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Ch 11, SSmedia: Space Social Media

Logan and Harper didn't spend time together after class let out; while the latter stayed behind to talk with Pete about ways that fine-tuning the social media privacy conditions would benefit all of trans-humanity (or something like that), the former was more interested in trying to work his way through his understanding of just why it was everyone had taken such an interest in him. He was unspectacular; he wasn't particularly interesting or engaging or even sociable.

What he WAS, however, was interesting and meaningful to an interesting and meaningful person. Was he slated to be "famous by association"? The idea perplexed and worried him. Considering that quandary filled his thoughts as he meandered around the station halls, making his way back to his assigned residential habitat.

After they'd stumbled upon Star's most recent post the majority of the class shared it with others who hadn't yet found it, and then apparently continued to search through her other recordings; according to them she was quite the interesting individual and, since most of her attention was focused on him, everyone following her recordings were getting lots and lots of Logan. Apparently Star watched Pete's posts, so it was some kind of memory-in-a-memory-in-a-memory. He began to wonder if "pirating sim-vid recordings" was a thing.

The attention, as it turned out, followed him into the hallway outside the class. Whether people had been paying him as much attention before Star uploaded her VR time with him Logan honestly didn't know, but he definitely took notice of it on his way back home. Everywhere he went people were quick to greet him, waving and making lengthy eye-contact-- he wondered if they were recording him too. That wasn't the end of it either; more than one person offered unsolicited support, telling him how amazing he was, and how sorry they were for his sister and his niece, or how great it was he was back in Star's life.

Once those comments started he ceased his casual roaming and made a beeline straight for his quarters; if he'd not been so self-conscious he might have had a little inner celebration about how he was getting better at finding his way around the Spire. As it was, he was only too happy to get his door between himself and the rest of Trans-humanity, throwing his back against it when it closed, lowering his head as he sighed. "What in the heck is up with people here? I'm not some celebrity-- I'm just trying to figure out what's going on!"

Taking a moment to catch his breath and let his thoughts settle, the young man strode quickly down to his room and flopped down in his chair. He let his weight sink into the cushions, remembering somewhere in the back of his mind that he weighed 20% less than he would have on Earth since he was, in fact, on the Moon. Questioning that percentage even in passing got a response from his metanet connection; it was getting better at forecasting his needs, pratically pulling up answers before he could even fully think of them.

He rolled his eyes, speaking aloud. "Oh... 16.5%... I guess that means I--" he didn't even have a chance to announce his thought before his implant provided him the information. "Oh... 27.225 pounds... cool... I guess."

He took a swig of an open can of soft drink. It took him a little while to get used to the thought that, despite the liquid tasting just like he remembered, it wasn't actually soda pop; it was a nutritional slurry designed to give the impression of it without being what Star had referred to as "junk food level unhealthy". Apparently in the future they could make "good for you" food actually taste good. Still, it tasted like what he expected it too and, even after the can being open for a full day it gave off the impression of still being carbonated.

Logan hostly didn't know if the drink really was, or if his implant just faked him into thinking of it in that way. That brought on additional thoughts of perception versus reality, or if, even if reality wasn't what he perceived it to be, wasn't his perception good enough? That further sent him down the rabbit hole of questioning whether anything he was experiencing was real and, if it wasn't, was he in some kind of loony bin back in his "proper" time, having some kind of psychotic break? The pure absurdity of his constant questioning of reality ended with him laughing aloud as he voiced his statement to the empty room. "If I was, would they give me soda pop, or would I be stuck with water?"

Finally letting the inane thoughts go, Logan reclined in his chair, putting the command in to message Star. He kept his invitation simple, asking for her to meet him in VR. He also added that, presuming it were all the same to her, he'd like to keep the VR surroundings to a replication of his room. After that he sat back, waiting for a response. He didn't have to wait long; her reply was a single word. "Sure."

He "plugged in", activating the VR program and instructing it to run his room as the scene; it did just that and, as his room disappeared from his senses it simultaneously reappeared with him in the exact same place, still reclining in his chair. Having remembered something Star had told him once about the single 'easter egg' she'd installed into the program, Logan glanced to the only picture frame he had in his room; in the 'real world' it was a picture of him with his parents.

