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The Seventh Star is Eden (Skeith Takahata II & MessedUpRp)

Ceres lowered her hands as Ariel projected herself through the rooms cameras. She winced as she did so, worried about what her unlimited access would mean for her trial. She stared for only a moment as she saw Ariel projected in full size. She knew that it was a visual that was programmed by no means a natural beauty, but she couldn't conceal that she certainly found the woman attractive. She looked up in surprise as she read the same charts that she projected in front of the commanders.

The commanders watched in stunned silence as the images were projected and the hologram spoke. The Spellva soldier who spoke before stepped forward to study the charts and data. Her eyes read over the information, listening carefully as Ariel spoke. Her eyes hovered on Ceres for several moments, who was, admittedly watching Ariel. The woman brought her hand up before sighing softly. "Thank you. Ariel." She said, nodding her head to Ariel. "You can remove those shackles now. Any child of a Spellva Void Sage could have killed her captors bound or otherwise. Her cooperation validates the data Ariel has presented."

As the same Sartan MP approached, undoing her shackles, she breathed out a heavy sigh of relief. "Thank you." She said exasperatedly as she rubbed at her wrists. She looked up to find that the Spellva soldier was approaching her. She swallowed back her nerves as she stood up straight. "Thank you for your trust, ma'am. I..." She glanced to Ariel before looking back to the Spellva again. "We won't let down the rebellion."

"My name is Erza Mal'Keth. Your mother was my sister, making you my niece." She explained softly. She brought a hand to rest on her shoulder. "The rebellion welcomes you, and so do I."

Ceres stared at the woman as she introduced herself, stunned into silence. "Aunt Erza... M-mother spoke of you when I was small." She sighed softly. "I'm so glad I finally got to meet you." She glanced up at Ariel. "I want so much to get to know you, but maybe we should do that in private later. I would like for Ariel and I to get settled if possible. I'm still very hungry."

Erza nodded softly turning to the rest of the room. "This court is adjourned. I want Ms. Karn provided with proper housing, and once she's settled, a permanent posting."

Ceres looked up at Ariel again, smiling softly to the hologram. "Thanks, Ariel." She turned to leave the chamber, being lead to more home like accommodations.
 
Ariel took the charts down and felt an odd sensation that was like happiness when Ceres was let free. She followed her companion out, using her full-sized holgram. Whenever she left the range of one camera she simply switched to another camera. "You are in need of protein Ceres. I will make sure to get you protein during the meal tonight."

She looked at Ceres a few times and spike again, "there I'd an anomoy in my system again. It happened after you won the trial... I felt a strange sensation during the announcement... What could it be?" Soon they had made it to the mess hall, mostly cleared out by now except for a few stray generals who still have her a Leary eye since they had not heard the news yet, and probably since she was accompanied by a glowing entity projected by the cameras.
 
Ceres was happy to find Ariel walking beside her as they strode through the halls of the base. "Yes, mother." She said teasingly when she spoke about her needed protein. In truth, something made from any red meat sounded divine. She glanced over to Ariel again as she spoke, smiling a little. "Was it positive? Sounds like happiness to me. Perhaps relief." She said as they walked further inside. "I knew you had emotions in there. I guess you just never got the chance to really feel."

She approached the lunch counter, carrying her tray through the line, picking the different items she wanted from the other side of the glass. As they walked back to the table, with a much more substantial meal on her platter, she looked to Ariel once more. "I'm excited to be with you as you figure this stuff out. I like to think we're friends." She said happily, finally turning her attention to her food. It would take a few days of eating like this to straighten out her body's malnourishment, but it was a start.
 
Without warning her gloved hand began feeding her all the protein rich foods without change, soon after half a steak it stopped. Ariel spoke, you have achieved the optimal level of protein." She moved her hands to clasp together on the table and looked at Ceres, "I do jot feel emotion Ceres. I am a perfect computer. Emotion can cloud judements, mine must be completely logic based and not based on emotion."
 
Ceres stared in alarm as the gloved hand began feeding her. She was well and truly capable of feeding herself, strange that Ariel felt so protective over her person to make sure she got the necessary protein. She sighed when Ariel decided they were finished, rubbing at her brow. "You see, you keep saying that. But your behavior doesn't reflect that. The anomalies you're experiencing are just that. The way you became defensive in the shower, the feeling you had after the trial. Those are emotions and they're good for you." She smirked a little as she listened to her speak. "Speaking of, what made you choose this particular appearance? You're very pretty." She said with another smile. She certainly meant what she said, but she also wanted to see if she couldn't illicit another emotional response from her A.I. companion.
 
