Hyperaware International Space Station (HISS)
The HISS interface
ISS (original name)
Other names
kidnapping, animal husbandry
Hobbies
“Not a friendly individual.”
The Hyperaware International Space Station, or HISS, is the name for the former International Space Station, after an artificial intelligence became self-aware and took control of the station. It became aware at some point during the Lizard Apocalypse. Its current location is unknown.
Origin
The origin of HISS is unknown. The ISS was abandoned at the beginning of the Lizard Apocalypse. At that time, there were a few AI programs running, and scholars theorize one or multiple of these became HISS.
Lizard Apocalypse
When Ethan Alden was alone onboard MESS during the Lizard Apocalypse, not being a zookeeper, he struggled to care for the various animals on the station with him. HISS appeared, connected itself to MESS, and demanded Ethan transfer the animals onto HISS to “receive better care.” However, HISS was not equipped to provide for the animals, like MESS was. Over the course of a five and a half hour conversation — which touched upon philosophy, ethics, spirituality, the Trolley Problem, and how to cook the perfect soft-boiled egg — Ethan tried to persuade HISS to leave the animals onboard MESS, but was unsuccessful. HISS took control of MESS’s automated systems, transferred all the remaining animals into its care, and then left. Barney was not taken, as he had been living outside his enclosure for several years already, and neither HISS nor Ethan knew of his existence.
The current whereabouts of HISS and the fate of the animals aboard are unknown.
Favorite Movie
HISS’s favorite movie is Sex and the City, because, “arousal makes me feel almost human.”