The Tempest was ten hours out from returning to the Nexus. The crew were lazing around, for the most part, not much could be done when Sara was now under investigation. Tann had sent word to the other Initiative leaders and now a huge argument erupted about Sara acting out alone to send a message to the Milky-Way.
She and Reyes were in her room. Sara sat on her bed, reading mission reports and sighing to herself every few minutes. Reyes was in a world of his own, he'd forgotten Ryder said he could use SAM to help with his workload and was huffing to himself about how much he had to get done. He'd been away from his duties too long, helping Ryder and crew instead.
"Mr Vidal, I can be of assistance," SAM says from the AI console to his left. Reyes looks up, his brows furrowing as he moves his closed fists from his forehead.
"I really should do this alone, SAM. There is stuff in here you wouldn't approve of." Reyes hears Sara chuckle behind him.
"SAM won't care," she calls, not looking up from her datapad.
"The Pathfinder is correct, I have no reason to judge you. Your work is your own personal affairs. I can merely organize work and respond to mission reports I deem unnecessary to reply to yourself." Reyes scratches his head. He didn't have much to lose using SAM.
"Alright, I've got this report here. Read it and tell me what you think I should do." SAM doesn't respond for a few seconds, he reads it and comes up with the best response.
"As it states in the report, your operatives are not able to control the drug outbreak of the slums. I suggest you move those not affected to the upper Port and quarantine the rest," he explains. Reyes knew the drug, Oblivion, was meant to be a cure. Dr Nakamoto designed it, meant to be the Andromeda version of Penicillin. But it had a bad effect if used too much. Giving the effects of someone taking Ecstasy.
Ryder helped get it back under control, but now it had broken out again and those living in the slums were abusing the hell of it. "How can I enforce this?"
"Whilst you have taken away the protection fees, you are still in power to use force for the safety of others. You give them a choice: stay in quarantine or be cut off from the main port." Reyes nods, it was a good idea, but it was harsh.
"Do you see no other alternative?" SAM was silent for a moment.
"None that would not break out into a war," he calmly replies. Reyes shrugs his shoulders, deciding to go with SAM's plan and replies to his operative with the solution to the issue. "I can help manage your emails," SAM points out.
"How many do I have?" Reyes knew there was a lot, Keema could only do so much. She needed his permission for most of the issues that came to her feet.
"Two-hundred and twenty-eight. But only seventeen I would deem needs your full attention. I can reply to the others on your behalf." Reyes sits back in the chair, it squeaks under his weight. Sara was too stuck in her work to even acknowledge either of them.
"How will that work? Shouldn't I reply myself, you don't know how I work," Reyes points out. SAMs hologram floated slowly in the console, he was silent. Reyes thought he offended SAM before he finally spoke.
"I have spent enough time with you and can experience first hand from your previous emails to formulate a response deemed well suited to the Charlatan. With your permission, I can have all two-hundred and eleven replied to in a much quicker time than you, yourself can." Reyes really didn't know what to do. He trusted SAM but this was the livelihood he was putting in the AI's... hands. Could he trust him to act on behalf of the Charlatan?
Reyes turns the chair, looking at Ryder. "What do you think?" Sara looks up, not realizing she actually hadn't listened to a word spoken.
"What?" she asks bluntly. Reyes smirks at her.
"SAM said he can reply to most of the emails I have by acting as me. He has enough experience to know what responses I'd give." Sara brushes her hair back over her shoulder, tapping her fingernail on the edge of her datapad.
"SAM replies to most of my mail for me. I'm too lazy to do it myself, so yeah. Trust him, Reyes. He can't fuck up, he's an AI remember," she laughs. Reyes smiles, looking at the floor before slowly turning the chair back and looking at SAM's console.
"Alright, SAM. Please don't fuck this up," he begs.
"I am glad you trust me, Mr Vidal," SAM says before getting to work. Reyes decides to crack on with the seventeen emails SAM had flagged he should read himself.
It had been only an hour when Reyes sat back in the chair. He'd gotten to the tenth email before wanting to give up. He was at a complete loss with this one. Keema wanted his permission to send a squad to Elaaden to aid some exiles wanting to return to Kadara. He wasn't sure if he could trust them again.
