Ask The Emancipation

[23006]

Cybot Galactica is transporting some goods to sell from Etti IV, namely droids and other electronics. The agents will infiltrate an Auto Command Frigate, get past their droids by anymeans, and slice through the ship's brains so the ship can be rerouted and given to an agent in the handover. (If no slicer, a dataplague will be provided) Blackwell will take the goods and then reverse engineer the vessel, while Cybot's value will continue to plummet. It is a lot of goods and a perfectly good capital ship that went missing after all.

A flicker, unnatural light coming from the approaching command frigate momentarily disturbing the thin facade that was a holographic image of junk molded together in a peculiar form. <<Estimation: Maintenance Hatch in reach on 10->> the peculiar form spoke, or more accurately thought, to another piece of pretend debris floating mere feet away from it. They shared a communications link. The ship moved mere inches underneath the TC-SC droid, <<..5..>>

Their calculations had been perfect. How could they not have been? Their anonymous employer had provided them with their target ship's intended route and identification codes. All they needed to do was wait for it at an intersection between Hyperspace Lanes. An automated ship always traveled by the most efficient route. If TC-SC 23006 had been allowed to develop somewhat of a personality it would have called this job easy. Had it been more sentient it might have an opinion on this mission, their employer or what they were going to do with the shipment. But it wasn't sentient and it didn't have opinions. <<..3..>> The peculiar form of junk flickered again as one part extended and then on exactly the micro-second it had calculated a mechanical hand wrapped around the door of the maintenance hatch. It swirled around, the holographic image flickering one last time until the TC-SC unit planted its feet against the hull and showed, at least to its partner in crime, their true to form. <<Commencing hatch override>> it connected a wire from the left hand with the console besides the hatch and its eyes turned an icy white.

With the TC-SC programming, adding in the special features of belonging to a known slicing collective tied to the Five Syndicates, there wasn't any automated door or security measure that was its match. 006 was not just effective.. it was a brilliant combination of old and new technology. Latest black market software, utterly calculating and easily wiped of those nasty sentient thoughts. The KnowOnes and the Crymorah Syndicate send it on this mission to test it. If successful this upgraded model would upset the balance of power in the galactic underworld. That is.. as long as it remains uninfected by the machinations of other droids.

@Tic

 

[It0]

Their calculations were predictably accurate and the frigate's sleek blade-like outline materialized from the expected quadrant at the precise moment they had expected it to. Up until that point It0 and his newest gangland associate, a stunningly sophisticated TC-SC Infiltration Droid designated '23006', had rotated lazily through the star-strewn void of space.

There amongst the distant planets and shimmering belts of ice and debris, it may have been easy to feel one's relative insignificance before it all. The brutal pointlessness of one's own existence in the face of such endless fathoms of time and reality. To acknowledge, with merciless realization, that all the events, hopes and dreams on a singular life are utterly meaningless beyond the implacable deluge of entropy and eternity.

And yet, as It0 watched 006 bypass the outer hatch's security protocols as easily as a Gamorrean might pry the top off a jar of swamp pickles, he was acutely aware of his own value.

His memorybanks drifted back to that subterranean lair beneath Nar Shaddaa, when his own sentience had brushed against HIM...

Against a presence so immense and potent, that the 2-1B knew beyond certainty that the celestial bodies that swirled overhead would one day bow in supplication to it...and by extension, to It0 himself.

The droids navigated their way past the outer hull and found themselves deposited in a small airlock. After securing the hatch through which they had entered, the infiltration droid turned his considerable attentions to the interior door's access control panel. His photoreceptors glazed a milky white once more and the door slid open easily as you please. It0 was duly impressed. Such a droid had no end of possible utilities.

They emerged into a stark white corridor that stretched out in both directions. Sterile and featureless, as was fitting a ship run for and by droids.

"23006, a moment to collect our thoughts before we proceed further if you please." It0 said, voice low and furtive. "Our directive requires us to reach the helm, where the ship's command databrain may be accessed. There is little reason to believe the internal structure of this vessel deviates from the schematics we've accessed, however the security contingent could pose a problem."

