After several more minutes I could no longer endure the scenery.
Clean the room please.
Okay.
A few seconds later and there was nothing left in the room but Tatiana and myself. She was shivering and clinging to me.
"I'm freezing, Steven," she said in Russian.
Make her some jeans and a long-sleeve pullover shirt.
Okay.
The clothes appeared on the floor in front of us. "See if those fit you."
She grabbed them and was in them in the blink of an eye. She tossed the torn and bloodied tank top to the floor and pulled the new top over her. The clothes were a perfect fit.
"What about shoes, Steven?"
"Oh, sorry. Hold on."
Make her some socks and sneakers.
Okay.
A pair of socks and shoes materialized and Tatiana put them on.
"That is amazing technology," she said in English.
"I agree." The shock began to subside and survival instincts began to take over. "I wonder if it can make food. I haven't eaten in days. How about you? Could you eat?"
"Sure! I'm more thirsty though," she said.
Can you make food and drink for us?
Yes.
Anything we want?
Yes.
Then make us a two-place dining table with chairs and . . .
I told the thing a full six-course meal menu complete with wine, dessert, and music. We had also gotten tired of staring at the white walls, so I had them turned into monitor screens that would display the view outside the spacecraft. Slightly below us was Saturn in all of its majesty. The rings were amazingly brilliant from this distance. We were in orbit around Titan, which was beautiful in its own way. I didn't know it was Titan; the SuperAgent told me.
As we ate and relaxed a little, we got to know each other. The computer had assured us that we were in absolutely no danger and could be returned to Earth whenever we pleased. Tatiana filled me in on her story, which was about as sad as mine. Her family had been completely wiped out from the meteors as well. Only her father had survived, and he was now the Russian Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations and had very little time for her. She had apparently been an emotional mess since The Rain and had not recovered well either. She was lonely like I was. We talked about the damned implants and the different drugs we had each been exposed to.
You might think that we should have been more amazed and dazed by the alien technology than we seemed to be. But keep in mind that the two of us had been alone and literally nuts for nearly four years. The most important thing to us at the time was interacting and being with someone and just, well, not being alone. And, of course, there was nothing in the alien spacecraft that my generation hadn't seen in movies or games or on television, so we were quite adapted and prepared for things like nanomachines. Talking and being with someone else was more interesting for us at the time. And I finally had someone to share my loss with, so I told her all of my story—except, that is, for the classified parts.
"That is the saddest thing I have ever heard, Steven." Tears rolled down her cheeks. "Your poor puppy dog!"
"I know. My folks had given him to me when I went off to school. He was my only connection to the family I had left." I started to cry and it made me a little nervous. Tatiana was crying also.
Are you there?
Yes.
Why are we both crying?
You are both very sad.
It's not because of side effects from the implants or anything?
No. You are just sad. Both of you are healthy.
That reassured me some and so I reassured Tatiana.
"How do you tell the computer what you want? Like the food, the guns, the clothes, and everything else; I mean, I can hear it in my head but it doesn't respond to my questions or orders," Tatiana inquired.
"I just think it. Oh my, I wasn't thinking. You should be able to talk to the computer, too. Hold on a minute." I paused and thought about the implications of Tatiana being "online" with the SuperAgent. I could think of no reason she shouldn't have access to it.
I want you to let Tatiana have access to you.
I'm sorry that is not allowed.
What do you mean, not allowed?
My programming specifically prohibits her from gaining access to the program control functions.
Why? This made no sense to me. It let me take over the thing; why wouldn't it do what I told it?
I do not know the reason for the programming. The programming simply is.
I am ordering you to change that programming.
I am sorry. I cannot comply with that command.
Why not?
I do not know.
Okay, then what about creating a subroutine outside of your programming that will allow her to give you commands that will not alter your control functions? She should have access to the nanomachines.
I cannot give her access to the program period, not even through subroutines.
And you have no idea why?
Correct.
Do you know what portion of your code has this programming in it?
I do.
Aha! How big is your system physically?
I am connected throughout the ship.
No. I don't mean your peripherals. I mean you as a computer system that controls the nanomachines.
My central processor is approximately one centimeter cubed.
That was about the size of a sugar cube, wow. Okay. I want you to build a physical copy of yourself in a self-sustaining and powered portable device that contains all of your programming except the code keeping Tatiana from controlling you.
Okay.
A little orange and green sugar-cube-sized object appeared on the table in front of me. Tatiana didn't notice it so I palmed it and put it in my pocket.
Have you loaded the copy into the cube?
Yes.
Is it turned on?
It is now.
How do I distinguish if I am communicating with it or you?
You merely need to give us different addresses.
I laughed at that. The thing used something similar to Internet protocol addressing.
Okay. I will call you Mike and the copy will be Mikhail.
Okay.
Let Tatiana have full access to Mikhail and we will not tell her or Mikhail about you. You keep full records of all interactions with Mikhail. And also recall that I have final control over both of you. Also, I will use Mikhail to avoid confusion between you. If I need to speak to you I will address you directly. Understood?
Okay.
Mike, I want you to set up a routine that is trying to determine why Tatiana was forbidden access.
Okay.
Mikhail, are you there?