Aberrant: Children of Quantum Fire - [Interlude - Alexandra 2] This Island Alex

[SalmonMax]

(Timeline - After Butch's big goal-setting meeting)

Alexandra didn't sleep anymore. It was one of countless improvements she liked to sometimes chalk up. For all that though, she sometimes missed dreaming, even though the function of dreaming was now entirely obsolete. Was she being nostalgic? Was she being foolish?

It was something she had been wrestling with more and more. In her eagerness to advance, was she leaving anything important behind? In hindsight Alex had gotten off lucky so far...her first step beyond the Kurzweil Singularity had happened too quickly, and she'd been too distracted to do it properly. She hadn't given it the thought and planning it deserved. Fortunately, while certain things had been sacrificed, she hadn't made any adjustments that placed her beyond comprehension, or doomed her to a solitary existence. She'd had the presence of mind to leave herself the semblance of humanity, and even the emotional and psychological baggage of humanity...copying her mind wholesale rather than trying to edit out anything.

But it was just one step of several. Her third iteration, while far from being ready, was always in the back of her mind. It would most likely involve a larger degree of casting aside those things which held her back. But lately she'd been thinking in a new direction as well. Her life had been so sheltered, and so isolated. Maybe 'humanity' wasn't really holding her back. How could she tell, when she'd never really given being human a chance?

And by human, Alex already was embracing a wider, broader definition. She was still 'human' by her own criteria. Maybe her structure was based on buckyballs and carbon nanotubes rather than eukaryotes and nucleic acids, but her essence...that which made her her was still human.

But had she ever really experienced her own humanity fully?

She was still incomplete. It bothered her. She couldn't transcend humanity unless she'd fully explored it first. Ignorance was the antithesis of transcendence. So the solution was clear.

Alex interfaced with Primus' computer and brought up the internal sensor grid. She focused on a particular stateroom, and waited for its occupant to wake up with all the patience of a pocket calculator.

------

Maia woke up feeling refreshed. She hadn't even blinked the morning gunk from her eyelids when there was a beep from the intercom terminal in her room. Alex's voice emerged. "Hey, sorry to catch you so early but when you're all dressed and ready and so on, could you meet me in the lab?"

[Maia]

"Sure thing Alex." It took a few minutes for Maia to clean and get dressed, but in less than ten minutes she was there outside the lab ringing for Alex.

The door opened without any fanfare, and Maia made her way to Alex. The two sisters couldn't have been more of a contrast. Maia was a paragon of physical prowess, in a feminine body that ranked highly among the most beautiful in the world. There was no denying her appeal, and she had none of the ability to "rein it in" like Darrik or Epiphany. So in what effort could be made, she dressed in casual almost baggy clothing, which altogether failed to hide her beauty.

Among all the siblings, Maia had perhaps the best idea what it was to be human, and easily the most interaction with the world of baseline society, because it was something she actively sought.

[SalmonMax]

Alex had busied herself with her bug collection from Africa while she waited. When Maia came in she swiveled in her chair to look around...which was in itself unusual. Usually it was hard to get her to pull her nose out of whatever experiment it was buried in, though she was perfectly willing to hold a conversation while doing so.

"Maia, hi," she greeted with a smile that looked perhaps a bit embarrassed? "Thanks for coming down. Basically, I need your advice on something. A few things, actually. Most likely."

"Of all of us, you have a relationship that most closely resembles a 'normal' human relationship. Romantic, I mean. I've been thinking lately I should really give matters like that more thought. At the same time though, they seem really time-intensive, and I have a lot of projects I'm trying to do. So what I ask you is...about how much time did it take you to obtain your boyfriend, and approximately how many hours per week would you say you spend in relationship-based activities?"

It might sound a bit dry, Alex knew, but the information was important for her cost/reward analysis.

[Maia]

Asking Maia to quantify something like a relationship was vintage Alex, something Maia expected, and accepted. That Alex was actually expressing even tangential interest in such a thing made Maia smile though. She was still a young woman after all.

