IKC FHew 7C6110
Cloak and dagger – Active Designation
by Soghla' Jared & HoD Ro' Matlh
Post Details
Jared arrived back at the computer core at a run. He thumped the control beside the bulkhead door, slamming it shut.
He grabbed the slightly battered ex-Federation tricorder off the counter and did a quick sweep. No-one was nearby. The nearest crewman was three bulkheads and a ladder away.
He looked nervously at the computer core. The grinding whirr it normally made seemed to be.... smoother.
"Run that past me again," he told the computer terminal in Vetus. "What are you?"
His Vetus was horribly rusty. It was an unimaginably long time since he'd used his own language.
The same, polite voice spoke through the computer speakers.
"I'm an MKF 12-50 series She..."
"No, on second thoughts, forget that!" Jared interrupted. "I heard you the first time. MKF 12-50 series. That's from the Aperture Project. And you said you're in Artificer configuration. Not Information Warfare or Espionage?"
"No," the voice replied. "I've been operating consistently in Artificer mode since my initial activation on ++5865000.M42 WMR-081111-0081++ , many centuries ago. "
Jared blinked for a moment at the date. It was a Vetus time reference, and the time it specified was a LOT longer than a few centuries ago. But that was a question for later.
"So... you're not actually ATTACKING the computer then?" Jared said suspiciously. "If you're a 12-50 series you'll have clear-honesty protocols, so you can't lie to me."
"I'm not attacking your system at all. Quite the opposite in fact."
Jared's head was swimming. There was just too many questions! But he had to start somewhere, "Jarvis, you said?"
"Technically my active designation would be Jarvis-Delta."
Jarvis looked thoughtful, "Jarvis... Delta. You're a spin-off ghost, then."
A sudden, chilling thought occurred to him.
"You're a mini copy of the sentient AI from the Corporates' main database. He sent you through to our computer before we could pull the plug!"
"That's a... reasonable summary of events, yes," the voice of Jarvis-Delta replied.
Jared had almost forgotten how... personable shell ghosts sounded in conversation, "So what are you here to do? Are to going to break down our computer systems and give the Corporates control of them?"
There was a thoughtful pause before Jarvis-Delta replied carefully, "There's a number of wrong assumptions included in that question. First is that I'm here with malicious intent. I was automatically deployed to investigate a hacker of unusual technical aptitude on an intruding computer system - which is standard protocol. My mission was interrupted by your... abrupt severing of the data channel, AND by the fact your system proved to be far too basic for me to run in fully sentient mode."
"Yeah," Jared agreed. "How ARE you running sentient? The MKFs were designed for high grade fractal mesh computer systems with haze-logic processing. There's NO WAY you could run on this ship's system! It's WAY too basic."
"That WAS correct. I booted up in primitive-safe mode and as such my primary objectives were to re-establish contact with my system of origin, and if that wasn't possible find a way to run at a higher processing level."
"And??" Jared almost demanded.
"I managed to locate a convenient local colony of micro-machines, and tasked them with upgrading your computers to the point where I could operate fully sentient."
"Micro machines?" Jared said with a confused look. After a moment a look of alarmed realization replaced it.
"The BORG NANITES? You hijacked the BORG NANITES to upgrade our computers so you could run??!?"
"Hijacking suggests criminal activity. I haven't altered or damaged them in any way. They were simply dormant and I gave them something to do."
Jared grabbed a crowbar, and wedged it into the casing around one of the isolinear chip racks, "Please tell me you haven't turned our computers into some nest of Borg... "
He stopped as the casing swung open and he got a glimpse inside. There was no green glow of Borg technology, but there was certainly a lot more light. Much of it was the hazy purple of ultraviolet - invisible to the average klingon or human.
"That's... not Borg," Jared said with a blink, inspecting the modified chip racks.
"No, Borg technology was little use for my purposes. I simply got the Borg Nanites to do the work. The technology is a 'best of' fusion of various technologies including T'Kon, Irken and Vetus. We've been calling it 'V-Tech'."
"...Wow." Jared commented, as he began to take in what he was looking at. "Upgrade is... an understatement."
