Tech Scavengers [Humorous, Action-Packed Space Opera]

Jeridan was seriously confused. How could ZHI be in two places at once? An AI was more than just programming, it was hard circuitry based on the original human's synapses. You couldn't transfer an AI across a fiber optic cable any more than you could transfer a socket wrench.

He stared at the android with the glowing blue eyes.

"You're … ZHI?"

"Correct."

"The same ZHI as in the command center?"

"No."

"Um, could you explain?"

Pause.

"I cannot."

"Why not?"

"That data is corrupt."

Is it? Or do you just not want to tell me?

"Identify yourselves," ZHI said.

"I am Jeridan Cook, captain of the Antikythera. This is Negasi Gao, my gunner and xenoanthropologist. This is Helen. We don't know her last name because she never bothered to tell us."

"I don't have one," Helen said.

"Sure you don't."

ZHI interrupted before they could continue down that frustrating conversational path. "I am not familiar with a ship called the Antikythera. As far as I can tell, my data on the Imperium Navy is complete."

Here we go again.

Jeridan gave her the same rundown of the situation as they had with the ZHI upstairs. She asked the same questions. As far as Jeridan could recall, she asked them with the exact same wording the other ZHI had used.

When they got to the part about the Rimscourge, this ZHI didn't know about them either.

All I wanted was a quick and easy tech scavenge that would set me up for life. Is that too much to ask?

When they had answered all of the android's questions, it asked,

"What do you intend to do now?"

"Damn good question," Jeridan said. He turned to Negasi and Helen. "What do you guys think?"

"We have to consult with the others," Helen said.

"The others aren't in charge," Jeridan said. "Not anymore."

"We could use their input, though," Negasi said.

Jeridan looked at the android and rubbed is jaw. It was made of durasteel, with all the apparent flexibility of a human. From what he had seen from old vids, androids were generally not combat models but did have enhanced strength and speed. One punch with those fists would cave Jeridan's face in.

Negasi must have been thinking the same thing, because he said, "If we do go talk to the others, what is ZHI going to do?"

"I require more power for locomotion," ZHI said.

That wasn't entirely true. Negasi had given her enough juice that she could move around a bit, although it would greatly deplete her reserves. Still, she would probably have enough to kick all their asses.

Jeridan considered his words carefully and said,

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

"ZHI, we will give you more power once we consult with our team of specialists. But we have to admit that we're nervous about giving anything in this station more power. A team member who was here previously accidentally left an external power source plugged in that started up a combat mech that attacked our crew earlier today."

"It was following its programming."

"Well, yeah, but we've never come across a functional Imperium combat mech before and it nearly took us all out. We want to trust you, and we promise not to let your energy run down to zero, but we need some reassurances from you that you won't try to do us harm."

"You are the ones looting an Imperium station."

"As I explained, the Imperium fell and under the laws of my generation, what we are doing is legal. Plus we are trying to fight that invasion I told you about. I think you could help with that."

"I would need to access your vessel's databanks in order to learn more."

"We might be able to arrange that," Jeridan replied, unsure just how they would manage it safely. "Will you stay here while we go consult with the rest of our crew?"

"I will remain where I am."

"Thank you. We'll come back and give you more power."

They headed back to the main computing room a second time. As they were walking down the stairs, Helen shook her head.

"I could have sworn that android was male."

"How could you tell?" Jeridan asked. "The AI hadn't really spoken to us much."

"I don't know. It was just a feeling."

"Feelings can be wrong," Jeridan said with a bit more emphasis than he intended.

If Helen caught the hint, she didn't let on.

"I don't know, even after speaking with ZHI, I still get the impression he's male, and that he's different than the female AI we met in the command center."

Jeridan didn't have an answer to that, so he said nothing. Instead, he looked woefully at the antigrav transporter he pushed along. There wasn't nearly as much loot on it as he had hoped. That android would have given him and Negasi a lifetime of wealth and ease, but there was no question of selling an AI. That would be slave trading.

When they returned to the others with yet another bombshell, they ended up with a divided opinion.

"We can't bring ZHI on board," Derren/Mason said.

"We can't leave him here!" Helen cried.

Derren/Mason frowned. "Think. He's admitted that her memory banks have corroded. He's admitted that he doesn't trust us. He's mobile. If ZHI comes aboard the Antikythera and decides were a bunch of bandits, or even worse the rebels who trashed the jump gates, what's he going to do? What's he capable of? He could wreck the ship. Kill us. We can't afford to take that chance. Not with the fate of the galaxy in the balance."

It was so weird to see a little boy lecture someone like an arrogant man.

He was right, though. Kind of. Taking ZHI on board would be an immense risk.

But …

"We can't just abandon him, or her, or whatever. We wouldn't do that with any other sentient species."

"We would if it was a threat to the mission," Derren/Mason said.

"You would," Jeridan said.

They glared at each other a moment.

"I'm not comfortable with abandoning ZHI either," Negasi said. "But it is a risk taking her aboard. We got too many unanswered questions. Like are they one AI or two. Do we even have enough portable memory to take the ZHI from the command center?"

"No, we don't," Derren/Mason said.

For once Jeridan figured he was telling the truth. The computational power required to store an AI was immense. MIRI came in a box the size of a small suitcase, and those data storage units were incredibly expensive. No one just kept an empty one lying around. Only Imperium technology could have ever put an AI in a human-sized head.

One of the memory bricks they were using to download the jump gate information couldn't come close to holding an AI, and you couldn't split an AI among separate memory files like you could with regular data.

He turned to Nova. "You've been awfully quiet."

Nova looked uncertain. "I … don't know. I think I'm going to have to go with Derren on this one. I don't like leaving ZHI behind any more than you do, but I don't see a way around it. We can't take the ZHI in the command center, and it's too risky to take the android ZHI."

"We could disable her limbs," Jeridan suggested.

"We can't cripple him!" Helen cried.

"That keeps us safe and we can still bring him along," Jeridan replied, unsure why she still insisted on calling ZHI a "he". "Or we could feed him just enough to keep his mental functions going but be unable to use his limbs."

"That's cruel," Helen said.

"Totally!" Aurora shouted from where she kept watch outside the door. Or Poopsie kept watch. This was getting confusing. There were too many people in other people's heads.

"It would be crueler to leave him here, or even worse, let him run down again. I say we go with my plan. We could benefit from having ZHI with us. Think what he knows!"

"He might know a lot, but will he tell us?" Derren/Mason asked. "It's strange that both ZHIs claim not to remember the invasion. Why wouldn't they?"

Jeridan frowned at him. "I don't know. Why wouldn't they?"

He got a frown back. "We already had this conversation."

Jeridan shook his head. "I say we bring her along but limit his power. Negasi?"

His friend hesitated, then nodded.

Jeridan looked around the room, not for approval, because his and Negasi's votes decided it, but for a bit of support. Derren/Mason looked dead set against it. Nova and Helen looked uncomfortable.

Jeridan sighed. "Let's go talk with ZHI. The android one. Then we should go chat with the one in the command center."

He, Negasi, and Helen headed back to the bench where they had left the android.

When they got there, he was gone.