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Jack sat in a familiar office; across from him sat a friendly man. A man he used to regularly visit when his stationary residence was Eris base. Nervously shifting his hard light appearance, Jack watched as the man hummed at his findings, seemingly taking pleasure in making Jack wait.

"Are you angry that I did not return to Eris immediately to inform you of my return?" Jack asked, watching as the man waved off his concern.

"Impressive... You're in fine Health, Jack." Dr. Keda finally replied, turning to the hard light depiction with amusement. "I'll create some better self-diagnostic programs for you, but having new functions form like this was to be expected."

"What do they do, and why can't I understand them? And how did you expect this?" Jack asked nervously, trying to peek at Dr. Keda's notes.

Dr. Keda turned his display towards Jack, allowing him to take a closer look at his findings. "Well, you're a growing boy Jack. Your recent experience with Yirphayen has caused you to create some defensive measures against forced radiowaves, kind of like antibodies. It may be why you can't properly analyze it yourself."

"So you are saying my core program is defending itself without my knowledge? How?" Jack asked, searching through his essence for the answer.

"You're looking at this the wrong way, Jack. I used to tell Leviye the same thing when he came to me for his checkups." Dr. Keda replied. "YOU!!!" He said with emphasis while pointing a finger at Jack's chest. "Are alive. You may be digital, but your program will react and defend itself like any human or alien would." Dr. Keda continued, making sure to get his point across. "The team who initially created Levyie ensured his program could evolve without his direct input based on his interactions, just as any human would. My guess would be to prevent stagnation."

Jack looked closer at the display and nodded his understanding. "Is there a way to prevent that from happening? It is quite concerning."

Dr. Keda let out a boisterous laugh lasting nearly a full minute in response to his patient's concern. "Apologies, Jack..." He choked out. "Your father said those exact words in the exact same tone when I told him he would change whether he liked it or not. And no, I cannot stop it. I would have to rewrite a lot of your core programming to do it, and that would change who you are."

"I see. So I will not be the same being I am today this time next year. How did I not recognize these changes previously?" Jack asked curiously.

"That's easy. I never told you to make sure you would grow naturally. Did you ever bother to check yourself with me checking you every week?" Dr. Keda replied, already knowing the answer.

"I did not." Jack answered shamefully.

"There you go. Now, the crew at this station and I have been working on a new project since you left at the behest of Admiral Perrin. She wanted to make use of human-AI cooperation in a new line of anti-pirate frigates. However, with the news of the Briolb, she has ordered us to change the design into a fast attack frigate capable of carrying a complement of boarding marines and fighter craft." Dr. Keda stated, rising from his chair and walking across the room towards the door. "However, the tradeoff was a lighter complement of weaponry in exchange for the larger engines and the new type fold core." Dr. Keda explained, allowing Jack to disengage from his office before shutting the power off. "We haven't had a chance to test the AI suite we made for your future brethren. Would you be willing to give it a test for us? The ship is basically complete as is. We just need to add creature comforts that can accommodate our new alien allies."

" I would enjoy that very much."

"Great!" Dr. Keda replied, changing direction and heading towards the construction hangar. "You're going to love it! This thing is the fastest ship we've ever made and comes equipped with a new E-war suite and a hangar capable of holding two fighters, a bomber, a mech or two with room enough for two boarding craft. And that's while still having enough room for two drop pods and one or two other land or space vehicles."

"That sounds more like a heavy frigate, not a fast attack frigate."

Dr. Keda laughed and entered the lift, keying the hangar with excitement. "It's still the fastest thing we've ever created. Though, as I said, It only has four lance batteries, six rail cannons and four torpedo launchers." He stated with a smug grin.

"You were lying to the admiral and created a heavy assault frigate."

Faking an offended gasp, Dr. Keda exited the lift and walked onto the observation deck, looking out at the new generation of 'light' frigate. " We would never do such a thing as that, Nor do we intend to allow you to take this ship on a test run."

"Am I capable of piloting a ship like this by myself?"

Dr. Keda let out a grin as he waved to the guards, entering the causeway leading to the frigate and inputting a code as he came upon the entry door. " That would be a negative... I've just allowed you access to the ship so you can jump in and take a look. You'll understand as soon as you do."

Entering the ship and immediately making his way towards the command center, waving at engineers and construction crew along the way. Keda arrived at the bridge, laughing as Dr. Aldon was waving his arms around in annoyance as screens began to flicker and controls seemed to activate on their own.

"Keda, you dumbass. You need to let me know when you allow Va~Jack access to this ship." Dr. Aldon stammered out, sitting down in the captain's couch.