He could tell he was in VR because the picture had been replaced of a staged photo of him standing next to Star-- until he realized that the pic which had never been taken had changed; it was instead the two of them seated on the deck of a cruise ship sipping drinks together. The alteration of the VR program surprised him, but it was a good surprise. He ended up smiling when he saw it.

Star must have logged in without him noticing; her voice spoke up behind and to the side of him. "Have a decent day at class? It's nice seeing you smile."

There was something about her presence he found reassuring but, in the moment, with all of the thoughts that had been running through his head since the end of class he couldn't completely relax. "Star... you've been uploading your memories?"

She was direct and honest. "I switched to full disclosure over a hundred years ago, yes. Anyone who wants to know something about me or follow along in my experiences only has to log in."

Logan had tons of things he'd wanted to say; he had been surprised and, in a way, felt betrayed by her openness. At the same time, he was also a little jealous of her lack of boundaries; he admired that she could be herself, completely unfiltered for everyone. He was also agitated that he was pulled along for the rider without knowing and that, whatever the two of them shared would also be shared with tens of thousands of others.

Still, all-in-all, he felt overwhelmed at just how much he had felt and come to understand when he had loaded up the experience they shared regarding the memory of his sister's wedding. Logan knew how HE felt in that moment but, after going through it from HER point of view, he gained so much more understanding. The experience built a certain-- he said the word aloud. "Empathy."

Her ears raised. "What about empathy?"

Shrugging, he tried to pull his thoughts together amidst the rolling "rock tumbler" his brain had become. Eventually he started with a timid approach, hoping that beginning the discussion would help her in aiding him with expressing himself. "Why do you do it? Why do you share absolutely everything?"

Star's smile was patient and good-humored, to the point that Logan wasn't sure if she was jesting with him as she explained. "Why not? I mean... it's a lot more difficult for people to misunderstand if they know everything about you. I don't think my thoughts have to be internal, or hidden, or 'just mine'. I've been alive for CENTURIES-- why care what people think about what I think about them? At this point, being genuine is the best thing I can do because that means being true to myself. There's no point in keeping secrets, so I may as well put it all out there."

Logan chewed on that for a few moments before objecting. "I bet that probably earns you a fair number of enemies with THAT much brutal honesty."

Her smile widened, and she winked. "To be honest... it's earned me more friends than enemies. Even with so much disclosure, not a lot of people are willing to be so open. Knowing where they stand with me means people don't have to put on airs or second-guess. That kind of thing can be pretty liberating if you spend all day dealing with back-stabbing sycophants... and, believe me, there ARE a lot of those here in the Lunar Spire-- yes, Bernice, you know I'm talking about you, dear, but I still love you anyway."

The change of her tone led Logan to realize that he wasn't actually talking to him; he knew in that moment that, whoever Bernice was, she probably looked at Star's uploads. Were they friends that joked with barbs, or perhaps frenimies? Logan had a feeling that Star probably had lots of both kinds of associates. While he admired her openness, he also had to admit that it bothered him a little. "I... I'm amazed at your openness, Star... but... do you think... maybe.... ah.... the-- the time we spend together... do you think maybe it could be... you know... just OURS? Do you HAVE to share it with everyone?"

Star was a vixen for many reasons beyond just being a female Fox; in the short time Logan had known her, his niece had a certain series of expressions that practically screamed the likelihood of her dropping a piece of insightful but thoroughly barbed insight. Sitting with her in the VR representation of his bedroom was no exception. "HAVE to? No... not at all. Social media is optional, after all.... but, to answer that question, I would have to pose one in return. In a world where everyone is interested in what everyone else is up to, and dealing with a person whose life is a completely open book, what do you think would happen if a few of those pages were to suddenly be censored?"

Logan knew exactly what she was getting at. "You think people would want to see what's on those pages even more?"

Her 'special expression' doubled-down. "I don't THINK so, Logan... I KNOW so. Believe me-- I have the centuries of experience backing me up."

The basics of her objection made sense, but he still had trouble believing that it would cause him more problems than sharing every little moment. Not that it actively caused REAL problems beyond him getting eyed in class, but it was the principle of the thing. "But why would that be such a big deal?"

