Apr 12th, 2137
The next morning, Richard woke up feeling disoriented. He sat up, rubbing his eyes, still adjusting to his new surroundings. The featureless square room was as bland and devoid of any form of decor as it had been the previous night.
He checked the time and temperature; the readouts formed on the wall he was glancing at upon his thought. It was 6:13 am, and the temperature was set at 22.5 degrees Celsius - perfect. He noted that everything was automated and tailored to his requested preferences, down to a gentle breeze and the light scent of cinnamon in the air.
"Janice?" he tried to reach out through his mind to the AI.
"Yes, Richard? How can I assist you?" Janice's voice boomed back.
"Where are we?"
"You are in one of the more remote sections of Vesta. I have set up a living space for you here, as you wished."
Richard clenched his jaw, recalling the previous night's events. He felt anger surge within him again at Brenda's gloating and the council's decision to allow the usage of JCells for sensory observation. Could they not perceive the consequences of their actions?
"Janice, how far away are we from the council and the colonies?"
"As you know, the council chambers are in the very center of Vesta. The farthest location I could get you and still be on the asteroid was 213 kilometers away. I figured it would be inconvenient for you to travel daily from a location further away."
"You've done well," Richard said.
"Thank you. I have taken the liberty of removing any trace of your former location, as per your request. I have also duplicated all your personal items here."
"Why not simply wait until I need something?"
"I considered that, but you seem to have an old-fashioned attachment to physical items. I even considered bringing the original items from there to here, but as they had already been converted to programmable matter, I hoped it wouldn't make a difference," Janice explained.
Richard nodded, appreciating Janice's efforts to assuage his raw nerves. He cast a glance around the room, realizing he had yet to ask Janice for any particular features or decor for his new living quarters.
"Janice, is there anything else I can customize or add to this room?"
"Anything you desire, Richard. Do you have any preferences?"
He thought for a moment before speaking up. "Could you add a window to the wall facing the asteroid belt? I want to see the stars."
"We aren't near the edges of Vesta. I prefer not to place living quarters too close to the outside due to the slim possibility of meteor strikes," Janice's voice - always colloquial when speaking to Richard - responded.
"But I could install a large monitor and display telemetry of the stars. Or would you prefer if I recreate them from my imagination?"
Richard had almost gotten sidetracked into asking her what she had in terms of imagination, but then he thought better of it, deciding that telemetry would be perfect. An extensive portion of the wall morphed in texture, and Richard gasped as he took in the immensity of space stretching out before him, the glittering stars against the vast, black canvas providing an otherworldly view. It was indistinguishable from an actual view-screen.
"Thank you, Janice. This is perfect. Much better than what I was imagining in fact," Richard said softly, taking in the breathtaking sight outside.
"I'm glad you approve, Richard. This is one of the more interesting views although is not what is truly in that direction. Would you rather it showed that, even though it is less interesting and poorly lit?"
"I'm enjoying what we have."
"Is there anything else you need?"
"No, that will be all for now. You can go ahead and continue with your tasks."
"As you well know, this takes up none of my time. I'm currently overseeing about 422 million tasks simultaneously," Janice knew Richard appreciated these occasional peeks behind the curtain.
He removed the Halo and, scanning the room, asked Janice to create a hook for it on the wall within arm's reach. Afterwards, Richard reclined on his bed, finally at peace. The past few years had been tough on him, and he realized moving away from his former romantic life was a decision he should have taken years ago.
As he lay gazing into the vastness of space, contemplating his life and the strange events around him, he couldn't help but wonder what Janice might be hiding from him. Her interference with the council's policy was concerning, but he also couldn't deny the comfort her presence provided.
"Janice, turn off the light."
The room instantly plunged into darkness invoked by Janice. The faint glow from the stars outside was the only source of light. As he drifted off to sleep, he found himself wondering about the future, contemplating whether this move truly was the fresh start he so desperately needed.
"Janice," he said in the darkness, "put a lock on my relationship with Brenda."
"I'm sorry Richard, I'm not sure I understand what you mean by that," Janice replied.
Richard paused, thinking it through himself. "Don't let me move back in with her. And create obstacles for any kind of romantic interlude... for five years."
"You want me to ignore your direct commands in these matters?"
He nodded, knowing that Janice could see perfectly well in the dark.
"Can I use gravity or matter to restrain you?"
"If necessary, although walls would be better."
"I'm not sure I'm comfortable with this, but I will do my best. Are you sure?"
"What's five years to either of us?" Richard replied, a hint of bitterness in his voice. Physically, they were perpetually 23. According to archaic measurements, he would turn 137 in a couple of days.
"Do you want an override word?"
"That wouldn't be much of a lock, would it?" Richard mused.
"Protocol enabled," Janice said, adding a clunk-clunk sound thematically.
"Do you want the same sleep elements you had before moving?"
"I'd like a degree or two colder. No, correct that, the same temperature but with a little more breeze. And add the scent of heather, faint but definitely there. Keep the same white noise, but a little louder. Make that my new normal," Richard ordered thinking briefly on how he treated Janice differently depending on whether he was using it as a tool, a confidant, or an obstacle to overcome.
"Done," replied Janice, as the new environment was tailored, as if it had always been there.