Coupled

Written for the Daily Flash Fiction Challenge with a word limit of 300.

The prompts: This story must contain the words: image, missing, handle

Coupled

The flash temporarily blinded him as he struggled to maintain control of his craft. Seeing was not a problem. His short term memory chip booted up the last known image for his mind’s eye to see; an inertia disrupter mine two-hundred meters to the left. 

“Pilot, are you still operable?”

Damn A.I.’s. Might as well be flying with my mother, he thought. Out loud he said, “That’s affirmative, Ship. I am having a little trouble with my port rotational thruster. What’s the status?”

“Missing,” monotoned the ship’s Artificial Intelligence. 

What was that mine doing out here? For that matter, why hadn’t the A.I. spotted it earlier? No matter now. I have to get back to base and report this incident.Pilot pulled hard on the stick. Damn thing is handling like a minivan without that thruster, he thought as his efforts generated an audible groan.

“Would you like some help with that?” offered the A.I..

“Don’t you worry about me. I have a handle on this. If you want to be helpful, how about plotting our jump back to base?”

“Yes Pilot,” came the obedient response. Pilot should have seen that mine. Do I have to do everything? I swear, the biologicals they pair us with these days have the mental capacity of an IPOD. The A.I. began the trillion-plus calculations needed to establish the jump coordinates.

Thirty seconds later, “Pilot, the jump program is complete.”

“It’s about time; I finally have this beast pointed in the right direction.”

“It’s about time,” muttered the A.I., giving a rare glimpse into his psyche. Both man and machine smiled inwardly.

“Let’s ride the light…engage.” The personalities became one as the ship went FTL, faster than light. They would unwind upon arrival where a separation induced loneliness waited; something both man and machine feared.