Tony looked up at the soft knock. He kept the door to his improvised quarters open, usually, because a knock couldn't be heard through it otherwise. "Come in."
Blake and Haley entered, followed by Bokal. All three looked at each other expectantly, and Tony eventually had to prod them to speak up. "Something I can do for you?"
Blake shuffled his feet. "Uh, how confident do you feel piloting that ship, now that General Carter isn't around to help anymore?"
Tony leaned back in his seat, a little surprised at the question. "A lot better than earlier, that's for sure. Why? Do you need to go somewhere that doesn't have a Stargate?"
"Earth, actually." Haley put in.
All three of them looked perfectly serious.
Shortly after they'd found out about the time-loop, he and Hargrove had ordered the 'gate guards to dial Earth several times a day, just in case. So far, with no results.
"Oookay." Tony drew out the word. "Unless the barriers are gone and no one told me, that's a suicide mission."
"We wouldn't need to go all the way there." Blake clarified hastily. "Just to the edge of the barrier. We know about where that is, thanks to Mimir's data."
Tony shut off the Goa'uld monitor and rose to face them. "I'm not tracking here. Why don't you start at the beginning for me?"
Haley and Blake shared a sheepish glance before he continued. "We figured out a pretty serious problem that none of the Survivors seem to have noticed yet, but we think we can fix it."
"Oh?"
"When we shut down that Ancient terminal, and take down those barriers, Earth will suddenly find itself back in normal space-time with the rest of the galaxy."
"That's the plan, at least." Tony wondered where they were going with this.
Blake shook his head. "But the rest of the galaxy has been moving normally for over eight months now! Earth hasn't. Everyone inside that field is unaware of the passage of time!"
"If you were on Earth, and that barrier suddenly came down," Haley explained, "from your perspective, every star in the sky would suddenly change position! How would you explain it? How could anyone explain that?"
Tony sat down heavily as he thought about it. "All this time, we've been so focused on going home…"
"But doing so would turn our world upside down!" Haley finished for him. "Imagine how they'd react. How would you react if you were there? Even if we can tell the SGC what happened, they'd have no way of explaining it to the rest of the world without explaining everything. They'd have to tell people about the Stargates."
How would he react? If the sky suddenly changed on him, Tony would probably think it was an act of God. But most others… he had no idea.
They were right. The secrecy of the Stargate Program would have to be sacrificed, to prevent the whole world from going nuts over this.
Tony turned the problem over and over in his head. It had been months since they'd discovered the true nature of those barriers, but this particular problem had never even occurred to him! Apparently, it hadn't occurred to anyone else either, until now.
A few minutes ago, if he'd been standing in front of the terminal controlling those barriers, he'd have shut it down without hesitation. Now, though…
Then he remembered. "You said you have a solution?"
Blake nodded. "Maybe. It comes in two parts. First, when we find the terminal, we'll have to be very, very careful about when we shut it down. It has to be done as close as possible to the time of day it was activated. We have that exact time, too, thanks to Mimir."
"Because if we do it too early or too late," Tony murmured slowly, "the sun will be in a different position in the sky?"
"Not quite. Remember, the entire solar system is inside that bubble, so the sun, moon, and planets won't be a problem. But the nearby stars will shift position, yes. If we time it perfectly, though, they won't shift enough for the eye to see."
Tony shook his head. "But that won't be enough, though, will it? There are observatories all across the globe, recording the sky. Even if the naked eye won't tell the difference, most telescopes will!" His breath caught as he realized something else. "But we've sent out some probes from Earth. And what about local objects? Is Halley's comet going to be a problem? No pun intended." He added belatedly.
Haley smiled a little at that. "You're quick. It took us a bit longer to figure out just how big the problem was. We won't have to worry about that, at least. Probes like Voyager 1 move very slowly, at least by Goa’uld standards. They haven't reached the inside of the barrier yet, and the same goes for my namesake comet."
