Mason, E, LT 2nd: k go

ByteMe: you have me

ByteMe: and forget all that romance stuff

ByteMe: THIS is what i’m good at

Mason, E, LT 2nd: they reinstated my flight status, kady

ByteMe: fuck

Mason, E, LT 2nd: when the shitstorm hits, I’m going to be right in the middle of it

ByteMe: …

ByteMe: Byron and I are working on something.

ByteMe: we’ll go out fighting if that’s what happens, but i swear to you Ez, we’re not done yet.

ByteMe: so stay in one piece. that’s how I like you.

Mason, E, LT 2nd: if

Mason, E, LT 2nd: i don’t come back

Mason, E, LT 2nd: u know i love you, right?

ByteMe: i know.

ByteMe: that feels like the most inadequate thing I’ve ever said, but I know. and I love you too.

ByteMe: i have to get back to work, Byron’s yelling at me for slowing down

Mason, E, LT 2nd: yeah

Mason, E, LT 2nd: ok

Mason, E, LT 2nd: god i wish i could kiss you goodbye

ByteMe: this must be why you spent all those walks kissing me in your head. it was practice for this moment.

ByteMe: i’m imagining kissing you back, right now

ByteMe: i hear I’m pretty good

COUNTDOWN TO LINCOLN INTERCEPTION OF ALEXANDER FLEET:

10 hours: 42 minutes

ByteMe: Byron, maybe we should tell command i’m here

ByteMe: i could work faster in person with u

Zhang, B: veto

ByteMe: what’s the worst that happens at this stage? we’re staring down the barrel already

Zhang, B: u really want to find out the worst that happen? u stay where u are.

ByteMe: i think it was Aristotle who said it best (and I might be paraphrasing a little here)

ByteMe: “fuck you, chum”

Zhang, B: you’re not coming anywhere near this ship. Alexander’s a bigger target than Hypatia, and we’ve got a hangar full of bad news. any time we gain by having you here will be spent convincing command to bring you over. and it’s too fucking dangerous. end of discussion.

ByteMe: …

Zhang, B: I need more stims. can u check that last string of mine while i go get them? think I blanked for a moment.

ByteMe: … fine

… make sure the kids grow up knowing their heritage. I know it’s not your thing, but I want my sisters to take them to temple and make sure they know the stories, celebrate the holidays. Please make sure they recite the Kaddish for me …

… was going to propose when I got home, and I’m sorry for waiting so long. I’m sorry for the whole mess with Amalia, and for everything that happened at Kara’s birthday, and … I’m just sorry. I thought I had time to make it better …

… then log into my personal unit—the password is m3gaPand4—and erase anything that looks even remotely like it might be porn. Coral and my mom are going to want to get all the family pics off there, and I don’t want them finding anything like that. I’m counting on you, bro …

… find someone and be happy, don’t spend your whole life thinking of me. You’re too young for that, and I’m finding peace right now in knowing you’ll be laughing and loving and making amazing music for many years to come …

… Blake to have the books and Brandon to have the geeball helmet signed by Artie Corso, and make sure Oster doesn’t get ANYTHING …

… so scared, and I wish you were here. …

Zhang, B: careful

Zhang, B: Consuela nearly saw u there

ByteMe: don’t think i’m getting any traction. i’m gonna try modding that false echo routine you wrote and get it replicating that way

Zhang, B: that won’t work either

ByteMe: i know. but might as well spend the time trying.

Zhang, B: there’s not enough time left

ByteMe: i know that, too

ByteMe: i’m alpha testing this wyrm on the automated catering lists, see if i can get the changes in there. if I can, i’ll run it on something that matters. shouldn’t be any problem if it kamikazes somewhere small.

Zhang, B: clearly you’ve never seen people when they don’t get dinner

ByteMe: somehow i don’t think we’re going to need a meal tonight

COUNTDOWN TO LINCOLN INTERCEPTION OF ALEXANDER FLEET:

1 hours: 59 minutes

COUNTDOWN TO LINCOLN INTERCEPTION OF ALEXANDER FLEET:

0 hours: 11 minutes

Torrence, D, Gen: It’s time, Zhang. Tell me what you have.

Zhang, B, Civ: We’re not ready to control AIDAN yet. I can’t tell you what will happen when we bring it online.

Torrence, D, Gen: Is the weapon ready? The virus?

Zhang, B, Civ: Nearly, nearly. Consuela, get the—

Nestor, C, Civ: I see it. There, try now.

Torrence, D, Gen: Zhang, we need this now. Is it going to work?

Zhang, B, Civ: The Lincoln’s drive computer is going to spend from here until Sunday trying to figure out what the number seventeen tastes like. Until it has no choice but to restart.

Torrence, D, Gen: And then we run.

Barker, L, Maj: General, there’s a very real possibility we won’t be able to shut AIDAN down a second time, if we power it up. It’s going to take precautions.

Zhang, B, Civ: We don’t have a choice. We can’t transmit the virus without AIDAN.

Barker, L, Maj: And if it fires on the Hypatia? Or tries to do to us what it did to the Copernicus?

Torrence, D, Gen: At least we’ll be alive to deal with that problem.