on her wrist display. "Security protocols have been compromised three times this month. I can't afford another breach."

I didn't know what she was talking about, but I wanted out of there. I made to move, but she stepped in my way.

"Why is my android online?"

A lump formed in my throat as I resisted the urge to backpedal. What did I expect? That I'd waltz in here, hack military-grade tech, and walk away with no consequences? Idiot.

"Doli," I said. "You know…."

"Major Kuba," she replied.

"Of cou—rse, Maj-or." Doli grinned, and taking a step forward, held her hand out. "The capt-tain has been hel-ping fix me up for you."

"Captain? Oh, this is rich." Her brows shot up. "Still sounds like shit," she said.

My brain scrambled for an explanation that wouldn't land me in prison. "Look, I was… curious. The hangar looked abandoned, and I … wanted to see what was inside."

"Curious," she repeated, crossing her arms. Her tone was laced with disbelief. "You hacked into a secure facility because you were curious?"

"Pretty much," I admitted. Honesty seemed like the only play I had left.

To my surprise, she didn't call for reinforcements. Instead, she sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Unbelievable. You're either the dumbest criminal I've ever met or the luckiest."

"Maybe both?" I offered weakly.

"Operational percentage?"

"I was co—ming to inf-orm the Capt-ain. Background repair daemon executed. Integrity climbed from twenty-two percent to twenty-eight percent."

"Twenty-eight percent?"

"Yes, Ma-ajor."

The Major looked at me, and I backed away. "You're welcome. I'll see myself out."

"Oh, no you don't," she stepped in my way. "You'd better sit."

"Sit?"

Major Kuba pointed to the mess hall table. "Sit. Now."

She wasn't giving me much of a choice. Her arms crossed under her chest, a deep scowl set into her otherwise delicate yet stoic face.

"W—ould you l-ike a dri-rink, Major?"

Major Kuba glanced at the droid, and her frown turned into a smile. "What would you suggest, Doli?"

Doli opened one of the cupboards at the back of the room, and to my surprise, she pulled out a bottle of whiskey, holding it out for inspection. "I be-lie-ve this will suff-ice under the circu-msta-nces."

I twiddled my thumbs at the table. I was in deep shit now, and I knew it.

"What…" Major Kuba said. Then, looking at me, she asked. "What did you do? And who the fuck are you?"

"I… I'm Piotr Argassa," I stammered. My heart raced, and for a moment, I thought she could hear it. "Just an engineer."

Doli, ever the helpful android, handed the Major a tumbler of whiskey. She snorted, her eyes narrowing as she downed it in one go. "Just an engineer doesn't waltz into a military base, fix my android, and act like they own the place." She paused as if considering her words. "Engineers like you don't stay just anything for long."

"Sorry," I stuttered, not knowing where to look.

"Where did you even come from?"

"I errr— I work outside the city. At Marts and Sparks," I fumbled.

"You're kidding me, Marts and Sparks?" Major Kuba waved her hand over Doli. She studied me for a moment, her sharp eyes assessing. "But you fixed her?"

"Mostly," I said. "Her code was a mess. I just… cleaned it up."

Major Kuba's expression shifted, a flicker of something resembling respect crossing her features. "Not bad for a civilian," she muttered.

I hesitated, then asked, "Why is she even here? Doli's clearly advanced, but it looks like you're shutting the project down."

Her jaw tightened. "Budget cuts. The higher-ups don't think she's worth the investment."

"They're wrong," I said without thinking. "She's incredible."

Major Kuba's gaze softened, slightly. "Tell me something I don't know." She sighed, then squared her shoulders. "Seriously, fucking Marts and Sparks?"

"Yeah," I nodded. "She's still a lot of glitches. There are strings I need to break down and rewrite. But I was getting there. Just needed a drink…"

"Oh, m—y capta—in," Doli stuttered. "What wo—uld you like?"

"Can you connect to Major Kuba's HUD as well as mine?"

"Yes, Captain." She said, and I heard a click as she did so.

Secondary User Interface Connected – Maj. A. Kuba

Warning: Dual Connection Increases Load

Neural Load: 43% – Stable

<<Connected now.>>

"Coffee," I said. "Some food if there is anything easy?"

<<Of course,>> Doli said, and off she went, moving about the small galley once again.

