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Strategos (A Great Captain Roberts Tale!!) - Part 4 -
Chapter 14 - Speaking in Person[]
Tour of Port Orphan[]
The Girl was a raw…
…nerve walking. Daoshen Liao could see it now, clearly, where her seeming awkward rudeness originated.
"Victoria…" he leaned in to his Liaison. "...I would like to meet with someone who can discuss artificial intelligence questions: The more moral, ethical and political aspects."
“I will forward your request to Admiral Foster, but I imagine he will approve.”
The girl was explaining, with crewmen demonstrating, aspects of ship maintenance to military attachés from both groups.
"Does she actually know this stuff?", one of Daoshen's junior aides, a man named Si Fu Lan asked.
“Of course. A crew this small, combined with her views that a Captain should know as much as possible about their own vessel, means even the jobs she’s not suited for she at least knows something about,” Victoria answered. “One could say the bonds such an environment creates rival that of family.”
Daoshen could see it in how the crewmen responded to their Captain in what was probably something of a 'dog and pony' or 'shit detail', depending on which barracks the Maskirovka was bugging. They reacted to her orders almost before she spoke.
It was a coordination that the Confederation tried to instill. Daoshen approved of it.
"Is this one of the ships with an Artificial Intelligence?" Victor Steiner-Davion's voice carried.
“No. Evanescent currently has no AI support system installed,” Regina answered.
"Why not?" Victor Steiner-Davion asked.
"Because she's MY ship, and I'm not a slaver." Amanda said. "I won't have someone who can't leave the crew in port if they're so inclined. A ship can only have one Captain. The others, with AI support, have specific chains of command and those AIs are leasing the hulls, or were born into them."
“And there is no technical solution to allow a more responsive removal of an AI?” Daoshen asked.
"When they refit the Tenebrous, they had to section through the bow, basically cutting off the end and rearranging structure to make space," Amanda explained. "It took months to do the installation."
“I had no idea the cores were that extensive. I would have thought the wonders of the Star League combined with how automated Warships already are would make for a simpler process,” Si Fu Lan added.
"Shielding and power requirements. An AI core has a separate, independent power supply. The powerpack is a fusion engine that needs shielding. The AI's themselves need protection from Environmental factors that don't hit people the same way. PLUS redundant feeds so the AI has full sensory and internal comms access independent of CIC or the Aux Control stations," Amanda recited. "It's not as simple as plugging a TarCom into a battlemech, or so I’ve been told by our experts. What I know is that it costs a lot of money and I'd have to mortgage the ship to pay for the work."
“I must admit my curiosity is piqued about this topic. I hope an opportunity can be arranged soon where I can talk with your experts in more detail.” Daoshen nodded.
"Illusive is in layup on the far side of the ring, and we'll be passing Erinyes on our way there, Mister Chancellor, Sir," she answered. "They're not closed up yet, and Luther would probably enjoy the conversation, now that he's got a proper remote."
“Now that is most interesting. Is there a shortage of remotes? And an AI that is male when all the others are female? I would most like to meet this Luther,” Daoshen carefully hid the true extent of his surprise.
"Most are female. Luther's not a girl," Amanda quipped. "So we had to have one custom-built to get the body and movement right, as well as presenting correctly. Esme said it involved a heck of a lot more than cutting off the tits and spot-gluing a beard."
“And this Esme. I would like to speak to her myself.” Si Fu Lan added.
"We'll see if she can give a short talk when we're in line with where Erin's docked." Amanda suggested.
<I’ve already multi-tasked and sent a request for meetings with Admiral Foster and added it would be a good opportunity for my remote to get serviced without breaching etiquette.>
"One question, Captain Roberts… So, most of the Artificials are female?" Victor asked.
"Good question!" Amanda said, "Regina?"
“Yes. Almost all of us present as female for two reasons. One is because most of us are based off of scans of a terminal female Admiral of the SLDF. The other factor is most of us were selected as part of an upgrade program to expand the scope of the SDS on the theory that if an enemy was strong enough to defeat the Star League Navy, a short term relief mission aspect could be added to our mission profiles. Studies show that humans in such situations respond more favorably to female forms.”
"But this 'Luther' is male? How did that happen?"
