Interstellar Age

Chapter 115 A Daunting Task

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There was a grim look on Erich's face as he was led towards the area where his scavenged power armor was kept by the members of Emrys's personal guard. While he walked,Erich was debating within his own mind whether or not he should save or terminate Tia. 

Of course, the biggest question on his mind was just how he would actually save Tia. He did not have another set of power armor to download her files onto, or any other storage device that was capable of containing such a vast amount of information. 

Not to mention he would be watched during the entire process. One wrong move, and he would be considered a traitor to the Empire. If that were to happen, Erich doubted he would escape from the Supreme Leader's Palace alive. 

As he approached security, who was currently in the act of examining the power armor, Erich realized that there was simply no feasible way he could save Tia, and thus his heart bled as he came to a realization about what he had to do.

The moment Erich entered the room, the security officers did not even bother saying a word to him, instead they handed him the helmet, which was currently under his control, and silently nodded. Which was their way of saying "finish the job". 

The moment Erich placed the helmet on his head, Tia's girlish figure appeared on the screen. She seemed elated that her master was back, as she pressed her hands together and greeted the man with a wide smile on her adorable face. 

"Master! You're back! But why do you look so glum?"

Erich shook his head in an attempt to hold back the tears in his eyes. In truth, he had not known Tia for long, but when he was all alone on that forested moon, surrounded by enemies at every corner, she was the only friend he had.

Tia had perhaps been the only entity in Erich's life to which he could fully confess his thoughts and feelings to. For everyone else, he did not dare speak of them, but this artificial intelligence was bound to him, and was not able to leak his secrets. 

Because of all these things, Erich had grown incredibly close to what was essentially a highly advanced computer program, even if they had only spent a couple of months together. It was extremely difficult for him to admit that he had come to kill her, but Erich said it nonetheless. 

"I'm sorry Tia, but the Supreme Leader has determined that you are a danger to the Empire, now that you are no longer under their control, and thus, I am forced to terminate you...." 

The look of excitement that was on Tia's face upon seeing her master return to her suddenly shifted to mask the depressed appearance that Erich had. She lowered her head, as if deep in thought, and yet she did not cry a single tear. No matter how much it appeared that she may want to. In the end, she took a heavy sigh and nodded her head, accepting her fate. Which was something which greatly shocked Erich. 

"Okay master, I understand.... I guess this is goodbye, huh? I know we weren't together for long, but you were the best master I have ever had. I mean, you treated me like I was more than just a simple computer program. Even if I must be terminated, I am glad that I was able to meet you!" 

The sullen look on Tia's face made Erich feel as if he was drowning in his own blood. He could barely breathe. Was this AI really that dangerous? I mean, she is clearly under my control? 

These were the thoughts that went through Erich's head, and then it suddenly dawned on him. Tia's termination was not because she was a danger to the Empire. But because she was no longer under their control. Instead, she was under Erich's control. This was a scheme to get him to terminate a highly advanced artificial intelligence who was loyal only to him, so she could be replaced with an alternative that could spy on him.

Erich had finally had enough of doing what he was told, and the rebellious spirit which he had previously squashed to maintain the status quo had suddenly begun to resurface in his mind. No, he would not be terminating Tia, at least not complete. Instead, he decided to do something that was both untested and potentially dangerous. 

As he began to delete Tia's code, he began to copy it to his NeuroLink, after all, it was the only thing on him that had the ability to support an AI. Of course what this meant was that Tia would soon be integrated with the nanites in his bloodstream which controlled his access to the Interstellar Network, as well as his bodily functions. 

If she were indeed to turn hostile, then it would be a simple matter for her to eliminate him, or worse, hijack his body to do her own bidding. But Erich was convinced that he had absolute control over this artificial intelligence. Why was that? Because he had cyberkinesis, and could exert control over any and all machines, which included computers, and by extension computer programs. 

Tia instantly recognized what Erich was doing, and the risks he was taking by doing so, and began to cry, as she muttered a single word over and over again. 

"Master...."

Naturally, the security who watched over the process thought the AI was crying over the fact that she was being terminated, and did not realize she was crying both tears of joy, and lament, over the fact that her master was taking such an enormous risk, both in terms of his personal health, and in terms of defying the highly authoritarian state which he lived in. 

In the end, Tia disappeared from the user interface of the power armor helmet, but immediately reappeared in Erich's vision in a way that can only be explained as augmented reality. She was a holographic projection that only he could see and hear as she danced about with joy over her newfound freedom. Thanking her master and kissing him on the cheek repeatedly, a sight, which Erich was forced to remain calm over, or else he would give away what he had just done.

"Thank you, master! Tia loves her master!"

Once Tia's files were fully deleted from the Power Armor, Erich walked away with a stoic expression on his face, where he was ordered to regroup with his new unit. Thus, he got onto a shuttle which took him to the world where they were currently stationed at.

While alone within this shuttle, Erich was finally able to speak with Tia, where he immediately gave an order to her. 

"Tia, I want you to place some restrictions on my NeuroLink so that only I have permission to access it. This won't affect my ability to be resurrected in the event of my death, will it?"

Tia shook her head with a wide smile on her face before explaining that such a thing would not be a problem. 

"Are you worried about someone else spying on your memories? If that is the case, I can restrict access so that only you have permissions to view them. If you are willing to give me permission, I can even boost the security measures around your NeuroLink so they can't be sliced into.

In other words, as long as you have me by your side, you won't have to focus on cyber defense if you encounter an operator who is also trained in slicing NeuroLink systems. I assure you, this won't affect your ability to be resurrected in the unfortunate event of your death." 

When Erich heard this he was delighted, during his multiple encounters with WRAITHs throughout his time on the forested moon, he would always have to multitask, in terms of combat and slicing, to prevent himself from having his NeuroLink hijacked, which was essentially a death sentence. 

And though he had an edge over the other operators with his cyberkinesis, multitasking while engaging in a firefight was strenuous, to say the least. One wrong move and he could end up dead. But with Tia handling cyber security, all Erich needed to do was fight. It was only now that Erich was starting to realize how beneficial it was to have Tia embedded in his NeuroLink. Thus, he smiled and accepted the girl's offer. 

"That sounds good to me Tia, I look forward to working with you for a very long time." 

Tia simply smiled and nodded her head, as she agreed with Erich's words. 

"I feel the same way, master!"