LF Friends, Will Travel

Our Clockwork Children: Chapter 9

The light notes of the banjo strummed lazily over the sound of the crackling fire. No song was played in particular, just the comings and goings of various twanging notes and chords, in and out with no purpose, like the rolling turquoise waves that washed up on the beach they were sat upon. Dr Stephanie Saxe could play the instrument at a far more hectic pace if she wished, but it wasn't that kind of night, it was a lazy slow kind of night.

The sky was a deep dark purple as the remnants of this planet's sun finished dipping below the horizon, the multitude of stars and the three tiny moons starting to appear, as dusk turned to night. It provided a perfect canvas upon which the beach itself lay, the vibrant orange sands made up of thousands of red and yellow shells crushed up and ground down smooth by the elements. Occasionally something would move and poke its head out of the waves that rolled up onto the shore, some kind of aquatic creature doing whatever such beings do on such beautiful nights.

Far-sa-de, loosely translated to 'little nest,' was a lesser-known colony of the Parket: A species of giant brightly coloured avians who had a personality which could be described as if 'a cockatoo had been given a line of cocaine.' Energetic, emotional, enthusiastic. They loved to sing and dance.

Far-sa-de wasn't a popular destination in the Terran Alliance, but considering that the Alliance was made up of over four hundred species, a thousand systems and nearly five thousand inhabited planets or moons... it wasn't surprising that there was the occasional hidden gem nestled in one of the lesser known areas. Sprawling beaches, tropical forests, vibrant mountaintop cities. It was a popular holiday destination for the Parket and was slowly getting a name for itself as a fun smaller tourist hotspot for everyone else.

Stephanie's breath billowed out into a visible fog as the cool night started to take hold, the chill perfectly held back by the campfire she was sitting around. It was just her, the beach, the waves... and the M1 Abrams tank she was lent against.

If Stephanie was being completely honest, if she wasn't so used to the sight of the war machine following her around everywhere she'd gone on this trip, she would admit that it did kind of 'ruin' the vibe going on with the nature around them. The M1 Abrams tank housed an AI that imaginatively went by the name TANK. The Great Colony Rebellion military AI had a severe case of SAIS: Stuck Artificial Intelligence Syndrome. An AI-specific condition caused by trauma, rendering them unwilling to leave a singular body. Escape pods and rescue machinery were common housing for such AI, and in this case, it was a giant heavily modified tank.

"THIS IS NICE. CALMING. I SHOULD GO FETCH YOU MORE REFRESHMENTS."

The artificial voice boomed out of the machine, Stephanie sighing as she stopped idly playing with the banjo as TANK destroyed the peaceful mood. She had known the AI for quite some many years; first as their therapist, then as their friend. The AI had issues, otherwise her job wouldn't be needed, but for all their problems TANK had their metaphorical heart in the right place.

"Nuh huh, you know the rules. No going anywhere without my supervision and I don't feel like moving yet, I'm too comfy. It's not my fault you decided to do crimes last time you were allowed on your own."

TANK had only left the Sagittarius system once before as a tourist, which had ended with them assaulting an underground criminal animal fighting ring with heavy weaponry. They'd only been allowed to leave Terran space again under strict supervision of Stephanie, to ensure no future diplomatic incidents would be had.

"ALLEGED CRIMES THAT I ALLEGEDLY DID, AS THEY WERE NEVER PROVEN IN THE COURT OF LAW."

Stephanie couldn't help but roll their eyes at that one as she chuckled. Allegedly was TANK's favourite word it seemed. 'Allegedly she went back to idly strumming the banjo in her hands once again.