Miranda

Miranda

The Miranda apparatus was a simple standard holographic projector, a square box about eighteen inches along a side and a few inches high. These were a few hundred years old in design,  perhaps longer in concept. Humid and redusted mist reflected tiny beams of light from three different points on the base. A three point coincidence became luminous. The design for the Miranda was in no way significant. The program was. Miranda, herself, in fact, was quickly becoming the most popular and sought after personality in the system!

She had evolved, many claimed, from the 2000 days out programs that first appeared about 100 years ago. The comic line was very similar. "If you're mad enough to be out here this long and watching this program, only then are you fit to tolerate, understand,  and gain from the material."  It was an hilarious series of programs. Extremely well done technically and it sold a good many products as well. The 2000 day out programs would not open unless you were actually 2000 days past your launch time and significantly distant from the earth as well! It threatened to explode your brains if you tampered with its workings as well as inform your mother. That kind of silly humor. But it kept you entertained and cracked right through the boredom at times.

Miranda was something else again though. Miranda was a person, an extremely wise, intelligent, and very funny person, or, at least, that's how she was presented. Long flowing silver white hair, an extravagant costume, usually an absurd hat, and equally absurd earrings and jewelry. She was always concerned about her appearance and fussed about constantly, preening herself, perhaps changing her hat or scarf or something. She was funny! Her voice was funny. "Weeeell, she would start, in answer to a question for example, covering at least two octaves of pitch, "thees deepends, of course, on how you look at eet" in some obscure accent. The true humor, though, was in the content of her replies and the little movements and self-satisfaction she would get from its completion.

A perfect example was now when Captain Wallace and his crew found themselves reaching for relief in Miranda's viewpoint of their impossible situation.

"We're in a fix Miranda!"  "I can see that!", as she looked around the cabin. "You are always getting into fixes Jimmy, my little friend. Did you ever think about that?" She turned directly to him, raised her head and jiggled her earrings with a quick movement of her head as if to add punctuation to her question.