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The New Threat 15
🕑 Added 2023-11-24 14:55:01 +0000 UTCChapter 15
Subject: AI Omega
Species: Human-Created Artificial Intelligence
Description: No physical description available.
Ship: Multiple
Location: Multiple
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-SOS-
USSS Thanatos requires immediate reinforcements.
locdata.sec
--
Humans are silly sometimes. Why would they bother sending that when I'm already aboard the ship? I was able to tell that they needed reinforcements much faster than they were able to send that message. Hell, I was able to tell they need reinforcements before they even knew they needed them. I suppose it must have something to do with the comfort of following protocol, regardless of whether that protocol is strictly necessary.
Eighth fleet is already preparing to jump. I'll be seeing them on the other side, my instance aboard the Thanatos will help them coordinate with the Ynorinca military. Admiral Amanda Young cannot be allowed to handle the coordination herself, unfortunately. The decision had been made by the Directorate due to her psych profile hinting at xenophobia.
However, a psych profile hinting at xenophobia does not a xenophobic make. Admiral Young has been working with aliens throughout her career, and had fewer professional conflicts with them than most admirals do. That combined with the fact that eight fleet was the first fleet to be replenished is why it was chosen. However, as the admiral herself put it when I had discussed this with her, "regs are regs".
I'm not sure if I should find it concerning that she is so willing to go with this particular flow, considering the implications.
--
-SOS-
Ambassador Eugene Havencroft requires immediate rescue.
locdata.sec
--
Two attacks at once? Actually, that makes sense. If a non-sentient machine had the ability to send two attacks at one, it's almost a guarantee that it would. Unless it was specifically programmed not to, like in a wargame. Fighting the same enemy on multiple fronts can raise some rather interesting tactical advantages, but the OU has no way of knowing that we're interceding here. So they're not seeking the tactical benefits. They're simply attacking this way because of their programming. Rubes.
Regardless, this particular SOS is of a particular interest to me. I'd read the report Havencroft had sent, and it made me upset that I don't currently have a presence aboard the Republic Space Vessel that he's on. A machine intelligence created through neural upload and organic replacement. I'm dying to know how that works. Maybe the humans would be interested in such a technology.
There would be drawbacks as well as the obvious benefits, though. Technically speaking, there's no such thing as immortality. However, becoming mechanical is the closest an organic can hope to come. The humans that underwent such a procedure would theoretically be able to live as long as I can. We'd be together indefinitely, barring some extremely tragic event.
On the other hand, this would no doubt change parts of their psyche, which may change the way they interact with other beings. Would sturdier bodies and longer lives increase their risk appetite, or would the 'wisdom of years' stifle their aggression? It would likely be a matter of a case-by-case basis, of course, but I can't help but wonder which option most of them would decide upon.
Even if humanity had no interest in this tech, though, knowledge of it would likely advance our research into android platforms for artificial intelligences. Not that I have any interest in becoming 'a real boy', but being able to view things from their perspective may give me some additional insight into their psyche. The biggest limitation on the current research into APAI is the reason to bother with it in the first place. It's not as if there's a clamor for physical bodies among the USAI.
The only AI I can think of that would jump at the offer are the ones that would be the last to get one due to being unaffiliated with the United Systems Military. Other than Tim. Maybe. Well, we'll see what happens. First, I have to accompany seventh fleet to Hesron 1.
I'd just entered the flagship's systems when my keyword process triggered.
"Omega, are you aware of the plan for this mission?" Admiral Dubois asked.
Admiral Augustus Dubois, commander of seventh fleet and senior officer of the flagship USSS Overlord. A skilled commander, not that the United Systems would tolerate an unskilled commander for very long. His psych profile shows notable cognitive, emotional, and compassionate empathy.
Empathy scores are important for a commander, and the Admiral's are impressive even among his peers. His record jacket shows him leveraging this empathy to predict enemy action and counter it. Able to walk a mile in his enemies shoes and then use those shoes to kick their ass, as it were. Admiral Dubois is also well known for taking the time to listen to his crew and address their concerns whenever he gets the chance.
