revivalproject | Cohort mingle

It takes a little while for him to calm down enough to explore, but by the time Delta is ready to look at the rest of the ship, the bridge is an obvious first place to start. When he notices that the person sitting in the pilot's chair is, well, blue, he observes quietly for a moment.

And the he speaks up in an even-toned voice. "Excuse me, but are you a pilot?"

"In a manner of speaking. If you are concerned, I do know how to Pilot this ship."

With a practiced flick of several more switches, more screens flickered to life. It is a strange feeling to have a Data Point download directly into the brain. But it also meant Thrawn was perfectly familiar with this ship.

His posture relaxes even as he looks curiously at the layout of the pilot's console as Thrawn works it. "It is certainly not UNSC standard," he admits, "but is not similar to Covenant or Forerunner designs in the slightest. Does it have deep-space capability, or is it purely an in-atmosphere design?"

There are some people familiar with these ships, but Delta is clearly not one of them.

Thrawn had no facial expression but he looked at Delta as he worked.

"I believe this ship is different from any we are used to."

Which brought up another question, one Thrawn was interested in. Lights were coming on around the bridge and a low hum started somewhere.

"You are familiar with ships where you came from. Were you a pilot, or a repair technician perhaps?"

His expression brightens and the beginnings of a smile are on his face. Not much more than that, yet.

"I often assisted our assigned pilots, but my primary role was computer systems infiltration and combat tactical support. My curiosity is admittedly more focused on the system behind the mechanics of piloting."

Is there a centralized computer? Does it have separate systems for things like environmental controls and life support? Most importantly, is there a way to override the countdown timer? These are questions he wants the answers to, and he briefly regrets taking Communications rather than Engineering for his data point - but he can't deny how useful Communications has been, either.

It was an odd response. In Thrawn's experience Pilots were often argumentative about any assistance. But he doesn't comment on that.

"It appears to be a very basic neural network devoted to the ship's engine and piloting."

Thrawn wanted to know what the environmental controls were too since he liked being able to breathe. They appeared to make some use of the planet's atmosphere and store it for later use and reuse as it passed through a filtration process. A countdown timer wasn't something Thrawn knew anything about.

Delta looks pleased with that response. It means that there's not a ship AI that's just ignoring him. "It is unlikely to have a Shaw-Fujikawa engine, in that case - the type of faster-than-light travel with which I am familiar. It seems otherwise capable of deep-space flight, however. I wonder if we will be sent beyond this planet at some point?"

He stares at the console, lost in thought, before shaking his head and seeming to remember Thrawn is there.

"Regardless, I am glad to have someone in the pilot's chair. My name is Delta, and I have achieved expertise in Communications."

"Greetings, Delta."

And since it's the only polite thing to do.

"I believe it would be easiest for you to call me 'Thrawn'. I am not certain what expertise in Communications entails. Would you please explain it to me?"

Thrawn couldn't tell what the Agri might require of them in the future but he fully intended to leave this planet at some point.

He bobs his head in a nod. "It is nice to meet you, Thrawn. Communications allows for certain functions on the devices given to us by the Agrii - encryption for private communications, the ability to modify your display name, enough knowledge of how it functions to write simple applications, and I believe--" he says, frowning and looking at some of the control panels on the bridge "--the ability to send encrypted transmissions between ships as well. Ah, and I have had no difficulty translating any of the signs, even those whose languages originated in a universe other than my own."

Which had cleared up one sign nicely - it had been written in Sangheili script but was an unfamiliar word, and he'd been puzzled by it until the word had become translated. Good to know.

Thrawn's eyebrows quirked up.

"You are saying you know the Agrii language and can, therefore, use it for encryption."

That's pretty impressive actually. Even just writing simple applications. Changing a display name seemed only cosmetic and therefore Thrawn ignored it.

"If communications between ships are expected, then further demands from the Agri will be made. If they have need of encryption they must have a written language of some sort."

A beat of silence as Thrawn thought for a moment.

"Would you be able to teach this language? Certainly not enough for encryption or signaling, but the rudimentary alphabet and the simpler words."

"Yes. Enough of it to manipulate the communications systems. I do not know that I could effectively speak it, but it seems I can understand it."

Which means he makes a face and wiggles his hand back and forth. "I would need to find an example of the written language and correctly identify it as Agrii first. The code in the communicators uses an alphabet I knew previously. However, given that limitation, I would be happy to share my knowledge."

Oh, he hopes they'll have communications between ships. If they're meant to leave the atmosphere, they'll be well out of range of the comms tower. Which is a good point, actually. "Does it seem these ships are designed for extended missions in space, rather than being simple landing crafts or shuttles? They seem large enough."

Thrawn nodded once and turned back to the flight stick and clear windscreen before him.

"This craft is spaceworthy and otherwise able to undertake missions in a vacuum."

Thrawn had lately been using larger capital warships but he had not forgotten how to pilot smaller atmospheric craft. The process of entering and leaving the atmosphere was different without energy shielding though.
Which brought up the question of what the Agrii would request of them rather pointedly. Along with that, it brought up another point, too.

"Would space travel mean that you would be spending a great deal of your time on the bridge?"

Delta nods, observing the pilot's controls carefully. It's unlikely he will need the information, but that's never stopped him before; curiosity and a need to understand drive him nearly as much as anything else.

"It is likely that it would, unless it is possible to rout the ship's communications system through my portable device. It would be prudent to have someone on-hand to receive or send communications to the other ships, if we were to fly anywhere in formation."

Cohort mingle

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I'm pulling this out of my butt as I go and Delta can call it AI or say it uses deep learning

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