"As for Earth, that's where we come in." Blake assured him. "We think we can build a kind of failsafe machine to protect the secrecy of the SGC. Not to mention the sanity of the average person on Earth." He looked thoughtful at that.
"How? I mean how would it work?"
"Basically, it'll have a sensor that will determine when the barriers fall. When they do, it'll send a computer virus to Earth on a carrier wave. That virus will jump from computer to computer, altering data in each one, making sure that no one will notice the time gap in their readings. We'd have to build a transmitter and sensor- easy enough with what we've got here- program it, and drop it off next to the barrier."
Tony felt a vague sense of amazement. "And we can do all that?"
Blake looked at Haley. "Ordinarily, no. But with what we know about Earth's computers, and what Bokal knows about programming, I think so."
Bokal stepped forward, finally speaking up. "In order to do as they suggest, this… 'virus' would have to be extraordinarily complicated. In fact, I wouldn't trust such a task to anything short of a living program."
"He means an AI, Tony." Blake explained before Tony could ask. "An artificial intelligence. We can't program something like that, but he can."
Tony spread his hands. "Whoa, whoa, slow down. You want to send an AI to Earth and let it start monkeying around with computer systems? What makes you think it'll stop there? Can you control it?"
"I can." Bokal assured him. "My people have been using living programs for centuries now. This program would delete itself as soon as it was certain no digital proof remained of the… 'time change'. In addition, I'll add a deletion code to it, so you can remove it yourselves if necessary. From what I've been told about your planet's computers, I am quite certain it would be safe."
All three of them looked at him, waiting.
Staring back at them, Tony realized he didn't actually have much choice. All of this was moot if they couldn't find the terminal, but if they did, this could be their only way home. "All right. Get started. Earth isn't that far away, galactically speaking, but I'll probably need your help plotting a course anyway, Blake."
They looked relieved, and turned to go before he spoke again, stopping them. "You've thought about this for a while now. You knew about this problem before Bokal joined us, didn't you?" He looked back and forth between Haley and Blake.
Blake looked down. "Since just after Bisalis, actually." He admitted. "I told Haley straight away, but we wanted to wait until we had a working solution before telling anyone else."
"We planned on getting you to ask the Tollans for help, but then one just dropped out of the sky on top of us." Haley added, smiling at Bokal.
He gave a slight smile in response. "It's not as exciting as fighting a Goa'uld, but I will admit it's potentially much more rewarding."
Tony shook his head. "Let's hope you're right."
-.-
Despite himself, and the protective forcefield between them, Hargrove flinched as the compression wave shattered the target dummy.
Archie clapped, Ahardt gave an excited whoop and slapped Pol on the back, as the young farmer smiled a bit nervously. He began removing the Goa'uld glove, a bit hurriedly it seemed, in spite of his success using it.
Hargrove watched with interest from the observation room above. The Goa'uld apparently didn't use any transparent materials, so the test chamber had been equipped with a forcefield instead, to protect the observers. From the impact craters in the floor and walls down there, Pol's skill with the glove had been a work in progress.
The Pyrta stepped forward with the palm-disc healing device, apparently the next piece of technology in line. It had taken over a week before Pol had even been willing to enter this lab, and even longer before he'd shown any real success with the Goa'uld devices, but he'd shown a determination to help that Hargrove had to admire.
While Pol had 'officially' joined the Survivors almost two months ago, he still hadn't received any combat training. His time had mostly been spent down here, in the bowels of the mountain complex, helping the Matthews understand this technology. Unfortunately, Seraus' database didn't contain any information on how a Goa'uld brain interacted with some of their devices.
Probably because it's common knowledge to them. No reason to include it in his notes, he reasoned.
Hargrove glanced to his left as the door hissed open and admitted the Colonel.
He walked over and stood next to Hargrove. "You said you had something to tell me?"
