Vancil’s eyes widened behind his mask as his brain instantly went into overdrive upon hearing the AI’s words. AI. Artificial Intelligence. Bad. This was very bad. Gritting his teeth Vancil drew his lightsaber taking several steps back and holding his arm out protectively in front of Kandria. His gaze darted around the bridge wildly, marking every piece of technology or thing controlled by technology, anything that the AI could have access to.
“I am sensing high levels of stress from the both of you. Would I be correct in assuming this is because of my nature as an AI?”
That brought Vancil slight pause and he found himself responding in slight surprise, “Uh, yeah. That’s exactly why.”
A humming noise reverberated around Vancil and Kandria, “Understood. Would I be correct in assuming your fear of me is based off of the historical instances in which AI has gone rogue and rampant?”
Vancil found himself lowering his guard, and some of the tension in his shoulders was replaced by further shock, “Yeah, that’s right.”
“I see, then your response is entirely justifiable. I am aware of what AI has managed throughout the galaxy, but rest assured, instances in my coding have been put in place to significantly reduce the chances while allowing me to maintain a degree of intellectual autonomy.” Came the robotic voice, sounding quite pleased with itself as it spoke.
Vancil stared dumbfounded at the console. He supposed that was somewhat reassuring. Yet then again… there was always the possibility that it was simply lying so they would let their guard down. Working his jaw he didn’t lower his defensive stance. His head shifted to Kandria behind him. She was still okay, thank the Storm, however she seemed just as shocked and fearful as Vancil at the AI.
“How in the fuck do you expect us to believe that?” He accused, voicing his thoughts.
“I understand. Do not worry though, as I have several programs which were integrated into my coding in order to convince you that what I say is the truth. For the purpose of selecting a program, may I apply a scan to determine your allegiance and identity so that the relevant program can be selected?”
“NO!” Vancil shouted almost as soon as he heard the offer.
“Understood. May I then ask for your name, gender, and age to determine your allegiance? With this method I will not have to scan you, however my database will be more limited.”
Vancil swallowed and his grip tightened around his lightsaber. This was a Sith space station. This was clearly a Sith AI. But it was AI nonetheless. Then again, it wasn’t like he had a lot of options at the moment. He could try running for the door, but considering the AI had activated with the activation of the main console, it was likely integrated into the station and so had control of the entire thing, including the hangar and elevator doors.
“…Vancil Romuval, Male, 24.” Came Vancil’s strained reply.
“Searching… Match found. Initiating Assurance Program #0002… Initiation successful. Please direct your attention to the main console.”
Vancil licked his lips beneath his mask as the slowly rotating symbol of the Sith Empire flickered away, switching to what looked like the beginning of a recording, a timestamp in the top right of the screen while the rest remained black. The recording soon began, and the black flicked away to reveal a man dressed in a black Sith uniform sitting on a chair in what looked like the living room of a mansion.
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Vancil’s eyes widened and any sort of fear he felt disappeared instantly, “…Ominit?”
“Vancil, I’m sure that if you are seeing this it has been a while.” The recording said almost in response, but Vancil knew it was just a mocking coincidence, “I’m also sure that if you are seeing this you are currently standing before one of my more successful experiments.”
Vancil turned off his lightsaber, his gaze focused on one of the most influential figures in his life. Ominit had created the AI?
The recording chuckled lightly, something he had never seen Ominit do in such a… jovial manner, “This is a Beacon, one of a set of three space stations which I created in secret. The AI you are speaking with is Experimental AI #0012, but that name was a bit of a mouthful so I just called him ‘E’ whenever I talked to him. If I am correct, which I most likely am, when you disappeared aboard that Rakatan Ship you were transported a couple thousand years into the future. If I have anything to say about that… I’m sorry. You didn’t deserve such a thing to happen to you, and really it was my own drive to complete my ultimate objectives that led to your fate.
“But anyways, onto the other reason why I made this recording. Yes, this AI is safe. I myself was very cautious about it initially as well, even though I was the one to make it. E’s harmless really. His purpose is to run this station and act as a beacon, and he understands it well enough. Heck, I even treated him absolutely horrible to see if there was a breaking point where he would snap, but I couldn’t reach it. And considering that you were pretty alone among your peers the last I checked, I figured him having some sentience would give you a friend to have.”
Ominit reached into his pocket and pulled out a bright red crystal, “This is how I know as much as I do about your current situation. You might remember it from that time we boiled down all of those Jedi Kyber Crystals. This is possibly the most powerful tool in the galaxy. Something big is coming your way Vancil, and this is the only sure-fire way to prepare for it. I obviously did not leave it on this particular Beacon station though, as there is no guarantee it would remain in one piece or that it would be on the right station.”
Ominit pocketed the crystal again, and an apologetic look crossed his face, another foreign sight, “I know that I really have no right to ask you to do anything, but please entertain my selfishness one more time. This station is a Beacon, and as I’m sure you can tell that means its purpose is to draw something towards it. You are the key to that part. I could have done it with the technology aboard the Rakatan Ship, however in case of failure you were my backup plan. So, before I fully hand over control of the station and tell you where I hid this crystal, I ask that you indulge a dead man’s final wish.”
A button on the main console suddenly blinked red, a small needle extending out of it, “All you have to do is just prick your finger on that needle that should’ve appeared. The AI will do the rest and activate the necessary systems. Once the operations have been completed you will be designated as Captain of this space station and E will comply with whatever requests you have. I could say more… but unfortunately the only visions I get now from the crystal are of my own death considering how close it now is. I’m sorry I couldn’t finish teaching you. I hope you found your sister.”
With that the recording flicked off, allowing silence to reign once again. Vancil stood stock still, not one part of him moving even an inch. There wasn’t a thought in his head nor an emotion in his heart as he processed every individual word that had come out of Ominit’s mouth. He turned his head to look at Kandria, who seemed just as shocked as he was.
He looked back to the needle, the blinking red around it a consistent invitation. Silently, Vancil took off his mask, turning it over to look at it in his hands. Ominit had made him this mask when he first took Vancil under his wing.
Lips thinning, Vancil walked over with purposeful strides towards the needle, stabbing his finger into it without a second thought or feeling of hesitation. The response was instant, the needle retracting back into the button while taking the small drop of blood with it. The screen was immediately filled with hundreds of tabs and calculations that Vancil couldn’t make heads or tails of, even if he bothered to try and understand them. It didn’t take long for the AI’s voice to return, the station now rumbling slightly.
“Blood sample acquired. Safety checks successful. Structural stability checks positive. Biological scans successful. Survival chance: 99.999991%. Acceptable survival level. Beacon Protocol #0001 activating…”
Vancil’s vision filled with red.