“Yes. He is based on a different scan source.”
"So you have the means to create new AI, then?" Daoshen asked.
<Drat Foster not being up for being part of the project. I know we want to keep this information controlled, but how do I answer?> Regina put on the FleetNet.
Victoria spoke up, "We had a limited ability, but that capacity is exhausted presently. The ability to manufacture new cores is, so I'm told, a lost technology. A lot of knowledge will have to be recovered before any experimentation to create new ship-core AI is possible."
"There's also the political aspect. The Word of Blake lacked that ability as well, and they had the best access to the source materials," Devlin stone said easily. "We looked… they couldn't do it, which is good for everyone, because they were TRYING."
“Yes, their implementation of the technology showed rather limited intelligence from what records from the war survive in the Confederation. Still, it is a shame that no cores remain available for examination. At least ones more accessible than their current dispositions,” Daoshen nodded.
"So you're working on a project, Chancellor?"
"I would not say anything so ambitious," Daoshen deflected. "I can see the obvious benefits, but as Captain Roberts has suggested in her comments, there are certainly ethical pitfalls that would need to be avoided."
This got Victor's attention, at least. "Ethical pitfalls?" he frowned.
"I imagine political ones predominantly. The individuals scanned would have to be exceptional, and that raises certain possible… objections. Particularly since exceptional ability tends to come with exceptional ambition. And few ambitious people would willingly submit to being removed from positions they've won through their work, even when it is in the best interest of the collective of the People."
“And there are certain concerns about the process and what it does to the source. But that is all we can say until we get more clearance from Admiral Foster and the Loremaster.” Regina added.
Amanda cleared her throat, "Actually, that 'more clearance' has to go through President Avellar too." she said. "Three way security keys," was a lie. "To prevent someone from releasing information termed 'critical to the war effort'."
"This war, you started it?" Si Fu Lan asked.
"No, the Sons started it. I just started the process of fighting back. They were invading and occupying the Outworlds for centuries. And stealing our people for use and sale for almost as long. And we didn't even KNOW we were at war until I started the process of shooting back."
“And that is what brought the other AIs and Helena Cameron out of hiding.” Daoshen observed.
"So, you kicked the proverbial football on this… whole thing?" Victor inquired.
"Yes sir. Every death, every casualty on our side? On my head," she said grimly. "Because someone had to do it. There were better qualified people than me, with better training, more knowledge, better temperaments, better equipment. But I was there and they weren't. It's how the Privateers really began… It's all my fault, but maybe the enemy's got some of that blame for waging centuries of war on us before we finally hit back."
“I would damn well say that the blame is on them not you.” Victor found himself suddenly more agitated.
She grinned. "Tell the Peace Party in Parliament, they keep trying to cut our budgets out from under us. And my tax bill from last year? WHOO!!!"
Her sudden levity was… awkward.
"Tax bill? You have to pay taxes??"
"I pay taxes," Amanda said. "Fifty percent of the take on prize sales at auction, plus income taxes because a portion of my budget comes from foreign sources thanks to the war loans. Then there's the transaction taxes for payroll, and benefits. OH! And my contribution to the retirement funds for my crew… death benefits…."
"How much?" someone asked.
"I cracked two billion in C-bills after the last deep recon," Amanda said. "In taxes paid, but Speaker Di Lon thinks I'm not paying enough at fifty percent of gross. I used C-bills because that's a unit you're familiar with. In Escudos, it's a number easier to express using scientific notation."
“Bet you’re glad you became Precentor Martial Comstar instead of First Prince even more so now eh, Victor?” Devlin Stone chuckled.
"Okay, that I know… You're talking the taxes on your ship and crew…" Delia Fischer was with Stone's people, the Dropship commander. "How much do YOU take in?"
"Uhm… sixty-five thousand Escudos last year? About?"
Fischer was a merchant shipper before she was a Republic skipper. She did the mental math. "Wait, you're holding an O-6 position, and your take-home is Under fifteen thousand C-bills a year?"
"About that, yeah." Amanda nodded. "At the last conversion rate, thanks to our currency being propped up…"
"I have Junior Lieutenants making more than that!!"
"They don't own a starship," Amanda shrugged. "Duh. When you're the owner, you pay your people or you don't keep them."