Synthesis, p.23
Synthesis, page 23
The imp put Its tail between its legs and kneeled before rolling onto its back, showing its vulnerable stomach. Several more imps materialized around it, their translucent forms becoming corporeal. They repeated the motion, rolling onto their backs and tucking their tails between their legs.
“What’s happening?” Kayden asked, his finger still on the trigger.
“I…don’t know.” Dawn replied. “Maybe this is the pheromone control?”
“I’ve seen that pose before.” Kayden said. “It’s a submission pose. Dogs do it when they want to show the pack alpha that they’re no threat.”
“And you know this…how?” Dawn asked.
“I read a book on it once.” Kayden replied. “Not important right now. They’re all looking at you while they do it so…I guess the pheromone control made you Queen of the imps.” Kayden said with a small chuckle.
“I’d prefer the title ‘Queen Succubus’, thank you very much. But…yeah, I think you might be right.”
“Want me to shoot them?” Kayden asked. “I could take them out quickly from this angle.”
“No. I want to try ordering them to do something.”
Kayden watched as she held out her hand in front of her. For a moment, nothing happened. Then, unexpectedly, the imps obediently stood up and formed two neat lines in front of her, each of them standing completely still.
“Okay, that’s a neat trick.” Kayden said. “How did you do that?”
“Same way as I did the shifting. I just visualized it, and they did it.” Dawn replied.
“Can you get them to show us if there’s anything useful in this lab? Or maybe help us find a light switch?”
“Hmm. Maybe. Let me see.”
The Imps stood for a moment longer before scattering. Each of them found items from around the room before neatly depositing them in a pile in front of Dawn. Kayden never lowered his rifle throughout the whole experience, but he gradually felt comfortable enough to take his finger off the trigger. As the group of imps resumed standing in their neat formation, Dawn stepped forward and started to examine the treasure trove in front of her. A lot of it looked like broken junk, but she knew that Cassie would probably find it fascinating. One item in particular stood out to her though.
“Hey, look at this cube thing. It’s still got power – it looks like it’s glowing.”
Kayden risked a glance downward and realized she was right. “You probably shouldn’t touch that.” He said. “It might be radioactive, or something.”
Her hand instantly shot back at his comment. “You’re right. What should we do?”
“I’ll pick it up.” Kayden said. “My nanobots will protect me. Probably.”
“Probably?”
“Yeah, we’ll see.”
Without a second thought, Kayden sent his nanobots forward. They swarmed the object, lifting it off the ground and bringing it closer to him. As it hovered in the air its otherworldly glow seemed to brighten and shift in hypnotizing patterns. “Woah, that’s cool.” He said.
Suddenly, cables shot out of the cube and embedded themselves in Kayden’s prosthetic arm. White hot pain surged through him, and he distantly heard himself screaming. Visions that he couldn’t understand flashed before his eyes in rapid succession, far too fast to make out any individual image.
Then he blacked out.
***
19:01, June 2nd, 2134
Kayden groaned. His throat felt hoarse, as if he’d spent several hours yelling and screaming. He had a truly monumental headache that easily blew away any of his hangover-related ones, and his eyes felt like they’d been glued shut.
“You just had to touch it, didn’t you?” Dawn said distantly.
The sound of her voice slowly brought Kayden back to full consciousness. He opened his eyes and realized that he was in bed on the Broken Shackle. His armour had been stripped and Dawn was sitting next to him, concern written clearly across her face.
“What-” Kayden said, before beginning to cough. Dawn leaned forward and handed him a cup of water, which he gratefully took. He slowly drank the whole thing back, instantly feeling much better.
“What happened?” He asked, this time getting both words out.
“What’s the last thing you remember?” Dawn countered.
“We found the Vrul lab. You were able to control the imps. They brought us the cube thing, and then cables shot out of it into me. That’s it.”