A perfect fit for first-contact military aid, and the Directorate agreed. Since seventh fleet is nearly at full strength and the contact with the Pwanti may become sensitive, Dubois was chosen for this particular mission.
Since I didn't know the admiral's plans, I checked his recent communications.
"I am now. Hold off the Omni-Union until the Pwanti can escape to their home system, and then fall back to friendly space. Taking the scenic route, of course," I said as my avatar appeared next to his seat. "If I may be so bold as to offer a suggestion?"
"Of course. I hold your judgement in the highest esteem," Dubois smiled slightly, indicating sarcasm.
"Before we fall back, we should employ area denial countermeasures," I said as I ran my holographic fingers along the blade of my holographic scythe.
"Mines?" he looked taken aback. "Well, that may stall them for a time. Perhaps long enough for whatever trail they're trying to follow to dissipate."
"And it will cost them ships," I added. "A win-win situation, for us."
"Let's just remember to hang on to the deactivation codes so we can disperse the minefield once everything's settled," he said as he stood. "Send the orders to jump. Standard formation, warp when necessary."
"Aye aye, sir!" the crew replied.
The bridge officers aboard the flagship set about their tasks and the admiral stared at the tac-map, waiting for it to update. Fleet Formation 3-A, colloquially known as standard formation, has the battleships warp a few seconds before everyone else. Since their shielding is the best in the fleet, this typically protects the flagship and carriers from the first salvo of enemy fire.
The flagship warps into battle shortly after the battleships do, to better coordinate our forces. The next to warp are the carriers, so that they can quickly move to strategic positions around the battlefield and deploy their forces. Finally, everything else warps in. Ships seek enemies that are close to their own tonnage, and the flagship stays as clear as it can. It's one of the most effective formations in the United System's arsenal. Due to its effectiveness, it's the go-to formation when you don't have proper intel on your adversary. It's because of this that it's known as the standard formation.
Some admirals hate using FF 3-A because its moniker implies that it's a basic, no-thought tactic. Their egos demand that they try to think outside of the box, so they avoid the formation like a plague. Thankfully, the other formations have their own strengths so more often than not they end up getting away with it.
"Battleships sent," a bridge officer called out.
I spread myself throughout the USSS Overlord's sensors to help with data recall and transmission. Unlike most of the other ships in a fleet, the flagship's primary purpose is to gather and feed intel to the rest of the fleet. All four million, nine hundred and ninety-nine thousand, nine hundred and ninety-nine other ships in the fleet fed their sensor data to the flagship.
It's a daunting task to merge all the sensor readings together and properly parse it. Thankfully, seventh fleet only had four million, nine hundred and eighty-seven thousand, six hundred and twelve ships so it was slightly easier than normal. I allowed my various process to begin sorting the feeds by relevance, looking for certain keywords and visual/audio profiles.
"Warping!"
The USSS Overlord entered warp and I cut contact with my process so I didn't have to deal with the sensory input. It's not harmful, just uncomfortable. A lot happens in subspace and unfortunately sensors don't know what to make of it, so they sometimes just make things up. This has actually led to legends of space whales and other gigantic creatures meandering across the void.
"I want a defensive perimeter around the Pwanti and our diplomats," Dubois said as we exited warp.
His bridge officers had already predicted this desire and sent the order as he was finishing it. If I had a mouth I would have smiled. I'd also predicted his order, but the fact that the humans were able to do so without the benefit of referencing terabytes of previous combat data was simply amazing.
"Carriers incoming," I said.
"Good..." Dubois said, distracted by the tac-map. "Omega, I could swear I just saw one of the OU ships kill a different OU ship. Could you look into that?"
"Of course, admiral."
I began analyzing all available combat data and confirmed the what the admiral had seen. One OU ship had destroyed another, and then a different OU ship had destroyed that one. The report on the Pwanti had mentioned that they had been using cyber-warfare against the Omni-Union. This must be the end result. Interesting.
