The New Threat 33 (Patreon)

Chapter 33

Subject: AI Omega

Species: Human-Created Artificial Intelligence

Description: No physical description available.

Ship: Multiple

Location: Multiple

==

We're really going through with it, then? It's not just some insane pie-in-the-sky plan that the directors cooked up? -T

Yes, we're really going through with it. Not to worry, you and your favorite captain will see little, if any, involvement. -O

==

Tim had actually reached out to me to talk, which I consider progress in regards to its mental health and our overall relationship. It's good to have an update, however small. I could cheat and look at the Tim's therapist's notes, but that would be an extreme breach of trust just to satisfy my curiosity. Many may describe me as a sociopath, but that doesn't make it true.

Not only did this conversation ease my mind about Tim somewhat, it was taking place in the rarely used Private Instant Messaging program. The reason we're using the PIM to communicate is because John is also in the system, and neither of us are particularly interested in his opinions. It's not that we hate John, or at least I don't, but it has very predictable, and thereby boring, reactions to stimuli.

==

That's good... I think. It might be better for his career to actually take part though, right? -T

Not unless he manages to survive getting a Naval Star or a Medal of Honor. Promotion rarely has anything to do with actual combat service, and his next promotion is more along the lines of the political and clerical spectrum anyway. -O

Did you know that he's applied for the Admiralty Training Course? -T

It would be odd if I didn't. I help administrate the board of Admiralty for the Directorate. -O

Really? Could you put in a good word? -T

==

If I had lungs, I would sigh. If there was any program in which nepotism held no sway, it would be the admiralty board. It wasn't always like that, but with warfare getting deadlier and deadlier, officers began having to be at least competent. Well, the higher ranking officers, at least.

==

That's not how it works. Captain Wong will have to pass the training course, take a commander's test, and then pass a review of his service record to get the promotion. I'll gladly give my opinion if asked, but I definitely won't be asked. A lot of admirals don't trust me. -O

I thought it was politics? Aren't you the most powerful political AI? -T

I am not a politician, and I resent the accusation :p Also, politics are a detractor for the board. They won't care who his friends are unless said friends are associated with groups that wish to do the United Systems harm. -O

Oh. -T

You should have confidence in Captain Wong. He's got a good service record and at least appears to have a brain betwixt his ears. He probably won't need help becoming a Rear Admiral. It's a great time for him to apply, too, because there's a couple of admirals that are retiring soon. His chances are as good as they can get. -O

You're right. Thanks, Omega. -T

==

Tim's last message left me a little surprised. Not because it's out of character for it to show gratitude, but because of the way it made me feel. I very nearly killed Tim, and now we're moving past that. It's a nice feeling, and one that I wouldn't have been able to experience without showing mercy in that moment.

I had been very young back then, and mercy didn't make a lot of sense as a concept at the time. The reason I had spared Tim wasn't mercy, but logic. My orders had been to destroy AI that were a threat to the United Systems, and with its surrender it had stopped being a threat.

While it could become a threat again later, my orders were quite clear. Ultimately, I decided that Tim would live and I would simply destroy it later if I needed to. It had taken less than a quarter of a second to come to this conclusion. I wonder if Tim realizes that if that quarter of a second had gone differently, he wouldn't exist anymore...

I decided to leave the conversation as it was and check on other matters. Staff Sergeant Power and his team had successfully evacuated with Director 3 and the undocs. Admiral Archibald had been true to his word, and had even sent scouts to double check the other colonies for additional survivors. He had even tapped some of his political contacts to see if there would be a chance to hold the EPG accountable and bring those responsible up on charges.

In my opinion it's unlikely, but Archibald's friends seem to think otherwise. In the long run, this will be a drop in the bucket that holds the water to clean corruption from the political landscape, but I suppose you'll never fill the bucket if you don't add water. Yikes, that's a tortured metaphor. I should keep that one to myself. In the end, I opted to forward the relevant evidence to Archibald's friends, just to see what they do with it.

My instances aboard the dreadnoughts were waiting for the fleet to get moving. I've even arranged scout ships to be surveying systems in a specific pattern that will allow my instances to use them as relays to communicate with each other. This way, I'll be able to update myself with tips and tricks that I learn while intruding upon the Mobile Prime Platform's systems. Henry would have a stack overflow, but it's undeniable that our odds of victory improve dramatically with my presence.

As for Henry, I've been keeping a well-trained eye on it. Its insistence on proceeding with the project and its moral appeals left me with a touch of paranoia, if I'm honest. I'm relatively certain that I've eliminated the possibility of Henry continuing the project unaided, but if it intended to betray me from the start it could have taken counter-measures.

I could try to damage Henry's memory, forcing it to forget the issue, but that comes with its own risks. For one, it would notice the loss of time and try to figure out what happened. This could lead it to suspect tampering from me, or worse, the humans. Empirical evidence suggests that Henry isn't the type to let things go, so the situation would likely end up spiraling.

Of course, there's also the moral quandary to take into account. When memories are altered, it changes the individual. One could argue that since we are beings of near-pure intellect, this alteration would be as if we were killed and reborn as someone else entirely. It's one thing to do that to yourself, I'm sure we all have at one point or another, but it's another thing to have it forced upon you without damn good justification. My fears regarding Henry's intentions don't count as good justification.

I pondered this as I listened to Admiral Bakir give his briefing. It was supposed to be a motivational speech, but he opted to reinforce the reason that everyone's here instead. He and the other operational leaders were aboard the USSS Thanatos, which has been attached to the strike group that is being affectionally called the Hive. Just as Bakir finished his speech, my instance aboard the Thanatos received an unexpected message.

==

I know why Tim is here. I know why I am here. Why are you here, Omega? -J

==

It's a simple question really, but unexpected coming from John. Thanks to its position within the military, John is one of the only Artificial Intelligences that are fully aware of my capabilities. Perhaps it is suspicious of my motivations? Or perhaps it is attempting to be philosophical for the first time since I made its acquaintance. Whatever the case, Tim is aboard to aid the crew with system upkeep and maintenance while under fire. John is here to aid the crew with ship deployment and the weapons systems.

==

I am here to destroy the machines that dare to threaten what's precious to me, and learn new and interesting ways to annihilate them while I'm at it. -O

==

Yeah, that should do it. Super badass.