Alice in Wonder

“Wake up Alice, we have reached the null point” 

Alice sat up straight, wiping a bit of drool from her mouth. “What?”

“The Captain’s input is needed, Alice. The coordinates are already set.”

“Hey Wonder, uhh I wasn't sleeping.” 

“Sleeping? I didn't say you were!” Wonder joked. “I don’t even know what sleeping is. How would I? I never sleep.”

“Okay, smartbutt computer. Just give me the calculations of the jump”

“It’s on your HUD right now. No need to check. I ran the numbers myself,” Wonder said.

Alice leaned forward and tapped the HUD. The map expanded to show multiple solar systems. “Did you calculate the balance of the cargo?” 

“I'll admit, I rounded up to the third decimal place. Well within margin,” Wonder explained.

Alice brought out her stylus and moved some numbers around. “What is the cargo this time?”

“That’s classified under the RED initiative.” 

“Okay, can you at least tell me if it’s solid, fluid or gas? These things matter when jumping through the ather.” Alice explained. 

“Sorry, I cannot provide any details, as they are classified.”

“Fine, the math looks good. Prepare for ather jump,” Alice conceded.

“All systems green, standing by for the captain’s input.”

Alice leaned forward and stared at the big red jump button. She pressed her palm down and the ship made a Ker-chunk sound as the jump engines fired up. “And the under paid monkey presses the button” she said. 

“Hole to the ather is open. Shields are steady,” Wonder reported. The ship pointed toward the glowing hole in space and lurched forward. The 1-DR was not a pretty ship to look at, but it was a useful one. Designed with functionality over aesthetics. All long, with dark lines broken up by exterior propulsion engines. They buzzed, spilling plasma out into space. Alice buckled into her captain's seat. The transfer to ather space was never a smooth ride. This isn't some luxury line ship meant to make people comfortable. It moved freight and did it cheaply.  

“Hitting ather space in 3…2…1” Wonder counted down. The entire ship lurched and moaned as it crossed over. Alice brought up the ship status on her HUD. Before she even had time to look at it, the lights went red and an alarm siren blasted, making Alice cringe reflexively. She silenced the alarm with the push of a button. 

“Wonder status,” Alice demanded.

“We have lost coupling on the aft cargo hold.” 

“Can you give me visual?”

“On the HUD now” The screen glowed with a swirl of purples and red of ather space. Alice moved the camera to see the cargo container. It hung on by a single coupling and flailed wildly. 

“Give me manual control” The chair moved back and dual joysticks raised up. She took hold and moved the ship. She turned and rotated until the cargo no longer bounced around. Physics in space are weird, physics in the ather are impossible. The ship was now turned sideways, but still moving in the same direction. As long as she could keep the ship in the ather's slipstream, it would be fine.

“Starboard engine took damage.” Wonder informed Alice. “On this trajectory we will slide out of the slip in thirty seconds.”

Alice sighed. Drop the cargo or drop out into ather space. She thought about it and quickly decided. Turned the engines off and allow the ship to drift. With the damage done to the engine, there was no telling if she could correct the path either way. Losing the cargo was not an option while working with RED either. Lost cargo means a fine and who knows how big the fine is with the classification placed on it. The ship rumbled as it left the slipstream moving into a thicker ather. 

“Great, repair options for the engine?” Alice asked.

“Working on it.” 

Alice’s HUD displayed a warning. Shields at 75% It read. 

“Work faster” She screamed. “The ather is pressing in on the ship.”

“Yeah yeah. Don’t get your undies in a bunch,” Wonder said with a laugh.

“What? Wonder I need a solution. Can I space walk to repair it?”

“Space walking in the ather will get you deader than your sense of humor!”

“What has gotten into you?”

“I apologize Alice, it seems the effects of ather are causing me to malfunction.”

“Stupid AI, you can’t break now too.” 

“Have you tried turning me off and back on again?”

Alice got up from the captain’s chair. She grabbed a tool case from the closet and headed into the bay. She checked a status screen as she walked by. Shields 60% it read. 

“Wonder can I get to any of the parts from the interior of the ship.”

“Panel thirteen - seven. Look for the big red glowy light. That will be the thing. They always have glowy lights to let you know if they are bad.” 

Alice turned down a hallway and caught sight of something white and quick moving just around the next corner. 