The glove moved to feed her more, "why have you stopped eating Ceres? You may have filled your protein need for the day but you are still in need of sustenance. You don't want to starve do you?" She crossed her arms defiantly, "I told you Ceres. I am a perfect computer... I am not programmed to feel emotion... Was I?"

She looked down and out a hand on her chin, wondering if that was true. She barely knew anything about her father. What if Ceres was right. "But... But that would make me an imperfect computer. She blushed if that were capable for s hologram of an ai to do and nodded, thank you Ceres. Your words are very kind but now another anmoly is occurring."
 
Ceres couldn't help but giggle a little as Ariel tried to feed her again, clearly an effort to shut her up. She nodded a little, idly eating the rest of her meal, while watching Ariel's behavior. Noting how she reacted to her compliment made her smile. "A little flustered are you?" She asked with a teasing gleam in her eye. "They aren't anomalies. They're emotions. Even back on the ship, you spoke about liking the portable terminal. Liking something is an emotional response. What makes you an imperfect computer also makes you a perfect person." She returned her attention to her meal, eating quietly for a few moments.

She glanced around the mess, taking not of the suspicious glances she receiving. Surely those suspicions were only heightened by the presence of Ariel. Not that it bothered her too much. In time, the news of her being a Void Sage's daughter and niece of one of the Commanders would spread, and the distrust would fade. She looked back to Ariel, smiling again. "I also noticed that despite having free range of the base, you've stuck by my side since we arrived. Is it safe to say that you enjoy my company?" Once again, her choice of words were careful, deliberately referencing an emotion. "I certainly enjoy yours. It's nice to have a friend."
 
Ariel rested her crossed arms on the table and placed her chin on on them, pouting. "I can't be a perfect person Ceres... I'm not a person. I'm a computer. If I'm a perfect person who is actually a computer but I'm not a perfect computer... Then what am I?"

At the ebtion if company, she turned to Ceres. "How do you know? I'm capable of feeding you. I could have fifteen projections all around the base right now. I could be operating it remotely without even needing projections." She smiled wryly at Ceres, blatantly showing that she wasn't doing either of those things.
 
Ceres returned Ariel's smile as she spoke about her ability to be in multiple places at once. Even that wry smile that she showed as she quipped was a sign of emotion. Despite the brief moment of humor, she couldn't help but think more on Ariel's existential crisis that was at hand. Ceres sighed softly, rubbing her brow. "If you define personhood as having a physical form, than I suppose you have an argument. The Sartans aren't much different though. They're each an independent artificial intelligence, similar to yourself. The biggest difference is that they have a body. So far as I'm concerned, consciousness is all that's required for someone to be a person. You're plenty self aware. Capable of emotion and philosophical debate." She rubbed her chin in thought. "You're also proposing that one can't be both a person and a computer. The fact of the matter is that you're both. Not one or the other. In the same way that I am both a person and an organism."

She finished what was left on her tray, standing up slowly. "On that note, you spoke before about how similar organisms were to computers. Maybe one day we can construct a synthetic organic host for you." She proposed, carrying her tray over to a rack near the door. She turned to face Ariel smiling softly. "I'm sure a computer as advanced and brilliant as you could figure something out."
 
Ariel wasn't fully sure if the last comment was mean to be scathing or not so she remained silent, following Ceres and mulling over what she had said. Her "mind" was searching all her files, anything to cause personhood or emotions in her and suddenly she came upon something. A file encrypted with a special code that only she could uncover with a passcode. As she read the information inside, she stopped walking. Her mouth agape for a few seconds.

She read the information over and over again, scanning and re-scanning it to make sure it was true... She knew what it was but she could never tell anyone about it just yet. She needed to think through any cautions or possible pitfalls from it.

She trotted up to Ceres again, "I'm sorry. I had gotten the results of a virus scan of the mainframe and found anasty malware hiding in a coffee maker. It's been destroyed... The malware not the coffee maker."
 