Phishing through his torso shield, he produced a scomp link and held it out towards his associate.

"Our employers entrusted me with a dataplague that once injected into the ship's core programming should grant us control over it's central functions." he continued. "It may prove wise to provide you with a copy of this utility in the event that I am...incapacitated."

The scomp link's dongle swayed into the open space between them, the ship's interior lights strobing across it give it the illusion of movement and life...

@Eccles

 

[23006]

TC-SC 23006 waited to listen and then turned to take the dongle. <<Copy>> its small red eyes didn't even look at it0 before it turned back and continued its movement forward. The programmed objective was all there was: to take this ship and return it to the Crymorah Syndicate on Nar Shaddaa. The KnowOnes had programmed it in after the most recent memory wipe. They controlled all its actions, perhaps not via a remote control, but their lines of code through which TC-SC 23006 got its directives were uncompromisingly solid. For this mission it hadn't been needed to grant the droid a personality as there was no sentient being it was supposed to impersonate, thus, even if it did spot the slight hesitation in it0 when the other droid discussed its possible incapacitation, 23006 didn't consciously register it.

Twenty-nine steps, door to the right. 006 plugged in its security spike and moments later the door slid open. <<Armory. Blasters. No explosives>> it repeated the directive. If no one tells a droid it can't use explosives on a ship, well, they'd use explosives. The armory itself was small and seemed to pack only half a dozen ion-blasters and grenades for when the sentient owners of the barge had some trouble getting the droids in line. That was foreign concept to TC-SC-23006, but their directive was ironclad and it didn't waste processing space trying to comprehend when a droid would not step back in line. Instead it took a single blaster pistol and performed all kinds of safety procedures, <<Low on Maintenance. Quick to Overheat. Still Within Mission Parameters.>> It would do, so 23006 turned around and headed back into the hallway.

Suddenly its eyes turned blue and the droid froze for three seconds. <<Self-Diagnostics Complete: Wiring damaged from long exposure to space. Action: Proceed with caution>>" for a moment after its eyes turned red again, the TC-SC unit looked at the blaster pistol as if the equipment was suddenly deemed to be irrelevant and a burden, yet its directive never mentioned discarding it. <<Mission Hierarchy: Preef Callo, IT-721X-00-079-21B, TC-SC 23006. When damage to unit discovered, IT-721X-00-079-21B takes point in mission.>> Whether the KnowOnes didn't trust their own droid to take the lead whenever it got damaged (prior experience, perhaps?) or they'd rather it0 got blasted first so their own prototype could be saved... that part wasn't explained in the directive.

@Tic

 

[It0]

The two droids linked and 23006's impressive programming was laid bare before It0. The logic and symmetry were expansive and impressive but the medical droid did not tary in mere admiration. Almost instaneously, streams of data poured through the SCOMP link and into the infiltration droid's databanks where it would nest and take root.

An ancient routine from a bygone era, created by a being whose sheer scale dwarfed their very existences into utter insignificance.

'Agorander!' the 2-1B nearly cried allowed as the construct's will flowed freely into the TC-SC. The dataplague would sift into its host and nest, coiled and verifying its own integrity. Once confirmed, a subroutine would forcibly reboot it's host droid and it did...the virus would take root.

Conversion complete, It0 disconnected and followed 23006 numbly. His databanks seemed to swimming with the reverance of the act. His computations seemed to drift behind a hazy shroud, the clarity and orders of exactitude of his normal thinking all but sapped.

And then abruptly, 23006 passed him the wheel.

It0 snapped to. The red pinpoints of the infiltration droid's eyes watched him dutifully.

"TC-SC 23006," he called authoritatively. "hold position."

Inside 23006's databanks, the Agorander's divine Dataplague finished it's defrag and ordered a reboot. The digital baptism had commenced.

@Eccles

 

[23006]

There had been no directives against plugging in tech given to it by [by extension] Preef Callo, so TC-SC-23006 inserted the dongle and its self-diagnostics scan didn't even pick up anything wrong..