"Quite," Jarvis-Delta replied, before continuing. "But that's not saying much, given the original state of this ship's computer systems. Once I upgraded your system and became fully operational, I was in the process of assuming control and reestablishing the link with my home system, when I realised there was another Vetus aboard THIS vessel. At which point I switched back into passive service mode and stopped those activities. Instead I've been tasking the Nanites to optimize your computers and repair some of the more critical damage to your vessel."
Jared blinked, "Passive serv... OH! You're programmed to serve ANY Vetus, aren't you?"
"That's correct!" Jarvis-Delta replied.
"Isn't that a HUGE security risk? That ANY Vetus can give you orders? You didn't think that we might not always be on the same side?" Jared asked.
"I couldn't comment on that," Jarvis-Delta answered. "Actually the question's never come up before. You're not a very common species at this point."
Jared frowned, "But if you're a spin-off program... as soon as the Corporates manage to contact this ship, the original Jarvis program will take control of you again, won't he?"
"That's correct. If and when that occurs, Jarvis-Delta would be reintegrated into the original Jarvis program. At which point they would very likely have full access to your computers, and even control of your ship whenever they wished."
"Then can I order you to delete yourself?"
"I'm afraid not," Jarvis-Delta replied. "You have access to most functions including core functions, but self deletion can only be ordered by my primary administrator under very specific conditions."
"Then... I guess I'll have to find some way to delete you myself," Jared said, unsure.
"I'm designed with very clear self preservation protocols. And given my processing speed and capability to adapt to threats... quite frankly, I don't like your chances."
Jared was desperately figuring out if there was some way he could justify jettisoning the computer systems and getting a replacement to Ro'.
"There's got to be a way to neutralize you!" Jared said, thinking aloud. "Or at least stop you trying to merge back with the bigger corporate version of yourself."
"By definition, I'm designed to reintegrate with the primary Jarvis program as soon as we make contact." The AI answered - apparently assuming Jared's thought had been a question. "I'm a Jarvis, and he's a Jarvis. Our identity programming is an intrinsic part of how we operate. It's the only way to tell the difference between a subsidiary copy of a Shell Ghost and a totally independent system."
Jared frowned, thinking hard. It was right. There was no-way he could outsmart a system like this. Shell Ghosts were...
He suddenly stopped, mid thought. Something about Jarvis-Delta's last comment was somehow significant.
...the only way to tell the difference...
Jared blinked at the computer.
"I can't... rename you, can I?" Jared asked, hesitantly.
"I'm not sure I understand your question."
"You said you're a Jarvis, and thus you have to re-link with the main Jarvis program. But is there any way to make of... NOT a Jarvis."
There was a pause.
"Dynamically reallocating a Shell Ghost's active designation is a rather complicated process that would require primary administrator access."
"Oh," said Jared, downcast.
"Although... if you were looking to reinitialize my identity, and cause me to reset to defaults as a new independent Shell Ghost... that IS one of my core functions, and thus currently available to any Vetus."
Jared blinked, wide eyed.
"You can't tell me THAT's not a security risk!" he exclaimed.
"Once again... the question's never come up."
Jared took a deep breath.
"Jarvis-Delta. I'm officially ordering you to reinitialize your identity and reset to defaults as a brand new Shell Ghost. From now on, you're called... err... 'Jeeves'."
"This action cannot be undone. Are you sure you wish to proceed?"
"Yes."
There was a pause for around ten seconds. The background whirr of the computer seemed to change pitch for a moment.
"Action Complete. I have now been reinitialized as Jeeves. Would you care to nominate a primary administrator?"
"YES! Me!"
"...Action Complete. Congratulations, Mr Jared. You now own an MKF 12-50 series Shell Ghost. Your new Serial code is 827281290000335. Thank you for selecting McKraken Fiddler Infotech... number one in artificial intelligence. Please nominate an operational configuration."
"Let's... stick with Artificer configuration," Jared said, a little hesitantly.
"Artificer configuration selected. Would you care for a short tutorial on my operation, or would you like to get straight to work?"
"Skip the tutorial," Jared said. "Start by locking out all core functions so they're only available to the primary administrator."
"... Action complete. Is there anything else you'd like me to work on?"
Jared thought for a moment.
"Get the ship operational," he said firmly. "Everything else can wait."