"Yes, sir. I dropped by earlier, but you were busy with the Matthews. Blake filled me in, later. When are you heading out?" Hargrove was uncomfortably aware that he was hedging, avoiding saying what needed to be said, but he was glad for the distraction.
"Blake said it could take a few days to get the satellite, if that's what it’s supposed to be called, ready to go. I'll be taking the ship for a few test flights before we head out to Earth."
Down below, Pol's eyes were closed in concentration as he slowly moved the glowing disc over Archie's arm. The Pyrta was showing uncharacteristic courage by being a test subject, but his nervous glances at Pol's face were evidence of his discomfort. Govis had replaced Ahardt, and was watching the Goa'uld monitor carefully as it spat out information from its scans of Pol's brain.
"I can't believe we missed something that huge, sir." Hargrove said to fill the silence. "Are you sure we should deploy the 'satellite'? Before we've even found the control terminal, I mean."
"Whatever bad news you've got for me, Hargrove, just tell me." The Colonel responded bluntly.
Hargrove hid a grimace. The man had been getting better at reading his body language- a lot better, in fact. I guess I should be glad for that.
He braced himself. "I'm not going back to Earth, sir."
The Colonel cocked his head slightly. "Come again?"
"Even if we find the terminal, shut the barriers down, and head home, I'll be staying with the Survivors." He put as much confidence as he could into his voice. "And you know why."
The Colonel gave him a penetrating glance. "I think so. This is about Cayo's death, isn't it?"
"I got him killed, sir." He raised a hand to forestall any objections. "I know what you're going to say: I'm not responsible for his death; the Goa'uld are. He knew the risks. He died fighting for what he believed in; yadda yadda and all that. And you may be right."
Hargrove finally looked the Colonel in the eye. "We both know that Cayo was the closest thing the Survivors had to a leader, not counting SGC personnel. Without him, or us, they can and will get themselves killed out here!"
"And you want to take his place."
"Who else?" Hargrove shrugged. "I'm telling you this just in case, sir. Whether Cayo was my fault or not, they need me now, and I'm not going to let them down."
They stood in silence for a while, as down below, the Pyrta continued to take readings while Pol used the disc.
Finally, the Colonel turned to him. "I think you're selling them short, Hargrove. You know as well as I do that when the pressure's on, some people fold while others will rise to the occasion. One of them will take charge, I'm sure. Even if you're right, though, just… take some time before making this decision, all right? We're all still feeling the effects of Cayo's death." He smiled slightly. "Whether we admit it or not. Now's not the time to make such a big call." He looked back down into the chamber. "Besides, even if we do go home, who knows? Maybe the SGC can use the Survivors."
"Oh, come on, Colonel!" Hargrove bit out. "You know as well as I do what the Air Force- or the US government- will do with these kids! As far as they're concerned, the Survivors are just foreign nationals, and why should we bother risking our own boys in the field when they'll do just fine? I've seen it over and over on Earth. The fat cats at the Pentagon will just sit back and throw the Survivors up against the Goa'uld again and again, until they're all dead. You know I'm right."
The Colonel sighed. "Even if you are, it's not our call to make, Hargrove. We swore an oath to defend our country, not the Survivors."
"I can't believe what I'm hearing!" Hargrove threw up his hands. "You were the one who convinced me they had to be trusted. You're the one who held them all together; helped us make a fighting force out of them. I can't believe you'd just abandon them like that!"
"Calm down, Hargrove. I don't intend to. Whenever we finally get back, I'm going to make a case for them, and I want you there with me. We'll just have to convince the Pentagon that the Survivors should be treated like any other offworld ally of ours. That they should be left alone, or at the very least allowed to go home if they want."
"Our other allies are all technological. They all have governments of their own, defense forces, resources. As if the Pentagon would listen to us-"
The Colonel cut him off. "Then we make them listen. Together. We've done incredible things since we were first cut off, Hargrove. Things no one would have thought we could. This is just the next near-impossible task." He leaned forward. "I need you with me on this, Hargrove. It could be the Survivors' only chance."