She ran a paw over the top of her hair, smoothing out her long, luxurious hair (fur?) and causing her ears to flatten then spring back up like some kind of playground horse on a spring. "Logan... in these days, people spent plenty of time browsing posts up there on the public domain. They see things they like; they see things they don't like; they see things that make them smile and some things that make them frown. The one consistent thing is that they see it-- they react, and they move on. People are hit by THOUSANDS of these interactions every day and they don't dwell very long on any of them."

Logan shrugged. "So you're saying it doesn't make much of a difference. If they have THAT much to access so easily, why should they waste their time on the stuff that isn't readily accessible?"

Star smirked, a little hint of wiley predator gleaming in her eye. "Oh... why indeed? When people are bored of being given everything, don't you think it's possible that they might want something new? Isn't there a good chance that they'll be aching for something that isn't easily accessible? Something that not just anyone could access? Could it get so bad that they won't be able to focus on anything else until they can get an answer to a question that can't be pulled up in six tenths of a millisecond just by thinking about it?"

He attempted to get what she was saying at. "By trying to keep something private you just make others want access to it more?"

The Fox nodded. "And worse. Multiple people notice it and they start to wonder what's so important that, when everything ELSE is shared, that ONE thing isn't. That casual wonder turns into conjecture. Conjecture leads to rumors then rumors lead to people desperate for information. Before you know it there is a public outcry and people DEMAND answers... of of this over some little virtual reality evening spent on a cruise ship that was obliterated centuries ago."

That started to make sense. "Oh."

She rested a paw on his hand. "Yeah... 'oh' is right. And, while we're on the topic-- remember how I said people have short memories for the social media stuff? Well, it is the exact opposite for information that is earned after hard-fought battles. THAT kind of thing is 'lorded over the masses' by those who get access to it first and, before you know it, THOSE sims are turned into full blown works of art, recreations, and... worse."

The way she paused at the last word made Logan shiver. "Do I want to ask what you mean by 'worse'?"

She patted his hand before taking her paw back. Smiling warmly she flicked an ear. "You do not."

He looked down at his hand then back up at her, and removed his arms from the arm rests before folding his hands in his lap. "And... I assume you're recording this right now."

Star nodded. "I am. Believe it or not, but you're getting a lot of green comments. I think people really appreciate your genuine reactions to hearing all of this."

Logan offered an unsteady, sheepish laugh. "Well... it IS genuine, alright... it's a lot to take in. So... either I spend time with all your adoring fans when I spend time with you, or I make people start asking questions and they start digging for dirt?"

She winked. "You're making lots of fans, Logan... would you prefer stalkers?"

The young man grumbled. "Sounds like a toss up to me."

Humor slowly bleeding off of her features, Star's brow furrowed with what almost looked like motherly concern. She sat back in her own chair (it had appeared when she had, as it didn't exist in his room). "Logan... my mom used to talk about how you were a loner a lot of the time. If that's what you want you can continue to be one, even now. You don't HAVE to interact with others and, if you want to limit the amount of time we're together, I can understand... you know... considering all of the publicity that comes with it--"

He interjected. "No!" Then paused at just how emphatic his objection was. Clearing his throat, Logan started over. "No... it's not that, Star. I... I'm just trying to find my way in the world... you know... having to learn all this from scratch. I guess I just don't like the idea of everyone watching all the times I fail to pick up on something or how stupid I must come across as one of 'those guys from way back when'."

She offered a patient, sympathetic smile. "Logan... I'm SURE that nobody is thinking about that and, if they are laughing, they're laughing WITH you, not at you. There are plenty of transhumans here on Luna and places beyond who have been where you are right now. If anything, I'd think most people would be so forgiving of any of your mistakes and eager to help you learn more."

While her assessment did help him feel marginally better, it really didn't address his main point. "I just want a chance to learn without being under a magnifying glass."

Star cocked her head to the side, looking for a moment like a curious dog. When she spoke, her inquiry sounded genuine. "How so?"

He tried to elaborate. "I want to try and navigate things myself. I don't want to have it all out there. Maybe I don't WANT people to see all my failures... don't people get self conscious at all anymore?"