"That's much better, she sounds almost normal."

"Almost normal," I reiterated.

Major Kuba sat before me and poured herself another whiskey. "I only came by because I—I—"

"You didn't want to decommission her," I risked. "She's your baby."

Major Kuba ran a hand over her face. "You shouldn't know that, but you do. How?"

"I listened to the meeting yesterday while I nosed around."

"Nosing around?"

"Yeah, I was out for lunch, saw your dressing down in the yard, got curious, liked what I saw."

"There are people who would kill for what's in this hangar," Ashley said, her voice barely above a whisper. "Not just for the ship, but for what Doli represents. The wrong hands..." She shook her head. "Let's just say there's a reason this project was officially 'terminated.'"

Doli put the coffee before me, and I took a swig, pinching the bridge of my nose.

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"Are you feeling okay?" the Major asked.

"Bit of a headache," I answered, and pinched harder.

"That will be the adjustment to the tech, you're not used to it." She sighed. "You realize how many laws you broke coming in here? Right?"

"But you're not arresting me?"

Her eyes narrowed as I watched her mind working, clearly weighing her options.

I drank more coffee and was surprised when the hot meal I was preparing was put before me. I shot Doli a look. <<Ready meal, easy to serve.>>

Doli placed a fork before me, and I looked at the Major before digging in.

"This is good."

"We didn't skimp. This is a ship that's faster, and more capable than anything we've ever built."

"But they are shutting it down?"

"Budget cuts, there's nothing left to give me," she said again. "There were complications a few months ago. When we—I—I couldn't get Doli fully online, no matter what I tried, that was their only option."

"A fresh set of eyes can always see what's in front of someone else's face." I said.

"Someone planted a logic bomb in her core architecture three months ago. Nearly destroyed everything before we caught it."

The information flashed before my eyes.

Core Subsystem Memory Log Accessed

Logic Bomb Residual Signature Detected

Threat Classification: Class 2 – Saboteur Level

<<Captain, I still have residual corruption in auxiliary threads. Risk to system stability: 14%.>>

"Sabotage? Who would—"

"Someone who doesn't want this technology to exist. And if they find out you're fixing her..." Ashley's eyes darted toward the hangar entrance. "We're both in more danger than you realize."

She studied me for a long while, and I cringed. No one had ever looked at me like this before. Not since… well… "You're not at the academy?" she eventually asked.

"Nope, never found a sponsor rich enough."

"Not even for one of the first-year exams?"

"One semester at Razors runs what?"

"₵ 310 k." She let out a sigh. "You would need to fix hover-cars for 40 years to cover a single term."

"Exactly," I shook my head, "I really am poor, and I really do fix hover-cars."

"Not anymore," she said.

The fork in my hand paused mid-air as I almost choked on the ready meal. "What?"

"If you can fix up my teams, my mistakes, you're too good to be working in Marts and Sparks and you know it. I'll sponsor you, and I'll get you fast-tracked."

"Wait," I said, holding up a hand. "Why would you consider doing that for me? You should have me thrown out, locked up for hacking into a military academy and secure base."

"I should," she said. "But I want to save Doli. I've worked too hard on her for that."

<<She's desperate,>>

<<I can see that, would I be taking advantage by asking for more from her?>>

<<Yes, but she needs you.>>

"One other condition," she said and drank another mouthful of alcohol.

"What's that?"

"We need to get this ship off the base to a safe location; only then can we fix her properly. Maybe rewrite her from the ground up."

Doli stepped before Major Kuba. <<Now, Major, who wants to break the law?>>

The Major stood and walked around Doli. "Like you said earlier, she's my 'baby.' I don't want to lose her or access to her. I've spent years with my team, building her up and coding her from scratch."

"Even if flawed," I said, on her glare as I finished my sentence. "She's some of the best engineering I've seen, and I've seen a lot of innovative ideas." I stood with her, looking at Doli. "What do you say, Doli?"

<<I say yes.>> she frowned, <<I do not want to be shoved in a hangar and forgotten about. Not now, not now. I am awake. At least before, I was only partially aware.>>

"You still knew where I stashed my booze," Major Kuba said.

Doli grinned from ear to ear. <<I know a lot more secrets,>> she said. <<Like when you and Sgt—>>

"Enough of that," the Major cursed and tried her best to cover Doli's mouth even though she was speaking to us directly, it had the desired effect.

