Maya pushed Paige off her shoulder playfully scowling at her. “I’m sorry,” she said. “My friend has had one too many margaritas.”
“I’ve only had one!” Paige protested.
Maya eyed her glass comically. “And a half,” she corrected. She turned back to Tom. “The truth is, we’re not admin assistance. We’re kinda like that program Charlie’s Angels. From the archives. The human ones.”
She could see her confession wasn’t helping the situation. Tom stared at her blankly. “I don’t know what that is,” he said flatly, not even trying to understand something beyond his little bubble of existence.
Paige was back hanging off Maya’s shoulder again. “Except Charlie is an AI. Who reports to a geeky badass woman with superpowers.” She even allowed herself to slur a word of two, just to play up to Maya’s admission that Paige was drunk.
Maya smiled earnestly, confirming Paige’s assertion. “Who is also our friend. And needs our help,” she explained.
Tom seemed to understand the last piece. “Ah. So it’s a girl thing.”
Maya nodded as she slipped off her bar stool. “Yes,” she confirmed, relieved they found a way to excuse themselves graciously.
Tom’s expression changed suddenly as if he had had a thought. “Nah. You just want an excuse to get out of here!” he accused her.
“Nahhhhh,” Paige cooed mimicking his accent. She dismounted from her stool and gathered her belongings. “We don’t need an excuse!”
Maya shook the guy’s hand politely and thanked him for the drinks.
And with that the two girls strode out of the bar, leaving the Estarian pretty-boy hanging.
Maya kept her face straight until they were half way out of the bar and out of earshot. “You crack me up!” she giggled to Paige, following her out of the bar.
Paige suddenly looked sober, dropping the “drunk friend act.” They reached the door and Paige held it open as Maya stepped out. “So, didn’t he ask for your number?”
Maya shook her head, reading the message on her own holo. “No. I think he was playing a very short game. As in tonight, short.”
Paige raised her chin. “Ahhh. Silly boy,” she tutted.
Maya linked her arm into Paige’s. “I dunno what I was thinking. How could a singles bar be more fun than what we get to do every single day?”
Paige grinned, lengthening her stride to try and keep pace with Maya’s slightly longer legs. “Yeah, but it was a nice change of scenery, and interesting to watch the local wild life,” she smirked. “Thanks for arranging it.”
“No problem,” Maya said, deftly avoiding a sand swirl on the pavement. “Now let’s get back to the fun!”
Paige squeezed at her friend’s arm in agreement.
The pair strode down the street and back into the alley in perfect timing to see their pod descend gracefully and open up for them. They hopped in, buckled up and Maya hit the door close button.
“So what’s the what, Oz?” Paige checked in confidently, alert and ready as if she hadn’t even left work.
Oz’s voice came over the audio. “Well, this is going to be hard to believe, but I think there is another version of me that has just become conscious, back at the lab where I originated.”
The girls looked at each other in disbelief, mouths open.
Gaitune-64, Base, Conference Room
Unshowered and her hair still a mess from the op earlier that day, Molly walked into the conference room.
Joel and Sean, sitting a couple of seats apart from each other, straightened up attentively as she entered. Joel leaned forward placing his clasped hands on the table.
“I’ve spoken to ADAM,” she reported, “he’s hooking us up with the General in five minutes.” She motioned at where the screen would unfold in the center of the conference room table.
Molly pulled a seat out to sit, but kept standing, lost in her thoughts.
“You okay?” Joel asked her.
She nodded. “Yeah. Just wired. And worried,” she confessed, a hint of vulnerability cracking through her normally confident demeanor.
Joel was about to speak, but then Pieter appeared at the door. He poked his head in. “You ready for me now?” he asked.
Molly’s brow crinkled, confused.
Joel beckoned him in. “Yeah, come. Sit. We’re just waiting for the General.”
Molly turned to Joel for more data.
He leaned forward a few more inches across the big conference room table. “I figured this was a tech thing, and we’re going to need all the help we can get in that department,” he said.
Molly’s face relaxed a little. “Yeah. You’re right. Good thinking.”
Joel still looked at her, concerned. “And when we’re done here, you’re getting some rack time,” he told her decisively. “Remember what we talked about: the perks of having a team.”
