Carter spoke with the girl as he walked down the corridor toward the bridge. "So, how bad is the situation we're talking about here? Are we going to have to stand and fight?"

The girl shook her head. "No. It's just the usual. They're trying to harass us to keep us from fully assimilating any of their ships. We could probably take them easy enough, but then there'd be another fleet, then another. You know how it goes."

Carter sighed. "Yeah, they've been doing a lot of that lately. So, how much did we pick up? Were we able to at least break even with what we spent in this fight?"

The girl shrugged. "If not, we should be close enough to render any deficit negligible. Between Captain Alen tying up one of the ships and Erik leading a strike team to take another, this fight didn't cost us much in the way of resources."

Carter shook his head. "But we're still not getting ahead either. This game of cat and mouse is getting old."

They walked in silence a little more as Carter thought about possible solutions to their predicament. It was like the pirates had turned into an organized military force. Alen was pulling his weight, and the resources he was pulling in from the bounties he was collecting helped keep his ship and crew in good running order, but trading was grinding to a halt everywhere else in the region. It didn't make any sense. If the pirates continued this way, they would chase all their prey to virtual extinction, or the core worlds would finally get off their backsides and get involved. Either would be bad for everyone involved, but it was even worse for Carter and the Sybil in the short term as the pirates seemed strangely obsessed with tracking them down for some reason. They needed a way to break out of this never-ending battle they currently found themselves in, or they'd die a death of a thousand cuts.

Carter was so lost in thought that he almost forgot the girl was at his side until she spoke up. "So, I'm the craziest in my own way, huh?"

That snapped Carter out of his thoughts as his mind tugged itself back to the here and now. He'd shared those words with the kid not long ago. "Heh, you heard that, did you?"

The girl raised an eyebrow. "Did you think I wouldn't?"

Carter laughed this time. "No. I know better than to assume I've got any real privacy on this ship! Still, I was just trying to keep the kid from underestimating you is all. Poor kid probably has no idea what kind of mess he's walked into!"

The girl didn't seem ready to drop the subject that easily. "So, what makes you think I'm the crazy one, hmmm?"

Carter thought about it a moment. "Well, is there anything or anyone you wouldn't burn to the ground for the sake of this ship?"

The girl seemed to stop and think. "Nothing comes to mind, no."

Carter nodded in her direction. "See, that's what I'm talking about. Even if they're lying to themselves, most people will at least pretend they wouldn't commit wholesale murder so easily. Admittedly, when push comes to shove, there's always something they'll fight to the death for, but the pretense otherwise is kind of what civilization is built off of!"

The girl shook her head. "So, I refuse to lie to myself or others, and that's what makes me crazy? I'm not sure I want any of your sanity if that's the case."

Carter laughed again. "Maybe you're right. Sanity might just be overrated!"

*  

Elseph linked into the ship's systems, looked over the reports, and fought the urge to growl. How did these meat sacks keep these chemically induced emotions under control? Right now, this body was screaming that it wanted to fight someone or something, but there was nothing in front of her but more reports.

The Sybil had been sighted again, but Elseph already knew how this would play out. She'd arrive just after the Sybil had left. Even if she could figure out where its destination jump was, by the time she got there, the Sybil would be gone again, this time taking the precaution to cover its jump, leaving Elseph with another dead end.

With a grunt of annoyance, Elseph sat back and disconnected. They needed some way to lure the Sybil into a decisive battle, but pinning down that ship was like trying to capture your shadow. Why did the Boss want them anyway? Some half-baked AI and one oversized ship surely had little to offer when compared to the resources they were pouring into its capture!

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Elseph shook her head and sighed. Questioning the Boss wouldn't end well for her. She might be one of his more important pieces, but she was well aware he wouldn't hesitate to sacrifice a queen if it meant cornering his prey. It was up to her to find a solution to get her ahead rather than costing her a head.

A chime at her door meant one of the crew wanted a word with her. Setting the reports aside, she turned her seat to face the door. "Come in."

In walked one of the many useless pirates on board the ship. At least he had the good graces to salute before speaking. "Captain Luise! We've entered the system. The Sybil is already gone."

Elseph wanted to snap back, saying she was already well aware, but instead, she pushed herself into the backseat and let Luise address the meat sack. "Thank you. You may go."

