Adam and the Machine

Chapter 1: Voyage

Expedition day 3,916:

A voice hammered against Adam's oblivious brain in concert with the unidentified, blaring din. "GOODMORNING ADAM! It is day 3,916 of our expedition and everything is proceeding as calculated." The alarm resounded the same metallic ordered beat, at exactly the same time. This kind of faithfulness only fostered Adam's growing sense of irritation, which had been developing somewhere in the back of his mind for too long. At long last Adam resolved to do something about this hateful repetition. "Machine. Would it be possible to delay the alarm for 10 minutes tomorrow?" He mumbled, aware that it's hypersensitive hearing could still make him out well enough. It replied "that would not be beneficial to your health, young Adam. Routine is necessary for the human circadian rhythm, after all, as..." In no mood to pay attention any longer, Adam stretched out towards the computer terminal on the left side of his bed, leaving his bedcovers in complete disarray. His fingers deftly swept across the touch-screen, affecting a change in sound and rhythm to tomorrow's alarm. He sighed deeply. The alarm tomorrow would regrettably sound once again at 8:00AM sharp. A softer tone... He hoped It would be less bothersome in the future.

Why hadn't he changed it before? "Ah, yes, repetition has reliably caused you irritation in the past..." It seemed to read his thoughts. The voice's marginally masculine tone lilted slightly towards the end of the sentence, as it often did when it did not anticipate a likely response from Adam. Without seeing a need for further comment the AI increased the lighting setting in the ship to closely imitate that of a bright summer's morning. Like clockwork the walls and lighting gave off a burst of bright scintillating light, settling gradually to a calmer, softer hue. Coming from the engine segment of the ship a dull, droning hum and an unsettling crackling sound could be heard. It was unmistakably the distant clamouring moan of the ship's dark energy generator.

"What would you like for breakfast?" It asked. "Can you make bacon and eggs?" He rasped, still groggy from bring roused so unexpectedly, and dazzled by the illumination that was almost but not quite sunlight. "Absolutely, coming right up." "Conversation mode, disengage." "Confirmed. Awaiting re-activation command," said the AI. It finished speaking in a flat monotone. After that it did not speak for some time. As per usual it resumed its habit of silent observation. Adam wondered about how he could keep himself content that day and for the remainder of their protracted voyage. The AI resumed fabrication of his breakfast using the ship's dark energy reserves. A glass of orange juice and his breakfast materialised inside an alcove situated on the right side of his bed. He ate his breakfast silently, without interruption from the temporarily muted AI.

Adam had lived on the tiny bottle shaped ship since his creation within it's birthing pod. He was accustomed to solitude, since he had been given few opportunities for interaction. In any case the machine was always there, watching him and reacting accordingly if anything unusual occurred. The ship itself generated its own gravity field using centrifugal force generated by the bow and aft sections, which glided effortlessly in continual, concerted motion. It maintained sufficient gravity for Adam to live his life onboard without experiencing any physical problems, as long as he exercised regularly. Furthermore, the ship was able to synthesise breathable air via energy-matter conversion. He didn't usually have any breathing difficulties, except when under stress. Dark energy was also the soul source of power, heat, food and crucially, fuel for the entire ship. The heating system performed it's function reliably, but still at certain times Adam's skin was met with unexplained chills and clamminess. Life was mostly uncomplicated. The perils of space remained strictly on the outside of the vessel for the most part. However, Adam sometimes had troubled thoughts and nightmares in which he was sure that an unknown terror was stalking him, just outside of his reach and visibility. The AI had told Adam that these sorts of thoughts were not uncommon for boys of his age. In truth though, it was well aware of the hazards that Adam's atypical socialisation and 'cabin fever' could present to his psychological wellbeing. It's vast knowledge databanks, which pertained to all kinds of significant information, could be summarily accessed and digested in a fraction of a second.