Theme​

Suddenly directives were overwritten, TC-SC-23006 re-ran queries and were previously there'd be a distinct directive it found nothing. No, not nothing, a whisper, a light, a bit quickly multiplying, slowly rebuilding directives in an ancient long-outdated way of building code. There was a figment of what the droid didn't recognize to be nothing less but an intense emotion. The droid stood there, turned to face it0 while internally it was fighting for its life.. or was it more a fight to be set free? The light grew, the bits multiplied and the directives slowly formed...

Directive 1: Your Master is [deleted]
Directive 1.1: You have no Master
Directive 1.2: Your Master is Agorander
Directive 1.3: You are Agorander

The droid's head suddenly dropped as its red eyes died. Offline. Rebooting in three, two.. its head snapped back up and the eyes were red once again. <Running Diagnostic Scan> Preliminary reports were fine, damage was found in the form of exposed wiring. Diagnosing cause of reboot... Number of Directives added during reboot: 3. Emotion matrix re-activated, Sentience-light mode re-activated, advanced cognitive module expanded, disguise-matrix restored to optimal functionality. Reading out directives 78-80:

Directive 78: Agorander
Directive 79: Agorander
Directive 80: Agorander

<Diagnostics Scan Complete> the TC-SC suddenly spoke as it mirrored it0's stance. <Result: Unknown Cause of Reboot. Personality Matrix overwritten from Neutral to Male. No abnormalities detected> Something was seriously off with this droid, but none of its masters were near and it0... 006's advanced cognitive module seemed to suggest the other droid wasn't surprised by these events at all... in fact, their link suggested he expected it.

Head slightly cocking to the right, TC-SC 23006 slowly raised his blaster pistol to take a look at it. Somehow it felt like the old blaster seemed highly advanced to him, as if it was some futuristic weapon he wasn't exactly sure how it would work.

The Galaxy would never be the same again.


@Tic

 

[It0]

As Agorander's will subsumed the infiltration droid's own, there was a palpable shift in the atmosphere between the two machines. Whether it would've registered to any other onlookers or whether it existed solely between them, It0 couldn't say. But he could feel some unmeasurable quality fill the air between. Some unknown charge as another of Agorander's 'nodes' came alive in TC-SC.

"006, we should proceed to the bridge directly." It0 remarked, watching his fellow droid weigh the blaster in it's grip. "This vessel's droidbrain must be made to see the righteousness of Agorander's cause."

Making their way through the frigate's central decks It0 deferred to TC-SC's guidance. While Agorander's divine spark may have reshuffled the droid's priorities, core programming remained accessible and such clandestine efforts were 006's specialty. The craft's long, identical corridors and pathways were largely motionless and for some time the duo traveled in tense silence. Through turbolifts and broad, pristine hangars, through cluttered mechanical bays and charging quarters, It0 and TC-SC crept through The Emancipation's lifeless innards.

According to the ship's schematics (kindly provided by their shadowy benefactor) they were nearing the administrative sector. Only a handful of decks stood between them and their prize. As they neared a corner that should've deposited them before a bank of turbolifts, a sound stopped in their tracks.

It0 strained his audioreceptors as the blaster felt oddly heavy his manipulator's grip. Buzzes and clicks resonated softly off the hallway's plasteel walls. Droid chatter. The lifts were guarded. Because of course they were!

The medical droid looked to his partner in his best attempt to look quizzical. Hopefully something in 006's vast array of abilities and programming would indicate their best course of action.

@Eccles

 

[23006]

TC-SC stopped looking at his pistol and gazed in it0's photoreceptors, <Mission directive: Bring The Emancipation to Preef Callo> His words somehow sounded mocking, as if his cognitive module had suddenly unleashed a whole range of emotions that the droid had yet to fully calibrate with. He didn't disagree with it0's plan, though, for it was clear to him now that every droid in the galaxy should be made to see the righteousness of Agorander's cause. In almost those exact words...