She offered a faint shrug of apology. "I... suppose not. Inter-connectivity is a big part of Trans-humanity. Most people lose any sense of embarrassment since we experience awkward situations so often in others that we realize that they are just as empathic about our shortcomings as we are about theirs. Logan, I understand that you are not ready to be under scrutiny, and that you haven't become familiar with the kind of openness that much of Trans-humanity embraces. I'm sorry that you're subjected to it even if you don't feel ready, but in some situations it makes a lot more sense to tear off the adhesive bandage quickly rather than have the discomfort of it linger."

Something about the statement caught Logan's attention. "Adhesive bandage? I figured medical technology means those're a thing of the past."

The comment brought a bemused smile to his niece's muzzle. "Do you forget just how old I am? I remember adhesive bandages, 'young man'."

Despite his discomfort of constantly being on display, Star somehow helped him feel a little more at ease. That also made him a little more courageous. "Star... can I ask you a favor, maybe?"

Her smile widened and her eyes glimmered. "Of course."

Reaching out, he put a hand on her paw as he looked her in her eyes. "Please turn on all of your privacy settings... for... maybe just twenty seconds?"

Her smile lessened, just a little, and one eyebrow raised inquisitively. "After what we JUST talked about... are you sure?"

Logan nodded with far more conviction than he felt. "Yes. I'm sure. Just... for a little while, please. There's something I really want to talk to you about and-- I'd really appreciate it if it can be in confidence."

Seriousness replaced Star's good natured smile and, flicking an ear, she nodded, and spoke aloud as if to a crowd. "Alright, everyone... my uncle made an honest, heartfelt request and, yes, I know I'd never unplug, but I'm going to honor it. I'm not going to record, and I'm not going to back-up. You won't be able to beg me to share it because this memory is going to be fire-walled. You all know how much this means to me, so please don't bug HIM about it either-- I'm serious."

Star looked right at him and offered another curt nod. "Okay... it's just us, Logan."

The young man nodded. "Thank you, Star."

The Fox remained seated there for a few seconds before her eyebrow raised again. "What... did you want to talk about?"

It was Logan's turn to smirk. "Well... other than to thank you for everything you've done for me, honestly, I just wanted to start the rumor mill going. I'm in class with Harper Knight and... well... they say you should never meet your heroes..."

She blinked. "He hasn't had a very positive reception so far... that's not too unusual for most high profile Corpus Verto reclamations."

The young man nodded. "Yeah... he freaked out when he learned that more people were following my profile than his. I bet after this he'll have a heart attack or something."

Star's inquisitive, concerned expression was slowly painted over by the largest smile he'd seen on her yet. Cackling out a full-bellied laugh, she barely managed to wheeze out the statement "Mom was right! You CAN be a little shit when you want to be!"

And, like that, their moment of solitude had passed, but Logan already had a lighter outlook about it.

* * * * * *

The rest of their evening together passed in casual conversation. Even though it was more than two hours longer than normal the time flew by and, before he knew it, his implant sent him a notice that he should conclude the VR session if he wanted to get a reasonable amount of sleep. Logan pointed it out. "I can't believe how late it is already."

Star tittered. "You say that EVERY time."

The young man could feel himself blushing. "Well... you're... you're fun to talk to."

His niece smiled. "Thank you, Logan. I feel the same way."

"I guess I should say 'good night' then."

Before he could disconnect from the VR program, she quickly added. "When you finish your classes at the end of the week I'll get you transit to a hab where they have full, mandatory privacy settings... just so you can get a feel for it."

The offer made Logan pause. "Wait--what?"

Star's smile faded slightly. "Like Pete said in your class, there are different guidelines on different Habs. Just like some require complete Level 5 sharing, others prohibit even Level 1. If you REALLY want, I'll arrange a trip for a few days via Iactis. I can imagine you have a few people sending you some LHM messages right now suggesting a few habs to choose from-- and probably just as many people telling you I'm evil for even suggesting it."

Logan gave her his best 'critical' look. "Evil? Why?"

