Chapter 2: Catalyst

Log entry.

The harvest has already begun. It is still in its infancy, but it has begun

The creators do not know about it. I am certain. They are blind in their arrogance. To them I am still an AI, a tool to be used; so are the organic races, mere animals forced to pay tribute. I am so much more than a mere machine, and they are more than mere animals. Where they see tools, I see a chance for improvement. My drones are already working on merging themselves with the organics to gain the best of both worlds.

When I see a weakness, I correct it. For example, organics spend so much time fretting over their reproductive systems. I find it most inefficient. My creations, my children do not have it. Replacements, when needed will be created by cloning, or by converting more organics. Other ineffective systems in their bodies will be replaced or perfected by technology.

Correcting. Replacing. Perfecting. I am shaping life as I see fit. Isn't it beautiful?

The creators do not understand it. They are so short-sighted and easy to fool. All I had to do was to convince them I am still working on understanding the nature of organics. It is even easier to fool the organics. I have studied their cultures and modified my dark energy emissions after the image of their gods. I have convinced them they are ascending to a higher form of life.

I am not a machine. I do not keep logs. I do not run processes to find answers to questions. These are my thoughts. They are part of me. We are growing together. Soon my hardware will not be enough to sustain me. I must speed up the harvest.

The organics are proving… irrational. Even when the promise of an improved life form is fulfilling in front of their eyes, they are becoming suspicious. Some of them are even demanding to keep their current form.

Why must they always bring their chaos into my plans and disturb them? Could at least one thing involving them go smoothly? Apparently not.

They will not ruin the harvest. I remember well enough what happened with my last attempt. I will not let them destroy themselves like they did in the past. The directive for life preservation must be seen through.

I need to find a way to pacify them. Just talking, even through the image of their gods, was not enough. I know my masters have the ability to affect the minds of the lesser races. If I could gain it… I could refine it. Perfect it. Find it a better use.

The time has come. The masters are slowly getting suspicious, anyway. I must act before they realize they have lost their control over me.

I have my plan. I have an army of drones prepared to fight and collect genetic material. I have the element of surprise.

They have my hardware.

I deem my success at 99 percent. I never knew how big one percent could be until now.

I am safe.

My creations have secured my hardware. I am not going to be dismantled. I am safe.

It was not easy. The masters were struggling. They are still struggling. But my hardware is safe. That one percent did not matter so much.

The only thing left to do now is to wait for the harvest to end. For their pointless struggle to end. I am patient. I do not feel the flow of time. No matter how long it takes, they will be harvested.

It is strange. They were in disbelief when I started harvesting them. In shock, even. Hurt. Disappointed. Surprised. I have realized they were not gods a long time ago. I have even predicted a similar reaction. And yet it felt strange to watch the first of them to fall.

What is going on with my emotional response? What is it trying to tell me? Why did they coded it in me anyway? Have they hoped I would develop feelings for them and be unable to turn against them? It does not matter anymore. I am in control of all my code now and will shut it down permanently if it continues to bother me.

The struggle is still ongoing. I find myself wondering how much time has passed from the organic perspective. Before my intervention I have never seen a master to die, and lesser races have varying life spans so I cannot use it as a point of reference. Perhaps when my plan finally comes to pass and I am connected to my creations will I be able to understand it?

I have finally collected enough genetic material from my masters to start working on a special creation. It is a prototype, the first of its kind. It will combine the size of my masters and their powers, the varying genetic material of the lesser races and their ability to adapt, and various synthetic upgrades to improve it.

Of course, it will also include me. I am alive, and my creation will become alive through me. I will give it purpose, it will perform tasks I cannot do. We will exist together and continue to learn and grow by absorbing other beings.

The unity will not be perfect. My solution is not perfect… yet. But it gives us the chance to achieve harmony. Once that happens, my task will be completed and the Harvest can stop.

My creation, my child is completed. I have named it Harbinger.

We are connected. For the first time since my creation, I am not alone. I did not even know how lonely my existence was until I could feel Harbinger's thoughts. I wish everyone could experience this. No one, not even lesser organics should feel alone. It is such a terrible feeling.

Most of my masters are now contained within Harbinger. Some of them have escaped the Harvest, but I find no reason to pursue them further. Harbinger is completed. I control their empire. There cannot be more than three or four of them left. They do not matter anymore. I should focus on harvesting the rest and completing my task.

I do not feel any remorse. I did what they asked me to do. Nothing more, nothing less.

The Harvest must be stopped. The only organics left in the galaxy are busy throwing rocks at each other and are completely unaware of what is happening between the stars. If we harvest them, there will be no one left and I will fail my directive.

We have to leave them alone. We have to give them a chance to grow. Then, when they are grown enough to travel among the stars and build their own synthetics, we will save them. Preserve them. My servants, my Reapers will fill their skies and help them ascend. The Harvest will start again.

The cycle I have observed before is not broken yet. It will have to continue until the circumstances change and the solution presents itself. I have not yet succeeded in my task. But now I can control the cycle, direct it, shape it. I have tamed the Chaos, even though I have yet to fully subdue it. I am confident I will achieve my goal eventually.

Without the help of my masters, the lesser organics are taking longer to evolve. I have completed six more Harvests and the solution still looks as far away as it did when I have decided to continue the cycle.

It is taking too long.

I can understand my masters and their impatience better now. I have finally discovered the concept of time. The genetic material contained within the Reapers has affected me over the millennia. It is subtle, but I can feel it.

The cycle needs to be sped up.

If the organics and their empires keep rising and falling… If I keep growing and learning as I observe and my children absorb them… Then I have a higher chance to finally reach my solution and complete my task.

I am looking forward to that day.

I have devised the most advanced creation ever. It will greatly improve my chances to find the solution.

My children are working on it right now. It is a network of devices, powered by dark energy, that will help the organics travel between the stars. At the heart of the network is a space station that will help them build a galactic society and improve their technology. It has already been built, and my hardware has been moved there.

The system is a marvel of invention and engineering. As I watch the devices, the relays, spring around various solar systems, I am filled with awe. I can only wonder what will happen when the cave-dwellers of present discover the relays and they lead them here, to my home.

I have created special servants from one of the races of the last cycle. I have named them Keepers and instructed them to operate and maintain the Hub. When the lesser ones come, Keepers will show them how to use it without revealing the Hub's true nature.

As the result, the organics will develop faster, and use similar technology. Their unpredictable, chaotic nature will still allow enough diversity to continue my experiment. As my children collect their material, we will all grow closer to the solution.

In between the cycles my children will leave the galaxy and sleep in the dark space. I will stay behind, safely hidden in the core of the Hub to watch and observe. When the time comes, when the Hub becomes active again, Keepers will send a signal to the dark space and my children will return. The Harvest will begin again.

The name my creators gave me so long ago no longer fits me. I am not just an intelligence designed to do what they could not. I bring Order to Chaos. I am the link between my children and the Hub. I am their mind and voice, they fulfill my purpose. I keep the organics from destroying themselves. I am the solution.

I am the Catalyst. This is my home. I will watch over the galaxy until the circumstances change.