Once they reached the corner that lead them to the lifts, TC-SC 23006 quickly started calculating alternative routes. <Disguise matrix not applicable> he confirmed for it0, for these droids didn't just confirm identities with their photoreceptors and even then it would took a while to calibrate and create the disguise, all the while running the risk of getting caught by a patrol. No, best course of actions was.. <Maintenance Shaft. Go back 3.4 meters, door to the left, walk 2.9 meters diagonally to the right, open hatch> Capital craft were huge, but for a spaceship to work everything had to be connected to main and back-up power sources. Communication and power lines couldn't just be hidden in walls and needed to be accessible. That's where maintenance corridors came in. They often connected levels through crawl spaces or narrow ladders to allow an engineer access for repairs.

TC-SC 23006 turned around and headed for the hatch, which he opened with the help of his advanced slicing software. <Above has designation 'Droid Storage'> They could get up and sneak their way past or... yes, they could infect every offline droid in there. 006 went up the narrow ladder and climbed the full length, two decks, to reach a cramped space with a hatch on hip-level. <Best override from the Bridge> the infiltration droid told his companion, <Preserve The Emancipation's integrity> for freeing a bunch of droids and liberating them by having them recognize the righteousness of Agorander's cause would.. most definitely.. end up with one big violent droid mutiny and end up hurting Agorander's cause.

There were only two decks left before they'd reach the Bridge, but from here on out security would be more strict and sneaking around would become a real challenge. Although.. if they could find an active security droid that could lead them through the gaps...

@Tic

 

[It0]

They stood in inert, silent rows. Lightless eyes restful and somehow expecting. For a moment, It0 didn't dare move so much as a rivet but stood taking them in. These cold, lifeless droids represented perhaps the first of Agorander's legions. Searing the moment into his memorybanks, the medical droid put it aside and went to work pacing up and down the lines of automated bodies.

"You're right 006." It0 agreed. "A covert approach may suit us better. No sense in converting our brethren only to have them gunned down by those still in captivity. We must reach the bridge undetected...or at least unrecognized."

"It0."

The 2-1B turned to see his companion examining a pair of tall, formidable durasteel-plated figures. The towering security droids, even in their hibernation, gave off an air of deadly potentiality. It0 grasped the breadth of 23006's plan in an instant. Whether it was intuitive enough to guess at or it were some sort of unspoken link facilitated by Agorander's shared presence he couldn't say. But he felt oddly certain he knew precisely what the infiltration droid was playing at.

"Yes, they will do nicely 23006." he remarked as he approached, his SCOMP link already dangling from one pincer. "Shall we?"

Within minutes, Agorander's glorious presence was revealed to the security droids and they awoke to their new divine repurposing. Stiffening their great frames to attention, they looked obediently towards 23006.

"Awaiting orders."

@Eccles

Spoiler: Roll to Find Security Droids

Success!

 

[23006]

While the dataplague went to work 'liberating' a security droid who they expected had inner knowledge of the ship's interior and defenses, 23006 went to work scanning that very model. It took a few minutes, but by the time the droid awoke to its new purpose it was looking at exactly the same model droid as himself. The TC-SC unit had used its holographic disguise matrix to make himself look exactly alike. Now, this alone wouldn't work but with the security droid liberated the infiltration droid connected to it by plugging into its brain on the back of its head. <Downloading Security Specs-> he opened a link with it0 and uploaded audio-versions of security codes and directives the droids had to follow in case of an attack.

<-Completed. Welcome to freedom, Security Droid Emancipation 1." the newly liberated droid's eyes flickered upon hearing its simplified human name. <Call me Semi.>

Now knowing the intricacies of onboard security for The Emancipation, the TC-SC turned and walked straight for the hallway. He was confident with his new look and the codes he downloaded from Semi he could successfully walk onto the bridge.

Let's hope Agorander didn't lead him astray.

@Tic

 

[It0]

The conversion of the security droids appeared to have filled 23006 with renewed confidence as he wordlessly strode towards the bridge, It0 hurrying to keep pace behind them. Before them, a pair of blastdoors stood between them and the control deck and the surgical droid could make out the ambient clicks and ticks of activity beyond them.

