Book 5: Chapter 2: Mending Fences
Bill
January 2336
Ragnarök
Iwas reviewing the most recent eco-survey of Ragnarök when I got a message from Hugh. My eyebrow went up in mild surprise. He and I hadn’t really talked much since the end of the Heaven’s River adventure. Although I don’t think either of us had actually tried to be antagonistic, we’d managed to leave things with some hard feelings. Well, okay, maybe mostly me. I was still a little burned about Hugh trading SURGE drive and SCUT communications technology with ANEC, the Heaven’s River administrator, without so much as a by-your-leave. Although I had to admit the AI tech he’d gotten in return was probably a good deal.
I sighed as I flipped the message up onto a floating window. I guess I felt a bit proprietary about some of the tech, having invented most of it. Well, Gar and I. That thought took me off on another tangent. I missed Garfield. He’d finally carried through on his threat to go set up his own Skunk Works in the Alpha Centauri system.
Frowning at my inability to concentrate, I focused on Hugh’s message.
Hi Bill,
I know we parted with hard feelings, and I feel bad about that. But I still think it was the right thing to do, so an apology would be hypocritical. Instead, I’d like to invite you to the launch of JOVAH Version 2. This will be the initial step to instantiate our first true AI.
Anyway, it probably won’t be all that dramatic. Really, most of the examples of drama that I can think of are bad. So hopefully just a few short speeches and some miscellaneous geekery. And food.