"Well, I can tell you at first, I saw Justin once or twice a month. before my apothesis, I was seeing him maybe once a week, spending the day with him in some fashion. We were definitely dating by then by any observation. Since then, well Initially I didn't spend alot of time with him, giving us both time to get used to the new me."

She nodded. "I spent an entire week with him while I prepared to cause him to erupt, and since then well, he and I have spent at least two hours of the day together, not out of need, but of desire."

"The needs of a relationship vary based on the individuals involved. I wasn't looking for a boyfriend when i met him, but subsequent visits with him moved us past friends, and eventually into a couple. He and I are both independent, and while we've had the luxury of being able to be together, we've done so. We aren't attached at the hip though, by any means."

She looked to Alex and nodded. "In all honesty, if it's something you'd like to experience, then go out and meet people. You might find someone who makes you feel the way Justin makes me feel. When I'm with him, the time I've invested is as nothing of concern, because he makes so happy all the cares of the world seem to fall away, and things aren't so bad."

She shook her head. "That makes me sound like a lovesick teenager, but it's completely true. It's my opinion though that it's best not to go out looking for someone. Sometimes, in looking for someone you think would be perfect for you, you end up missing the one who actually is."

[SalmonMax]

Alexandra frowned slightly. "So you recommend that I 'go out and meet people' but not because I'm looking for someone, even though that is precisely my reason for wanting to go out and meet people in the first place?" She sounded very dubious about that, but shook her head and switched subjects.

"You say Justin makes you happy. How? At what point in your relationship did you realize he was making you happy?"

[Maia]

"It's abit counter-intuitive, but Yes, that's the gist of it. Go out and have fun, dont advertise you're looking for someone, because you can get some real assholes that way. Strike up a conversation and see who engages you."

She nodded. "I realized early on perhaps after a couple months, that I was happier around him. As I opened up abit more I started learning more about him, trusting him abit more, and he never betrayed that. It was a different happiness than how I feel around all of you, it's sort of hard to quantify and qualify."

"I get the impression that most think I always have a bright an sunny disposition, but its not true. I have my dark moments, I suffer the same emotions most humans are possessed of, and at times I wish i could be rid of them all."

"Justin changed that for me. His outlook on life, He was a simple man with his hopes and dreams, and even with me around, he pursued them. When I was there though, he made me feel like I was all that mattered to him, not because I was attractive, but he was genuinely interested in me."

She smiled. "It's different for everyone Alex, but that's my experience. There's alot of other things too, but those deal more with my personal tastes in men, and I'd bet they're abit different than yours might be."

"Speaking of, what exactly are you looking for?"

[SalmonMax]

"Experiences," Alex replied thoughtfully. "It's occurred to me that I've begun leaving humanity behind, without having fully understood exactly what I -was- leaving behind. And it won't be something I can go back to. Creating living bodies is still beyond my power. Not to mention that I don't know of any organic brain that could successfully hold the entirety of my mind now...let alone in a more advanced iteration. So this is my last chance, basically...though there's no time limit. I'm willing to give it as much time as necessary."

"It's a problem though. When I want to have fun, I don't really seek other people out." She grimaced slightly and added, "Don't take this the wrong way...but in general, I find other people to be a bit tiresome. Not so much you all, because I have emotional investment in your well being. But strangers?" She shook her head. "It's very hard for me not to see them in terms of what they offer me versus the time and effort required to get on friendly terms with them. Most of the time, the results of that analysis is against spending that time and effort."

[Maia]

"This may sound silly, but can you turn that part off?" She smiled. "It's hard to make new friends if you're always analyzing what they can do for you, and whether they're worth it in potential boons. If nothing else, See them as people with experiences you don't have. See them as potential friends. If time isn't a factor then don't let it be. For lack of a better term, "Waste time" getting to know any who strike your fancy."

"I've noticed you tend to keep to yourself often. I've lamented that, and thought a number of times about seeing if you wanted to come along with me. Then I realize how banal, and mundane many of the things I find enjoyable are, and always figured you'd be bored to tears." She shook her head. "That was a mistake on my part, not at least asking."