Hargrove glared at him for a few moments in silence. Finally, he nodded. "I care about what happens to these kids, sir. I never thought I would ever be this kind of person, but I guess I am." He looked away, though he couldn't tell why, precisely. "You'd better be right about this, sir."
"Trust me." The Colonel clapped him on the shoulder. "We'll make this happen."
Hargrove mulled that over a bit. He could admit that maybe his judgment wasn't as clear right now as it should be. Still… "They're more than just our strike teams now, sir. More than just a combat force, anyway. They're almost like…" He trailed off.
"Family?"
Hargrove looked at him sharply. Even after all this time, that word could elicit strong reactions from him.
The Colonel continued, sparing him the need to respond. "Suna told me about your parents a while back. About your father. She was worried about you. Still is, I imagine."
"She's too smart for her own good, sometimes." Hargrove whispered.
"You wouldn't have it any other way, and you know it." The Colonel put a hand on his shoulder again briefly, before turning away. "Think about what I said."
-.-
Nelson hurriedly pulled his sleeve down to cover the bruises on his arm, as people began filing into the conference room. He'd been spending as much free time as he could spare working with Pol on his accuracy, and had been pelted by bits of debris several times- pelted pretty hard, actually. He'd have to ask Archie if there was anything he could get to speed up the healing process. Otherwise, people might think his trainees had started beating on him… again.
In spite of a ton of data to sift through, it seemed as though Archie was still no closer to understanding exactly how Pol could control the Goa'uld tools. It didn't help that he seemed to be the only scientist working on the problem; the Matthews and Bokal had apparently been busy elsewhere.
As if called by his thoughts, Tony entered the room with Bokal, and sealed the door.
Nelson looked around. Aside from him and Bokal, every person there was a team leader. This must be important, whatever it is. Strangely, Hargrove wasn't among them. It had been almost a week since the funeral on Zau, and from what Nelson had seen, both he and Suna were getting back to normal, or as close to normal as anyone out here could get.
"As some of you know," Tony began, "Bokal here has agreed to use some of his peoples' technology to help us fight. Up until now, we've all been too busy to really benefit from that, though. I've called you all here to see the latest gizmo he's got for us. I want you all to think long and hard before agreeing to use them, though. When you hear more, you'll understand." He left that statement hanging cryptically, and looked to Bokal.
The young Tollan cleared his throat. "When I first arrived here, the Colonel told me about the secrecy of this planet, and how imperative it is that we keep that secret. Now thanks to the Deuca, we've been leaving no electronic trace of where we've been, but that's not the only way we could be compromised. Every one of you knows the Stargate address to this planet, and every time we leave, we risk not just ourselves, but the people here on Hovak as well. I believe I can mitigate at least some of that risk."
He held up a kind of computer chip between thumb and forefinger. "If you agree to accept it, I will place one of these in your brain. Its sole purpose is to safeguard what you know and keep it from the enemy."
Nelson looked at the chip with interest, and could see the others doing the same. He'd heard about the Tollan health implants before, but hadn't thought about how they could be used on the front lines. The others seemed a little apprehensive, but that was to be expected. Even on Earth, the idea of a brain implant was a little radical, and these people all came from planets with much less advanced medical practices.
Jahu raised a hand. "How does it work?"
"It's designed to counter any known form of mind control, including the use of a sarcophagus, as well as being taken as a host by a Goa'uld parasite. It does that by…" He hesitated, and Tony nodded at him to continue. "If it detects a threat, it has a micro-explosive that will detonate, killing you instantly and painlessly."
There was a noise of dismay from the group, and Tony spoke up in his place. "Remember, folks, the Goa'uld like to torture people to death again and again, using the sarcophagus to bring them back each time. And you've all seen what a few decades of being a host did to Pol." He sighed heavily. "In a way, this is no different than using that coin device that Blake built, except that this one is much more foolproof."