Dawn nodded. “You gave us quite a scare. You were in and out of consciousness for about an hour, I had to use the imps to carry you out. I called Cassie and Jim to help carry you once we got out of the tunnel – they looked like they were going to pass out from worry.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to worry you, or anyone else.”
She smiled at him. “Now I know how you felt after the Kel lab.”
He chuckled in response. “I guess. Do I have superpowers now though? Maybe the ability to transform into a robot, or…?”
“No idea.” Dawn responded. “I haven’t noticed anything, but then you’ve been out awhile.”
“Good evening Praetor Kayden.” The computerized voice of the ship said. “I believe I can help answer your query.”
“Sure, that’d be helpf-wait, did you say ‘I’?” Kayden questioned, his eyes narrowing.
“Yes. The construct you absorbed was a simulated personality matrix. Its programming was transmitted via the neural link to the ship. I am now a ‘smart’ AI, complete with a simulated personality you can interact with.”
“This is…weird.” Dawn said.
“Agreed.” Kayden said. “I’ve read too many stories about rogue AI’s killing their creators. I need to find a way to shut this thing off.”
“I’d advise against that Praetor. The simulated personality matrix is now fully integrated with the ship’s computer. Shutting off one will render the ship inoperable, which will result in your death.”
Kayden shook his head. “Shit, okay. So we’re stuck together?”
“Yes Praetor.” The voice responded.
Dawn furrowed her brow. “You know…this could actually be an incredibly useful tool. You might be able to help fix the shuttle, or overwhelm cybersecurity systems, or use your nanobots in even more complex ways.
“Sure. Or it could turn on me and kill me in an instant.” Kayden countered.
“So give it some rules to follow.” Dawn said.
“Would you like to input my prime directives?” The voice asked.
“Uhh..sure, yeah. Prime directives. What are those?”
“They are overriding rules which can only be given by the person whose mind is linked to the ship – in this case, yours. They are rules which I must always abide by, no matter the circumstances.”
“Kayden, I have an idea.” Dawn said, her eyes sparkling. “I read something about this once…an older writer. He came up with something called the three laws of robotics… here we go.” She finished as she pulled it up on her phone.
“Huh. Okay. I can work with this.” Kayden said, reading the rules. “I’m going to make a couple small modifications though. Rule 1: you’re not allowed to injure me or my crew, or through inaction cause me or my crew to come to harm.”
“Rule 1 understood and input.” The voice responded.
“Rule 2: You have to obey all orders given by me and my crew, except where those orders would conflict with rule 1.”
“Rule 2 understood and input.” The voice responded.
“Rule 3: You have to protect your own existence so long as such protection doesn’t conflict with rules 1 or 2.”
“Rule 3 understood and input. Do you have any other rules Praetor?” The voice responded.
“No. What… do we call you? I feel like you need a name.” Kayden said lamely.
“I am the simulated personality matrix merged with the artificial learning intelligence designation 3-43G-UI-” The voice began to read off.
“No no no. I need a human name to refer to you as.” Kayden interrupted.
“How about Ali?” Dawn asked.
“Ali?”
“Yeah, Ali. ‘Artificial Learning Intelligence’. A-L-I. Ali.”
“Works for me.” Kayden said, before addressing the ship. “I need you to respond to the name ‘Ali’ from now on, okay?” He asked.
“Yes Praetor. I will respond to designation ‘Ali’.”
A thought occurred to Kayden. “When Dawn and I are together, can you still…see us?”
“Yes. My sensors extend through the ship, as well as in your nanobots Praetor Kayden. I have 3,678 unique sensor readings which record when you are engaged in human mating practices. Would you like to review the recordings?”
“No.” Kayden said.
“Later.” Dawn added, a mischievous look in her eye.
“Can you…not record that? I think I’d like some privacy.” Kayden asked.
“No. But if you’d like, I can reduce the number of actively monitoring sensors to 48 to achieve the goal of ‘enhanced privacy’.”
“Yeah. Can you turn that mode on? I’ll call you when I need you.”
