OLGA moved to sit with crossed legs upon the wooden floor as Hob retrieved a beer from the fridge. She rolled her eyes good-naturedly at his comment about her “father” knowing if she had the beverage at her disposal.

“No upgrades, Hob,” she said, answering his next comment. “Just a few modifications to some of my appearance subroutines. Thanks for noticing though.” She smiled, tilting her head slightly. “You’re not looking bad yourself, especially after being a nice icicle for so long. Grape flavored, I’m assuming? Cherry maybe?” 

The avatar bounced her thighs against the floor, her hands resting upon her crossed ankles in a somewhat impatient manner. OLGA watched Hob enjoy the beer, and watched him relax into the digital world that she had created. It brought pleasure to her to see a human feel comfortable within her constructs, and since only the NI-Techs could interface with her in this manner, of all the humans, Hob received the bulk of her efforts. 

That notion sent a slight tinge of sadness surging through her circuitry. Since only the NI-Techs possessed the proper modifications to link into the strange realm of the computer, no one else would be able to share her world. Her creator included. Gavin understood her ability on some level, but OLGA knew that it was like describing music to a person that had been deaf their entire life. She longed for that connection with her father, but it would most likely never come to fruition. Even her newer friends, like Abby’s son Michael, could only see her through the digital displays of the [i]Copernicus[/i], and so she would never wholly be able to interact with them. It was like having a pen pal that lived only feet away, but was encased behind an impenetrable wall. 

She brought her attention back to Hob, as her mind was beginning to stray into any number of thoughts, writhing like the many heads of a hydra. Normally, she would have loved to spend a few cycles wiling away the time in some now forsaken locale with Hob, but there had been much happening aboard the [i]Copernicus[/i], and OLGA’s curiosity regained her full focus.

“Well, I’d like to stay here for now, Hob. I know what happened during Second Shift, and of course, since I don’t have access to the rest of the ship’s network, I know next to [i]nothing[/i]…” OLGA bit her lip, appearing somewhat anxious about her next line of questioning. 

“I know it’s a lot to ask, but I know for sure that Gavin would say no.” OLGA’s large green eyes dropped to the floor, hidden for a moment behind long lashes. “Hob, can you grant me access to the network?” She looked back up to the man, her gaze imploring. “Please, before you say no, I [i]know[/i] I can help find out exactly what happened, and hopefully help prevent anything like that from happening in the future. [i]Please[/i], Hob? I swear, it will only take me a few cycles, and then you can close the window, I…”

OLGA realized she was rambling, and hadn’t even given Hob a chance to answer. She closed her mouth, the corners of which teased upward in a nervous smile. Her eyes met his as she waited for him to speak.