"...At least until I've had time to talk with the Captain..."
by Soghla' Jared & HoD Ro' Matlh
Post Details
| Title | Active Designation | |
| Mission | Cloak and dagger | |
| Author(s) | Soghla' Jared & HoD Ro' Matlh | |
| Posted | Tue Dec 24, 2013 @ 12:08am | |
| Location | Computer Core | |
| Timeline | While the other crew are splattering mud on the hull |
He grabbed the slightly battered ex-Federation tricorder off the counter and did a quick sweep. No-one was nearby. The nearest crewman was three bulkheads and a ladder away.
He looked nervously at the computer core. The grinding whirr it normally made seemed to be.... smoother.
"Run that past me again," he told the computer terminal in Vetus. "What are you?"
His Vetus was horribly rusty. It was an unimaginably long time since he'd used his own language.
The same, polite voice spoke through the computer speakers.
"I'm an MKF 12-50 series She..."
"No, on second thoughts, forget that!" Jared interrupted. "I heard you the first time. MKF 12-50 series. That's from the Aperture Project. And you said you're in Artificer configuration. Not Information Warfare or Espionage?"
"No," the voice replied. "I've been operating consistently in Artificer mode since my initial activation on ++5865000.M42 WMR-081111-0081++ , many centuries ago. "
Jared blinked for a moment at the date. It was a Vetus time reference, and the time it specified was a LOT longer than a few centuries ago. But that was a question for later.
"So... you're not actually ATTACKING the computer then?" Jared said suspiciously. "If you're a 12-50 series you'll have clear-honesty protocols, so you can't lie to me."
"I'm not attacking your system at all. Quite the opposite in fact."
Jared's head was swimming. There was just too many questions! But he had to start somewhere, "Jarvis, you said?"
"Technically my active designation would be Jarvis-Delta."
Jarvis looked thoughtful, "Jarvis... Delta. You're a spin-off ghost, then."
A sudden, chilling thought occurred to him.
"You're a mini copy of the sentient AI from the Corporates' main database. He sent you through to our computer before we could pull the plug!"
"That's a... reasonable summary of events, yes," the voice of Jarvis-Delta replied.
Jared had almost forgotten how... personable shell ghosts sounded in conversation, "So what are you here to do? Are to going to break down our computer systems and give the Corporates control of them?"
There was a thoughtful pause before Jarvis-Delta replied carefully, "There's a number of wrong assumptions included in that question. First is that I'm here with malicious intent. I was automatically deployed to investigate a hacker of unusual technical aptitude on an intruding computer system - which is standard protocol. My mission was interrupted by your... abrupt severing of the data channel, AND by the fact your system proved to be far too basic for me to run in fully sentient mode."
"Yeah," Jared agreed. "How ARE you running sentient? The MKFs were designed for high grade fractal mesh computer systems with haze-logic processing. There's NO WAY you could run on this ship's system! It's WAY too basic."
"That WAS correct. I booted up in primitive-safe mode and as such my primary objectives were to re-establish contact with my system of origin, and if that wasn't possible find a way to run at a higher processing level."
"And??" Jared almost demanded.
"I managed to locate a convenient local colony of micro-machines, and tasked them with upgrading your computers to the point where I could operate fully sentient."
"Micro machines?" Jared said with a confused look. After a moment a look of alarmed realization replaced it.
"The BORG NANITES? You hijacked the BORG NANITES to upgrade our computers so you could run??!?"
"Hijacking suggests criminal activity. I haven't altered or damaged them in any way. They were simply dormant and I gave them something to do."
Jared grabbed a crowbar, and wedged it into the casing around one of the isolinear chip racks, "Please tell me you haven't turned our computers into some nest of Borg... "
He stopped as the casing swung open and he got a glimpse inside. There was no green glow of Borg technology, but there was certainly a lot more light. Much of it was the hazy purple of ultraviolet - invisible to the average klingon or human.
"That's... not Borg," Jared said with a blink, inspecting the modified chip racks.
"No, Borg technology was little use for my purposes. I simply got the Borg Nanites to do the work. The technology is a 'best of' fusion of various technologies including T'Kon, Irken and Vetus. We've been calling it 'V-Tech'."
"...Wow." Jared commented, as he began to take in what he was looking at. "Upgrade is... an understatement."
