I applied for a little position with Kishiro Technologies. I figured, as long as I'm starting a new school, starting a job, and starting a new life (I am so not looking forward to whoever Dad picks out for me. Why can't I marry for love?), I thought I would start a diary.
Yay me.
It's not like there is anything interesting. Go to school, do homework, a little bit of time with my favorite game, and if all goes well, have a job in there somewhere, too. Mom and Dad don't want me doing escort anymore. They don't even want me on the Hana.
That's Mom's ship.
No, they want me safe, sound and apparently, learning other things. Next thing you know, they'll want me to learn how to be a geisha. Who does that anymore? It's almost like cosplay. That's like so last millennium.
There's this guy at school, Fukutaro Tohoshi, he thinks he's so smart. Just because he's two levels higher than me, and just because he is a student teacher, that doesn't mean he's so smart. I mean, he thinks that he knows how my designs work when they aren't even on paper yet.
Then, all the girls, no women, fawn all over him like he's so awesome. Why can't they see he's just a jerk and only interested in being sooooo awesome. They just throw themselves at him, and you can see it in his eyes that he likes having his own little harem. I mean, come on, he doesn't even see them.
I was hired. I really was. I am now working in the R&D department as an apprentice. Of course, that just means I go and get the coffee and files, and updates and little stuff like that. But there is some actual education and research that I do. Mostly, it's just stuff that would be considered monotonous by the actual scientists.
I really enjoy it, though. I mean, you can learn a lot by reading the files that they send you for. And because I actually understand them, I learn more than a typical gofer.
At school, Fukutaro kept trying to trip me up. All these little things that he thought I wouldn't notice. He can be so mean at times. Like something about a stretching ruler with a little ant walking on it and the ultimate question of, if the ant is travelling and x and the ruler is expanding at x+1, will the ant ever get to the end? What a stupid question. It's obvious.
I found out why he doesn't get all handsy with the other women. He's married. His wife came in today. She was soooo pretty. You could see the other women just drip with hatred. It was quite humorous actually. So that's one mystery solved.
Dad is getting really wierd. He seems pleased that I work for Kishiro officially now. But there's something odd about the way he shows it. It's like....I don't know. You'd think he had just become the wealthiest man in Sirius space. I don't get it. Since he and Mom don't have any kids, maybe he thinks I have a better chance of taking care of them when they can no longer work. It just seems wierd.
Mom has gone to Okinawa for a week. Her sister is sick. Aunt Amei-san is ... was a biochemist. She had a few discoveries. She was married to a Junker. A JUNKER!!! The embarrassment. But she married for love and not position. She's my hero.
I've upgraded my Sutinga. It's not much. Just a few more weapons and armor. Mom and Dad think this is a luxury I can do without since I am no longer flying escort. That's not the point. I now not only represent the Kurutsuki family, but Kishiro Technologies. I can't fly around in antiquated equipment.
Anyway, I have to get going. I have a lot more to do. There's a project I have to collate so that is easily understood by non-scientists. That means, I have to be able to explain it to my Dad so that the project lead can explain it to the board of directors.
Cypher encryption - Tangled Web - Password: Malacos - Third Failure: Delete File - Begin
Okay, this is it. I think I spoke to a Nomad. I mean....it LOOKED like a nomad. But it was different. There was a conversation in my ship that was suddenly bigger on the inside than the outside. I mean, it held an entire solar system inside the cargo bay. So...yeah...Nomad.
It was weird in that I wasn't scared. Not at all. It was like, like a giant puppy that could talk. It wanted to know me. It wore an image of a man in an Order uniform. I can't describe it. I know i should have been scared but I was perfectly calm. It was like I knew that I wouldn't be hurt.
He...she...it wanted to understand what an adolescent was. Why so few of us remained. But .... Daenum, I think that was what it wanted me to call it, kept referring to figurative adolescents. Like, we were forced to grow up before we were ready.
It said it wanted to know why we were different from adults. I almost offered it a chance to follow me...I think it is, but not the way I thought. I even, oh my god I can't believe this part, but I offered my diary to it to read. As long as it didn't share it with anyone else.
It said it would share. So I clarified that not to share it with humans.
It said it would consider that and left.
I.....I don't get it. Why would a nomad want to talk to me?
And that's not the only weird thing that happened. Nope. Then, when flying a message to the gas miners, I got waylaid by some Dragons. I was running out of ammo and countermeasures when this HUGE, and I mean HUGE ship just showed up and covered me. I asked if I could dock and that's when it got bizarre.
The ship was empty except for robotic avatars of the ship's AI. At first I thought it was just an AI ship. The chance to just watch it in action would have been awesome. But I was led, but the doors opening and closing in a very specific way to what can only be referred to as the captain.
He looked human enough. Really purple eyes. He was the man the Nomad appeared as in my dream. We talked about. He spoke of his brother and of his revenge on his brother who was, according to the nomad and the man, a criminal of the worst sort, delighting in causing pain.
I told him, not directly, he was gaijin on so many levels, where I thought his brother was and who had him. I think the man really was with the Order, though he said he wasn't anymore.
It's been a few days. No response about my HIKARU system, not any reference to my ship ideas. I'm still going to design one. A small, highly maneuverable fighter. A missile boat concept.
