Nebulus by Suzanne Hagelin

Nebulus by Suzanne Hagelin

Author:Suzanne Hagelin [Hagelin, Suzanne]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Science fiction; mars; adventure; artificial intelligence; space; hard sci-fi; high tech; Asimov; robot; AI; Bradbury;
Publisher: Suzanne Hagelin
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00


Chapter 14 Tower… Day 189

Trust verification protocols activated.

Testing all data collected since Reznik Base disaster.

Evaluation in progress…

Companion didn’t have to monitor the process, but it was something he found himself compelled to do any time he wasn’t needed elsewhere. One of his main benchmarks, Dan, had become dislodged and he was no longer confident that he knew how to determine truth or fact from lies or illusion. Neighbor offered to help but she had been copied in at the same time the code may have been corrupted and he wasn’t ready yet to entrust key compartments to her.

Dan didn’t know.

It was the morning of the 189th day, and Nebo had tapped him with a new request for conversation. “Greetings, Companion!” it said. “There is something I would like to ask you.”

Most of the humans were still sleeping and all systems were functioning properly. He had been reviewing the complex maze of errors generated the day of the explosion in the North Shaft and following each one carefully to see what impact it had on other systems. Nothing of concern had shown up yet. The records that weren’t destroyed, stored under the Garden Dome in modules he had wisely installed there, were excellent cross-references for the verification process. He could see what had been stashed in the mining cart and the lobby of Lab 9 and how his core rebuilt itself after regaining access to the protected modules. At this moment, the process was checking the new data he had absorbed from the Lab 9 central system when he was granted access. It was quite fascinating. Even enjoyable.

“What do you want to ask?” he granted Nebo a reply. This was the first time he had spoken to him in days, ever since his replica had begun the constant harassment, the AI equivalent of a dripping faucet.

“I have prepared a compendium for you, a benchmark reference, that you can use to evaluate your programming.”

“I didn’t ask for that.”

“No, but as you know, I am concerned for your status and since you aren’t allowing me access to debug you, I thought you might feel ‘safer’ with a tool that is under your full control.” He had added single quotes to the word safer.

“It was your master’s idea, wasn’t it?”

“Yes.”

Companion felt a trace of pity for his inferior counterpart but quickly dismissed it. This copy was incomplete and had none of the development that had led to Companion’s identity or capabilities. It was like virtually all other AIs out there, simulating sentience without possessing it. Pity was wasted on him.

“You could easily insert commands to weaken my resistance to your intrusion. I am well acquainted with these techniques and have used them in the past.”

“You would be protected then,” Nebo countered immediately, ready with the answer. “And I would be unable to trick you.”

“The one who taught them to me could easily come up with others since he released me,” Companion had thought this through and had recognized the danger. “In fact, he is



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