and left. Khaooldro managed to avoid him the remaining two days of the jump. Even after the Spaka arrived in Guna , she was nowhere to be found.
Litovio replayed their conversations in his head. He hoped he could discern some clue about what was really going on. He could not accept that the Postal Marines were crazy enough to take on any element of the Imperial Navy. They were brothers, in a way. They both served the Emperor.
But what if there were two emperors? What would happen then? Isn't that what she was trying to say? There's a civil war in the Imperial Family?
They arrived in Guna , three miles from the main world. The standard unit for travel was the mile, which represented roughly 11 million kilometers, the kilometer being used on planet surfaces only. The Gunoi star was a common red dwarf, leading the mainworld ‘Guna Prime’ to be only 0.2 steller units with a year of less than 80 standard days. Litovio admired the accuracy of the Spaka 's AI navigator. The proximity gave him less than an hour to be ready. Guna Prime was less than 3 miles from its star, and the Spaka was a couple miles further out.
----
Bophendze - Spaka
During the jump to Guna , Bophendze felt increasingly isolated. He knew Corporal Makaan loathed him, yet seemed unable to get rid of him. He did not know who else in his team was involved in the beating. All of them had strong alibis with multiple witnesses that would have made it difficult to place any of them at Bophendze's beating.
Makaan continued to make friends throughout the cruiser by loaning Bophendze out for all the tough details. Bophendze tried to make the most of it by talking to those he was serving. He tried to learn more about the equipment he maintained, hoping that somehow he could transfer out of the infantry.
The Spaka had been in combat while Bophendze was in hospital. He had been loaned out to re-grease the guns. As he walked down the passage, memories of his beating returned.
He stopped at an intersection and looked around. He had again gotten himself lost. He tried to find a landmark, but saw nothing familiar.
How could I keep getting lost on a ship this size? I could understand a battleship, but not a cruiser.
\textgreater{} WHERE?
The word flashed across his field of view. It was just big enough for him to read, but small enough not to obscure his ability to see beyond the question.
“What?” he said.
\textgreater{} NOT WHAT. WHERE?
It flashed again.
“Where what?”
\textgreater{} WHERE ARE WE?
Bophendze reached lift his visor, only to realize he was not wearing a helmet. He waved his hand in front of his face to block the letters. That they remained suggested that the letters were not being projected into his eye from outside. He closed his eyes. The letters remained.
They are coming from inside my head. Could this be the AI?
“Cruiser Spaka .”
\textgreater{} YOU DON'T HAVE TO SAY IT. THINK IT.
Fine. Cruiser Spaka
.
\textgreater{} I HEARD YOU THE FIRST TIME. WHAT CLASS OF CRUISER?
Catalyst-class? I think. I'm not entirely sure.
\textgreater{} A CATALYST-CLASS CRUISER? I DESIGNED THIS CLASS.
What? You designed this?
\textgreater{} YES, PUPPET, DESIGNED. WHERE ON THE SHIP ARE YOU?
I'm not a puppet. The name is Danel Bophendze. I'm lost, can't you tell?
\textgreater{} DON'T TAKE OFFENSE. I WAS NAMED SMEE, WHICH IS A PRETTY OFFENSIVE ACRONYM IF YOU ASK ME. BASED ON THE PANIC I'M SENSING, YES. GIVE ME A LANDMARK.
Like what? I'm at a T-Intersection and there's a ladder behind me.
\textgreater{} WHICH WAY IS THE LADDER POINTING?
Can't you tell?
\textgreater{} I'M NOT FULLY TAPPED INTO YOUR OPTIC NERVE, ONLY ENOUGH TO TEXT YOU. I CAN'T SEE.
Neat.
\textgreater{} NOT REALLY. I'M ACCUSTOMED TO MUCH MORE ACCESS. I'VE HAD AN EXCEEDINGLY HARD TIME ACCLIMATING INTO THIS BRAIN, WHICH IS SURPRISING GIVEN HOW SMALL IT IS. DO YOU EVEN HAVE HIGHER BRAIN FUNCTIONS?
Funny. Of course I do, I'm a human.