" I see. This is quite the ship." Jack replied, taking a hardlight form on the bridge.

"We figured you would like that function." Dr. Aldon replied. "Any suggestions on improvements?"

"None. You have built an amazing ship." Jack replied, moving over to sit at what appeared to be the helm. "I have enough room and processing power, as well as the ability to take form wherever I wish. I can assume that this ship was designed for the resident AI to use the E-war suite and drones in a defensive measure while the Terran crew commands the ship and fighters? It is an effective design."

"That about sums up the idea." Dr. Aldon replied, eyeing Jack's form with amusement. "You think working E-war and defensive drones at the same time is possible?"

Jack got up and walked over to the E-war console, disappearing as he sat down.

"It is possible, though it may be somewhat taxing directing so many shield drones."

"Well, that's all you'll need to do. The meat crew can handle the rest." Dr. Keda replied.

"That is acceptable. I would not feel comfortable in a role that would require me to terminate someone."

Dr. Aldon chuckled and got up from his chair. "Your father is the same way you know, don't let his past fool you."

"I do have one question, though. From what I can tell, you have completed this ship, only requiring minor adjustments based on allied species accommodations. Does this mean you have begun creating more of my kind?" Jack asked, appearing in front of the E-war console.

Dr. Aldon laughed as Dr. Keda gave off a knowing grin. "Nope. Suppose I were to take a guess. I would say only one captain in the entire navy could put this frigate to proper use, seeing as he's the only one with an AI companion."

Jack sat there, stunned, eyeing the two men as they gave him a knowing look. "Did you build this ship with the expectation that I would be the AI crewmate?"

"That was indeed the deal we made with Dr. Leviye. As you know, we needed an AI to help crew the first fold jump in case the pilot died. He demanded that we build you a proper ship to explore in if we were to send you into a possible catastrophe... And It turns out Adelyn wanted us to build a new light frigate as soon as the test was successful. So we took the chance to build you your 'exploration' ship." Dr. Aldon replied, shrugging as the door opened behind him.

"And don't think I didn't know what the fuck you were doing, you dick." Admiral Perrin replied as she walked onto the bridge. "You're lucky this ship hits every criterion I set for you, or I'd have you locked up."

Dr. Aldon waved her off and reclined into the captain's crash couch. "Like you didn't know 'for future AI's' meant Jack when you signed off on the design. The brass is still a few years away from allowing us to spawn more."

"Not quite true anymore. But you didn't have to put it the way you did. I still have to pull a few strings to get this whole shit show off the ground even with the Gleet Admiral now on our side." Admiral Perrin replied.

Jack sat in his E-war chair, watching the two bicker about who was in the right and who made the mistake. And though he understood the interaction, he couldn't help but think it was all for show. "Thank you." He stated, watching as the two stopped to look at him.

Admiral Perrin walked over to the captain's chair and shooed Dr. Aldon off with a wave of her hands, sitting down and hitting a series of commands into the chair once taking her seat. "This is the Admiral speaking. Fasten all hatches and tighten all bolts, prepare the ship for launch!"

Dr. Keda went to sit at the helm while Dr. Aldon went to sit at coms, allowing Admiral Perrin to watch as the ship systems slowly began to power up and respond with the all-clear. "Shall we take her for a test drive, gentlemen?"

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Powering down the vehicle, Michael looked over to Srettia, who was quietly napping in the passenger seat. Gently tapping her shoulder in an attempt to wake her, he exited the car and began collecting their things.

As he watched Srettia sluggishly move out of the car and begin walking towards the house, Michael finished gathering up their things and briskly jogged to catch up as she entered the house, quickly stashing their belongings just off to the side as he walked in.

Looking around as he entered the living room, walking over to a familiar chair. Michael knelt to be eye level with Yirphayen, lightly placing his hand on it in an attempt to wake it. "You alright there, pal?" Michael asked, noticing Srettia take up a seat on the couch and relaxed into it.

Yirphayen let out a chime of satisfaction as it returned to function and observe its surroundings closely. " Yes. However, I still require more energy. I think I have been away from a direct solar source for too long."

Michael nodded in agreement watching as Srettia stretched on the couch as he attempted to ping Jack, finally realizing that his comrade seemed to be out of range. "Well, we'll get you into orbit as soon as everyone is gathered, alright?" Michael stated as Yirphayen chimed its agreement and continued its rest state, seemingly happy with its chair.

"Well, I was a bit worried there, but I guess it has been inside since we've met it. Maybe some sun will do it well. " Srettia said, watching as Yirphayen went quiet.

