Ashland, Nebraska - October 11th, 2054 - Cinder
The cadence of the week after first contact with Vedrfolnir was all over the place. While at work or trying to sleep time passed slower than pitch dropped. Then when I was driving all around the state picking up metal for Vedrfolnir I would blink and ten hours would fly by. Such a vicious cycle of waiting, anticipating, and fast-forwarding repeated over and over.
The good news was my efforts were paying off in how much functionality Vedrfolnir was gaining each day. Her black nanite “blood” restored her mobility by the end of the second day, albeit at the cost of her making sounds similar to a cargo container thrown into a blender in the middle of a tornado. The din lessened as the days passed, and by the end of the week she could move about quieter than a dormouse.
The bad news was I’d hit a hard limit in terms of what I could provide for Vedrfolnir. Even if I had any funds remaining, the only way I could get more raw material for her to eat and repurpose is if I went “loud” and started dragging car chassis from the scrapyards out to the farmhouse. So far I had been cautious not to buy too much at once at any one place. Yet even then I received quizzical looks and questions when stuffing my hatchback to near-capacity. The “4-H lie” was holding, for now.
“This is the last of it,” I announced as I moved the final two aluminum beams that were several inches thick and several feet long from the back of my car. “Once you snack on these we’re officially out of a way to get you more without revealing your presence to someone. Frankly, it’s a miracle the military hasn’t come investigating your crash already. You’d think someone from Offutt would have at least flown a drone or something out this way to check it out by now.”
Vedrfolnir was seated in the middle of the farmhouse next to the collapsing table. Her crimson irises twinkled like wildfire as she studied me and replied, [ I have been making… discrete inquiries and research into that very notion. So far I’ve determined that no one, not the military, not amateur radar watchers, not the people of Ashland, no one but you noticed my crash. Which in turn raises more concerns if I truly am a Kuxpir design. If I was able to get this deep into human territory without being noticed then what else has been flying under the radar, so to speak? ]
“Lord, I hope you’re truly a prototype,” I said with a frown. “Because otherwise you’re right in that this is a serious issue. Well, more serious than it already is, I suppose.” I shook my head and placed the last beam down. “Maybe we should clue in the folks at Offutt.”
[ I do not believe that would be a wise course of action, Cinder. In my current state they are likely to tear me apart and study me instead of letting me continue to persist. I would greatly prefer to not return to being trapped within my Air-Core for an indeterminate amount of time. ]
“Then we’ll just have to get you to a point where it’s more useful to keep you and I around than lock us up,” I replied in an attempt to soothe her anxiety. “Though how we manage that I’m at a loss. We’re at what, 40-something percent repaired now?”
[ 48.2% functionality has been restored, ] Vedrfolnir informed me. [ At best I can manage a ten minute flight or two discharges from my TLS. I possess data on multipurpose, homing micro-missiles and dual M61A2 Vulcan gatling cannons, but lack the necessary energy and material reserves to produce either. The only reason my TLS can be used is because one of the main capacitors retained a charge from before the crash. ]
Wiping my head I moved to sit next to Vedrfolnir at my laptop. She’d long since passed the need to be connected to it to gain internet access, meaning I could once again keep my own set of notes. “Do you think the capacitor was charged because you were firing at something? Or planning to?”
[ That would be a logical assumption, ] Vedrfolnir answered with a nod. [ Though there is another issue with how I ended up here. Like most human aircraft, Air-Cores are designed with protection from lightning and power surges in mind. Even multiple direct strikes of lightning from the storm on the night of my crash should not have damaged me so heavily. ]
“Hm, maybe you were in some sort of dogfight then? But if you were… Where’s the other aircraft?” I asked. When no answer came, I shrugged and checked the weather out of habit. “Speaking of storms, looks like we’re due for one tonight in about an hour or so. Another squall but not as bad as that derecho was.”
Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.
