AI's Anyone? "
By: Krystal, Pixie Hologram , [RNPC]
Maxine Lucinda Tapert, Computer Specialist, [PC]
Ian Hunter, Commanding Officer, [PC]

Stardate: 58205.18 1030

Maxine was never one to put things off, and today was no exception. So without further ado she shushed the little pixie that was buzzing around her excitedly and activated her Comm Badge.

"Ensign Maxine Tapert to Captain Hunter," she called and waited for him to acknowledge her.

"Ooohh... Hurry up, hurry up..." Krystal stood on Max's shoulder and clapped with a spray of pixie dust, then buzzed around excitedly and landed on the top of Max's head.

"There are times, Pixie, when you can be a roight on annoying little blighter," Max looked up as the pixie peered over her head, hanging down half on her brow, only to tumble off when the Captain's voice came across the Comm Link.

"Hunter here."

"Permission to come speak with you, sir?"

"Certainly, I'm in my ready room."

"I'm on my way. Thank you sir." Maxine's gaze followed the darting pixie around the room as she giggled and shouted in glee. "I need to adjust your programming...." the young computer expert shook her head and stood up. "Stay out of trouble, eh?"

The door swooshed open and Maxine stepped out into the corridor.

"Wait for meeeeeeee!!!!" Krystal squealed and made a dart for the door, only to disappear as if she never existed when she hit the doorway and there were no more holo emitters to sustain her image.

"Silly Pixie..." Max murmured as the doors whooshed closed and she headed to the Captain's ready room.

Moments later the door chimed, "Enter." said Hunter. As the door opened, he was greeted by a stranger. "Ensign...Tapert?"

"Yes sir!" Max saluted and then rubbed her head for a fraction of a moment.

"I don't believe we have met have we?"

"No sir. Just came aboard from the Klingon freighter. Maxine Tapert, sir. Operations. Computer specialist," she told him. She didn't move from where she'd stepped into the room, and was standing sort at attention.

Hunter looked up and saw her rigid posture, "at ease Ensign."

"Thank you sir," Max stood in the traditional 'at ease' pose.

"Please, have a seat." he said politely.

Max smiled a little and slipped into a nearby seat. "I 'ave a request, sir... If I may?"

"A request?" said Hunter, a curious look crossed his face.

"It's a computer program I've written, sir," she pulled out her PADD and silently requested permission to bring it to him. Hunter nodded and gestured for her to bring it. She stepped forward and handed him the PADD which contained a copy of the program for him to see.

Hunter looked it over. It wasn't like anything he'd ever seen before. "What is this?" he asked.

"It's an AI program sir. A hologram...." she continued and then grew silent while he looked over her work. Maxine had earned every bit of the reputation she had with programming and computers as a whole.

"That's very interesting Ensign, but...What is it you wanted?" said Hunter handing the PADD back to her.

"I want to install it, sir. So that I can take 'er with me," she explained and scooted to the edge of her seat. She was using her hands to gesture and had to stop and take the PADD back. "Right now she's confined to my quarters and personal computer. But I'd like permission to make 'er mobile sir. With me, of course. See, I 'ave this idea of some very small holo emitters that I could incorporate into my clothing," she became quietly animated and even pulled out one of the holo emitters she used in her room. "Like this sir, only smaller..." she offered it to him.

Hunter took the device and examined it. It looked like a multi-faceted crystal "button" about three inches in diameter. Handing it back, he settled into his chair, "What do you mean, 'install' it?" he inquired.

"In the computer, sir. Rather like the EMH. She wouldn't be able to function as a hologram anywhere there weren't holoemitters." She was still quietly animated and getting even closer to the very edge of her chair, and perilously close to falling off. "And even then only on command, of course," she explained further. She could feel herself starting to babble and so quieted. Starfleet officers did not babble... Or fidget.... She folded her hands in her lap and eased her rear back into the chair further, looking hopefully at the Captain.

"I presume you mean to install this in the mainframe," said Hunter with a look of concern on his face.

"With your permission, sir," Max nodded and was back on the edge of her seat again, hands out of her lap, not -quite- fidgeting yet.

"What are the security risks? Can this thing run amok in the system? Are there...safeguards?"

"Yes sir... I would include the same security measures that are on the EMH. And I have firewalls that I've designed which I can use to confine the program to certain areas of the mainframe. It's not an intrusive program, sir. And I have installed a failsafe which, if initiated, will cause the program to delete itself."

Hunter leaned back into his chair. He still wasn't entirely convinced. "Fleet regulations are not entirely permissive on such software... but I guess I don't see what the big deal is. If it is just an AI program, perhaps you could demonstrate it for me and I can better decide."