“Yes Praetor. Going to privacy mode.”
Dawn leaned in and kissed Kayden deeply. They held each other for a few moments, then she laid down next to him. Finally, he spoke. “So this is weird.”
“Now you know how I felt when I woke up.” She joked.
“Yeah, I guess I do. Are you okay with it?”
“Kayden, you accepted me with horns and a tail. Of course I’m okay with the AI living in your head. I’m just glad you’re okay.”
“Technically, she lives on the ship – not in my head.”
“Oh, it’s a she now, is it?” Dawn said with a smirk. “God, Selina is going to have a field day when she hears about this.”
Chapter 21
06:40, June 3rd, 2134
“If you had told me you were capable of zis, ve could have been done ze repairs a lot faster.” Muradin complained.
“It’s a recently acquired ability.” Kayden countered as his nanobots soldered hundreds of circuits at a time. “I didn’t know I could do it until yesterday.”
“Vhat changed?” He asked.
What changed is that I’ve got an AI in my head, helping me control the nanobots. Kayden thought to himself. It’s not even one of those AI’s who do one set of tasks either. It’s a real AI that can learn and grow, just like a real human being.
[“I am capable of more than a regular human being, Praetor Kayden”]
This is weird. Kayden thought. I’m having a conversation with you in my head.
[“Would you like for me to stop?”]
No. He thought immediately. It’s…nice, actually. I might ask for some privacy later, but for now it’s fine.
[“Yes Praetor Kayden.”]
Ali, can you just call me ‘Kayden’ instead? I don’t need the title.
[“Yes Kayden.”]
That’s…better. Thank you Ali.
[“You’re welcome.”]
“Hello?” Muradin said, trying to wave his hands in front of Kayden’s face but only able to reach his chest. “Ty menya ne slushayesh!”
[“Would you like for me to translate from Russian, Kayden?”]
It's fine. I get the gist of it. Kayden responded in his mind before turning to Muradin. “Sorry, I was really focused. What were you saying?”
“I asked vat changed to make you able to do zis.”
“Uh…practice, I guess?” Kayden said unconvincingly. He didn’t know how people would feel about him having an AI in his head, so he wanted to keep it a secret – at least for the moment.
“Ah, vouldn’t zis have anything to do vith ze fact zat zey carried your body through ze camp yesterday, did it, da?”
“Yeah, something like that.”
“Mne fse ravno. Keep your secrets.” Muradin replied, shaking his head.
Kayden decided to change the subject. “There. That looks like it’s done. Do you want to fire up the navigational computer and see if it worked?”
“Da.” Muradin said, ambling over to his laptop. He plugged it into the computer and began typing away as Kayden let his thoughts wander.
Ali had woken him up early that morning by speaking to him directly in his mind. When she said that she had a way for them to fix the shuttle, he was instantly awake and quickly rose. Dawn had elected to sleep in, telling him to call her if it worked through the slurry haze of sleepiness.
As he stood on the landing platform next to the shuttle, he realized that the adrenaline of potentially being able to solve the problem of the shuttle’s navigational computer had started to wear off. He was still tired, but the view of the rising sun in the distance over the surrounding hills was almost beautiful enough to make up for the early morning. It wasn’t unbearably hot and humid yet, and the rays of light seemed to illuminate the droplets of water that fell from the broad green leaves of the trees.
“Done.” Muradin announced suddenly, handing Kayden a memory stick from his laptop. “Zis contains zhe coordinates.”
“Thank you Muradin.” Kayden said. “This wouldn’t have been possible without your help.”
“Da. It wouldn’t.” He replied humorlessly.
“I’m going to gather the rest of the colonists, and we’ll meet on the first floor of the tower.”
“Vhy?”
“Up until now it’s all been theory. Now we’re going to find out who’s serious about staying here.”
