Anticipatory Curiosity
30 May 2023Ryuko Ntsikana
Anticipatory Curiosity
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Chief Bowen was haggard by the time we landed back aboard the carrier. Yatziri’s warning about there being traps had proven true, but the mission remained a success. The detector performed as simulated, providing generalized location information on magnetic distortions. Its database and limited slant range would need to be improved upon, still, it was a functional and usable tool, as is.
Parting ways in the Cobra’s hangar, I took the tram to the next hangar over where my Diamondback Explorer rested. My job was far from over, as I had been thinking of positioning my assets into a previously known region, that afforded a set of known lucrative quantities. Sure my original mission of trudging ahead and making a swath of alliances still remained in the deck of cards. At this moment, a little bug was creeping through my processor. It's a version of that inner voice saying to turn left and not right.
Jumping ahead, along what would have been the future path, I began a quick fly-through of several systems, scanning their basic planetary body layouts, for future referencing. I know that was what those on my carrier thought I was doing, which is why it surprised them when I sent back the order for them to jump, but in the opposite direction. I don’t like to repeat myself, but this confused them.
Avery, my ever-curious android assistant and the physical embodiment of the ship's AI, reached out to me on a secured channel, eager to understand my decision-making process. They had calculated all the statistical choices, but they were always hungry for more knowledge and wanted to compare their own modeling with my thought process.
Explaining it to them in the simplest terms possible. The region we were heading towards was already well-established, with a network of business associates and alliances waiting for us. It offered an abundance of lucrative opportunities, from mining to cargo hauling, from passenger transport to uncharted exploration. And let's not forget, it brought us tantalizingly close to Thargoid contested space. Who knows when the call to re-enter that conflict might come? With our new position, we would be ready and in the perfect spot to jump right back into the action.
I did have a silent curiosity—more of an expectation—that I did not share with Avery. My returning to the region should illicit an anticipated response. My question, or more correctly a concern, is how much popcorn should I make, when they spin their wheels in vain?