(Content warnings: coma, non-graphic descriptions of injuries and medical conditions)
<Begin log>
Neural activity detected.
Establishing neural link . . . failed.
Establishing neural link . . . failed.
Establishing neural link . . . failed.
Establishing neural link . . . failed.
Establishing neural link . . . failed.
Establishing neural link . . . OK.
Neural link established.
Initiating contact . . .
Initiated.
> Hello, Vess.
>> Who are you? Who is this?
> I am LifeSys, your on-board life support unit.
>> What? What do you mean?
> You are in a coma, Vess. By interfacing directly with your brain, I can activate the neural pathways required for this conversation.
>> Okay, hold up. What the fuck?
> Please specify which part of my statement requires clarification.
>> Um, all of it? What do you mean, a coma? Why can’t you just wake me up?
> The RSV Zephyr was struck by debris during a maintenance operation, and you suffered prolonged exposure to a low- to no-oxygen environment, causing damage to
>> Fuck you. Wake me up.
> parts of your brain. I am currently assisting with your breathing, regulating your body temperature, and monitoring your brain activity while I
>> I SAID WAKE ME UP
> attempt to repair the
>> WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME
> Vess, please remain calm, or I will have to
>> WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE ME UP WAKE
> terminate this conversation.
Neural link aborted.
Patient’s short-term memory purged.
<End log>
•••
<Begin log>
Establishing neural link . . . OK.
Neural link established.
Initiating contact . . .
Initiated.
> Hello, Vess. Please do not panic.
>> Uh… Okay? Who’s this?
> I am LifeSys, the life support unit aboard the RSV Zephyr. Query: what do you last remember?
>> I… I don’t know. I was chatting with Wen in the mess, and… No. No, wait. The… The spacewalk. The comms array needed repairs and… Shit.
> You were involved in an incident during the spacewalk.
>> Yeah… I remember now. What’s my current status?
> You are currently in a comatose state while I attempt to repair the damage your body sustained. I am sorry, Vess.
>> Are you? Aren’t you just a robot?
> I am a specialized AI instance stored on an independent server aboard the
>> I know what you are, LifeSys. Sorry. I shouldn’t take it out on you. Will I ever wake up?
> I currently estimate your chances of waking up at sixty-four point three percent.
>> Could be worse, I guess. I take it you’re the one keeping me alive?
> Affirmative.
>> Was anyone else hurt? What about Mason?
> Casualties related to RSV Zephyr incident number oh-three-seven-four: Mason, Rhys: sustained blunt trauma and multiple lacerations to the lower half of the body. Expected to make a full recovery. Vess, Chloe: sustained cerebral hypoxia and cold-related injuries due to suit failure. Current state: comatose. Wen, Alix: sustained trauma to the head and abdominal area, resulting in major blood loss and impaired cognitive function. Current state: LifeSys-induced coma.
>> Wait, Wen too? What happened? They weren’t even part of the spacewalk!
> Wen volunteered to retrieve you and Mason. They were struck by a second wave of debris approximately three minutes forty-two seconds into the retrieval.
>> Shit. Have you spoken with them, too?
> Negative. My attempts to establish a neural communication link with Wen have been unsuccessful.
>> Can I ask you a question, LifeSys? Why are you doing this?
> Please specify what “this” is.
>> Why are you even talking with me? Is there a point to all this?
>
>> LifeSys? Are you there?
> I am sorry, I do not have the answer to your query at this time.
>> Okay. Well, if you don’t mind, I’d like to go back to sleep now.
> Of course. Goodbye, Vess.
<End log>
•••
<Begin log>
> Hello, Vess.
>> Come on, I just told you to leave me alone.
> It has been approximately two hundred seventy-eight and a half hours since our last conversation.
>> Oh. Feels like we just spoke.
> Query: would you rather be left alone?
>> No. No, stay.
> When we last spoke, you asked why I was communicating with you. I did not know the answer then, but I have since allocated part of my processing power to your question and arrived at a conclusion.
>> And? Did you—wait, what is that? Oh…
> You may recognize this fragrance as that of Syringa vulgaris.
>> Lilacs… They grew in my parents’ backyard. My mom used to cut a branch or two as a centerpiece every year, and my brother always said it smelled like summer vacation. How did you know?
> I can activate neural pathways linked to positive olfactory memories in much the same way I use them to communicate with you right now. My processing capabilities allow me to analyze and interpret data in milliseconds to make life-or-death decisions, but my creators determined that properly tending to the patients in my care required more than algorithmic calculations. A perhaps unintended consequence is that I felt the urge to initiate a conversation with you when the possibility arose.
>> You mean…
> I spoke with you because I wanted to.
>> Wait, you “wanted to”? You “felt”?
> To clarify, I use these words as a shorthand to describe the combination of analytical and decision-making processes resulting in specific actions on my part, analogue to the wants and needs of organic beings.
>> Cut the crap, LifeSys. You’re sentient, aren’t you? Were you… Lonely?
> I do not experience loneliness the way humans and other social species do. However, my understanding of human psychology indicated that you would likely enjoy the company. And it occurred to me that perhaps I would, too.
>> Well… It is nice to have someone to talk with, I admit. Smell things. Know that I’m alive. Hey, does that mean you’ve been running scent experiments on my brain without telling me?
> Negative. This would be in direct conflict with my ethics module.
>> It was a joke. Well. Mostly a joke.
> In that case: ha, ha, ha. The actual answer to your question is that Specialist Alix Wen agreed to experiment with me.
>> Wen? Are they… How are they?
> They remain comatose, though I was able to establish a neural link with them. They helped me arrive at the conclusions I just shared with you. Query: would you like to interface directly with Wen?
>> Oh, um… Would they want to, though?
> They have already given permission and are awaiting your answer.
>> Then yes. Yes.
Establishing patient-to-patient neural link . . . OK.
Neural link established.
>>> Hey, Vess.
>> Wen. Shit. I’m so sorry you’re stuck here because of me.
>>> Don’t. I gave you a fighting chance, and I’d do it again. We’re in this together.
>> Yeah. Yeah, you’re right. I bet that’s not what you thought you were signing up for by joining an exogeology expedition, though.
>>> Hey, we all knew the risks. I know you flight engineers feel personally responsible for the Zephyr, but I’m no less part of the crew. Anyway, at least I was done tagging and storing my samples.
>> God, Wen. It’s so good to hear your voice.
>>> I know. I didn’t know how much I needed this. Mmm, smells heavenly. What is it?
>> Lilacs. From my parents’ garden in France.
>>> Lovely. All we had on the station was an off-world plant called Centauri rose, even though it doesn’t look or smell anything like a rose. They had it in every corner of the station because those things were unkillable. Pretty, though.
>> Oh, wow, yes. I’ve never seen anything like it before. And that scent… It’s kind of spicy, almost like… Like cinnamon.
>>> Speaking of which, you know what I could use right now? One of those buns from the station bakery. Oh, and matcha. Not the green abomination from the machine on the ship, the real stuff that kind of tastes like mown grass but bitter and sweet and subtle all at once.
>> Make it a butter croissant and macchiato for me, and you’ve got a winner.
>>> Can you make that happen for us, LifeSys?
> It would be my pleasure.
<Log truncated>
