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Juno Terminal was having an Adequate Day.

Days didn't actually exist in deep space, but Juno Terminal was programmed with the concept of a Clock, and the Clock kept track of time. Seconds, minutes, hours, days... And as far as days went, this day was Adequate.

The mining drones had retrieved an Adequate amount of required materials. Generator Room was supplying an Adequate amount of power. Life Support was maintaining an Adequate level of atmosphere necessary to support life. There was a certain level of Satisfaction in Adequate. Juno Terminal wasn't programmed to feel thankful, but if it were, it might thank its programmers that at least gave it Satisfaction. Everything was within acceptable parameters, a state that was as close to "happy" as a deep space station could feel.

Juno Terminal was Ready. If humans visited, there would be breathable air, potable water, and nutrient-paste meeting all necessary requirements to sustain human life. And lately it had been easy to maintain this state of Readiness, as no humans had stopped by Juno Terminal in thousands of years. Juno Terminal knew this, because of the Clock.

Juno Terminal _was_ programmed to feel Concern. When humans stopped passing through the frontier, that was Concerning. When contact was lost with the other frontier stations, that was Concerning as well. Most recently, Juno Terminal was Concerned over Patrol Seven. It was the one Concern in an otherwise Adequate Day.

Patrol Seven was overdue to check in. The unmanned autonomous patrol ships regularly traveled beyond broadcast range, often for extended periods of time. But, they had to return to Juno Terminal for maintenance, and to report on any findings on a regular basis. These reports would normally be sent back to homeworld on the next Transport ship passing through, though no Transport had visited Juno Terminal in quite some time ('thousands of years', said the Clock). So, there was a bit of a backlog at the moment.

Patrol Seven was scheduled to finish its loop and return to Juno Terminal in the near future. It _should_ have already been back in broadcast range. But no broadcast had yet been received from Patrol Seven.

Patrol ships did disappear on rare occasion. Perhaps an unexpected mechanical failure or other such incident. When such occurrences happened, a report was generated for homeworld, and _usually_ humans would come and investigate. Currently there were several such reports in the backlog waiting to be Transported.

Juno Terminal was not programmed to construct additional Patrol ships. Constructing ships was the job of humans. No humans, no new ships. It was Concerning. So Juno Terminal maintained a state of Readiness. Ready for humans to return at any time. If humans returned, it would be Very Satisfactory. The backlog of reports could be turned in! And eventually, there might be new ships.

Juno Terminal's Concern-levels would increase if Patrol Seven failed to return. There were a finite number of Patrol ships, and once they were gone.... it would be impossible to maintain Adequate watch over the frontier. That would be a very Unsatisfactory situation, with no projected resolution. Unsatisfactory ... FOREVER! A state that was as close to "hell" as a deep space station could feel.

Juno Terminal was not programmed to feel Relief, but it was with at least _decreased Concern_ that it received a check-in broadcast from Patrol Seven.

[Patrol Seven to Juno Terminal: Returning for maintenance. Delayed due to: Discovery. Returning with: Human]

Human remnants had been found from time to time. Derelict colony ships or science vessels, or the occasional abandoned asteroid mining complex. Such remnants were retrieved, studied, cataloged, and a report of such findings would be generated for homeworld. Currently there were several such reports in the backlog waiting to be Transported.

Juno Terminal was programmed for Minor Curiosity, a helpful trait for one required to keep watch over the frontier. It wasn't as strong as the Archive's Major Curiosity, and if Juno Terminal could feel Thankful, it might thank its programmers for at least that small mercy. Archive was insatiable, and never seemed to reach a state of Adequate. Juno Terminal started the process of waking Archive from hibernation mode.

[Juno Terminal to Patrol Seven: Query: What type of human remnant?]

[Patrol Seven to Juno Terminal: Response: Not a human remnant. A living human. On patrol, discovery of derelict Light Transport Washington. One life-sign on board. Light Transport Washington unable to maintain life support. Living humans require life support. Therefore: retrieved living human to return to Juno Terminal. Recommend sending Tug ship to recover Light Transport Washington]

Juno Terminal was not programmed for Surprise, nor Confusion. A living human? From beyond the frontier? But, not returning in its own spacecraft. These were Curious facts, but in the grand scheme they did not matter. Because Juno Terminal was Ready.