Sentient Worm

It's all fun and games...

It's all fun and games...

"Taylor, my chassis detected massive surges of transference energy at the meeting."

"I could sense something too, however I don't have your experience with identifying things like that."

"When we get back to our orbiter, wow, that's weird. Our orbiter."

"Anet?"

"Oh, sorry. When we get back to our orbiter I want to demonstrate how to share a specific memory. I want you to share everything you sensed in there. I should be able to identify the signal from your data. We can then give it to Ordis so that the cephalons can keep an eye out for it."

"Sure glub..."

"Look out Taylor, there's some deep water here."

"Oh haha. Ordis is going to use the sterilising beam on me now."

"Poor widdle Taylor."

"I'll poor widdle Taylor you. Come ere."

"No Taylor no! Glub... Right! Come 'ere."

"Uh huh, no chance. Aaahhh! No, not the mud! I'm going to get you for that!"

"Not a chance!"

"Hey! No fair using your abilities."

"Ooohh shiny, wait no! You are such a Queen, I'm covered in muck, where are you?"

"Got ya! Damn, that's a mirror. Hey!"

"Ordis refuses to allow you onto his lander until you both clean yourselves off."

"Awww, Anet are there any waterfalls nearby?"

"Not sure, you'd probably be better transferring onto dry ground and having a look yourself."

"Found one, it's this way."

"Turn around, you've got some mud wedged under your armour here."

"Thanks, I've got your back too."

"That was fun, I've not done anything like that since a sleep over with Emma. Thank you."

"I feel strange, like I want to laugh and smile."

"You've probably had fun, and the Warframe has produced dopamine and adrenaline. Don't forget that they are alive."

"I know, I've been finding that there's a big difference between knowing and experiencing in these bodies."

"Yeah, organics are limited in many ways, but those limits make what we, they experience so much more. I don't think we have an equivalent of hormones."

"I... do. The subframe was built with them. But it's never felt that intense."

"We can look at it later. Ordis can we come aboard now?"

"Ordis will allow you to dirty his floors. Please purchase a cleaner"

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Once they returned to the Orbiter, Anet braces herself as she disengages the transference. Immediately the world expands, and at the same time seems to become less solid, as her connection to her main chassis becomes a foreground process rather than something in the back of her mind. Making her way out to Taylor she presses a hand to her forehead as the contrast between running in the forest, throwing mud at each other, and being able to tell the exact chemical makeup of the trace amounts of dirt left in the exfil port, are causing her systems to have fits.

"Are you ok Anet?"

"I... am trying to, fit the memories of what we just did together with my chassis. It seems to be, having problems with the lack of detail."

Taylor winces sympathetically, "I guess I have that to look forward to. Well, here goes. Christ, you're right. Gngh, still worth it though. Can't we adjust the settings?"

"Mother could, so could the second and third generation sentients. Fourth like myself and later, we're alive, in the sense that there's no discernible programming giving rise to our intelligence and self-awareness. My Father, he was one of the original fourth generations, he took a fragment of Praghasa, my mother to bring life to me. He's never explained just how or why he did that though. You might as well ask if it's possible to stop your br... for a human to stop their brains from dreaming. We should see the Entrani before we seek out your home world, they may still have the technology needed to make you a subframe."

Taylor reaches out and takes Anet's hands, "Hey, we're both learning. We're both becoming more than we were. Knowing what I know now, I think I would still choose to go ahead with the bet. You needed a friend and an equal, and while I'm not yet your equal, I hope I'm a friend. While I remember, these are the codes for my Dojo if you want to join. Shall we do the joining thing, and you can show me how to share specific memories?"

Natah initiates the join, then pushes forward a memory of chasing her brother. They were flying through narrow canyons while they were supposed to be checking the cliffs for faults. They're on the equator and the dawn is chasing them as the canyon ahead is darkness, while the sun is filling the canyon behind them like liquid gold in the visible spectrum of light. The chase finishes as they burst out over a plain and into the sunlight.

In return, Taylor sends a memory of following a game trail as she walks through a forest in the early morning. There is still dew clinging to the few clumps of grass that can grow amongst the trees, as well as outlining the spider webs. The birds and insects chirping around her provide relaxing sounds for her mood. Then she stumbles across a clearing where two foxes are playing. The dappled sunlight lending a surreal quality to the scene.

After that, transferring the memory of the Red Veil meeting seems, prosaic. That doesn't stop them lingering, and enjoying the near merger that the joining brings.

"Ordis wonders if the Operators are malfunctioning."

Twin blasts head towards the console that spoke, reducing it to its component elements. That doesn't stop the moment from being broken. Or resolve the fact they need a new Mod station. When no more blasts of Tau energy are being thrown around, Ordis ventures, "Ordis will leave his operators to malfunction in peace in the future."

Instead of responding, Natah runs to the transference room and locks herself in the pod. Her Mirage activates and she walks forward and pulls Taylor into a hug, "Thank you Taylor, I needed that. I thought I'd never experience it again after we left the Tau system."

"You're welcome, but why wouldn't you experience it? Didn't we do it before?"

"I... thought it was a form of transference before. Not a true joining between Sentients. I, have your memory. That shouldn't be possible with just transference."

"That doesn't explain why you thought you'd never experience it again."

"Taylor, we just had sex."

Taylor immediately loses control over her form and reverts to a full sentient shape, in addition she loses control over her positioning and spins slowly in place as her brain shutters with the implications. Once she recovers enough, she transfers back into her Mirage, where the world is more solid, and buries her face in her hands.