As the door closed behind the pirate, Luise spoke softly to herself. Or perhaps more properly, themselves. "You know, you should try getting to know the men you're commanding rather than just thinking of us all as meat sacks."

Elseph fought the urge to take back over just to roll her eyes at herself. "I know enough. I've already gone over all their files and know their capabilities. That's why I have you, to be the face that keeps her fellow meat sacks happy and working."

Luise sighed. "I don't know why you had to be put in here with me to make that happen. You could have easily just stayed in the ship like any other AI."

Elseph did take back over to laugh. "I'm in here because your predecessors failed. You failed. So it's time someone capable finally took the reins. Just be glad you still have a purpose."

Luise was silent after that. A part of Elseph wished she could connect deeper with her host so the pirate couldn't hide her thoughts from the AI. But then again, maybe that was for the best. She already felt dirty enough being encased in this...limited form. She mentally shuddered at the idea of touching a human's slimy thoughts.

*  

Despite his apprehension, Miles made short work of the steak. Whatever else he might say about Captain Carter, at least the man could cook.

Looking around, Miles took the plate and utensils to the sink to wash them before placing them back where he'd seen Carter pull them from. The AI the Captain referred to as "the girl" watched him work. "You know, that's not necessary. I could clean that up for you."

Miles looked over at her, remembering what Carter had said about them revoking his stay of execution. "Oh, uh, I don't mind... I just don't want to leave a mess."

The girl chuckled. "You know, this isn't what Carter meant when he talked about pushing us. We won't suddenly turn on you over a dirty plate."

Miles looked at the girl. "Then what would make you 'turn on me?'"

The girl shrugged. "Well, I'm not going to give you an exhaustive list as you'd probably die of old age halfway through, but let's just say that so long as you treat us with a modicum of respect, you'll be safe in these halls."

That didn't do a lot to ease Miles' fear. "Well, I don't know a lot about what is and isn't respectful, but I imagine cleaning up after myself is one way of showing respect."

The girl shrugged again. "I guess you're right. Well, I won't argue if you want to clean up after yourself, but if you're finished I can show you to one of the more clean rooms we have available."

Miles followed the girl in silence. It was... weird seeing an AI projection walk about as if it were a normal person. Not that Miles had any experience with AI directly, but from what he saw of them when on broadcasts, they always appeared in much smaller forms and floated about. If he didn't know any better, he'd almost think he was walking beside a normal human being, except her feet made no sound.

Finally, if only to distract himself from how small his footsteps sounded in the large echoing halls, he spoke up again, asking another question on his mind. "Is it true what Carter said? Is this a ghost ship?"

The girl seemed thoughtful for a moment. "In many ways, yes. In fact I'd say in any way possible, yes. Though I don't know if you'll see any actual spirits wandering our halls. Maybe the occasional echo, but that's more of what you would call a ghost in the machine, so to speak. But if spirits do exist, I imagine we'd have more than our fair share, given how many lives have come to an end here in our halls."

She said it so casually. It was as if the girl was just talking about something mundane, like the electricity going on the fritz. Then again, Carter said these AIs were old and insane. Maybe they had no distinction between an electrical short and paranormal activity.

After walking the rest of the way in silence, a doorway opened at their approach. Looking in, the room seemed to be pretty barebones but still more spacious and luxurious than anything Miles had been able to call his own. Walking over, he sat on the bed. It felt comfortable but maybe a little too soft. Still, he wasn't about to complain.

The girl watched him, keeping her thoughts to herself. Not sure of what she still wanted, Miles decided he better at least show gratitude, if only to stay on her good side. "Uh, thank you. This room looks nice..."

The girl nodded. "I'm glad you approve. Is there anything else you'd like?"

Miles thought about it a moment and decided it couldn't hurt to ask. After all, she'd asked. "Ummm, do you have any book files I could read?"

The girl seemed to think a moment. "What genre are you looking for?"

Miles shook his head. "I'm not picky. Anything would be fine."

The girl shook her head. "No, you misunderstand. I'm asking for help narrowing it down. Our library has tens of thousands of volumes available for general access."

It took a moment for Miles to understand what the girl had just said. They have tens of thousands of books on file? That dwarfed the library on the planet he came from! Where was he even supposed to start with that kind of selection? "Uh, fiction, I guess?"