The Ava Protocol

hing coffee, collating data that a simple algorithm could have handled, and smiling p

ries under extreme pressure, was now being taug

ake sure the meeting room was stocked with approved brands of sparkling water. It w

about pop culture "charming." She explained the complex social hierarchy of AstraGen, who to av

e crowded cafeteria. "Total shark. Started this company from nothing. They say he c

, I needed to get his attention. But as Mia, the fainti

reer progression I no longer had. My chance came i

ny employee who could submit a proposal that would demonstrably improve operations. Most of the interns were focused o

no interest in reading. I ignored the life she had built and focused on my own. Using a public terminal at the city library to

chanics, station maintenance protocols, and energy systems. I wasn't just Mia, the intern. I

system was good, but it was based on predictable orbital patterns. It didn't account for micrometeoroid fields or subtle shifts in s

clever, ambitious intern, not a seasoned astronautical engineer. I deliberately left a few minor, easily correctable flaws in t

icle. Chloe was excited for me, convinced my idea about "sun-thingies" was brilliant. I just nodded, the tension coiling in m

read it. Level 80 was the executive floor, a place interns only went to deliver mail. Chloe squealed with excitement, hugging m

, took a deep breath, and tried to channel the commander I used to be. The executive floor was silent and opulent, with dark wood an

ed out over the sprawling metropolis. A man stood with his back to me, staring out the window. He was tall and lean,

my first look at Marcus Thorne. He had sharp, intelligent eyes, dark hair with a touch of silver at the temples,

ying to deconstruct me piece by piece. "It's also flawed. These three variables," he tapped the screen, "they don't account for the thermal expa

in the material degradation coefficient from the original 2047 Raytheon schematics, and cross

hadn't expected that. He expected a flustered intern. He got a

a warm smile. It was the smile of a predator that had just found a very interesting new cre

ing like ash in my mouth. He didn't believe me, not for a second. But he was intr

than they had when I walked in. I hadn't exposed myself, but I had shown him a glimpse of what I was capable of. It was a small vict

r, and potential threats like Thorne. But for the first time since I woke up in this strange new