No training was scheduled immediately after breakfast for the first time in a long time. No meetings were scheduled, and Shipp did not even want to probe us or subject the family to a download. Sam and Rob had eaten and made some excuse to leave on business only they knew about. I was sitting with my lovely wife, Cheryl, out on the veranda, looking at the forest and meadow stretched out before us. Shipp had built this domicile for us even before we came aboard! Their new domicile on Shipp was as large as a small mansion on Earth. Three large bedrooms complete with a large bathroom facility for each bedroom, each with a shower that you could verbally command specific temps and massage settings, as your mood dictated. Huge walk-in closets and sitting rooms were also part of the bedroom décor. There was also a desk with a computer console and a place to do research or whatever might come up. Homework was done via a download, so no one needed it for basic education! Both our children loved this aspect of our changed dynamic!
An extensive library was at the end of the hall, just off the living room, in both book and video formats. There was a hot tub on the veranda, shielded except for a spectacular view of the meadow and forests stretching out and away from their new home. The forests, brook, and meadow came complete with a sky, day, and night features on an earth timetable, and animal life, just no mosquitoes, flies, spiders, snakes, or dangerous predators. Shipp had created a vast living space just for them with holo imaging for sky and clouds! Over the years, Shipp had imported the forests, plant life, and animals from Earth. So, she had everything to make a home within her hull, a lovely place indeed! The forest even had its own AI Robotic Ranger! Kind of reminded me of Howdy Doody! I suppose that dates me somewhat! The domicile also had a large living room, an entertainment area, and a dining room with a food dispenser. All food prep was done by Shipp, or rather, an AI-controlled robotic something-or-other. Shipp still had many secrets we had not had time to ask about. As a matter of fact, none of the entertainment accessories included in the house had been used other than the hot tub. They had all been too busy, and when they were done for the day, food and bed were all anyone wanted. Early on, as muscle mass developed, Cheryl and I, the older generation, did use the tub to soothe sore muscles from the boot-camp-like training, even though we healed up very rapidly. I admit we just liked hanging out in it! Daniel and Jane shared quarters, as technically they were related, Father and daughter for all intents and purposes! But no meadow, forest, or brook. Jane had asked for some of the same things she had seen in the Carpenter living quarters because Daniel basically had lived in a stripped-down storage bay, as all he did there was sleep and shower before all the company showed up. It now resembled more of a home, with private accommodations for Jane and, as I said, some creature comforts Daniel had never bothered with. Jane did not expect to live there much longer as she had other plans. She had asked Shipp, the entity she considered to be her mother, to arrange living quarters for her and Rob as a wedding present. Shipp was already well on her way to doing just that long before being asked; her existence and design made her unable to be unaware of things happening within her structure or in near space, for that matter. So construction had started about a week after Rob and her creation, or daughter, met!
The Love Chronicles 