[SalmonMax]

Alex shrugged. "No worse than mine in not making myself available. And honestly, if you'd asked before I'd have refused, because I would have thought the same thing you were...that I wouldn't enjoy it, that the other people would be too stupid to have meaningful interaction with, and that my time was better spent here. I still think that might be the case, but now I've decided to find out empirically, and to follow through even if it seems pointless."

With a sigh she said, "Maybe I should start off just watching people. If I can work up some amount of emotional involvement, the whole thing would be easier."

"Any suggestions?"

[Maia]

"The Marketplace in Kinshasa was very nice, and felt relatively safe. Of course you want to be capable of flight, incase they make you uncomfortable. That happened to Shaman and I." She smiled sheepishly. "I kinda draw a rather large amount of attention."

She nodded. "It may have nothing you want, save human interaction, but you never know. This country is amazing in all respects. I'm quite proud of what Einherjar's managed to accomplish."

[SalmonMax]

"And yet," Alex mused, "It will end when he does. The whole thing is essentially a cult of personality. Ein is unusually resistant to corruption, probably because he's experienced power from both sides, in many forms...but he's the only force that holds this state together. Him, and the fear and worship he inspires. In some ways, I think the Congo is the ultimate example of what many baselines, and organizations like The Directive fear most. That there are novas who powerfully evoke natural human instincts of dominance and submission, that they can unravel centuries of social evolution and not only create autocracies...but make them work. Human beings inevitably rebel against autocrats that they feel are equal to themselves. But a nova who chooses to can become a ruler like a pharaoh of old, or a Holy Roman Emperor who was selected by God. More than human, ruling for century after century, with his subjects eagerly craving that rule."

"To a free baseline, there must be a thread of quiet terror implicit in seeing that."

She looked at Maia. "Not the marketplace. Not here. I have professional attachments here, and I don't want them getting tangled with my attempts at having a personal life. Somewhere else."

[Maia]

Maia nodded. "I understand that, but I don't think He's planning on going anywhere."

"As far as somewhere else, I know some places, but they're so commercialized, and in truth we're liable to be scrutinized heavily in any of them."

The other safe place I knew, well the Events with Justin kinda ruined that option. Is there somewhere you've always wanted to go, but never had the time?"

[SalmonMax]

Alexandra shook her head. "Seveal, but none of them are social gathering spots. As for scrutiny, it can't be helped. The whole point of having Primus as a base is that it gives us a freer hand in being seen and known. We can't do anything if we're afraid to move because someone might find where we sleep. Now it doesn't matter as much if Proteus or the Directive sees us and starts investigating."

"And I think either of us can handle a hit squad, at least unti they know what they're dealing with."

"So where's the best place to go to meet someone interesting?"

[Maia]

"Well, I've always loved Paris, if for nothing more than the shopping. There's also the Louvre. If that's not to your liking, There's always London. Not so much for shopping, but the English are an interesting people." That her father was English, and her mother American had little to do with it.

"I haven't been to London in some time, Though there's also Monaco I suppose as well. Do you want an intellectual social gathering, or a party?"

[SalmonMax]

What would be interesting? she asked herself, and realized with some unhappiness that the true answer was probably 'neither.' There was a shortage of intellectual equals in the world, and listening to others trying to sound intellectual be sort of like flossing with razorwire. A party had the advantage that intelligence wasn't needed, so she could sort of turn it off for the night and just try to have fun. In theory at least.

"Party," she decided.

[Maia]

"Monaco it is then." She nodded. "Would you like some time to get ready, or are we going to do a little "makeover" work there? I'll let Warren know so he can get us there."

[SalmonMax]

Alex grinned. "I'm self-makeovering now. Just show me a good face, and I'll make the necessary adjustments. Probably be smart if I didn't look like myself anyway if I'm going to a public place with you. You attract a lot of attention, and I'd like to keep my real features low-profile."

[Maia]

Maia nodded. "At least you can do that when you want."

She chuckled. "I do I know, and now with the modelling contract, my face is everywhere."

She returned a moment later with a fashion magazine, and turned it to a blonde who had features similar to Maia's, as similar as a baseline could do. "This is Nastasha Richards, I'm sure you can duplicate and improve on her general look. "You'll attract your own attention Alex, one way or another."

[Quantum Fire]

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