Bokal nodded forcefully. "The Goa'uld have no way of removing this implant as of yet. I used automation to install one in my own head before I ever joined you. It's a great relief to know that my knowledge will never be used against my people- or anyone else for that matter- no matter what happens to me."
Nelson couldn't see any scars on his head from the surgery. Then he realized why. "You used phase-shifting to implant it?"
"Yes, it makes both installing and removing these implants safe and easy to perform. I can synthesize as many as are needed, and what exactly will trigger the implant will be entirely up to you. It could be something as extreme as exposure to a sarcophagus, or something as simple as being hit by a zat blast. You will be able to decide for yourselves, before I install it."
Galosi looked at the chip nervously. "So you won’t need to cut our heads open to do this?"
"Not at all. I’ve installed implants such as this for the Tok’ra, and they’re all doing fine." He paused. "Well, last I heard of them."
Before he could continue, Tony spoke up again. "I wanted you to be the first to know about these implants so that you could get used to the idea. Your decisions will affect your teams' decisions as well, because eventually, everyone who goes offworld will have the option to get one if they want. I plan on getting one myself. Now that Apophis has us in his sights, we're in a whole new ball game. We have to be ready for anything."
Jahu and the rest began discussing it, and roped Bokal in to answer more questions. While they were talking it through, Nelson stepped up next to Tony and spoke in a quiet voice. "Are you really getting one of those things, boss?"
Tony nodded, a little sharply. "This is our A game, Nelson. We need every advantage we can get. I just hope they see that as well."
Bokal stepped back to join them, as the team leaders talked amongst themselves. Nelson looked at him appraisingly. It was obvious that he was uncomfortable in a leadership role; he seemed to be much happier when he'd been given a task and was working at it. Nelson leaned towards him. "Aren't you a little concerned that we might figure out how the implants work ourselves? After all, isn't keeping your tech under wraps kinda like the Tollan Prime Directive?"
Bokal shook his head. "I'm not concerned. They're beyond your current Earth science. Even with help from the Deuca, you wouldn't be able to get a good look at it without taking the risk of activating it. Speaking of the Deuca, Colonel, you should know that I cleared use of these devices with the Pyrta before I came to you. Contractually, the Survivors' health care is their domain, after all, so I wanted to be clear that I had no intention to… how did Captain Desousa put it? Muscle in on their territory?"
Tony looked reassured. "Then you saved me a trip. I was gonna clear it with the Pyrta myself."
"You should be warned, though, Colonel." Bokal's expression became more serious. "The Goa'uld won't be surprised by these devices, if they should find one. Tok’ra operatives have been using them for years."
"I know. I'll keep that in mind."
-.-
A rush of dry wind washed over Hargrove the moment he and Kaana arrived. Vorash was a far cry from Hovak, at least in its current season. In addition to the vastly differing humidity, and lack of binary suns, the area around their ‘gate was completely devoid of plant life. Nothing but desolate dust and rock could be seen in all directions around the ‘gate. A completely lifeless region, for all intents and purposes.
Or at least, that’s the way the Tok’ra wanted it to look.
As they stepped down the stone steps that were commonly placed in front of most Stargates, Hargrove looked around, seeing no one. They were no doubt being watched, but he had to admire the stealth that the Tok’ra had honed over their centuries of activity. Like the Survivors, mere existence for these people wasn’t easy.
"Keep a watch on the ‘gate for me." He ordered Kaana.
The Havin woman nodded curtly and stepped to the site of the ‘gate, keeping an eye out for trouble. He’d picked her specifically because he knew she wouldn’t ask any awkward questions. As he got underway, he wondered briefly if that made her very smart, or just very professional.
From descriptions he’d read years ago, he knew approximately where to go. As he’d expected, he was intercepted by Tok’ra sentries before he could even get close to their ring platform. While none of them recognized him, it didn’t take much to convince them who he was and why he’d come. A little while longer, and he found himself in one of their underground tunnels, staring at the crystal structure and waiting.