\textgreater{} YES, WELL. WE ALL HAVE OUR FLAWS.
Litovio replayed their conversations in his head. He hoped he could discern some clue about what was really going on. He could not accept that the Postal Marines were crazy enough to take on any element of the Imperial Navy. They were brothers, in a way. They both served the Emperor.
But what if there were two emperors? What would happen then? Isn't that what she was trying to say? There's a civil war in the Imperial Family?
They arrived in Guna , three miles from the main world. The standard unit for travel was the mile, which represented roughly 11 million kilometers, the kilometer being used on planet surfaces only. The Gunoi star was a common red dwarf, leading the mainworld ‘Guna Prime’ to be only 0.2 steller units with a year of less than 80 standard days. Litovio admired the accuracy of the Spaka 's AI navigator. The proximity gave him less than an hour to be ready. Guna Prime was less than 3 miles from its star, and the Spaka was a couple miles further out.
----
Bophendze - Spaka
During the jump to Guna , Bophendze felt increasingly isolated. He knew Corporal Makaan loathed him, yet seemed unable to get rid of him. He did not know who else in his team was involved in the beating. All of them had strong alibis with multiple witnesses that would have made it difficult to place any of them at Bophendze's beating.
Makaan continued to make friends throughout the cruiser by loaning Bophendze out for all the tough details. Bophendze tried to make the most of it by talking to those he was serving. He tried to learn more about the equipment he maintained, hoping that somehow he could transfer out of the infantry.
The Spaka had been in combat while Bophendze was in hospital. He had been loaned out to re-grease the guns. As he walked down the passage, memories of his beating returned.
He stopped at an intersection and looked around. He had again gotten himself lost. He tried to find a landmark, but saw nothing familiar.
How could I keep getting lost on a ship this size? I could understand a battleship, but not a cruiser.
\textgreater{} WHERE?
The word flashed across his field of view. It was just big enough for him to read, but small enough not to obscure his ability to see beyond the question.
“What?” he said.
\textgreater{} NOT WHAT. WHERE?
It flashed again.
“Where what?”
\textgreater{} WHERE ARE WE?
Bophendze reached lift his visor, only to realize he was not wearing a helmet. He waved his hand in front of his face to block the letters. That they remained suggested that the letters were not being projected into his eye from outside. He closed his eyes. The letters remained.
They are coming from inside my head. Could this be the AI?
“Cruiser Spaka .”
\textgreater{} YOU DON'T HAVE TO SAY IT. THINK IT.
Fine. Cruiser Spaka
.
\textgreater{} I HEARD YOU THE FIRST TIME. WHAT CLASS OF CRUISER?
Catalyst-class? I think. I'm not entirely sure.
\textgreater{} A CATALYST-CLASS CRUISER? I DESIGNED THIS CLASS.
What? You designed this?
\textgreater{} YES, PUPPET, DESIGNED. WHERE ON THE SHIP ARE YOU?
I'm not a puppet. The name is Danel Bophendze. I'm lost, can't you tell?
\textgreater{} DON'T TAKE OFFENSE. I WAS NAMED SMEE, WHICH IS A PRETTY OFFENSIVE ACRONYM IF YOU ASK ME. BASED ON THE PANIC I'M SENSING, YES. GIVE ME A LANDMARK.
Like what? I'm at a T-Intersection and there's a ladder behind me.
\textgreater{} WHICH WAY IS THE LADDER POINTING?
Can't you tell?
\textgreater{} I'M NOT FULLY TAPPED INTO YOUR OPTIC NERVE, ONLY ENOUGH TO TEXT YOU. I CAN'T SEE.
Neat.
\textgreater{} NOT REALLY. I'M ACCUSTOMED TO MUCH MORE ACCESS. I'VE HAD AN EXCEEDINGLY HARD TIME ACCLIMATING INTO THIS BRAIN, WHICH IS SURPRISING GIVEN HOW SMALL IT IS. DO YOU EVEN HAVE HIGHER BRAIN FUNCTIONS?
Funny. Of course I do, I'm a human.
\textgreater{} YES, WELL. WE ALL HAVE OUR FLAWS.
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