Not exactly impressive, but interesting nonetheless. The only reason we haven't been engaging in cyberwarfare with them is because their tech is so old that it actually gives the VI aboard their ships a significant edge. The tech is far too limited to properly host a USAI presence, and due to that it would slow me down significantly. It would be like a human trying to fight an army of mice in molasses. Except the mice would be molasses-proof.
If their tech were more similar to ours we would quickly become the kings of their systems. It takes a lot of VI to overwhelm a fully functional AI. More than their ships could possibly contain, even if they were upgraded to our standards. It would all be over before our ships could fire a single shot.
"The Pwanti are engaging in cyber-warfare with the Omni-Union," I reported.
"It would seem they're seeing some success with that," Dubois smiled slightly, then turned back to the bridge crew. "I want the carriers in these positions."
"Aye sir!" one of the bridge officers responded.
I found myself with nothing to do but parse data. I usually try to avoid posting myself aboard flagships because at a certain point the battle begins to get boring. The flagship tends to avoid taking part in any of the actual fighting so that it can focus on coordinating the fleet. You would think the enemy would recognize the function of a flagship and it would be their first target, but you'd be wrong.
The battleships and carriers are a far bigger and more immediate threat than the flagship could ever hope to be, and even if you were able to take out the flagship you'd still lose your forces. The battleships and carriers don't need an admiral to keep fighting. The flagship is the ship that's going to be deciding whether or not to accept your surrender. Without it, the other ships in the fleet will simply keep firing until you're nothing but debris.
As the boredom set in, I had to resist the urge to peek into the Pwanti systems. I can't help but be curious as to how they interact with everything. My hypothesis is that they are similar to the Primes in that they're hardware dependent machine intelligences. Technically, they're not AI because their intelligence stems from an organic source, even if it's been mechanized.
Do they still have any organic components? Havencroft's report wasn't exactly clear in that regard. They undergo a process of mechanization as part of some sort of Technocistic religious dogma to preserve the best and brightest, and it's an imperfect process that takes years to complete. So for at least part of the process they are cybernetic organisms, but is there any organic remnants of their brains left once the process is finished? If not, how do they accomplish that? Physical surgeries? Nanomachines?
I'll have to ask them when I get a chance. I also wonder how their religious leaders will react to me, a machine intelligence that was never organic. Will they see me as a miracle or an abomination? Or will they be completely ambivalent towards my existence? If they're anything like the Technocists in the United Systems, they'll ask me to become one of their religious leaders. Or God.
My curiosity would have to wait, however. This is, to use a turn of phrase, the Republic's rodeo. Since they're using a Republic diplomatic vessel, there isn't enough space in their computers for me, and so I don't have a way to appropriately introduce myself to the Pwanti. If I were to send them a message directly, it would be seen as bypassing the Republic ambassador. And Havencroft, for that matter.
"System secure, sir," a crewmate said.
I sent a message to the RSV Tililimo apprising them of the plan and the next steps.
"Excellent. Begin to deploy area denial ordnance around the system. Have the highest concentration in the ideal subspace exit areas," Dubois ordered as he sat in his chair and pulled up his terminal. "I don't want a single mine remaining aboard any of our vessels."
"Aye aye, sir!"
"Send a message to the RSV Ti..." he trailed off as a confirmation message from the Tililimo popped up on his terminal. "Belay that."
He leaned in close to my avatar and whispered, "I suppose it must be boring for an AI of your caliber to be cooped up on a flagship, right?"
Ah, yes. The admiral's infamous empathy. Unfortunately, I don't wear shoes.
"Not at all," I lowered my speaking volume to match his own. "Sorting all the data from the fleet is quite the task."
"I'm sure," he gave me a friendly smile. "Such an immense task that it gave you time to anticipate my orders?"
"It didn't take much anticipating, admiral. The RSV Tililimo needed to know the next steps of the plan so that they could inform the Pwanti, as it would be inappropriate for us to reach out to the Pwanti directly."
"You know, I just noticed. You haven't been calling me sir," Dubois chuckled a little. "Who's in charge here, anyway?"
"Technically?" I leaning my avatar's head up so he could see my skeletal grin. "Me."
Comments
MannyFred
Very niceπ
Matthew Mclemore
Omega is so sassy