Max nodded and had this suppressed air of excitement about her. "Of course sir. Now sir? Of course with just one holoemitter, the program will lack some of it's finer, more detailed qualities... But it may suffice..."

Hunter took a deep breath, "Sure."

"A'roight," Maxine grinned and set the holoemitter in the middle of the Captain's desk and then took her PADD in hand. She was definitely on the edge of her seat now. A few keystrokes later and a shower of gold sparkles appeared in the air just above the holoemitter, and in a breath of a second later, a little winged Pixie popped into existence between Max and the Captain.

The image lacked any real solidity and seemed to static a little when it moved, but it was nonetheless easy enough to make out. She stood all of 5" tall and was dressed in wispy gossamer scraps of material and had equally gossamer looking wings. Her blonde spiky hair framed a tiny elfin face and curled about delicately pointed ears. There was a warm golden glow about her skin and 'pixie dust' seemed to hover around her and echo her movements. Her wings fluttered and she looked from Max to the Captain and then finally announced, "I'm Krystal."

"Krystal, meet Captain Hunter," to which the little pixie squeaked and clapped and performed a courtly bow in the middle of the air.

Hunter smiled, "What is that? A...faery?"

"Aye sir. A Pixie to be exact." Max was as proud as if she were showing off a newborn baby. "Fascinating creatures. Very intelligent." Krystal preened the entire time Max talked about her, paying particular attention to her wings. "And very much a part of their environment. Pixie's environment is data. Retrieval, computational, theorizing, structuring. Anything you can do with raw data."

Hunter crossed his arms as he mused the little creature. "So, is this a pet or a tool?"

"Both," Max smiled a little crookedly. "It started out as a companion that I made functional."

"I can do Math," Krystal announced with a nod of her little head and a grin for the Captain as she paused in her exploration of her physical parameters.

Hunter leaned forward, putting his arms on the desk, "Is that so Krystal?"

The Pixie blinked huge blue eyes at him and nodded in an over exaggerated way. "Uh-huh." She had her hands tucked behind her back and her wingtips fluttered. The Pixie 'at-ease' pose.

"Can you tell me what our current navigational status is?"

She nodded and then thought, and then shook her head before pointing back to Max who just smiled, "She won't let me talk to your computer until *you* say it's okay," Krystal told him. "So... Can I, huh?" She gave him a bright smile.

"And does Krystal always behave? I can trust her?" asked Hunter glancing back at Max.

"Aye Captain, for as long as she's been operational she 'as," Maxine told him. "I've coded the desire to please and the Chain of Command into her programming. She thinks you're God, sir." Krystal grinned at him and wiggled her fingers.

"Is that so?" said Hunter leaning back, locking his fingers together behind his head. "Okay...okay," said Hunter considering the ramifications of what he was about to do, "Computer, voice authorization Hunter, give this program access level beta-two.

The computer chirped back, "voice authorization confirmed. Level beta-two access conferred on process id 7991199."

Hunter looked at the hologram and said, "Ok Krystal, I gave you an order."

The little Pixie blinked and nodded, a bit of golden dust sparkling in the air when she did. "Warp 7 on a heading of 237 Mark 5, Capt'n." She saluted and her wingtips quivered.

Maxine was quite proud of Krystal's performance. The program was behaving as it always did, just like Max coded it. She was just as pleased with herself.

Hunter looked at Max, "So the pixie is just user interface with a personality?"

"Basically, sir. Although she has her own memory module and storage, and learning capabilities. She can also do independent functions and calculations, but is limited by her memory size as to the complexity of things she can handle.

The word Maxine used, 'companion' stuck in Hunter's mind. He knew what it meant to have a pet or such. His life would be completely empty if it were not for Chester.

"Okay," said Hunter, "You can install Krystal for a trial period. If I learn that she has become a source of disruption for you or anyone else, or if her routine causes any problems with the ship's systems, I will be forced to reconsider this decision."

"Oh, Yes Sir! Of course, sir," Max immediately got to her feet in her excitement while Pixie danced and clapped with glee. She even tried to fly over to the Captain, but unfortunately the holoemitter didn't quite project that far and she fazed into a glittering shower of pixie dust when she reached the boundary. "I'll make daily reports if you like, sir," Max offered.

Krystal had blinked back into existence and shook like a little dog before tapping one foot in the air and striking a thoughtful pose. After only a moment, she was on the desk, next to the holoemitter, trying to 'push' it closer to Hunter.

"And run diagnostics on the system every twenty-four 'ours if that would be satisfactory?" She glanced down at the Pixie who was grunting and groaning with the effort.

Hunter smiled, "that will be fine." He watched as she left. It was obviously caused her great elations which was evident as she left the ready room. He thought to himself that the ice on Rura Penthe must have frozen brain cells, he really couldn't believe he had permitted something so whimsical.