Anyway, Fukutaro invited me to a symposium on jump gate engineering. I'm rather interested. But it's kind of weird. I mean, he's such a pain and now he's being nice. I'm getting really confused by him. Especially with his wife. She seemed even more friendly than him. Not sure what that means.
So, jump gate symposium, AI programming, and fighter craft design. I think it will be nice to have my own little stamp on a ship. I mean, I do have a Sutinga, but I didn't design it from the ground up. That's what I want. A fleet of ships bearing my touch as the creator. Angels, flying between the stars, with me as their goddess.
Man, it has been a while since I wrote in my diary. Two weeks. And what a two weeks.
I have been working hard on HIKARU. I have been doing drills in my Stinger.
And Fukutaro is amazing.
I know, I started totally hating him but he is kind and gentle and attentive. He does things when he's not teaching I would never think of him to do. And...the most important thing is...
HE'S NOT MARRIED!!!
That woman is his sister.
So things are definitely going well. Dad is not pleased, but oh well. Fukutaro is amazing. He's just so..... Uh oh. Dad's coming. Bye.
Two more weeks of work and H.I.K.A.R.U. is coming along fine. He has so much more information and is able to draw on the missing data. In some cases, he has even said what must have happened in the areas where he is lacking information and gotten it right. Where he's been wrong though, there was always controversy about what really happened. His appetite for information is astounding. I've brought in a monitor for him so he can read the information from news reports, but I'm not sure that this will be enough. He keeps bugging me for neuronet access. I am beginning to be concerned.
On the other hand, Fukutaro has invited me to lunch with him at school. Every day. It's been great. I feel so alive with him. He's so funny and makes me feel grown up. I wish he was someone my father would approve of, but he's a teacher and doesn't make much money. Father seems to think money is the deciding factor of a good husband. If only he could see the person and not the money. It's as though money buys happiness. It doesn't. It just provides more opportunities to discover what makes you happy.
.....
.....
.....
Something else. I've noticed people at Kishiro have been treating me differently. I'll ask where something is, and they go get it. There's a woman following me around, too. She's not really spying, but she seems to have things ready for me before I need them. It's odd. And people keep bowing to me a little too low. At first I thought it was a joke, but then I made a remark about how one of the keys on my keyboard was always sticking and it was causing typos when I was coding. The next day, I had a new keyboard.
When I told Dad that they were playing these kinds of jokes on me, he laughed and said, "Perhaps they know how special you are and want you to give them some of your specialness."
Dad has never called me special before. H.I.K.A.R.U. says he needs more information about what is going on to tell me what is going on. I'm thinking of giving him limited band access to the lab.
I found out why everyone has been acting strange. I was put in charge of research and development. Or rather, I was told I had free reign to do whatever I wanted. That is just ... I can't even begin to describe what I'm feeling. Fifteen years old and I'm the head of a whole department of one of the most powerful companies in Kusari.
Having been given carte blanche to do my own research wherever and however I want, I decided to move everything over to Saitama. Of course, I first have to make extensive upgrades to the system security over there. I don't want H.I.K.A.R.U. getting a hold of any external access just yet. Add to that, I'm going to have to make sure all of the computing requirements are met with backups and...
It's just a long list, so long I haven't had much time to spend with Fukutaro. There's something about him. When we're together, I feel so alive. I feel powerful, in charge. It's like.... It's like I'm the boyfriend...but I'm still a girl.
H.I.K.A.R.U. got his information. Turns out Dad knew about my promotion. He's still looking for a husband for me. But I don't want one. I want Fukutaro. Maybe I can buy my own marriage? Pay Dad NOT to look for a husband because I found a husband.
So much has happened. It's been 3 months since I was able to write in my journal. After becoming Vice President in charge of R&D, I've been so busy. It is like a typhoon of activity has been swirling around me. I reach out to snatch a piece of what it is I am to be doing and I notice it's connected to so much more.
Fukutaro is so understanding. I see him whenever I can, but it's becoming harder and harder. I thought, if I offered him a job in our FTL project, he would be interested but something is different. Something has changed. He's pleasant enough, but it is as though a shadow follows him in every conversation. Even his students have noticed this. I am beginning to think something is very very very wrong. I have had H.I.K.A.R.U. go over security footage I have access to and he says there is nothing to be worried about.
Father is different as well. Ever since I tried buying my own marriage so I can marry whom I choose, he seems to fear me. It is as though he sees a monster behind my eyes. Mother is more doting than ever and has become more forceful and independent towards Father. After such instances, she seems to look at me as though seeking my approval.
I have finally started to settle into my role, though. I am the woman I wanted to be. I am the woman who creates her own destiny.
I've been wondering when my "friend" would appear. It is strange that my thoughts turn to him. So curious about being a human teenager. He was so different. He showed me things. It's not like Fukutaro showing me things. Those are understandable, shared by all with a similar background. But my friend, he was so different, so utterly different it was like he was from another time. H.I.K.A.R.U says he can help but I don't know. If I'm so different from my friend, then H.I.K.A.R.U. would be incomprehensible.
H.I.K.A.R.U. has suggested another project, but he wants more data, data from the neural link. I can't in all conscience let him have such access. However, he has suggested making various modifications to my links as well as to his own code. I'm considering them, but I'm concerned he will code his own modifications.
We do seem to work well together. But I don't want my secrets to get out. And, I don't want to contaminate us, him becoming me and me becoming him.
. . .
. . .
. . .
We are almost the same. I know him before he does and he knows me before I do.