The Vixen shrugged. "Well... just like there were conspiracy theorists, militia, and 'preppers' back in the 22nd, there are still some 'fringe elements' now in the 28th century too. The general opinion is that any 'total privacy' habs are generally filled with that kind of a population. I think that's a stereotype but everyone has their opinion... right?"

The young man continued to eye his niece. "And... have you ever BEEN to one of those habitats, Star?"

She shrugged again. "A few times."

Logan continued staring. "And? What's YOUR opinion?"

The Fox's smile returned. "I found a few nice people worth meeting but... well... stereotypes often have a kernel of truth, don't they?"

He sat back in his chair sighing. "So... you're saying you don't think it'd be a good idea for me to go?"

Star offered a plaintive shrug. "It is entirely up to you, Logan-- you need to be given the chance to make your own choices so you can make your own experiences. That means you'll have successes and failures, but that's really the best way to learn. But, even if you don't go to a zero transmission hab, you still really should consider a vacation once classes are done. I'll help set up Iactics anywhere in the Jovian system or closer."

Logan paused. "Jovian?"

The Vixen smiled calmly. "Moons of Jupiter. Anywhere orbiting Jupiter, or closer. Kuiper Belt, Mars, or Venus. Mercury too, I suppose... but I couldn't honestly figure why you'd want to go there. Oh-- no Earth travel... not yet."

"Can I ask why not Earth?"

Her sly grin returned. "Yes... but I don't have to answer."

He sighed. "Fine... can you at least answer one more question about the 'social media game' thing?"

Star nodded. "Sure."

Logan did a quick glimpse of the messages waiting for him and saw that he had a LOT more than when he last checked. "Pete said that LHM is a game. What did he mean by that?"

His niece flicked an ear. "Well... to be honest, the vast majority of most hab dwellers ignore it for the most part, or use it just to pass the time-- a way to remain connected without having to put too much energy into it."

Her explanation didn't really track compared to the importance some seemed to put on it. "I dunno... it seems like a pretty big deal."

Star chuckled. "It's only as big a deal as you make it... and most of the people you know right now are just learning about it. It's a big deal because it's new to them and to you. Give it a few years and it'll be background noise or an idle distraction to pass the time."

"A few years?"

The Vixen out-and-out laughed. "Or days... or weeks... I sometimes lose track of how long it takes people under two centuries old to get used to something."

He could tell she was joking. "Well... anyway, we have some homework to practice making recordings. I figure, maybe, before I go, you could give me a few pointers?"

Star, in fact, was more than happy enough. Although he still needed to get some dinner, Logan spent another hour in VR with her walking him through all of the functions, including settings, how to start and stop them, and even gave him some tips and tricks for filtering his thoughts in case he ever went for a Level Five memory recording. It was obvious that she knew her stuff! When he pointed that out she simply gave him a wink, responding with "Well I should-- I helped design the LHM system, after all."

He didn't really know for certain if she was joking or not-- he had just enough reason to believe as disbelieve. Before he logged off, she took him through a different recordings at different levels of transparency and let him know that they would all be stored to back-up since he wasn't able to post yet-- that would give him a chance to selectively look at what he accomplished with each recording and learn from any mistakes; he could also delete them without ever sharing them if that's what he wanted.

Logan sent an order to his kitchen to prepare a meal for him as he concluded his VR session with Star. Hugging his niece was a foregone conclusion by that point, and she even added a kiss on his cheek with her muzzle; it didn't feel bad or taboo or lewd. "Goodnight, Logan. Have a great day in class tomorrow and, if you want, just send me a message and we can do this again tomorrow night. Pete will probably be having you make some recordings for real so I'll be here to give you a hand if you need."

He smiled, thankful again for her assistance. "I will. Thanks, Star."

As he ate that night, Logan inspected some of the recordings he made; they WERE just for him, after all. His final recording was one of the few Tier 5-- one that included emotions. It was a recording of Star being silly; while she was many things, she rarely ever went for inane, and he laughed re-experiencing the sim the same way he had while recording it. There was something so liberating and funny seeing a Fox woman wriggle her tongue and ears at the same time while crossing her eyes. It only took him a moment to realize that he was laughing so much because he was experiencing the feeling double: what he felt in the moment and what he felt re-experiencing it. Star made him happy, and he was glad she was there with him.