"Mr Vidal, I have done," SAM says, startling him. Reyes drops his hand to his thigh.
"What? Already?" he asks in disbelief.
"Yes," SAM nonchalantly replies. Reyes huffs a laugh, SAM really was that good.
"Anything I should know about?" he asks.
"No, all is under control. Your squads are acting to the orders I gave. I made sure to act as you would yourself. Do you need assistance with the last seven emails?" Reyes sighs, rubbing his sore eyes. He was so tired, it was getting late. Ryder had finished her work, she tried to drag him away to get food. But his work couldn't wait.
"Yeah, sure. Help me out here," he says waving his hand to the terminal.
"Do you not wish for the exiles to return?" The AI asks. Reyes grunts in agitation. It wasn't a hard question to answer, but somehow he struggled to answer.
"I don't know, they broke the rules of Kadara. Which are not that hard to follow, how can I trust them again?" SAM took a moment, letting Reyes' heartbeat slow down.
"Do you believe Director Tann should allow the exiles back who left during the mutiny?" Reyes scrunches his nose up.
"Of course I do," he snaps back.
"Then you know the answer," SAM replies. Reyes takes a minute to pick up what SAM actually meant. "You are not the Director, Mr Vidal," he adds.
"You're right. Thanks, SAM," Reyes smiles as he types his reply. He couldn't be angry with Tann for not allowing the exiles to return to the Nexus and then do the same thing to those kicked from Kadara. He tells Keema to let some back on a trail, but they have to gain her loyalty back. Those who did far worse crimes would never be allowed back. Reyes had to draw a line at some point.
He and SAM only took fifteen minutes to sort the last emails out. Reyes sits back in joy as he closes the terminal to an empty email box. "How's it going?" Ryder asks. She passes Reyes a cup of coffee.
"Good, I actually have an empty email for the first time in six hundred years," he jokes. Sara leans against the back of his chair, massaging his scalp.
"You have fun, SAM?" she asks, looking at his console. Reyes hums to her nails working through his hair, and weeks of stress disappear.
"I enjoyed the new challenges, yes," he replies.
"Thank you for your help, SAM," Reyes says, putting his cup down and pulling Ryder to come around to his front. "Would you hate me if I stole your AI forever?" Sara looks into his eyes, smiling as she kisses his cheek.
"I'd kill you," she sweetly says. Reyes can only laugh, pulling her down onto his lap. His hands rest on her hips. "You can't take my best friend."
"Wow, am I not your best friend?" he asks with a hand to his heart.
"You're my best human friend," she laughs, pushing his hand down. "SAM is just... he was my only family for a long time. I can't lose him, ever," she whispers.
"You won't lose me, Sara," SAM points out. They both smile at his hologram.
"SAM, would you like to work with Reyes more? Help him run his operations?" Reyes quickly looks at Sara. What was she getting at?
"I do enjoy the differences between working with the Pathfinder team and Mr Vidal," SAM answers.
"What if you created another program that could work with Reyes? Can you do that?" Reyes pulls Sara back slightly, getting her to look at him.
"Sara, you can't just give me a part of your AI. He's yours and worth trillions of credits," he murmurs in disbelief.
"You're working harder and harder each day, Reyes. You can't do it alone forever. SAM wouldn't mind, I am sure," she says looking back at her AI.
"I can create a program, but it would take time. I must spend more time with Mr Vidal to configure it correctly." Reyes can only look at Sara and the AI.
"I... alright, SAM. If that is something you want to do. I will contact you each time I do a mass of work and if you're available. You can help me, how does that sound?" Sara smiles, she loved seeing the flourishing relationship between SAM and Reyes. Most turned their noses up to SAM, not liking he's an AI, but Reyes embraced him.
"I would enjoy that," SAM happily says.
"Good, now come on. Time for bed," she says getting up and playfully fluffing Reyes' hair up. He grunts in laughter, looking at the AI terminal before getting up. He felt the relief of knowing his work was about to get much easier. He was drowning in work and could use the extra help.