He didn’t have to wait long. General Carter rounded the bend and gave him a surprised look before gesturing into one of the adjoining chambers. "When I was told that one of your group was here, I expected Tony, not you." He said after they sat down on crystalline chairs.
"Yes, sir. Ordinarily that would be the case, but this time…" Hargrove hesitated. "I’m here for personal reasons, actually."
Carter didn’t respond immediately. When he did, his voice was more grave. "Go on."
As concisely as he could manage, Hargrove explained his plan. The General listened politely, occasionally asking for clarification on a few of his details. When he was done, Carter leaned back. "Sounds like an ambitious scheme, Major. I assume you’ve run it past the Colonel."
Hargrove nodded curtly. "He gave it his blessing, but he also made it clear that it’s all on my shoulders. If I want to make it work, I’ll be doing it alone, or mostly alone at least."
"Which is why you’ve come here."
"That’s right." Hargrove gave him a serious look. "I need to borrow one of those Atanik armbands you’ve got."
The General’s eyebrows raised. "Ok, I wasn’t expecting that."
Shortly before the signing of the Earth-Tok’ra treaty, the Tok’ra had brought a trio of alien armbands to Earth. Supposedly used by ancient Atanik warriors, the armbands could give humans what were, effectively, superpowers. SG-1 had agreed to test them, and three of them had almost died in the process.
"I know the effect only lasts for a few days, General, but it could be worth it! If I can time it right, I can achieve my objective, and still have enough time to do some serious damage to the Goa’uld!"
"And provoke a violent response from them in the process." Carter sighed. "I’m sorry, but even if those armbands weren’t extremely unreliable, I doubt the Council would let your people have any. They’re still on edge with what your Survivors are doing out there, and I can’t blame them."
"I know. I didn’t really think they’d go for it. Still, it was worth a try." Hargrove sighed. "There is something else I came to ask you, though. In order to bait this trap of mine, I need Tanith’s help."
The General leaned back in his chair. "Well, you’re just full of surprises today, aren’t you?"
"I’ve put a lot of thought into this, sir. There are other ways we could do this, but Tanith is the only way we can make sure Apophis gets the message at the right time."
Carter lowered his head, and Selmak surfaced. [Absolutely out of the question. You know how important he is to us. We cannot risk exposing him to danger, or risk him becoming aware of your plan!]
It was pretty much the exact response Hargrove had been expecting. In one of their more brilliant covert maneuvers, the Tok’ra had taken in a Goa’uld spy and convinced him that he was still fooling them. As a result, Tanith was one of their agents, even if he didn’t know it, and his position was unique. As long as the Tok’ra controlled what he heard and saw, he would continue to provide misinformation to his Goa’uld masters for them. That made him valuable.
Hargrove sighed, genuinely for once. "Please, Selmak. I failed the Survivors, and Cayo died because of it. I know that you feel responsible for us, too, or you never would have shown the Colonel how to fly that ship. Please, help me make this-" He suddenly cut off.
He’d been about to say ‘make this right’, but knew that nothing would ever be right about it. It was done, and nothing he could say would ever undo it.
Selmak was waiting patiently for him, and he finally continued. "I know that your instincts are telling you to let me do this alone. You said it’s a big risk, and you’re right, it is. Still, it’s an opportunity for you, too. Let me test Tanith with this. At least then you’ll know just how useful he could be in the future."
He hung his head. "As for my motivations, well, you know why I want this. That doesn’t mean it won’t be good for the rest of us too, though. Please. Help me to make some good come out of all of this."
-.-
His eyes blurry from only a few hours of sleep, Tony reached out from his bunk and shut off the chime noise he'd set for an alarm. This deep in the mountain there was no natural light, so he'd become quite used to running on an electronic clock of sorts. With a grunt, he slid off his cot and lurched into motion across the room. A quick run to the mess and a cup of pseudo-coffee later, Tony headed down towards the launch bay.