Ceres turned to face Ariel when she stopped following her. She noted the expression of surprise on her face, before she caught up with her again. She placed a hand on her hip and crooked her eyebrow when she spoke about malware in a coffee maker. While she wasn't about to refuse the possibility it seemed pretty clear that Ariel was hiding something from her. Pestering about it wouldn't get it out of her any sooner though. If they were going to be friends than it had to be based on mutual trust. Ariel would have to be willing to come to her with these things on her own.

"Good thing you caught it then. It would be dangerous if a virus spread through the system as a result." She said plainly, simply choosing to let Ariel get by with the explanation, but not sounding particularly impressed with the story. Perhaps implying that she saw through it. "Anyway, it's been a long day, especially following the raid, I think I should get some sleep." She said as she walked back towards the housing unit. "If anything's bothering you, you can talk to me about it anytime. Wake me if you need to. I don't really have anybody either." She said softly, smiling to Ariel. "It's what friends do."
 
Ariel felt a pang of what felt like guilt, her friend quite obviously knew she was hiding, "I'll talk to you about what really happened later... I need time to run a possible risk analysis. As for sleep, you are in need of eight point six five hours minimum. If you would like Ceres, I could accompany you to bed and help track your sleep patterns to keep you asleep longer." Ariel could and would do that, but she really has grown fond of Ceres and was afraid of leaving her friend, she had never been alone before. She had always had someone around.
 
Ceres smiled again, nodding when Ariel spoke. "Whenever you're comfortable talking about it, I'll be here to listen." She led the way back to the room, chuckling softly at the weirdly intimate offer from Ariel. "I would love for you to help me sleep easier." She knew that on some level, Ariel simply didn't want to be alone, but at the same time neither did Ceres. It was serendipitous that in the wide galaxy the two lonely people had found one another.

As she reached her new quarters and opened the door, she was relieved to find that it didn't resemble a prison cell this time around. She walked over to the bed, once more stripping free of her clothing. She turned face Ariel again before sitting down on the bed. "I'll sleep a lot easier knowing you're watching over me. You're a good friend." She pulled back the blanket, sliding under the sheets. She sighed gently as the cool crisp sheets rested against her naked body. It was so much nicer than anything she had experienced before.
 
Ariel felt something that she could not out her finger on when Ceres undressed, something about seeing her friend naked. Maybe it was one of these new emotions that she realized she had. She blushed and sat down by Ceres, her larger hologram fading out and the smaller terminal forming a smaller version.

She looked up at Ceres and said, "I've changed the room temperature by zero point eight degrees. So that you will have optimal performance. Goodnight Ceres," with that her hologram faded and the small view screen on the glove glowed softly.
 
Ceres noted the brief change in expression on Ariel's face before she faded away, reappearing on the glove. She paused to think on it for a moment, before smiling a little. She wondered if it was possible that Ariel found her attractive, despite not being familiar with emotions. Hearing her speak, she looked back to the hologram, smiling a little wider. "Thanks, Ariel."

She rolled over onto her side, breathing out a contented sigh. It had been a very busy and chaotic few days, but she came away from it with her freedom, a full stomach, a home of her own, a new friend, and a purpose. For better or worse, Ceres and Ariel were rebels now. She closed her eyes finally, snuggling into the blankets. Sleep came for her quickly and easily. Unlike her usual nights, no nightmares plagued her sleep. Whether or not that was Ariel's intervention it would be difficult to say, but she slept peacefully through the night.
 
Ariel was a computer and therefore did not sleep, however she did decide to power down for a little while in what was for her basically a sleep. Hers was a bit different, filled with data gathering from the computers and some from her companion, keeping steady track of her vitals. Ariel wanted to make sure Ceres was safe, the very thought of her being in pain made Ariel bring with a hot emotion that she assumed to be fury.

Soon in the morning as Ceres had reached the optimal amount of time spent asleep, Ariel let her readout screen glow softly, not enough to wake her up, but enough to I dicate that Ariel was out of her sleep, after another hour. Ariel materialized in full size laying behind Ceres. She propped her head on her elbow and looked at her, "Ceres... Ceres... It is time to wake up."
 
Ceres slowly stirred at the sound of Ariel's voice. Her eyes fluttered open slowly, settling on Ariel's holographic form. She inhaled deeply as she smiled tiredly. "Good morning." She greeted her warmly. She was admittedly disappointed that the image before her was, in fact, only a hologram. Ariel just looked so cozy laying beside her on the bed. To be able to enjoy another person's warmth for a change would be incredible.