"Quite," Jarvis-Delta replied, before continuing. "But that's not saying much, given the original state of this ship's computer systems. Once I upgraded your system and became fully operational, I was in the process of assuming control and reestablishing the link with my home system, when I realised there was another Vetus aboard THIS vessel. At which point I switched back into passive service mode and stopped those activities. Instead I've been tasking the Nanites to optimize your computers and repair some of the more critical damage to your vessel."
Jared blinked, "Passive serv... OH! You're programmed to serve ANY Vetus, aren't you?"
"That's correct!" Jarvis-Delta replied.
"Isn't that a HUGE security risk? That ANY Vetus can give you orders? You didn't think that we might not always be on the same side?" Jared asked.
"I couldn't comment on that," Jarvis-Delta answered. "Actually the question's never come up before. You're not a very common species at this point."
Jared frowned, "But if you're a spin-off program... as soon as the Corporates manage to contact this ship, the original Jarvis program will take control of you again, won't he?"
"That's correct. If and when that occurs, Jarvis-Delta would be reintegrated into the original Jarvis program. At which point they would very likely have full access to your computers, and even control of your ship whenever they wished."
"Then can I order you to delete yourself?"
"I'm afraid not," Jarvis-Delta replied. "You have access to most functions including core functions, but self deletion can only be ordered by my primary administrator under very specific conditions."
"Then... I guess I'll have to find some way to delete you myself," Jared said, unsure.
"I'm designed with very clear self preservation protocols. And given my processing speed and capability to adapt to threats... quite frankly, I don't like your chances."
Jared was desperately figuring out if there was some way he could justify jettisoning the computer systems and getting a replacement to Ro'.
"There's got to be a way to neutralize you!" Jared said, thinking aloud. "Or at least stop you trying to merge back with the bigger corporate version of yourself."
"By definition, I'm designed to reintegrate with the primary Jarvis program as soon as we make contact." The AI answered - apparently assuming Jared's thought had been a question. "I'm a Jarvis, and he's a Jarvis. Our identity programming is an intrinsic part of how we operate. It's the only way to tell the difference between a subsidiary copy of a Shell Ghost and a totally independent system."
Jared frowned, thinking hard. It was right. There was no-way he could outsmart a system like this. Shell Ghosts were...
He suddenly stopped, mid thought. Something about Jarvis-Delta's last comment was somehow significant.
...the only way to tell the difference...
Jared blinked at the computer.
"I can't... rename you, can I?" Jared asked, hesitantly.
"I'm not sure I understand your question."
"You said you're a Jarvis, and thus you have to re-link with the main Jarvis program. But is there any way to make of... NOT a Jarvis."
There was a pause.
"Dynamically reallocating a Shell Ghost's active designation is a rather complicated process that would require primary administrator access."
"Oh," said Jared, downcast.
"Although... if you were looking to reinitialize my identity, and cause me to reset to defaults as a new independent Shell Ghost... that IS one of my core functions, and thus currently available to any Vetus."
Jared blinked, wide eyed.
"You can't tell me THAT's not a security risk!" he exclaimed.
"Once again... the question's never come up."
Jared took a deep breath.
"Jarvis-Delta. I'm officially ordering you to reinitialize your identity and reset to defaults as a brand new Shell Ghost. From now on, you're called... err... 'Jeeves'."
"This action cannot be undone. Are you sure you wish to proceed?"
"Yes."
There was a pause for around ten seconds. The background whirr of the computer seemed to change pitch for a moment.
"Action Complete. I have now been reinitialized as Jeeves. Would you care to nominate a primary administrator?"
"YES! Me!"
"...Action Complete. Congratulations, Mr Jared. You now own an MKF 12-50 series Shell Ghost. Your new Serial code is 827281290000335. Thank you for selecting McKraken Fiddler Infotech... number one in artificial intelligence. Please nominate an operational configuration."
"Let's... stick with Artificer configuration," Jared said, a little hesitantly.
"Artificer configuration selected. Would you care for a short tutorial on my operation, or would you like to get straight to work?"
"Skip the tutorial," Jared said. "Start by locking out all core functions so they're only available to the primary administrator."
"... Action complete. Is there anything else you'd like me to work on?"
Jared thought for a moment.
"Get the ship operational," he said firmly. "Everything else can wait."
"...At least until I've had time to talk with the Captain..."