"Get a little frisky in the ship's quarters?" I asked with a chuckle.

"Enough!" the Major said. "Now get your ass back home the way you came. I'll have my detail pick you up from Marts and Sparks in the morning. You can move across here from wherever it is you're living now."

"Shitty little apartment south-side," I said.

"The dorm rooms probably aren't much better," she added. "But they're here, and here you can do better work. That—" she reached forward and lightly tapped the side of my head. "That's wasted out there."

"You really think so?" I had to ask.

"If you did all of this," she waved back to Doli, "then hell yes. Now go."

"Academy, and then what?" I asked her.

"Whatever you want, you graduate from there—the world's your oyster."

As I looked up, a sudden projection of stars filled the ceiling, twinkling beautifully. <<How did you know?>>

<<I'm in your head,>> she replied. <<I know you better than you know yourself.>>

That thought scared me a little.

"I dream of the dark. I dream of exploring space, me and a ship—well, a ship like this…"

New Goal Logged:

Long-Term Command Authorization Requested

Trait [Activated]: Spatial Systems Intuition – Navigation Aptitude +5%

Stat Increased: Perception +1

I patted the bulkhead behind me. "If I fix Doli," I said, leaning forward, "and stay with the academy to see it through, I want the ship as payment."

"Do you have any idea what she's worth?"

I glanced around us, "₵10 billion for the hull and systems as a going-concern starship. Add the proprietary fusion-impulse drive and Doli's sovereign AI core and the figure climbs to ₵25 – 28 billion on any grey-market that can actually clear a deal that size."

<<You're not that far off.>>

Major Kuba's jaw tightened, her eyes narrowing. "You're bold, I'll give you that."

I held her gaze, my voice steady. "Maybe. But without me, Doli doesn't get fixed, and that ship doesn't fly."

Doli also nodded her head. <<I want to see the dark. I want to explore.>>

"Doli's worth 1000x more than this ship fully operational, and you know it." I said.

Major Kuba couldn't deny that.

<<I am,>> Doli said. <<My applications and system-wide upgrades to all military vessels would put my estimated 'price' firmly in the low trillion range.>>

"Straight out of the mouth of babes," Major Kuba murmured.

"I really wasn't expecting that…"

"It's the truth, her top line would break every financial institute we know."

"So you'll give me the ship?" I pushed.

"If—and only if—you can get Doli to 90% operational capacity and prove she can run ship systems flawlessly. One glitch, one failure, and the deal's off. You get nothing and I report you for theft of classified technology."

"Almost from scratch." I grinned and held out a hand for her. "Deal?"

Major Kuba took my hand in hers and shook it. "Deal, but don't call me Major Kuba. Call me Ashley, please."

"Deal there too, then Ashley."

Ashley smiled, but then it turned to a frown.

<<Contract,>> Doli said, and flicked us both a document. <<Legal and binding to what I witnessed.>>

Witness Protocol Enabled

SmartContract ID: DS-Alpha-V1.03

Condition Triggers: 90% Operational + Ship Autonomy Checkpass

Note: Breaking this contract may result in legal review by Coalition Protocol 14A.

"Shit, she's fast." Ashley said, then hesitated. "You do understand if I sign this now, it locks me out if Doli sides with you?"

<<I am neutral but I do record everything,>>

Ashley cursed. "God help me if this goes tits up."

We both stared at the contract –

On completion of a new digital DOLI program, Doli-2, I'd be free to leave and the C47 prototype would be mine. I was ecstatic. This was the best news I could ever, ever have.

We both signed it.

<<Provisional biometric hash accepted in lieu of formal key — expires in 48 h unless validated by Coalition notary.>>

"I'll get it notarized." She said, then waved me off. "Go. Before I change my mind."

Not waiting for her to say it again, I made my way back to my cramped apartment, the memory of the spaceship blazing in my mind.

<<Would you like me to help you catch up with your learning?>>

<<For the academy?>> I asked. <<How would you do that?>>

<<Do you have a—>> Doli's voice broke, I stopped walking. Was I too far away? I walked back a few steps <<—ood reception at your apartment?>>

<<I have a full hardwire connection to the grid.>>

<<Excellent, then I'll help you with some class downloads while you rest.>>

<<That's possible?>>

<<With me around, the world is your oyster.>> I chuckled. <<But yes, I can access and download your class curriculum, and we can run through it at night, possibly catch you up on all your learning.>>

I liked the sound of it, and if it helped me catch up it was a bonus. My apartment wasn't too far now, and I ran the rest of the way.

