outer_divide | Audio, Midnight of Sunday, Week 63

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Audio, Midnight of Sunday, Week 63

[A feminine voice, oddly neutral, sounds across the communication network at exactly midnight on Sunday of Week 63.]

Realigning temporal fields. Alignment will be concluded in 336 planetary hours.

[And look, there's even a timer showing on the viewscreens to help everyone keep track.]

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Ah... can you explain what that means?

[Normally, Kaidan would address his query through a terminal on the ship, or address it to the empty air in the sections he haunts. At midnight, however, his voice is fuzzy with near-sleep and there's a faint scrabbling sound as he turns the communicator to a comfortable spot to perch.]

Where are the fields being realigned located? And, uh, why?

To accelerate the passage of time on my physical vessel relative to the rate at which it passes on the planet's surface.

Many of you have expressed a desire to decrease the amount of time spent on this planet.

[She's helping.]

[There's silence as Kaidan processes this, and a few of the more immediate ramifications. He would like coffee now, please.]

That's... very helpful of you, Salvation. Thank you.

What's the acceleration factor you're aiming for?

The final ratio will be 14:1.

I shouldn't be surprised by that at this point [Kaidan's conversations with the ship are, as usual, less the formality of interfacing with a VI and more like he's conversing with a superintelligent version of EDI. Rambling is a thing.]

But... well, damn, that's going to be quite a thing. Are you going to be all right in terms of raw materials? Should we bring in food for work crews?

I have found that a steady acceleration curve is easier for organic beings to adapt to.

My processes will be running at the internal rate. Replication will be able to keep pace. However, I would advise bringing your own food. My crew has told me the emergency rations are unpalatable.

Nice to know that some things hold constant across realities. Emergency rations that actually tasted good might be more than my mind could process.

[After a moment, reminded of EDI, he adds on a quick] That was a joke.

But... OK, pack in good food, got it. We're probably going to need a place for people to bunk, once the relative time shift starts getting really pronounced. How are your repair systems doing in terms of uncovering crew quarters?

It is not one of their primary priorities.

The temporary chambers located near the laboratories should suffice. They were designed for use during long term projects, and there are not many of you to house.

McCoy will be happy to hear about that, at least.

So, food and shelter and the ability to do more with my day. This should be interesting.

Anything else we should know about? Do you anticipate any major bottlenecks?

Engaging my temporal engines may generate small, localized anomalies. They will not be harmful, but you may experience mild disorientation.

[This isn't even downplaying it. Salvation genuinely believes that time running backward is mild.]

Ah... what kind of anomalies?

[It's not that he doesn't believe her, it's just that Kaidan knows full well that Salvation's opinions on things can diverge wildly from those of her charges.]

I'm not going to age fifty years and then regress to being a toddler the next minute, right?

That would not be a mild anomaly. However, you may experience as many as 12 hours in reverse.

[That doesn't sound terribly minor... except by comparison. Kaidan attempts to process just what that might feel like and swears he can literally feel his brain starting to spin trying to keep up.]

I'll... make a note to look out for that. Uh, did any of your crew experience that? Do you have any logfiles of how they felt about it? I'm not exactly sure how that would even feel. Would I actually be aware of it, or would my mind be going backwards as well?

No. There are records of similar anomalies early in the temporal engine's development. The mechanisms developed to compensate are currently offline.

Wait, what? Why do, uh, the temporal fields need realigning?

Realignment is necessary to accelerate the passage of time on my physical vessel relative to the planet's surface.

[There's a brief pause.]

Okay, I realize this may sound repetitive, but just to be clear - that means you're making it so that time passes faster on your ship than it does for people off it?

Yes.

Temporal fields?

[One of these days Salvation will say something that makes sense right off the bat]

The discrete timelines for individual areas or entities.

I am going to make time on the ship move faster.

Oh. Why didn't ya just say so?

[Wait...]

Is that safe?

Because it is a drastic simplification.

My vessel is designed to maintain its own timestream. It is a part of what makes my mode of travel possible.

Well... that's handy.

So no problems goin' back 'n' forth between the two?

[Once upon a time she wouldn't have even thought about it.]

It is within the boundaries of acceptable risk.

[She's not sure she likes that phrasing]

Won't hurt the baby?

[Most people who aren't essentially highly sophisticated computer programs probably don't like that phrasing, really.]

No. You already pass between the vessel's temporal field and that of the planet on a regular basis.

[There is a brief pause.]

You will experience the duration of your stay inside either field as real time.

[If she's already been going back and forth... Salvation hadn't said anything about it when she'd asked all manner of questions on the topic.]

Well that's gonna get the doc grumpin'.

[There's a brief pause. The AI is perplexed.]

It's not harmful.

He's not gonna like his timeline gettin' all discombobulated.

I believe you underestimate his ability to adapt to new situations.

He's still gonna grump.

[Also water is wet.]

That appears to be his natural state.

[Is the AI amused? The AI might be amused.]

Well... yeah.

[Kaylee is definitely amused.]

It may be necessary to find some way to cheer him up.

[She sounds very grave. If it's not deadpan humour, it should probably be terrifying.]

Sounds like a challenge.

[She is totally up for a challenge]

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Audio, Midnight of Sunday, Week 63

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