Ens. Gnai - Mechanical Counselor?
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Lich
May 7, 2024, 11:42:56 AM5/7/24
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((Main Engineering, Deck 15 - USS Artemis-A))
Gnai had expected to have to explain its suit to Lt. Cmdr. Salkath, and thus far, the Vulcan had followed along intently. Most of it, Gnai assumed that Lt. Cmdr. Salkath would have had analogous experience with, as the suit was equipped with, to its mind, fairly basic robotic limbs. The parts that Gnai was less sure of were the more delicate components, those behind the power and vocal processing within the suit. Galadoran technology wasn't hidden from outsiders, but it also wasn't widely shared. They liked to keep their cards close to their chests, as humans might say. Not that they had cards or chests really.
Gnai: In all honesty, the hope is also to get a baseline for what normal functioning is with the suit in the mind of a trusted engineer on the ship. Much like having an early physical check-up with a medical officer. There is no obvious damage that will need to be repaired at this moment.
Lt. Cmdr. Salkath stared at Gnai, and Gnai stared right back, not that it was evident. It waited for him to respond, feeling slightly awkward about the vulnerability it was showing by asking him this favor. They'd only just met, but that was the same length of time it had known approximately the rest of the crew anyways.
Salkath: It can be difficult to trust an individual with something as personal and sensitive as your suit. It is more than just the impressive engineering feat it represents. It is an integral part of you and your identity among others that are not your kind.
Gnai was endlessly relieved that Lt. Cmdr. Salkath understood. The suit was its connection to the world of humanoids, and without it functioning properly at all times, it would lose that. It had no desire to become stranded and stuck inside a dysfunctional tank, unable to speak or move.
Gnai: Thank you for understanding, sir. It is how this one interacts with the outside world.
Salkath: Can I therefore infer that it is a 'leap of faith' to allow an outsider, a stranger, such as myself access to your work? That trusting me to work on your ambulatory biome is not only a concern for your physical wellbeing, but also taking a chance on the integrity of your intellectual property?
Intellectual property? Galadorans had no concept of such a thing, as when everyone is already working and thinking almost entirely in tandem, with little thought to individual identity, personal intellectual property is meaningless. As a species, though, they did have some modicum of respect for keeping their technology somewhat guarded.
The gesture from Salkath wasn't alarming, rather, it felt somewhat warmly conspiratorial. This was something that Gnai wasn't entrusting the whole of the ship with, so it appreciated Lt. Cmdr. Salkath's inclination towards confidentiality.
Gnai: Yes, that is correct. There are aspects to the suit and its technology that Galadorans are not sharing widely with the galaxy at this time. There is a great deal of trust that is being placed in you... Hopefully not misplaced?
It didn't expect the trust to be misplaced, as Lt. Cmdr. Salkath had seemed genuinely interested in the well-being of every member of their team when imprisoned, and had still kept his offer to see to Gnai's suit upkeep when back aboard the Artemis. It could be wrong, but Gnai had an inkling that it was correct in trusting him.
Salkath: There is a common axiom that Vulcans cannot lie. This is untrue. However, we are unburdened by many of the personal emotional vices that make lying desireable or commonplace in most humanoids. Therefore, you can employ the spirit of the axiom when I say that I am not lying about my discretion. You need not fear that any interest I have in your suit and its technology exists beyond providing you the best assistance I can. Any notes I take, any reverse engineering I document, will be encoded for access by you and I alone, and only you can choose to extend that access to others or subsequently restrict my access. ::pause:: Consider me your mechanical version of a counselor, if you will.
Hearing that made Gnai glow with happiness. Not only did he understand the gravity of entrusting him with its only conduit to interact with the humanoid world, but he understood the importance of discretion, both for Galadorans as a whole and Gnai as a part of that.
Gnai: Thank you, sir! Your discretion is appreciated.
Lt. Cmdr. Salkath's eyebrow raised, whether it was at Gnai's attempt at sounding grateful, through the limitations of its speakers, or at the lights that danced through Gnai's body, it couldn't tell.
Salkath: Then, let us get these baseline measurements completed. ::starting busywork, then pausing noticeably:: Thank you, Gnai, for your trust. It will not go unfounded.
