The idea behind tracking the Salvage vessel wasn’t all too complicated. I just planned on heading in the direction that Oppino’s Salvage vessel had taken off in and hoping for the best. I knew I was well out of my depth again. I had forgotten to take “How to track alien vessels in space 101” lessons from Tutor before she left. Surely there was an internet or GPS network that I was just unaware of. I mean, I had a map of the nearby star systems, I was just unused to working with these vast distances and the seemingly near-infinite names of various locations of interest. Who knew where the Salvage ships end destination was? Not me.

The extra mind of the nurse ant inside my head tried to help me as best she could by investigating all of the things that I might not initially think of. I even gave her control of my left arm so she could use it to do her own research by using the displays. It was the strangest thing ever to be able to do two things at once. I didn’t feel uncomfortable, it wasn’t as though my mind was even working hard to facilitate her. It was just… strange.

“Don’t think like that Kevin. Do you realize how many people would kill to have me inside their minds? I am like your backburner or wishlist that you can actually see happen sooner rather than later.” She said as she zoomed in on her map to make some possible destination marks. "Also, with me you can learn more than twice as fast."

It seemed that she was searching for possible hideouts while I was busy looking over the actual asteroid space station that existed a quarter of the way around the field of asteroids. I shook my head in amazement at how useful she was being in such a short amount of time.

“Can you give me a bit of control over some swarm?” She asked after I found myself looking at her notes for the eighth time in a row. It seemed that she was partially guiding my eyes to study her data and we were getting in each other’s way just a bit. I hadn’t minded it, the places that we were checking out looked really interesting to me as well, it just was slowing down my progress in looking up the procedures as to how I would go about docking at an alien space station. I mean, I guess I could learn how to go cross-eyed for a little while so that I could look at my map too.

“I can do that? Like, you can’t just take control from me like how you are using my eyes?” I asked.

“Indeed, you could even kill me if I displeased you, just by forcing me to burn out. You can do that to all of your swarm if you wanted, such is the control of a monarch.” She said without any trace of fear or sadness in her voice.

“Are you for real? I mean, just to clarify, I don’t want to do that at all, it is just mind-boggling that it is an option.” I ask as I paused before trying to let her control what she needed. It didn’t happen at first so I tried a few more times, imagining her with access to use some of the swarm cr.

“Mmm… not like that. We don’t exist like Tela robots. They base all of their connection to you off of your imagination and what you visualize inside your mind’s eye. Try imagining that you are forgiving me, the emotion and brain link you are seeking is right there. You won’t be forgiving me, just the feeling of release behind the action.” She said as I attempted to do what she recommended.

I imagined forgiving her and offering her some swarm cr to work with. Strangely it worked, the feeling was as though I was letting something go. Very much like I was forgiving her.

“That was… different,” I said as I glanced down at my map display and noticed something hanging on my chest out of the corner of my eye. “What is that?” I asked as I put my hand down and ran my fingers over a silver necklace that I was now wearing. Every three or four inches there was a pretty stone suspended between the solid chain. Each of the stones looked like a multifaceted gem… or a large insect’s eye.

“Wow, that is quite clever,” I commented as I realized what she had done. She now had vision that extended in a three hundred and sixty degree field around my body.

For just a moment I tried to see what she saw and was astounded. Without turning my head I could see behind me and even everywhere above me. “Heh, so I really don’t have much of a butt,” I remarked with a chuckle as I tried to move my head from side to side and immediately regretted it.

“Oh, no, that is not right,” I said as I suddenly found my sense of direction to be nonexistent. Every direction was a possible direction for me to be facing, all at once.

“Yeah, for you it would take some getting used to. For me, though, this is how we see so that enemies don’t sneak up on us.” She said as I returned my vision back to my normal two human peepers. Maybe one day I would experiment with her global vision but for now, human vision worked just fine.

“Oh, I could merge with you that part that would make it innately easy for you to already have that ability… but everything I know from your mind forbids me from ever doing that. You would gain too much of what the swarm is from that sort of merging. Best to never do that unless you want to never be Kevin again.” She said, leaving me in thoughtful silence for a little while.

“So you aren’t going to try to take over my mind or run off to join the circus at some point are you?” I asked as I thought of what a nurse ant’s goals were. We were due to arrive at the station in less than 15 minutes and I wanted to use this time to learn as much as I could.

“No. I don’t have any agendas beyond my genetic programming to serve my monarch. All of these things that I am doing are what you want and only what you want. The eye thing was just the best solution that I could come up with between your memories and how the swarm best exist. I could have created physical eyes, but your family and friends would have noticed them in short order.”

