Talk to the Station Mind

An image appears before you: a watery, bluish projection of . . . what seems to be a collection of rolling eyes. Eyes and tentacles and fractal flowers shifting in endless pursuit. And you feel a sense of presence. You’re no longer alone. Something huge and inhuman has turned its attention to you. And it is listening.

“Uh, hi, I . . . I don’t know your name. Do you have a name? . . . Okay, uh, I need to ask you about the death of Serenity Umesh, the human who was killed in the entrance to the Wranaui rooms. Did you see who killed him? . . . Surely you must know who is responsible?”

A long pause, and still no response. You shift your weight, uncomfortable.

Then, as if from a great distance: “All that is seen is known. What is known is shared. If secrets lie in the abyss, they lie not within the scope of our understanding.”

Frustrated, you press harder, “Can’t you be more specific? Please? Where should I look? Who should I talk to? Who killed Umesh?”

Even as you watch, the projection begins to fade, and with it, the station mind’s voice. “Seek now in the proper setting of things. Seek and seek to see with eyes unclouded. See and seek. Why do you seek? Why do you scent for those you hate? Do not hate. Dream of new growth now . . . and forever. . . . We have said the necessary.”

The holo vanishes, leaving you standing alone in the darkened alcove. A whisper of wind touches your ear, and the tentacles continue to wave in the mouths of the pitcher plants.