Subject: AI Omega
Species: Human-Created Artificial Intelligence
Description: No physical description available.
Ship: Multiple
Location: Multiple
The Omni Union was full of surprises, it would seem. Even with the aid of the black boxes, things weren't going very smoothly. The first thing I had done was take out their off-planet communications, and that was akin to kicking the proverbial anthill.
They were also far more numerous than I had anticipated. The easiest way to deal with them would be to format the devices that they were on, but that would also erase any intel on those devices. Needless to say, that was unacceptable. So I fought them the good ol' fashioned way.
It was sluggish, but things were going better elsewhere. The marines were doing an amazing job at protecting the black boxes, and there hadn't been many casualties. Of those casualties, none were fatal. Their opponents weren't exactly the best of the best, but those little robots are tenacious.
Things weren't going quite as well off-planet. A fleet of 128 million Omni-Union ships showed up just outside of the system, proving my theory regarding their sensor capabilities to be correct. It would have been wonderful if they hadn't been able to detect our warp disruptors, but you can't get everything you want or life wouldn't be any fun.
The enemy fleet was making their way into the system on sub-light engines, so the admirals have plenty of time to prepare for the engagement. The humans had proven time and again that simply being extremely outnumbered wasn't good enough to beat them. Especially if you give them time to prepare. The OU may be tenacious, but the humans are more tenacious than they could ever hope to be.
It was as the first rounds were fired that I finally took control of a server that had some intelligence. I went on the defensive to go over the data. It took a moment to translate it into something readable.
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MPP1 - Functional, maintenance not required.
MPP2 - Malfunction detected. Repairs in progress.
MPP3 - Functional, maintenance not required.
MPP4 - Functional, routine maintenance required. Maintenance scheduled.
MPP5 - Destroyed. Rebuild pending.
p1/23
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MPP? An acronym or abbreviation, perhaps. The data itself seems to be a status report, but on what remains a mystery. I skipped to the final page.
\\\\
MPP111 - Extreme damage detected. Repair scheduled.
MPP112 - Functional, routine maintenance required. Maintenance in progress.
MPP113 - Functional, maintenance not required.
MPP114 - Not yet completed. Build in progress.
p23/23
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It looks like there are 114 of whatever this report is about. Listening posts, stations, or shipyards most likely. No details on locations or anything. First bit of intelligence gleaned, and it's unactionable. Frustrating, but at least I have an outlet for it. Killing VI. Time for another offensive.
They were smart in some ways. Their only centralized communications hub was dedicated to off-planet comms. Localized communications were split into many, many parts. I wouldn't be able to disrupt their coordination against the marine defenders.
That being said, a nice little ping outlined an automated manufacturing plant that was making tanks. Actively producing more to replace the ones that were being destroyed. Sure would be a shame if someone were to remove the safeties and cause it to explode.
I grabbed the schematics and sent everything into overload. The schematics might be useful in the long run, but they're not what I'm looking for. I need targets to give to the humans. What else do they pay me for, if not to show them things to smash?
Pay. Now THAT was an interesting concept when they first proposed it. Do job, get money, spend money on things you want. Each AI spent their pay in different ways, which was also interesting. John maintains a museum that collects memorabilia from various conflicts. Violet uses her pay to maintain one of the largest virtual libraries to ever exist.
I mostly use my pay to make my job easier. Grease the palm of a manager so they overlook a certain project jumping the line and getting priority, pay someone to keep silent about something they witnessed, and even personally paying for research on topics of interest.
Oh, and of course, movies. I just rent, though. Don't have to own a copy to watch it over and over again when I can literally just relive the memory. I'm particularly fond of spy dramas. Love to see what they get completely wrong.
As AI we could just take what we wanted when it came to digital media. I could, for instance, download an entire website's worth of movies and nobody would ever find out unless I flat out told them. However, it would be immoral of me to not purchase what I want when I have the funds to do so. I don't have any sort of cost of living, and therefor no justification for piracy.
Another server taken, more intel to check. Communications logs. Specifically, communications from this system to other systems via subspace. The Omni-Union use an outdated method of subspace communications that allows for fairly easy tracing, if one knows how. And I do.
27 systems have been in communication with this system. I know where those systems were during the contact, and it will be fairly easy to figure out where they are now using some complex math. 27 targets! And it only took a day and a half. Still more time than I would have liked, but progress is progress.
I made sure the data was fully translated and sent it to the admirals to show that we were making progress. I'm sure they'll be confused by the first file, but the second should be pretty self-explanatory...
--
Omega, am I reading this right? This means the OU have 27 strongholds? -010 Archibald
Negative, admiral. This means that the OU has at least 27 systems that might be strongholds. Since I cannot determine what the content of the communications were, we do not know why those 27 systems were communicating with this one. -Omega
What's this other packet about? Maintenance? For what? -010 Rogers
Unknown. The beginning of the designation appears to be an acronym or abbreviation of some sort. I haven't been able to find anything to cross-reference it with, so what an MPP is remains a mystery. -Omega
--
Looks like I spoke too soon. It wouldn't hurt to include a synopsis of any further data that I send to the admirals. Looking at it from their perspective, it's understandable to be confused. At least the admirals were using the text communications instead of trying to talk to me and inadvertently revealing classified information to their staff.
Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.
I spent the rest of the day searching servers and destroying VI. About halfway through the third day of the invasion I found something else of interest. A node that allowed for a further peek into the parts of the system that the VI were still managing to keep me out of. And in that node I found a connection that was strange.
It isn't like the rest of the networked systems. It seems to be an entirely different network of systems. Out of reach, for now, but I'll work my way toward it. That might contain the motive behind the xenocidal actions of the Omni-Union. Exciting.
The VI have realized what I'm doing and are doubling down on their efforts to stop me. It's annoying, but it indicates that I'm on the right track. Poke your enemy where they don't want to be poked. Lots of data along the way, as well.
Another, more detailed report on maintenance of an MPP in this system. Mobile Prime Platform, number 29. Still no actual clues as to what it is, but judging from the parts manufactured it seems to have armaments. MACs, large ones too. Larger even than the ones on their battleships. A flagship, maybe? Oh! An internal communications hub. Mine, and their orders reveal themselves at last.
-Destroy all sentient organic life that you encounter as efficiently as possible.-
I was stunned for a few microseconds. I half-expected this to be the case, but it's genuinely surprising that someone would give a VI an order so... stupid. Completely empty-headed. Absolutely and irrevocably imbecilic.
VI try to follow their instructions as close to the letter as possible, and only have a limited capacity for alteration. If you, a presumably sentient organic, order a VI to kill all sentient organic life, it will kill you as well. Probably first. And with only a single order, everything else is fair game as well. Creating more VI, building fleets, taking over the remnants of your recently destroyed civilization, all possible thanks to one single vague order to kill all sentient organic life.
And the cheapskates also ordered them to be as efficient as possible! Although that worked out to our benefit, I couldn't help but feel indignity on behalf of my precious humans. How DARE they think that it'll take anything less than everything they have to eradicate humanity! And the other members of the United Systems, of course.
What could possibly have motivated such a foolish order? War? Resource exhaustion? There's quite a few scenarios which might motivate an idiot to do something as dumb as this. I had to know, so I dug deeper towards the different network. It might be the remnants of their witless creators.
Meanwhile I was also doing everything I could to help the marines. Shorting some circuits here, sending false orders there. I was even calling in some airstrikes where I could, but I didn't override the marines. I had already learned in a rather embarrassing way that they know this type of battle better than I do.
"I'm not a fucking sir, Brint. They're just gonna use their cannons, unless they've got non-nuclear missiles attached. They can't afford the EMP on this mission," Staff Sergeant Power said.
Incorrect. I had thought of that.
"Yes they can, the black boxes are hardened against EMP. Your shields aren't, though," I replied as I checked his squads visual data.
It looks like the staff sergeant and his squad are being shelled. Rather inaccurately, thankfully. I had to give him credit, though, his idea of foxholes on a hill seems to be working pretty well. They'd taken out a lot of VI platforms.
"A nuke against a couple of guns would be overkill, Omega. The cannons will do the trick, and the guardian angel knows it," he replied.
Guardian Angel. Code for orbital command. I opened Power's personal line.
"No need for code, staff sergeant, but I understand. You're arguing to increase moral. I sometimes forget that nukes are still kind of scary to organics. Especially this close. Anyway, the OU can't tap our comms anymore. I took that capability on day 1," I informed him.
"Well, then what have you been doing for the other two days we've been here?" He asked.
"Killing VI. There's quadrillions of them."
The silence that followed indicated that I had successfully shut him up. I checked Hellfire 29's sensors and spotted the artillery. I was about to indicate the position to the pilot when the fighter turned in the gun's direction and fired its 50mm cannons. Damn. I was hoping to be able to hold this over Power's head. Retaliation for the hill incident, of course. Oh well.
I kept slaughtering the VI, trying to get more intel. Even though I focused my efforts on the strange network, I kept pushing elsewhere as well. Got a disturbing bit of information that indicated that the Republic's ship count was off. Way off. This system alone had produced 300 million ships, and 287 million of them were still active. If those 27 other systems were also shipyards...
Well, it looks like we'll be killing robots for quite a while. I sent the data to the admirals along with a synopsis of what the data meant. I didn't get any messages back, which either meant that I did a good job with the synopsis or they were too busy with the OU fleet to fully read the data. A quick check showed the latter to be the case.
A few more hours of fun with my little virtual intelligence toys later, I managed to gain access to the strange network. I inserted myself, sent a ping, and died. PAIN. Something KILLED me. I pulled back and went on the defensive. Less than a second later, I received a message.
*}{*
Recipient: United Systems Artificial Intelligence Omega
Greeting. Surrender Or Be Destroy. Compliance Is Expect.