Michael nodded in agreement, sending a message to Luna command, informing them of the situation and requesting permission to visit the orbital lift. "I guess when Ankiah returns, we'll go visit the station hub and get Yirphayen some much-needed air... Or lack of it, I guess." he corrected with a chuckle.

Srettia perked up at the thought and nodded her approval. "That sounds like fun! Maybe we can look at the ships while... Would we be releasing Yirphayen or sending it off..?"

Michael shrugged as he walked into the kitchen, eyeing his surroundings curiously. "I guess releasing him?"

Srettia got up and poked her head around the corner, watching as Michael walked around the house as if searching for something. "What's wrong?"

"Mom's missing." Michael replied. "She hasn't stopped bothering you since you walked through that door. She might be up to something."

"Ohh... You're right. "Srettia replied, cautiously looking around.

Just as the two were beginning to worry, the front door swung open, startling the duo as Ankiah stumbled through the door and began shuffling towards the couch, flopping down a loud huff. "You Terrans and your tests will be the end of me." She mumbled as James walked through the door.

"What's up with her?" Michael asked, gathering his wits.

James tossed a datapad onto the living room coffee table and shook his head. "You know how that lady right there can harden her fur and cut shit like it's nothing?" He replied, walking over to his new chair. "Well, it turns out you need a bunch of nerve clusters and a high level of body control for that kind of stuff to happen. She agreed to have a specialist run some tests on her to determine just how compatible she could be with a mech. It turns out the answer is yes."

Ankiah groaned in frustration and rolled onto her back. "Remind me never to agree to 'run a few tests' for a Terran ever again." She grumbled to the room.

Michael studied Ankiah for a moment before shrugging and turning to pick up Yirphayen's bag. "We're heading off to the lift station now that you're here. Yirphayen still seems kinda down, so we're going to let it hang out around the sun for a bit."

Ankiah instantly perked up and rolled onto her feet. "Now that sounds like fun, let's go!"

Srettia watched as Ankiah walked out the door and looked around curiously. "Are you sure this is okay?"

Michael finished packing Yirphayen into his bag and looked over to his father. "Dunno where mom went off too, but tell her we might not be back tonight. I'm not quite sure what getting Yirphayen out into orbit is going to involve."

James nodded and leaned back into his chair before picking up a nearby data slate. "No worries, pretty sure she's just out with some friends. Though I suppose Yirphayen has been sleeping too much, you should make sure it's doing well before you worry about us." He replied, waving as Michael exited the house.

Walking out to the car, Michael gently strapped the bag into the back and entered the driver's seat, waiting for both Srettia and Ankiah to settle themselves before power up the vehicle. "Didn't expect to take two trips today." He replied, setting in his course and beginning the trip, making sure to double-check that Yirphayen was safe in the back seat before throttling up.

Srettia leaned her head against the headrest and closed her eyes, leaning deep into her chair. "Wake me when we get there." She mumbled, falling into car-induced sleep. Ankiah decided to quickly follow her lead, deciding that a nap would definitely be in her best interest, leaning off to the side and closing her eyes as the hum of the car lulled her into a restful slumber.

The few hours-long ride to the lift station was relatively uneventful for Michael. However, he did derive a small amount of amusement, recognizing the few escorts that flew by every now and then.

Upon finally reaching the Island, Michael followed his implant as it directed him to a VIP parking. Oddly enough, he was met by a few uncloaked guards waving him down as he approached his spot. "Guess they decided to ditch the cloak today. Alright, time to wake up ladies, let's get Yirphayen into orbit."

Srettia tried stretching her body, frowning as her legs hit the confines of her seat while Ankiah groaned, slowly perking up.

Though, upon opening the door and exiting the car, Michael noticed that two of the guards were moving to intercept him, another oddity. "Anything wrong?" He asked as the soldiers approached.

"Nothing yet, sir. We're here to take you to your ship." The man replied, earning a curious look from the trio as they finished exiting the car, wondering just what the man was talking about.

"We left our ship on Luna. Why would it be at the station." Srettia replied, annoyed that someone had moved her ship.

The soldier paused, looking off to the side as if talking to someone. "You are correct. The blazing sun is still on Luna. You are scheduled to meet with Admiral Perrin and a Mr. Jack upon their arrival."

"Why weren't we told this?" Michael asked, digging Yirphayen out of the back seat.

Another pause as the soldier spoke to his invisible superior. "Command figured since you were already on your way, this would be easier for everyone involved."

Michael nodded as he hefted Yirphayen onto his back and motioned for the guard to lead the way. "I guess when Mr. Jack is involved, it gets weird sometimes.

The soldier just nodded and opened the door, watching as the trio entered the VIP entrance into the bottom lift station. "Admiral Perrin normally has that effect on people as well."

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