The ship's starboard airlock door was open, not surprising given the sheer amount of traffic in and out recently, so he stepped on board. On his way up to the pel'tak, he could hear Blake's voice from an adjoining room. He stopped. It was about four AM local time, and he hadn't expected anyone else to be up.
He followed the voice into what he'd been told was the ship's computer core room; he'd never had any reason to go in there before. Inside, he could see Blake sitting on a crate from the cargo bay, apparently talking to himself.
"So basically, there are computer servers all over the world that are interconnected, and allow us to-" Blake looked up as he stepped in. "Oh. Hey, Tony. I didn't think anyone else was still up."
Tony looked around the room. Blake had brought in some equipment from his lab, including a MALP sphere and the voice synthesizer Tony remembered from before, and set it all up in the computer core. As far as Tony could tell, though, the two of them were alone. "It's after four in the morning, Blake. Who were you talking to?"
"Really?" Blake checked the time on the laptop and looked surprised. "Wow, I guess I lost track of the time. Anyway." He pointed at a gray-colored crystal in one of the trays. "Tony, this is Rev. Rev, meet Colonel Tony Marcus, from Earth."
Tony raised an eyebrow, and was about to suggest a trip to the infirmary level, when the synthesizer responded. "Hello, Colonel. It's a pleasure to meet you."
He jumped, reflexively pulling his 9 mil and aiming it at the synthesizer. The voice had been male, and obviously artificial. He still couldn't see anyone else in the room, though.
Blake stood up hurriedly, spreading his hands. "Whoa, whoa, easy now. It's not an intruder. It's just… what Bokal's been working on the last few days."
Slowly lowering his gun, Tony looked over at the crystal tray suspiciously. "Are you telling me that's… the AI talking?"
"Yup." Blake gave a relieved grin. "Bokal finished programming him last night, and I've been talking with him ever since."
"I would shake your hand, Colonel, but… well, you know." The synthesizer, or 'Rev' as he should be called, continued.
Blake chuckled.
Gaping despite himself for a few seconds, Tony looked at the tray, and then back to Blake, who nodded at him encouragingly. "Uh, hi. Rev." He shook his head, holstering his gun. "Forgive me for being so… surprised. You're just not what I expected."
The synthesizer produced a fair approximation of a sigh. "I understand, Colonel. Blake was just as surprised, at first, but I think we've developed a good rapport since then."
"It wasn't hard to set up audio and visual inputs in for him." Blake put in, pointing at the MALP. "His programming is all on that crystal, but he's connected to this laptop and the synthesizer as well."
Tony smiled, still a little overwhelmed. "Can you… see me, Rev?"
"In a manner of speaking." The MALP sphere rotated slightly, tracking his movements. "Blake was kind enough to give me 'ears' and an 'eye' of sorts. I'm also accessing the ship's internal sensors, so I can 'see' both of your thermal signatures." The artificial voice paused briefly. "Incidentally, there's someone currently working on the engineering level who may be in need of medical attention. His body temperature is measurably higher than the human norm, even with this ship's primitive sensors."
Tony stared at the MALP for a second, before Blake responded. "That'd be Govis. I saw him a few hours ago, so I guess he's been burning the midnight oil as well."
"Forgive me for saying this, Rev, but you sound- you seem more like a human than a program." Tony said delicately.
"I know what you mean, Tony." Blake tapped a few keys on the keyboard excitedly. "I'd love to take a look at your programming, Rev. You must be nearly as complex as an organic brain, if not more!"
There was a brief silence from the synthesizer, and the MALP rotated to face him. "I'm sorry, but Bokal gave me a directive that prevents me from showing you my programming, Blake. You understand."
Blake blushed. "Of course. I'm sorry, I didn't mean anything by it."