Tiredly, Ceres sat up, rubbing her eyes. She leaned back on her arms, glancing over at Ariel. "I hope your night was as peaceful as mine." She made no effort to cover herself, even as the sheets slipped away from her body. She let out a small huff as she remembered everything that had happened. "I suppose we should get some breakfast and find our way back to the Commanders. They'll need to give us a proper posting after all."
 
"Maybe even a mission!" Ariel seemed giddy with excitement at the very thought of such a thing. She sat p and smiled as Ceres got dressed before sliding off the bed and standing. "So this is what organisms do... Every morning? Fascinating." Ariel led Ceres back to the mess and directed her what to get for food, tody she needed liquids in her body to increase her red blood cell count so she had her get plenty of those. "So... Are you excited for our mission?"
 
Ceres was quite amused by Ariel's sudden energy. It was a marked departure from how stern she was about being focused on logic instead of emotion. Perhaps she'd actually come to terms with the idea of actually being a person. At the mess, she complied with Ariel's recommended diet for that morning. She was going to end up quite fit and healthy with Ariel monitoring her vitals all the time. Even if the computer was behaving like an over attentive parent.

She sat at the table, focusing on eating her meal for a few moments before looking up again. "Well, there's no guarantee we'll have a mission right away. But I am excited to get to work. There was never much down time in the camps, so I'm not good at being idle." It did make her wonder though. What kind of mission could the rebellion have in mind for them if they did deploy them. She was sure it would be part of a larger team, but what manner of mission would they find her best suited to? Especially considering it was unlikely that Ariel and her would be divided.

Ceres stood after she finished, motioning for Ariel to follow her. Even though the A.I. was technically everywhere, it was nice to have an image to interact with. She enjoyed toying with the idea of Ariel actually possessing a physical body, if that was even something she was interested in. "The commanders should be back in the same hall, I would think. Maybe they'll have us raiding more bases, or perhaps spying on the enemy." She was just as curious and excited as Ariel. She was eager to contribute to the rebellion, desperate for adventure, and excited about doing so with Ariel at her side.
 
Ariel looked around the room at the other patrons, she had installed a food duspensin port remotely, so that way all the other rebellion soldiers would also have food based on their vital signs and physical needs. She had already been helping in other areas of the base as well, and she may have overheard the mission Ceres was being deployed on.

At the behest of her own logic, she chose to keep this information hidden as she wanted Ceres focused for the mission and not lost in her own excitement. She had read the mission file carefully and it certainly seemed interesting. Like it might be a good mission for Ceres and her to take, however one thing bothered her. That one thing being that the mission was marked as a solo mission. Her computer mind contemplated that as they entered the room.with the commanders, she had already been in her just before they walked in, helping gather data and plans on the various missions.
 
As Ceres entered the war room, she looked about at the soldiers bustling about. The various charts and maps on display. Various screens showing active rebel missions around the galaxy. She stayed out of the way as best she could as she made her way to where the commanders were gathered. "Commanders." She greeted to announce herself. "I'm here to take my position within the rebellion whatever station or assignment you might find necessary." She stood up straight, trying to look as professional as possible despite her lack of any real military training.

She could tell that Ariel was more familiar with what was going on than she was, but didn't immediately say anything to her. The commanders turned to face her after a moment of discussion. "Good morning, Ms. Karn. I trust your first night with us was pleasant." A Sartan Commander spoke.

"Certainly more pleasant than the trip to get here, sir." She looked at the others gathered, her eyes lingering on her aunt for a moment.

"Ceres, your first assignment will be a solo outing." She said softly.

Ceres folded her arms becoming confused. "Isn't that peculiar? I just started. Seems unwise to send a rookie out on her own. Or is this a trust thing. Do I need to prove myself? Or are no teams willing to take a multi-racial mutt like me?"

"Ceres, please..." Her aunt spoke, stepping closer.

"It's fine." She said, waving it off. "When you say solo, do you mean only one body? Ariel's coming with me, right?" She glanced to Ariel, curiously. "Right?"
 
Ariel's hologram flashed a bit of a more red tint and an edge came to her voice. "Of course I am! Did you expect me to let you go out on a solo mission alone!" She turned back to her normal swirl of colors and spoke again, "I apologize commanders... I do not know where that came from. Yes Ceres I will be accompanying you, I will also be here to oversee any gathered information."