Vedrfolnir chuckled, which sounded like a cross between a vocoded female livestreamer and rocks tumbling down onto metal. [ From what I can see on the radar, this storm front is capable of creating F3 tornadoes and dumping over 8 inches of rain in rapid fashion. Yet I am to understand that those in the Midwest, yourself included, barely bat an eye at this kind of weather. ]
“Yeah it’s kinda the norm around here,” I said while eyeing one of the tarps in the back of my car. “Think you’ll need a cover or something? I was just going to throw the table and laptop into the back and wait out the storm in my car.”
[ That is unnecessary, but thank you for asking. ]
“Of course. While we have the time on our hands, how’s that mobile app coming along?”
A chime came from my phone seconds after my question. When I pulled it out there was a request for permission to install an unknown third-party app:
### ADF-00 Vedrfolnir Pilot Control and Manual ###
“Hah, waiting for me to ask, I see,” I smirked, tapping yes on the prompt.
[ As I promised, ] returned Vedrfolnir. [ I’ve taken the liberty of provisionally registering you as my pilot as well. I am unable to perform a bio-lock procedure at this time, so this is the best I can manage. ]
“Still, it’s a nice and appreciated gesture,” I said as I watched the app install itself. “Though I recall most Air-Cores bond with their pilots for life. You sure you want that to be me? I’ve never even flown a rotor drone before.”
[ As you said minutes ago, we must ensure that the military does not “scrap” either of us whenever our cover is blown, ] Vedrfolnir returned. [ This seems like the simplest solution. Though even if there were an ace present, I would likely still choose you. ]
“Aw, I’m touched. Clearly it’s my ‘cooking’ that won you over,” I giggled, motioning at the pile of what remained of my junkyard hauls next to Vedrfolnir. “
[ As I have no point of comparison, that seems like a fair conclusion, ] teased Vedrfolnir. [ Though I am curious: Why have you not bonded with another human yet? ]
I blinked slowly while looking up at her. “You mean, why am I not hitched or seeing someone?”
[ Correct. ]
“Mostly because of where I live and what I do. Not exactly a bunch of good options for dating here in Ashland or even in greater Nebraska. Most of the men are more in love with their work or their tractor, while the women are either imminent trophy wives or otherwise unable to carry on an intelligent conversation for very long. There’s a reason I went out of state for university.”
[ Why return to Nebraska, then? ] questioned Vedrfolnir.
I leaned back in my chair and propped my feet up on the table. “Eh, this may seem ironic but I was hoping to actually get away from all the social pressures I was introduced to in college. Out here in the farm lands I generally don’t have to worry about being jumped in the middle of the night or deal with folks trying to get into my pants 24/7. Sure, some still try, but Ashland’s small enough that the locals know I’m not interested. Especially after what happened at KC’s a few years back.”
[ I hope it is not an unpleasant memory. ]
“Nah. If anything I laugh every time I think about it. It was a little after 9 PM when this guy from out of town stumbled up to the bar next to me. I’ve smelt literal slaughterhouses and pig enclosures that were more pleasant than the stench of this guy’s breath. I think at one point he must have been wearing a suit, or at least he had on a button-down and half-loosened tie when I met him.
“Anyways, he starts hitting on me as you might expect. Saying shit like how ‘my fiery hair must mean I’m a wildfire in bed’ and that ‘I’m wasting my time in a shitty bar like this’. I turned to him and politely told him to fuck off. Yet he kept trying. Before the bartender could throw him out, the guy grabs my wrist and tries to pull me away. That’s when I delivered a kick so hard into his crotch that every man within a ten mile radius cringed in pain. He gave up after that.
“Since then no one’s really hit on me, man, woman, or otherwise. And since I haven’t tried a pass at anyone myself none of the locals know my preferences,” I concluded.
[ I see. Human relationships seem to be unnecessarily complex and messy compared to the Air-Core bonding process, ] put forth Vedrfolnir.
“Very messy depending on the other person, but some people are into that kind of crap,” I chuckled. “What about–” I fell silent as Vedrfolnir’s head instantly swiveled to look west. “What’s wrong?”
[ There is an Air-Core approaching this location using the storm as cover, ] she replied. [ Confirming signature… Designation: UTH-68 Kuxpir Rotorcraft. Approaching from the WNW at 120 knots. ETA: 5 minutes. ]