Perplexing Pink

As you rounded the last corner, you froze in your tracks. Standing by your door was a familiar-looking pink-haired Cuni. After staying out of sight since you blasted her with the water hose in the hallway, had Lily finally mustered the courage to apologize?

You resumed your approach at a slower speed, surveying the area and to make sure she wasn't going to pull any more tricks, and you immediately spotted something - she was wearing a different outfit. The top of her previous garment was on your wall, and both it and her lower piece were a light shade of pink. Her new outfit was a much darker shade, closer to fuscia or magenta. The style was different too - her prior version had small triangular-shaped pieces covering over the breasts and crotch areas, but this outfit featured a strapless bra for a top, and square flaps on the bottom. Was she too ashamed to walk around topless that she had stolen an outfit from another Cuni? There was something else off about her as well, but you couldn't place it. At least she seemed to be alone, so you continued to your door.

She eyed you warily as you approached, but remained silent. Even after you reached your door and went in, she just stood there without saying anything, waiting for you to make the first move. If she thought the silent treatment was going to help, she was badly mistaken. It was time to get this over with. "Alright Lily, you can come in," you said while motioning for her to enter.

Suddenly, her expression turned to a soul-piercing glare. "I'm not Lily!"

You stood stunned for a few moments as the realization sank in. On your approach, you'd been so wary of another ambush that you hadn't looked closely enough at her. From this distance, you could now see that despite looking eerily similar to Lily, this Cuni was significantly younger. Also, she was just a bit shorter than Lily, and her breasts were more like C-cups compared to Lily's Ds. Was she a younger sister to Lily? Or perhaps even her daughter or granddaughter? You also wondered why you hadn't noticed her previously. You didn't recall seeing her at the ceremony. "My mistake. Please accept my apology," you replied. "Let's try this again. I'm Sky. Who are you?"

Her glare eased slightly, and then she responded, "I'm Daphne and next in line for your meetings." Her grammar usage seemed to be notably better than other Cunis. Either that, or your universal implant had suddenly gotten better at compensating for Cuni grammar.

"Yes, the meeting. Sorry for making you wait. Please have a seat," you continued, and then motioned for her to sit on one of the chairs. She seemed apprehensive as she entered the room cautiously and looked around. Once she was seated, you positioned the other chair across from her and sat down. "I've asked you here today to let you know that you'll be getting larger meals. Also, I want to know more about each of you. How old are you? What do you do aboard the Starpoint and anything else you'd like to tell me."

"In 15 days I will be four and a half years old," she began and seemed to relax slightly. "I'm currently in the Intermediate Cuni Training Program, but I've been trying to get into the Advanced program."

"Are there tests you need to pass to move up?" you asked.

"I've passed all of them, but it won't let me move up until I turn four and a half," she revealed. Her gaze then shifted to MPAD-24, and she seemed to tense up. Based on her usage of "it" versus "they", she must know it's an automated system that runs the training programs. Reaching four and a half would be the equivalent to 18 if she were human. The automated system likely had been programmed to use that as a graduation age for being able to move to the next level, and it didn't allow for exceptions.

From her language skills, Daphne was the most advanced Cuni you'd met so far, and now you were curious just how knowledgeable she was. Also, why had she excelled beyond the other Cunis onboard the Starpoint? "Your language skills seem excellent," you admitted. "What is your favorite subject?"

"That's a secret, but I guess I can tell you," she said. Then she leaned forward and motioned for you to do so as well. After you did, she quickly whispered, "We're being watched. Be careful." Then she unexpectedly kissed your cheek and leaned back in her chair. "I think Sky is my new favorite subject," she said with a wink and giggled. Her eyes briefly darted back to MPAD-24 again.

What was that all about? Her sudden shift in demeanor caught you completely off-guard. What did she mean about being watched? Was she referring to your MPAD unit? There were also sensors throughout the entire ship, but maybe those weren't being actively monitored. But who would be watching us, and why? Was she related to Lily? What caused her to be more knowledgeable than other Cunis? Why hadn't you seen her before? You had so many questions about Daphne and not many answers. Maybe you could get her to answer at least one of those safely. "Were you able to attend the ceremony for the Odyssey?"

"I watched it from the console in my room," she admitted. "You gave a wonderful speech. Your crew would be proud." After an awkward pause, she asked, "Was there anything else you wanted to discuss?"

There was, but you didn't want to make her mad again by mentioning Lily. Also, it was unlikely that she knew what made her smarter than other Cunis. Furthermore, if we were being watched, this wasn't a good place to discuss that either. "That's enough for now. It was a pleasure to meet you Daphne. If you sign-up for a new outfit, I'll see you then."

After you both stood up, she leaned in and hugged you, pretending to kiss your cheek, but instead she whispered, "Search for 'Project Gradient', but do it discretely. It may have answers." Then she did kiss your cheek and giggled again, and finally exited the room. Before she left your sight, she cautiously looked around as if she was worried about being seen or followed.