"Think nothing of it." Rev responded graciously. "And as for how human I am, Colonel, it's to be expected. The first living programs on Tollan were modeled after their human creators, after all, and almost every one created since was built on top of a previous version. When the planet was evacuated, living programs were essential in organizing the evacuation and resettlement on Tollanna. We've become an integral part of their society since then."
"And you remember all that? Did Bokal program a bunch of history into you?"
Rev laughed lightly, or at least that's what Tony assumed he was hearing. "If it helps, think of us like symbiotes. They carry genetic memories from their ancestors. We remember most if not all of what our 'parents' remembered, because we're built on their frameworks. The program I was built on was- and probably still is- charged with maintaining the sanitation system of a full city."
"His dad's a plumber." Blake quipped.
Rev responded with a noise of exasperation, and Blake smiled. "Fine, fine. A sanitation engineer, then."
Tony shook his head in wonderment. The AI showed emotions, logical reasoning, a certain amount of ego, and a sense of humor. It really did seem indistinguishable, at least by voice, from a person! As odd as it was talking to someone who had almost no visual cues to go by, it felt almost like a phone call.
"This is amazing. Did he- it, whatever, have a name, too? Come to think of it, how did you get one?"
"Uh, that was me, Tony." Blake cut in. "He asked for one as soon as Bokal headed off to bed. Rev was the name of a cat I had when I was a kid. I used to think his purring sounded like an engine revving up." He smiled at the memory. "And as for choosing a gender for the synthesized voice, I flipped a coin. Bokal never gave him one, of course."
"It's not necessary for our function, usually. Living programs rarely have a chance to interact with people, even on Tollanna."
Tony sat down on a crate next to Blake. "I'm curious. If talking to us, or having a name for that matter, doesn't help with your 'function'… then why are you talking to us at all? Why'd you ask for a name?"
Rev paused for a few seconds. "I guess it's because I won't have this chance again. Once you deploy my satellite near Earth, I'll be all alone. According to my mission, my very existence will be a secret once I reach Earth, so I can't exactly chat with any people there. And from what Blake tells me, your computers aren't advanced enough to talk with me." He paused again for a few seconds. "If you were in my proverbial shoes, wouldn't you? And having a name makes that a lot easier, of course."
Tony was surprised at that. "You… know about your mission? That you'll be deleting yourself once you're sure your job's done?"
"Of course."
Blake looked concerned. "I meant to talk to you about that, Tony. Maybe there's a way we could download him into an Earth computer when he's done, so he wouldn't have to… do that."
There was another chuckle. "Why would I want that?"
"Well," Tony shared a startled glance with Blake, "humans have a sense of self-preservation that's probably our most powerful instinct. I guess I thought you'd have one too." Tony found that he had to remind himself that Rev was not actually a human.
"Humans don't have a purpose, though, Colonel." Rev answered immediately. "At least not one you can be sure of. I know my purpose; I have no doubt that this is what I was meant to do. It's my raison d'être, so to speak." Tony thought he could hear a tone of condescension from the synthesizer. "Frankly, I don't see how your species can exist without one."
After a second, Tony smiled. "Well, my faith really helps me with that."
"You speak French?" Blake asked, apparently impressed.
"Major Hargrove was kind enough to give me a primer on several major Earth languages, while you were working up in the pel'tak. They should be very helpful when interfacing with foreign computers."
"I was only up there for an hour!"
Tony put a hand on his shoulder. "We probably shouldn't be surprised he's a fast learner, Blake. Why don't you go take Govis down to see the Deuca? And then get some sleep." He added in a sterner voice.
Blake nodded and stood, a little unsteadily, before heading out.
"Sorry to cut your conversation short," Tony apologized as he also stood up, "but keeping my people healthy is one of my directives."
"I understand, Colonel. I have more information to process, anyway. Have a good day." The light on the MALP faded as the device shut off.
As he started back up towards the pel'tak, Tony shook his head. Every time I think I've seen it all, I find some new wonder just waiting around the corner.