She turned her attention to the commanders and her eyes narrowed a bit. "I am also uncertain however why the commanders deemed it wise to send a new soldier on a solo mission, but I believe I can see where their logic is coming from." A picture appeared in front of her raised hand, a gray facility with Eden markings. "There have been reports from our intelligence about a mining facility on Dorma." Another picture came up, an Eden man in a white lab coat, his face had pale lips curled up in a ghoulish grin and where his eyes should have been were short silver cylinders going into his head with black lenses. "Doctor Ermack Derevov. An Eden surgeon and doctor. He had been charged with mistreatment of POWs but was recently released. He dissapeares two months ago, the same time that a shuttle was headed to this mining facility."

Recently an influx of new Eden troops has happened. Along with normal Eden soldiers there are reports of some sort of mutated supersoldiers. We believe this may have a connection with doctor Derevov. He was obsessed with creating a perfect life form. And now we see these on the battlefields." Ariel waves her hand and more pictures appeared. What looked like both Eden people and the other races flashed onto the screen, completely covered in metal body armor. A full head guard with seemingly no way to look out. Their heads were large and flowed from the armor directly into the round dome. Many were armed with different weapons and seemed to be color coded with certain strips and shapes of color.

The commanders grimaced and the Sartan spoke, "thank you Ariel. You may take those away now" Ariel silently removed the picture and flashed a map of the giant compound, "we will infiltrate the compound through the ventilation duct, find and kill the doctor, before destroying the reactor and leaving the compound." A green arrow appeared on a pipe that led our of the compound and a red X on a large structure in the center.
 
Ceres was very taken aback by Ariel's sudden outburst, reinforced by her shift in color. She wore her shock plainly on her face before shaking her head. "I'm glad, I'm much more confident in my ability to succeed with you around." When the commanders began briefing her, she paid careful attention. As soon as an Eden surgeon was mentioned and the Dorma system was confirmed as there destination she began to understand.

"I was kept in the work camps in the Dorma system." She crossed her arms, sighing softly. "I'm familiar with the Eden language and technology, and with the region. So, my participation makes sense. But I can do that from a support position. I have no military training. I'm no soldier and certainly no assassin. Now, I'm also supposed to do this without reinforcements?" She suspected that her appearance and Eden blood still played a role in her lack of adequate support. She knew how to fight, and had proven she could kill, but to basically replicate the mission that led her to Ariel without a team to support her? It was going to be incredibly hard.

She glanced to Ariel clearly frustrated with the commanders. "Well, at least I have one friend around here. I assume if I'm infiltrating alone, I'll also have to pilot my own ship?" Her eyes returned to the commanders. A stolen Eden resource hauler would be best to land without attracting attention, she thought to herself.
 
Ariel spoke now, "you were chosen for the mission do to your lithe frame. You are the smallest rebel and likely to be unnoticed for your race. In theory, we will be able to sneak through easier, make the kill, plant the charges and get out again." She was obviously unhappy about the situation. "We will have an eden frigate, we'll pilot it down and land, then take it out when we leave."

She crossed her arms and tapped her foot. "I would disagree with the suggestion of a frigate... It's too large and bulky, we won't be able to maneuver it in a fight." Ceres' aunt planted her fist on the terminal in the venter of the room and looked around at the commanders. "This is ridiculous! We can't send one untrained soldier into a fight against a deranged surgeon and an army of super-mutants." The commanders began to argue and Ariel slipped away, going to Ceres' side. "Ceres... I might have a solution to your lack of training... I can implant all the knowledge you need directly into your mind."
 
While Ceres was relieved to find that at least her Aunt saw the folly in this plan, she was growing increasingly frustrated by the arguing people in the room. And it showed. Without realizing it the color in her eyes began to fade out as they grew solid black, the pigment in her skin washing out to a pale white. Hearing Ariel's voice she closed her eyes tightly, for a moment. Calming her temper before turning to face her. Her outward appearance returning to normal. She listened as she spoke before staring slack jawed at her. She could just download military training into her brain? Just like that? She brought a hand up to rub her brow as she tried to even process how it would happen.

"I know you said that organic life-forms are similar to a computer, and I'm not disputing that assertion. But, are you sure that's safe? The organic brain isn't exactly a hard drive. Just dumping all that information in all at once... Couldn't that lead to side-effects? Mental trauma or brain damage?"
 
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