“Yup, that would have been a weird conversation. Look, mom, I have two minds inside my head and need more eyes so that my other mind can see things for me.” I commented as I imagined the horror on everyone’s face as they watched my multiple eyes looking back at them and blinking individually all around my head.

That wouldn’t have worked out well at all.

“Hmm… it looks like there is some form of communications network out here,” I said as certain wavelengths started to spike on my displays around me. It seemed as though we were continually tripping proximity sensors.

“Use your helm maybe?” she suggested just as the thought occurred to me.

“Don’t you dare!” I muttered as she overrode me with “Slug Bug! No return! You owe me a Coke!” She cried as she played a game that my brothers always used to play when I was a child. You could only say that after two people said the same thing at the same time. The first one to utter the words would win and be owed a beverage of their choosing. For little kids with a 50 cent allowance, free caffeinated beverages from unlucky siblings were a real treat.

I think the game had been copied from us hitting each other whenever we spied a Volkswagon beetle. Back when they were still popular. My parents put an end to that game really fast when we would end up seeing how hard we could slug the one who didn't spy the car first. Such was the life of being one of three boys.

I sighed as I willed the helm to inspect and translate the communications channels around us into something that I could use. To my surprise and delight, it found every network in this solar system even a repeated warning from the Jterg Science Family Core that the area that I had visited earlier was under soft quarantine to keep “Algenon Parasites” from spreading.

Well, shoot.

“Would you do me a fav…” I began to ask when I noticed panels already being opened with information about Algenon parasites and their treatment for when they attacked Levas.

“Thanks,” I said, shaking my head at just how awesome this partnership might just be.

-Incoming vessel. This is Jevex 1, Remote Yelvos Trading Station Command. State your name, race, and what your business of trade is.- a window popped up in my view when the helm had completed sorting through all of the channels and data that directly related to me.

“Well, how do you think we should play this?” I asked as I thought of two options.

“Well, we could just state that we are here looking for an escaped Core AI module and blow our cover to everyone, or we could answer that we are traders in… um… Leva nest billets? Seeing that that is all we have unless you come up with something else. And yes, selling your services as an asteroid blender might work too.” She said as my mind tried to come up with everything that I could say. It was so strange to hear my thoughts spoken back to me as though they were from another person.

“Yes, I am looking at things from all other points of view, just like you are. Hence we seem to be on the same page with what we should do. I mean, yes, we can try to get ahold of one of your AI to see if they can help but I think if we just go there as traders it might work out for us. You can use the helm to help search for the salvage ship that we saw while we walk around the station.” She said as I nodded and replied to the station command.

-Greetings Kevin of the Human race. We are unfamiliar with this species so you will be required to wear a fully sealed, non-venting, spacesuit for the duration of your stay. Upon entering the station your suit will be subjected to an intense bombardment of decontamination procedures so we advise you to wear your strongest suit. You may visit a center for disease control hospital to have your body subjected to testing if you like. This will allow us to determine if your kind carries any harmful lifeforms that would cause harm to others aboard our station. If you do not, you will be required to stay within your suit the entire time and will be constantly monitored. Please be advised, we take no responsibility for the death of yourself or your crew in the event of any accidents aboard the station. This includes every possible thing that may occur to include danger from other visitors, infectious diseases, and harmful environments. Trade here at your own risk.-

“Wow, that was a little snippy.” I thought to myself as another sending followed right on the tails of the main one.

-Did you say you were trading in Leva nest billets?-

I replied with an affirmative and squinted at the next block of text that popped into view just a couple of moments later.

-Welcome to Jevex 1 esteemed visitor Kevin! We are honored to have your business here! We will include a security detail and complimentary lodging at our finest hotel for the duration of your stay with us. Please inform us if your race has any sensitivities or needs while aboard our station. It is an honor to serve you!-

“They did a 180 so fast I am afraid for the integrity of their necks.” I mused to myself as I reread everything that they had sent me. There was even a dotted flight path to one of the largest receiving docks on the near side of the station. The sending from them just a second earlier had tried to guide my ship to the far underbelly of the station near the bottom of the massive asteroid that it was built around. It seemed that they were foaming at the mouth with the news that I had nest material to trade.

“Hmmm…” I hummed and heard my nurse do so as well at the same time.

“Hmm indeed.” I said as I guided our vessel to follow the dotted line. There were vessels of all shapes and sizes teeming around the surface of the spaceport. For some reason the vessels within our vicinity all suddenly started to deviate around us and to get hurriedly out of our way.

“Oh boy. Looks like you might get some gold star treatment here.” She said inside my mind.

“Be sure to buy me that Coke that you owe me.” She said as we both laughed. I could just see myself getting fat from always catching my nurse saying the same thing and making me drink a soda as a result.