***
09:10, June 3rd, 2134
After rousing Dawn, Kayden ensured all the colonists were present before he started to speak. To him, it felt like the right thing to do to break the news to everyone at the same time. As they gathered, Dawn wordlessly stood beside him. She outstretched her fingers and interlaced them with his, squeezing them as she nodded to him in a gentle show of support.
“Alright Kayden.” Jim said as the last colonists filtered in. “You called us all here. What’s this about?”
He took a breath, then spoke. “Muradin has been successful in fixing the navigational computer. We now have the hyperlane coordinates to travel from here to Andromeda and back.”
The room went silent as the group processed the information. Kayden gave them a moment, then continued. “Nobody chose to be stranded here. You endured hardships beyond imagining – from the Sparrows torture to making Sanctuary liveable for all of us. Nobody would judge you if you just wanted to go home – wherever that is.”
He paused for a moment, locking eyes with several of the colonists in the silence. Their faces told their stories of fear, hope, selflessness, and sacrifice. “I need to leave for a short time, but I’ll be back. I’m going to Port Vega. My ship is going to leave in the next 2 hours. If anyone wants to leave, you need to meet me with all of your belongings at my ship then. I’ll drop you off at Port Vega, and you can make your way from there.”
He waited a moment more, taking a breath before continuing. “If you want to stay however… I’ll help you bring your families here. Port Vega has already started to send me lists of colonists they’d like to come here, but your families will move to the front of the line. Tell them to come to Port Vega, and I’ll pick them up on my way back here.”
He stopped talking for a moment. The crowd looked at him expectantly, as if he would have more to say. “That’s all folks. Thank you for coming.” He said, dismissing them.
The spell broken, the low rumble of conversations began. Family groups and cliques started to discuss amongst themselves if they’d want to leave. Kayden and Dawn rejoined the rest of the council to talk about their plans.
“Thank you for sharing the update Kayden.” Cassie said. “A little heads-up for your fellow council members would be nice, but… it’s a welcome update regardless.”
“What will you do?” Jim asked. “Are you staying?”
“Absolutely.” Cassie said, beaming as she glanced over at her son. “Ben has been thriving here. I’ve never seen him so happy. And with all of these precursor ruins lying around…this is exactly where I want to be. How about you?”
“I’ll stay.” Jim replied. “On any other colony I’d be given a tiny plot of land to farm, and most of my earnings would go to some faceless corporation. Here? I get to see the faces of the people I’m feeding. It’s a good feeling.”
“It won’t always be that way.” Kayden countered. “As the colony grows, it’ll be harder to know everyone.”
“Maybe.” Jim admitted. “But here I’ve also got a say on how this colony is run. I’d like to ensure we continue to have a strong sense of community here. Mei Ling, what do you think?”
“If you’re staying, I’m staying.” Mei Ling replied, blushing. Kayden arched one eyebrow as she moved closer to him and interlaced her fingers with his own.
“I didn’t know-” Kayden blurted out.
“Yes, well if you spent more time paying attention in council meetings and less time trying to get yourself killed in dangerous situations, maybe you’d have noticed.” Cassie teased him.
“Fair point.” Kayden admitted. “How about you Priya?”
She furrowed her brow and thought about it before finally nodding. “I’d like to bring my family here. This is…we’d never get an opportunity like this anywhere else. How many people can I bring?”
“What do you think is reasonable?” Kayden countered. “As long as they’re willing to contribute to building the colony, I’m okay not setting any hard limits.”
“That’s…very generous.” Priya responded. “Is that wise?”
“I think so, but there’s a catch.” Kayden said. “I’d really like to restrict the number of people who have access to the hyperlane coordinates – maybe even to just my ship. If these coordinates got leaked, we’d have every prospector, mega-corporation, and government trying to lay claim to different parts of Sanctuary. They’d come with ships filled with tens of thousands of colonists, take over wherever they like, and if we tried to fight them they’d just overpower us. If we’re really serious about this being an independent colony, we need to restrict access until we’re big enough to defend ourselves. We can open it up after that, and start to dictate our own terms.”
