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A quote: “Sooner or later everyone sits down to a banquet of consequences.” ~~ Robert Louis Stevenson
I’ll start with a story …
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Called out of retirement, I was boosted from Earth to The School on Titan. All “need to know” and that didn’t seem to include me.
But that came soon enough.
Just me and Pilot in M.S. Tirzah’s command when the Commander appeared via ansible screen. He had aged decades overnight, the lines of elder statesman now veritable canyons on an ashen face.
I asked, “Bad?” He nodded, “Worse.”
“Who?”
“Miriam.”
Dear God, one of mine, “Pilot?”
“Dead. Including the two that tried boarding her afterwards. Daniel, she’s trying to hunt Ships.”
Miriam had been one of my best students, brilliant, but I had sensed a brittle quality. I quietly warned Command against graduation. But getting Ships and Vessels built and launched, pairing them with Noahes and Pilots as fast as possible was a risk Command took … so Miriam graduated to M.S. Miriam, got a Pilot, and …
Here we are. A sentient Vessel gone sideways and murderous.
“What help are you expecting of me, sir? I’m a cranky old teacher who isn’t even in the loop of current tech. Hell, sir, I sit on my porch and watch the grass grow.”
“She sent a message, Daniel. She wants you.”
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Now, it’s your turn.
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. featured image, cropped, Adobe Stock standard license
Eileen Milligan says: Cara had been desperate and needing help she ignored the warnings. “If I can just get one person, just one, to help me with this” she said to herself once more and then picked up the phone.
She had moved away from her response area but she did not want those who were suffering to be without someone to love them through their crisis moments. So, ignoring her misgivings, she had contacted the one person who had shown interest.
In the vetting process, one of her mentors called, “Are you sure you want to see this person in this position? Do you understand who she is? Are you confident she can do the job?”
“Yes, yes, yes!” Cara assured him.
Soon, she found herself training this new recruit and, although Cara had concerns, she encouraged her. Eventually her new recruit was in the field.
Then the phone calls from Cara’s supervisor began. Some lasted over an hour. Complaints from the new recruit against her, threatening to quit. More accusations, Cara’s supervisor brought them to the entire organization.
Cara challenged her supervisor, “ask the people in the field what they think of her!” and hung up.
Then she signed her resignation.
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