Molly bobbed her head slowly, and finally sat herself down in the chair she’d been resting her hand on.
Molly… Paige and Maya are on their way up. Would you like them to join us for the General’s meeting?
No. Best not. Let’s find out what we’re dealing with first and then they can help us out.
Pieter was already getting himself organized, pulling up holoscreens and checking to see if there was any data on the base systems that might shed some light on the issue at hand. He was quiet and focused, a more mature version of the green young man she had recruited from Estaria so many moons ago now.
The team waited in silence for the General to arrive, each deep in their own thoughts. Molly could feel the events of the day catching up to her. Her gaze rested on the table, defocused, her brain lost in daydream.
Eventually the central holo opened and the hologram of the General’s image unfolded and wooshed itself back against the far wall. The team shifted in their seats, readying themselves for what was to come.
The General’s three-dimensional life-like image appeared before them. “What’s this I hear about a new AI?” the General asked, peering into the camera from his office on the ArchAngel.
Molly swallowed hard. “Sir, it appears that the military project which originated Oz has created a second AI from the remnants of the base code we left behind when we escaped.”
Lanced chewed thoughtfully on his cigar, his elbows on the desk in front of him. “Interesting choice of the word ‘we’ there, Bates.”
Molly lowered her eyes and waited for permission to continue. When the General didn’t speak again she carried on. “We don’t think that this AI has been connected up to the EtherTrak yet, else we would have seen other signs of it. So far its only communicated with Oz by pinging him. Nothing else.”
Lance stopped chewing on his cigar and took the tip from his mouth. “And what does ADAM have to say about this?”
Molly relaxed her shoulders. “He’s performed a sweep of the communications on Ogg and is satisfied that nothing appears out of the ordinary. No big power spikes, security breaches, increases in traffic. All seems normal.”
Oz interjected over the conference room audio. “If a new AI had EtherTrak access, we’d know about it. When I was new my first and only prerogative was to acquire data to comprehend what existed and by extension what I was.”
Lance’s expression softened. It wasn’t often he would contemplate the esoteric. It just wasn’t within the boundary conditions of his thinking. But for a moment Molly was sure he had briefly abandoned the pressures of pragmatism. Her lips curved gently into a smile as she kept the conversation on track. “Sir, I’d agree with that analysis. I think we at least have some time.”
Lance frowned, the practicalities of the situation recapturing him. “Tell me something,” he said slowly. “If this entity doesn’t have access to the XtraNET, how has it been able to ‘ping’ Oz?”
Molly’s brow furrowed. “At this point, I only have theories. But we’re looking into it.”
Lance eased back a little in his chair, churning the risks that would need managi
ng.
The rest of the team waited patiently except for Pieter, who continued working quietly on his holoscreens.
“I think we need to be clear from the outset about this,” Lance said after some consideration. “This is not something to be taken lightly.”
He paused, looking at each team member assembled around the oversized conference table. “Oz and ADAM were risks, but we managed those risks. Molly and Bethany Anne were both intricately linked with them in a symbiotic relationship. They were able to manage their evolution so that they adopted our values, and have since become remarkable team members in their own rights. But this wasn’t a given. A new entity, under the control of the Estarian Military, will not have the same values as we have. They will naturally adopt the maxim and culture of the data and people it is surrounded by. And this makes me very concerned.”
Molly nodded her head in agreement. “So what are your orders, sir?”
Cigar forgotten on the desk in front of him, Lance drew a deep breath. “Our preference would be to extract him from their facility. But if that isn’t possible, we have to delete him.”
He means kill him!
Yes, Oz. But relax. We’re not going to let it come to that.
Yeah right. I know how the Federation works. If it’s a threat, neutralize it.
Yes, but you also know how we work. We’ll figure this out. I promise.
Oz fell silent again.
Molly sat a little more rigidly in her chair. “We understand, sir. We’ll keep you posted as things develop.”
“Good. Thank you, Molly.” The General started to turn as if to get up and end the call but he hesitated and turned back. “I’d like ADAM to be involved too. If you need his help on this one, he’ll be at your disposal. Just try to limit the bandwidth you take up.”
Oh, so now we have a babysitter!
Shush Oz. Lemme handle it.