A few minutes later, I sat cross-legged on my apartment floor, the room's cluttered chaos surrounding me. The stolen chip and DOLI's program were now nestled safely in my port. I leaned back against my chair, plugging my port in once again, the faint warmth of the data transferring as Doli's system synced with the grid.

"So would this be basics?"

<<I'll integrate slowly. A tutorial would be a good word for this.>>

System Skill Branch Unlocked

Ship Systems [Active]

Navigation Systems [Locked]

AI Integration [Active]

Tactical Console Control [Locked]

"Initiate tutorial mode then, please," I murmured, barely above a whisper.

Tutorial Initiated

Subject: AI Protocols & Ship Systems

Estimated Duration: 12.3 hrs

Learning Mode: Accelerated (Active Repair Permission Granted)

<<Repeating, tutorial initiated,>> she replied, smooth and robotic. <<Which subject shall we begin with, Captain?>>

"Show me everything related to AI protocols and ship operations," I said, leaning forward. Data streamed into my vision, a three-dimensional lattice of interconnected code. It was intricate, beautiful, and a complete mess. I dove into it, my hands moving as if manipulating invisible threads.

<<Sorry Captain, it seems this section of the program contains incomplete data structures. Shall I prioritize repairs? And not the tutorial?>>

I groaned, not as easy as she made out then. "Okay, yeah, let's prioritize the base systems first," I replied, my brow furrowing as I zoomed in on a fragmented subroutine. Each piece of corrupted code felt like a puzzle, one I was determined to solve.

<<Your cognitive processing is exceptional, Captain,>> Doli observed as I worked through the code.

"According to whom?" I asked, not looking up from my work.

<<Recruitment Scanner flagged your biometrics when you were sixteen without sponsorship. Your CAR tested at 9.5 out of 10. Only 0.08% of cadets score above 9.0 on the Cognitive Aptitude Rating.>>

"Didn't realize they had that much faith in standardized testing."

<<It's not standardized testing, Captain. The CAR measures real-time neural pathways, synaptic efficiency, and problem-solving adaptability under variable conditions. It cannot be studied for or manipulated.>>

That gave me pause. "So they can actually measure how someone thinks, not just what they know?"

<<Precisely. Which is why your rating is particularly significant. You possess unique cognitive architecture despite your lack of formal education.>>

Doli interjected occasionally with suggestions, but I was quick to counter, challenging her logic with my own. The back-and-forth became a rhythm, a collaboration that felt oddly natural.

After an hour, I stumbled upon a buried module labeled "Experimental Neural Interface."

"What's this?"

<<An advanced prototype for adaptive learning,>> Doli explained. <<Warning: Activation may cause unforeseen complications.>>

My curiosity burned brighter. "Run a simulation. Let's see what it's supposed to do."

My HUD shifted, displaying a holographic representation of the module. I watched as data flowed through simulated neural pathways, mapping potential interactions with my port. It was breathtaking—a glimpse into technology leagues beyond anything I'd ever seen.

"This is experimental tech, right?"

<<I am experimental. Is that a problem?>>

"This could rewrite how ships operate," I said, more to myself than to DOLI. "Integrating directly with the crew's neural activity… this is amazing tech."

<<Would you like to proceed with further analysis?>>

I hesitated. The ethical implications nagged at me, but the lure of discovery was too strong. Ethical concerns or not, I couldn't walk away now. "Yeah. Let's analyze it deeper."

<<You want to fix this too?>>

"I do," I said. "This would be amazing tech to have."

Hours passed in silence, punctuated only by the faint hum of the port and the occasional, <<Wait, while I'm modified.>>

Her voice glitched briefly. Just static. Then it cleared.

New ideas took shape, its potential unraveling before my eyes. When I finally disconnected, the sunrise painted my apartment in soft orange hues. My exhaustion was bone-deep, but satisfaction burned brighter.

Neural Load: 65% – moderate risk.

Warning: Recommend 2 h offline rest.

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