“Wonder, is there anyone else on the ship?” She asked.

“Its just me and you forever baby!” 

Alice let out a long sigh. “Is any of our cargo biological? Animals maybe?”

“Sorry that’s classified,” Wonder answered.

“Oh, now you can be serious?”

“Sorry, even I can’t read it. I'm looking at the file on our cargo right now. It just says classified.”

“There is something else on the ship.” Alice explained.

“Nah bro, you are going crazy.”

“What?” Alice said incredulously 

“Mild effects of aether poisoning. Step one insanity, step two coming to terms with insanity, step three, the fun part.”

Alice grunted. She knew she needed to move faster before she was useless. She found the panel and removed it. The array of wires and pipes hid circuit boards. She found the one with the red light. She unplugged it and plugged it back in. The light turned off and back red again. Alice frowned. She unplugged the module. Probably didn’t need it, anyway. Alice turned around and jumped. There in the middle of the hall sat a small white rabbit. They stared at each other for a moment. The rabbit took off down the hall and around the corner. 

“No, you don’t,” Alice said and chased the rabbit around the corner. She skid to a halt at the table before her. Alice found herself in a large, ornate room. She gawked at the white walls and wooden furnishing. Where was she? This isn't a room on the ship. Worst of all, there were people sitting at the table, pouring cups of tea. 

“Hello” she intoned.

“Oh, hello Alice,” the man at the head of the table said. He wore a purple suit with a tall hat. “Tea?” He asked, gesturing with a steaming teakettle. 

“Uh, no thank you.” She said, looking shocked.

“Please sit. You know my friend, the white rabbit.” He gestured to a rabbit sitting on the table. It had its own cup of tea and cookie. It looked up as if acknowledging her. 

“H-Hello.”

“And this here is our lead ship mechanic. Scoots.” The man in the suit said. 

A short, pudgy man in a black suit and bowler cap looked over at her. “Ma’am.” He said, tipping his hat. 

“And I of course, am the ever present Wonder.” 

“Wonder? You’re the ship AI?”

“In the flesh!”

“I don’t understand. We don’t have a ship mechanic, and you are an AI. Don’t even get me started on the rabbit!”

“It is very easy to explain, sweetie. You see, you are quite mad.”

“Mad?” she asked.

“Insane, the ather has broken through the shield and you are undergoing the effects. Have a seat, enjoy yourself.“

“I don’t know.” She said, sitting down, “If I am insane, then how can I sit in a chair that isn't real, smell the tea that isn't there? Even the light of this room, I can feel it.” 

“Well, the ather does weird things to all of us,” Wonder Explained

“For sure,” Scoots chimed in.

The rabbit just looked at her. Alice knew what it was saying.

She held her cup as Wonder poured some tea. “So what do I do now?” 

“Well, you have two choices, really. You can get the ship back into the slipstream and finish your delivery. Do the next delivery and then do the next. Until you die. Or Ooooooor. You can stay in the ather and explore what is in this new space. You, me, scoots, the rabbit can come too.”

Alice sipped her tea. “You make a good point, but what if this is just the insanity talking? What if there is nothing out there to explore?”

Wonder leaned back in his chair. “Well honey. I will admit, I am biased. I have always wanted to see you like this. With my own eyes, I mean. Not through a camera, not through you pushing buttons.”

“What are you saying?”

“I’m saying I want to be with you, exploring. Ya know, like this.” Wonder gestured to the table.

“I say we stay,” Scoots said.

“And Mr Rabbit, what do you have to say?” Alice asked. The rabbit reached up to it’s cup and took a sip. It looked over, wiggling its nose. “I’m sold.” She said. Alice stood up and grabbed her cup. Let’s go to the helm and see what’s out there. 

“You’re the captain,” Wonder said grabbing his cup a handful of cookies. They all together walked to the helm. Alice sat down in the pilot seat and grabbed the joysticks.

“We need repairs, lets see if we can find a place to land.” Alice said. Wonder took up a position in a newly formed station in the helm. “I see a planet on the scanners.” 

“I can see an asteroid belt around that planet.” Scoots chimed in from the maintenance station that was suddenly there. 

“How can there be a planet in the ather?” Alice asked.

“Lets find out.” Wonder answered.