At the cafeteria, Alex was avidly shoveling down her breakfast. As others came in, she carefully examined each of them, instinctively looking for hidden weapons, signs of mental instability, or other deceptions that she might have to deal with later. As of yet, no one had made any real effort toward talking to her, which was fine as far as she was concerned. Until the Captain or another officer appeared, she was the highest-ranking person in the room, and that meant she could glare everyone into leaving her alone. 

The Alpha appeared, spiking Alex's interest, exchanged a few quiet words with another AI, and then went platform-hopping again. Alex relaxed slightly as the Alpha vanished. That wasn't a study she was quite ready for yet...