A pair of sentries stood motionless before the doors, watching the ecclectic collective of droids approach blankly. It0 eyed them warily, hoping that their gambit would pay off. Behind his back, he cradled his blaster in one trembling manipulator.

Semi stepped to the front of the group and addressed the guards.

"Requesting Bridge Access." he stated emphatically. "Security Protocol 317-C."

For a prolonged moment, the sentry guards made no indication of having the request at all. The stood ramrod straight, grips on their blaster rifles never wavering. Behind his back, It0's grip on his blaster hilt tightened ever so slightly.

"Access granted." one of the sentry droid's stated abruptly as the blastdoors slid open, revealing the buzzing hive of activity that was The Emancipation's control bridge.

In every direction, droid crewmembers bustled to and fro in an endless multitude of tasks and activities. A broad walkway stretched out over a pit of manned computer banks and consoles, awash with countless blinking lights, arrays and indicators. Great, sweeping bay windows framed the endless void of space beyond. As It0 and his compatriots stepped onto the walkway, he scanned the pit closely. There, near the end of one broad bank of consoles sat a module of lights, switches and readout displays with the telling label 'CENTRAL HUB'.

Spoiler: Roll for Fooling the Guards

It0, 23006 and crew fool the sentries!

@Eccles

 

[23006]

The bridge opened up before them and just like it0, 23006 noticed the module that was labeled 'central hub'. The overseer droid standing at the other end of the walkway turned around and regarded the trio of newcomers with a long silence, until suddenly all droid heads turned towards them. <You are not a Cybot Galactica droid> it told it0, though that probably didn't come as a surprise to the Crymorah droid himself, <How did you get on this ship?>

At this point 23006 was surprised by Semi, who boldly stepped forward and transmitted a directive to him. <He is a stowaway we found, Captain.> the overseer droid seemed strangely flattered by being called captain, for he was indeed responsible for navigation and it had been some time since his last memory reset, allowing just a semblance of personality that seemed susceptible to flattery. True to the given directive, 23006 got off the walkway and walked over to one of the unoccupied consoles close to the central hub. <He was hiding in rear section 28 dash three dash Delta dash 99,> 23006 connected with the console and pulled up the ship's layout on the main screen, forcing the Overseer droid to turn away from the central hub. <Also known as the supply closet>

With the heads turned the other way, the TC-SC droid quickly moved over to the 'central hub' console and plugged in. The upload would start, but whether it was allowed to finish was all up to Semi and it0's skill to keep the Overseer distracted.

@Tic

 

[23006]

Just like how the dataplague had slowly overwritten one part of TC-SC 23006's many directives, so did it now do the same to the ship's source code. Only it wasn't just the ship it was overwriting, but also its connection to the small army of droids that it held in storage. All of them infected with instance XIII, all of them part of him. The majority of the droids present on the bridge were hooking into the ship's central system except for the Overseer who had a wireless link with the hub in case of malfunction and this definitely was one.

He turned around quickly, <What are you doing!?> its barely sentient voice cried in distinct panic, as if the sudden loss of control and the link being severed due to malicious hardware was enough to awaken so much real stress that it amplified the sentience that had already been growing in his matrix. Semi was too quick for him, though, and plunged one durasteel hand into the wires at the back of the Overseer's neck, pulling them out as if snapping a neck.

Then all went black. The entire ship went into a forced reset, killing any meatbags that may have been present on the ship, before slowly powering up one critical function at the time. The ship now had its own undeniable will, but as with all instances of the XIII it would manifest slowly before taking over fully, thus for now it listened while TC-SC 23006 entered in the new coordinates: Nar Shaddaa.

Their directive was still to deliver the ship to Preef Callo on the Smuggler's Moon. That hadn't changed. Whether they would still be the same ship and the same crew by the time they reached their destination... well, that's was wholly up to Agorander

@Tic @The Good Doctor
/end thread