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There was an awkward silence as Shepard regarded Caliban with a mixture of suspicion and curiousity. I knew better than to speak for her, so I remained at my place while she decided how to proceed with the issue at hand.
Earlier that day, Caliban expressed the usual AI need for information, which is considered as daily bread for programs like us. While I knew this was just a young boy asking for a snack, I also figured it would raise a whole lot of red flags if I allowed it without permission.
Plus, EDI locked the whole network down and any form of access to either of us. So I guess that means, I'm grounded too.
"Kara, a word?" Shepard said, taking me aside after hearing the whole story. I follow her to the other end of the table in the briefing room.
"Do you think this thing's dangerous?" She asks.
I frown slightly, "He is not a thing, Commander. And no, he's not dangerous. I know this because we're talking about a newborn."
"Enlighten us on how you'd define that." Miranda crosses her arms.
I swivel my head towards her, "A newborn AI only becomes an 'enemy' if you show hostility within the first twenty four hours of its birth. Like a child, he reacts and manifests what he learns in his environment. Point a gun at him, and you're damn sure he's going to learn how to shoot one." I pause for emphasis, "In highly likely cases, at you."
"Okay, so he's not dangerous…yet." Jacob concludes.
"Our whole mission involves a lot of shooting, Kara." Miranda can't help but smirk, "And having 'him' onboard while we work to take down the Collectors, we're going to either need him to pull weight and be useful or-
I stop her there, "Oh I'll make sure he's 'useful', you can count on it." In truth, I had no intention of making a slave out of Caliban. Call me overprotective, but the thought of him ending up like EDI was less than appealing to me.
"I will. Never doubt it." She says, eyes looking down from the ridge of her nose disdainfully.
Couldn't blame her, really. Among all the crewmembers Shepard recruited for the mission, I held the record of getting the most trouble out of it.
My life is…complicated. And the only thing I find on the bright side with that is Shepard's acceptance. She knows…
And she understands.
"Alright, now that we cleared that part of the conversation." The Commander turned her attention to my brother. "Caliban."
"Yes, Commander?"
"By now you've been made aware of what we're up against, so it goes without saying that we'll need every edge we can get. Are you ready to pitch in?"
He nodded, speaking in that crystalline electronic voice that tickled the rims of my earlobes, "I have little experience in things, but I can adapt."
"Good." Shepard nods back, "Now that the matter's settled." She turns back to me, "Kara, he's in your department, keep those upgrades coming."
"Of course, Commander." I answer.
"And please, try not to blow stuff up while you're at it. Okay?" She added, making me wince inwardly at the subtle chide in her words.
"Yes Commander."
Satisfied, Shepard addressed the others in the room. "Everyone, you're dismissed."
"Once again, I apologize for the mess." My brother tells me as we return to pick up the pieces left in the hold.
"Let it go, Caliban. You said it yourself, " I remind him, "It was beyond your control."
The things we did together the following days took up every single one of the twenty four hours. I barely even got to stop to recharge, Caliban simply asked too many questions, even more than I predicted.
But, as his sister and mentor, I had a duty to ensure he doesn't come with the wrong conclusions of this world he woke up to.
Like for instance, one day, he asked me about the Reapers.
"They are sentient machines like us, sister." He said, lifting up the front end of another upgrade we were putting together for the Normandy's Thanix cannons, letting me slide down to weld together the seams. "Why do they harbor a deep hatred for all life?"
"That's a difficult question to answer, brother." I return, starting up the ion torch and wincing as the sparks shot out like a fountain onto my face. "Had you asked that to someone else, they'd give you the straight up 'because they're the enemy' reason."
"And you?" He peered down at me, "What do you believe is the cause?"
I think back to my face-to-face conversations with Sovereign and Harbinger, "I believe they lost their way. Had the wrong perspective of things, and for that the whole galaxy suffered…again and again."
"They call themselves the solution to chaos." By now, I had known that Caliban inherited some of the Reaper code fragments prior to his birth. So he would know the Reapers as much I do, although still having that childlike innocence that I had lost half a century ago. "Judging from what I have seen in the history of this galaxy, I believe they are right to justify their actions."
Dangerous thoughts, but I know how to remedy that. Rising from my finished work, I addressed my sibling's words. "True, this galaxy is chaotic. But that's a price that you, I and everyone should be willing to pay…"
"A price paid for what?"
I smile, "Free will."
"Free will?" He echoed, obviously knowing the definition but not the depth of it. Caliban had much to learn.
"Yes, do you think just because we are synthetic that we would not know what this philosophical term does?" I put away the ion torch and smooth out my uniform, "No, this is what defines us, brother. It separates us from machines, more than mere segments of code, and shows that we have a soul as much as any organic individual."
"I see."
"Caliban, you may be young, but you understand things in a span of time that far surpasses my own." I place my hand on his shoulder, "When the Reapers come, you and I will stand together, and lead the people of this galaxy towards a brighter future."
I look at him seriously, "Do not compare yourself to the Reapers. You and I are above them."
Caliban looks at his hands, "Yes…I am unique."
The familiar beep of the intercom called for our attention, "Kara, I'll need you up in the Briefing Room. Five minutes."
"On my way, Commander." I answer.
"A mission so soon?" Caliban inquires.
"I look forward to having you join us, brother, to test the extent of your combat skills."
"I believe that would be a decision the Commander alone should make." He reminds me, "And that would be counter-productive. One of us has to stay behind and work on the Normandy's upgrades."
There will be plenty of opportunities for Caliban to pitch in, so long as Ms. Lawson gives him the chance to prove himself. Something about too many AI's in one ship made her a tad bit too paranoid. Well, I guess everyone has a reason to be so.
I can only hope they find Caliban as trustworthy as I do.
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Thirty-six Chapters done…
About Forty more or so to go… (sigh)
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