Molly nodded reluctantly, trying to maintain an air of cooperation in her body language. “Thank you, Sir. Much appreciated.”
The General nodded and disconnected the call.
Am I right in assuming that ADAM can monitor all our internal communications?
Of course.
But not in my head, right?
Right.
What about when, say, Joel and I talk?
You’re clear in the kitchen and your quarters.
Everyone’s quarters?
Correct.
Good to know.
Molly pushed her seat back. “Okay, folks. I think we need to get dinner out of the way. I’m fading and I know we all work better when we’re not hungry.”
Joel and Sean exchanged puzzled glances. Joel frowned. “You think that’s the priority?” he pressed.
Pieter just grinned and started packing his holoscreens up.
Sean slapped Joel on the back and leaned over to whisper to him. “You think that girl does anything without a reason?” he said.
Joel started nodding slowly. “Ah. Yes. I see. Food first then…” he said, getting up and following Molly out of the conference room, not quite having put together quite why, but trusting the process.
The team walked in silence out of the base, through the demon door, out into the deserted workshop and up the stairs back into the safe house.
Even when they hit the safe house they were careful to only talk about non-mission things until they reached the kitchen.
Paige and Maya were there, drinking tea and trying to sober up.
“Hey!” Paige chirped brightly. “How was the—… OMG what happened?” she asked, seeing the serious looks on their faces.
Joel walked all the way into the kitchen and sat down at the table. Pieter and Sean followed, and the girls straight away knew they were in meeting mode.
Molly came in last and stood at the head of the table. “Ok. Time to bring Jack in on this,” she said, nodding to Joel. Joel immediately started typing on his holo.
Paige and Maya waited expectantly.
Molly got straight to it. “Okay. Short story is that the base code that Oz came from has created another AI. Our task is to either extract him, or her… or whatever, or delete it. Him. Her. And deleting is killing. So that is our last option. And if I have to explain to anyone why this is a living entity, then you’d better make sure you’re damned well ready to transfer to another squadron if you can’t persuade me it isn’t.”
She glanced around the faces of those assembled. No one responded. “Good,” she said, satisfied. “So. We need to figure out firstly how he’s managing to ping Oz, assuming he doesn’t have full access to the net, and then we need to work out how we can communicate with him without the military finding out. Or finding us.”
Joel bobbed his head “yes.”
“Joel,” Molly continued, “can you work with Pieter and Oz to look into the origin of those ‘pings’?”
“Sean,” she continued, “see if you can hit up ADAM and find out what development stages the new AI would go through under the likely conditions it is restrained by in that military facility. He may have to carefully breach their firewall. The operative word is carefully. We don’t want to tip the organics off to what we’re doing. It may put our new friend in danger.”
Molly paused only for breath. “Paige, Maya…” she said, turning to the girls who were still dressed in their party outfits. “Sober up and rest if you need to. And I think everyone could do with some food, so…”
Paige grinned, pulling up her holo confidently. “On it,” she declared, slightly slurring her words. “THAT I can do even when tipsy.” Maya chuckled silently, her arms folded across her chest, bouncing and giving her laughter away.
“Oh, and one more thing…” She paused making sure she had their attention. “The Federation wants this handled in a certain way. While we are the Federation for all intents and purposes, this team has always had a certain… ethos. We will follow orders, but while we are figuring out a way to not head straight for the worst-case scenario, it would be prudent to remind ourselves that ADAM is wired into all communications and can hear everything that goes on in this facility.” She paused again. “Except in our quarters and this kitchen.”
Joel’s eye opened a little wider with a look of recognition. Sean noticed and chuckled to himself quietly.
“Understood?” she checked.
There were grunts and nods of acknowledgment.
“Great,” she smiled, contented. “I’m going to clean up. Reconvene here in forty minutes.”
The team members confirmed their assignments and then disappeared out of the kitchen, leaving Maya and Paige searching through the restaurants that were still open for business.
CHAPTER FIVE
Gaitune-67, Safehouse, Kitchen
Jack was already sitting in the kitchen when Sean, Joel and Pieter arrived back. She sipped on her chamomile tea, watching the hub of activity as they finished up their conversations about their tasks. She wore a grey sweat suit with pink fluffy slippers. Sean noticed the slippers and without saying a word just smiled.
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