Gnai bobbed in agreement, and in acknowledgement of the gratitude for its trust. Of course it would trust him, he operated with a great deal of candor and he was its crewmate. If it couldn't trust its own crewmates, who could it trust?
Gnai: Of course, sir.
As Lt. Cmdr. Salkath started his work in earnest on the busywork of measuring Gnai's suit's baseline, Gnai shifted to accommodate the scans. As he scanned, it piped up, curious about something he had said earlier.
Gnai: Sir, you said that Vulcans can lie, but most believe otherwise. How does this sit with you?
Salkath: Response
Gnai: Interesting... Thank you sir. ::pause:: Are there any similar assumptions about Galadorans that you know of?
It assumed that no one really had anything to say, past how strange they looked as a species. It was a bit amusing, really, that something from so far away as the original Galador would end up evolving into something that so closely resembled a creature from Earth.
Salkath: Response
As it had expected, there wasn't much. Either that, or Lt. Cmdr. Salkath was demonstrating that the Vulcans-couldn't-lie misconception was wrong at this very moment, to save its feelings.
Gnai: Thank you, sir.
First, it moved through the full range of motion of its suit's arms, working through each joint with Lt. Cmdr. Salkath. They were more or less similar to those of most humanoids, with shoulders, elbows, wrists. The hands, unlike many others that it knew, had only three fingers, each jointed so that it could grasp and hold objects like the rest of the crew.
Salkath: Response
Gnai: The arms are operating within normal range parameters, as confirmed earlier.
Gnai continued on. The suit's legs were next to be tested, following similar range of motion tests. Unlike the arms of the suit, the legs were slightly less humanoid, capable of bending in either direction at the knee.
Salkath: Response
Gnai: The legs are operating normally as well. Is that sufficient, or are there other tests you would like to run on the limbs? Weight capacity?
It could see the use in such a test... if they were not mechanical. Without pain sensors, Gnai would be hard-pressed to tell if the arms were carrying too much and would fail. All it could go off of would be the vibrations as they moved and strained, and it wasn't certain that it would be accurate.
Salkath: Response
--
Gnai had expected to have to explain its suit to Lt. Cmdr. Salkath, and thus far, the Vulcan had followed along intently. Most of it, Gnai assumed that Lt. Cmdr. Salkath would have had analogous experience with, as the suit was equipped with, to its mind, fairly basic robotic limbs. The parts that Gnai was less sure of were the more delicate components, those behind the power and vocal processing within the suit. Galadoran technology wasn't hidden from outsiders, but it also wasn't widely shared. They liked to keep their cards close to their chests, as humans might say. Not that they had cards or chests really.
Gnai: In all honesty, the hope is also to get a baseline for what normal functioning is with the suit in the mind of a trusted engineer on the ship. Much like having an early physical check-up with a medical officer. There is no obvious damage that will need to be repaired at this moment.
Lt. Cmdr. Salkath stared at Gnai, and Gnai stared right back, not that it was evident. It waited for him to respond, feeling slightly awkward about the vulnerability it was showing by asking him this favor. They'd only just met, but that was the same length of time it had known approximately the rest of the crew anyways.
Salkath: It can be difficult to trust an individual with something as personal and sensitive as your suit. It is more than just the impressive engineering feat it represents. It is an integral part of you and your identity among others that are not your kind.
Gnai was endlessly relieved that Lt. Cmdr. Salkath understood. The suit was its connection to the world of humanoids, and without it functioning properly at all times, it would lose that. It had no desire to become stranded and stuck inside a dysfunctional tank, unable to speak or move.
Gnai: Thank you for understanding, sir. It is how this one interacts with the outside world.
Salkath: Can I therefore infer that it is a 'leap of faith' to allow an outsider, a stranger, such as myself access to your work? That trusting me to work on your ambulatory biome is not only a concern for your physical wellbeing, but also taking a chance on the integrity of your intellectual property?
Intellectual property? Galadorans had no concept of such a thing, as when everyone is already working and thinking almost entirely in tandem, with little thought to individual identity, personal intellectual property is meaningless. As a species, though, they did have some modicum of respect for keeping their technology somewhat guarded.