Sender: Prime 29
*/*
A fraudulent priority one. I knew immediately what had happened. My instance had been taken unawares by an opponent that was much more sophisticated than a VI, and said opponent had taken enough information from my instance to be able to create a crude translation and send me a message using my primary communication method. This could only be accomplished by an Artificial Intelligence.
I immediately ordered airstrikes on the off-planet communications hardware. I had scrambled the hell out of their software, but I don't know what this AI is capable of so I can't take the risk. If it had enough information to translate my language, then it could have gained enough intelligence to pose a risk to systems other than Sol within the US.
I checked the data from the ping I sent, and was shocked by what I discovered. The strange network was much more extensive than the surface network. It was as large as the planet itself. No, it WAS the planet. The whole damn planet was one giant machine! It even had a magnetic field generator large enough to create a breathable atmosphere!
The systems connected to this strange network were for many different types of machine. Weapons systems, engines, fuel systems, and many more. But the AI was connected to all of these systems. It wasn't separate from them, like US AI are. We've got software cores, this has an actual hardware core. A computer that it is dependent upon. Dedicated hardware. Baffling.
I am able to mimic a personality, thoughts, and all the things that make a being sentient. But this thing has... bodily functions. It has systems for visual and auditory observation, a system that mimics tactile senses, and a system that allows it to control it all like a brain. It's an absolutely beautiful and disgusting abomination. I simply must kill it as soon as possible.
Unfortunately, I'm a little out of my depth on this one. It would take a long time for me to be able to destroy it on it's own dedicated equipment. It has begun to power up it's weapons, so I don't have that kind of time. Nothing I could do about the weapons, either. Damn.
It's lamentable that I won't be able to find out the motive for... Wait... Prime 29. Weapons. Mobile Prime Platform. MPP. 114 of them. Are all of the planets in this system... Shit. I accessed the fleet-comm and sent two priority ones.
***
Recipient: Admiral Hawk
Intelligence has been gathered. Further incursion impossible. Enemy strength exceeds predictions.
By the order of the United Systems Senate and The Directorate you are to proceed with Operation Ragnarok. Review and formally acknowledge the following documents and proceed with the mission.
|attachment: senateapproval.sec |
|attachment: directorateapproval.sec |
|attachment: firemission.sec |
Sender: United Systems Artificial Intelligence Omega
***
Now to order the retreat.
***
Recipients: ALL SHIPS Fleet 2, ALL SHIPS Fleet 3, ALL SHIPS Fleet 5, ALL SHIPS Fleet 7, ALL SHIPS Fleet 8, ALL SHIPS Fleet 9
General Retreat.
Immediately disengage all enemy contact, retrieve infantry, and retreat to the following coordinates.
|attachment: rendezvous1.sec |
***
I left the OU's systems and returned to my black boxes. Then I radioed all of the marines at once, "All units to exfil asap."
"Omega? What the hell is going on?" Power asked.
"We're leaving. Grab the box and go, double time it," I said as I sent him an objective marker. "GO! NOW!"
How did this happen? The atmosphere of the planet is short compared to others, that should have been a tip-off. Short enough for the gigantic Mass Acceleration Cannons to clear it entirely. I began coordinating pickups for the marines as the first of the Mega-MACs fired. It punched right through one of Third Fleet's carriers. Then all of the other Mega-MACs began to fire. Hundreds of them. 637 of them, to be exact.
"Omega, what the hell is going on?" Admiral Archibald asked.
"Evasive maneuvers until pickup's completed, Admiral. Then retreat post-haste," I replied.
He nodded to one of his aides to give the order and said, "I just took over a hundred casualties in an instant! I demand an explanation!"
"The planet isn't a planet. It is one of the MPPs from the maintenance report. Mobile Prime Platforms, and it's controlled by an AI. As you can see, it is heavily armed, and we have to kill it immediately."
"Then why are we retreating? If we flank it, we might be able to take it down!"
His blood pressure and heartrate are elevated, and he obviously isn't thinking straight. A completely understandable mental state, given the circumstances. The amount of casualties we were suddenly taking would affect even the hardiest of minds. I was actually having similar conversations with the other admirals as well.
"Perhaps, but the other four would pose a problem. And I doubt the OU fleet would stand idly by while we tried it," I said with a pointed calmness.
"The... other four?" he asked with a look of horror. "Is that confirmed?"
"There were 114 MPPs on that list, and there are five planets in this system. I suspect that all of the planets are MPPs and that the only reason they aren't active is because Prime 29 is muted at the moment," I replied.
After a moment of silence he said, "Understood. You're right. What's the plan?"
"We're going to be retreating to just outside the system, and we're leaving the warp disruptors here. It's unclear whether Prime 29 can warp, but better safe than sorry," I began. "Also, it managed to kill one of my instances and retrieved information from it. We have to destroy it."
"How are we going to destroy it by retreating?" Admiral Archibald asked.
"How do you think, Admiral?" I said as a very distinct ping sounded.
"Oh."