The gesture from Salkath wasn't alarming, rather, it felt somewhat warmly conspiratorial. This was something that Gnai wasn't entrusting the whole of the ship with, so it appreciated Lt. Cmdr. Salkath's inclination towards confidentiality.
Gnai: Yes, that is correct. There are aspects to the suit and its technology that Galadorans are not sharing widely with the galaxy at this time. There is a great deal of trust that is being placed in you... Hopefully not misplaced?
It didn't expect the trust to be misplaced, as Lt. Cmdr. Salkath had seemed genuinely interested in the well-being of every member of their team when imprisoned, and had still kept his offer to see to Gnai's suit upkeep when back aboard the Artemis. It could be wrong, but Gnai had an inkling that it was correct in trusting him.
Salkath: There is a common axiom that Vulcans cannot lie. This is untrue. However, we are unburdened by many of the personal emotional vices that make lying desireable or commonplace in most humanoids. Therefore, you can employ the spirit of the axiom when I say that I am not lying about my discretion. You need not fear that any interest I have in your suit and its technology exists beyond providing you the best assistance I can. Any notes I take, any reverse engineering I document, will be encoded for access by you and I alone, and only you can choose to extend that access to others or subsequently restrict my access. ::pause:: Consider me your mechanical version of a counselor, if you will.
Hearing that made Gnai glow with happiness. Not only did he understand the gravity of entrusting him with its only conduit to interact with the humanoid world, but he understood the importance of discretion, both for Galadorans as a whole and Gnai as a part of that.
Gnai: Thank you, sir! Your discretion is appreciated.
Lt. Cmdr. Salkath's eyebrow raised, whether it was at Gnai's attempt at sounding grateful, through the limitations of its speakers, or at the lights that danced through Gnai's body, it couldn't tell.
Salkath: Then, let us get these baseline measurements completed. ::starting busywork, then pausing noticeably:: Thank you, Gnai, for your trust. It will not go unfounded.
Gnai bobbed in agreement, and in acknowledgement of the gratitude for its trust. Of course it would trust him, he operated with a great deal of candor and he was its crewmate. If it couldn't trust its own crewmates, who could it trust?
Gnai: Of course, sir.
As Lt. Cmdr. Salkath started his work in earnest on the busywork of measuring Gnai's suit's baseline, Gnai shifted to accommodate the scans. As he scanned, it piped up, curious about something he had said earlier.
Gnai: Sir, you said that Vulcans can lie, but most believe otherwise. How does this sit with you?
Salkath: Response
Gnai: Interesting... Thank you sir. ::pause:: Are there any similar assumptions about Galadorans that you know of?
It assumed that no one really had anything to say, past how strange they looked as a species. It was a bit amusing, really, that something from so far away as the original Galador would end up evolving into something that so closely resembled a creature from Earth.
Salkath: Response
As it had expected, there wasn't much. Either that, or Lt. Cmdr. Salkath was demonstrating that the Vulcans-couldn't-lie misconception was wrong at this very moment, to save its feelings.
Gnai: Thank you, sir.
First, it moved through the full range of motion of its suit's arms, working through each joint with Lt. Cmdr. Salkath. They were more or less similar to those of most humanoids, with shoulders, elbows, wrists. The hands, unlike many others that it knew, had only three fingers, each jointed so that it could grasp and hold objects like the rest of the crew.
Salkath: Response
Gnai: The arms are operating within normal range parameters, as confirmed earlier.
Gnai continued on. The suit's legs were next to be tested, following similar range of motion tests. Unlike the arms of the suit, the legs were slightly less humanoid, capable of bending in either direction at the knee.
Salkath: Response
Gnai: The legs are operating normally as well. Is that sufficient, or are there other tests you would like to run on the limbs? Weight capacity?
It could see the use in such a test... if they were not mechanical. Without pain sensors, Gnai would be hard-pressed to tell if the arms were carrying too much and would fail. All it could go off of would be the vibrations as they moved and strained, and it wasn't certain that it would be accurate.
Salkath: Response
Tags/TBC :)
Ensign Gnai
Science Officer
USS Artemis-A
A240102G11
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