From the Ashes - Edited 11-8-2018

I spent another few days isolated in my cabin, a prisoner in all but name. It took some time until I was given access to a terminal, unofficially of course. It was delivered hidden under my lunch one day. Seriously under my lunch like a shitty prison break vid. That was when I noticed that my guards were familiar.

Corporal Lebowski, one of the guys who was supposed to be on my fire team before this mess began, and he was accompanied by who I knew in the game as Corporal Watson but was, in fact, a Private First Class. They both nodded to me, saying nothing. After my hatch had been sealed, I set my lunch aside and immediately accessed the tablet. There was a recording that opened immediately when I powered it on, my biometrics required for boot.

“Jax,” the voice of Wachowski said against the backdrop of the old Terran Space Fleet flag, “you have been missing and isolated since the conference last month. We were able to find that they had you in medical for most of that time.” A month was a lot longer than what I had tracked in my timekeeping.

“As you suggested, almost immediately after you passed out, I plugged my terminal into your jack, and we received a lot of interesting information. One of the items was a software patch for the Neurals, which was listed as covering security items. It caused the terminal to temporarily disconnect from the ship net.”

“After reviewing the data on the patch, we discovered that due to similar Operating Systems, the patch worked very similarly on the terminals as it would when installing into a Neural. Soon I was able to discover the security holes that were present in the terminals and reconnected it to the ship net. After altering the permissions and validating the hidden partitions storing the data you sent out, of course.”

“With this information, a few of the techs that like to buck the system developed a security interface that can be installed as part of the patch, setting permissions by default. All of the local Engineers now have all installed the patch, and we have noticed that many of the people on the ship have discrepancies in their memories.”

“Having been in the game as long as we had been, over three years would have passed in the real world. Some, like the Captain, seem to only recall six months of time. Other discrepancies have also been noticed.” There was a long pause from an apparent edit in the recording. “A sort of ‘resistance’ movement has been started. Those that have been patched, of course, make up the sum of the members. Surprisingly, about a hundred of our Marines were found to be curious as to your status, and those that are guarding you have all been patched as well.”

“All tablets used by Engineers, at this time, are also patched. We are currently working on a plan to secure the Captain, but this is something that would be noticed by both Rasputin and Overlord. We also need to determine if Overlord is or if Rasputin is in charge, and if they are using this as a control tactic, or what the situation really is. Several of the AI programmers are also trying to get access to the source code to see where this behavior came from.”

They were looking for a way to get me out of isolation and back to everyone, the game included. That made my warm and fuzzies go haywire. Maybe it was just Wachowskis voice giving me warm and fuzzies.

“We also got a ton of information on the crystals,” Wachowski’s voice continued. “Including the construction method. We can use the construction techniques to fabricate more memory and storage for Rasputin and the other AIs. We need to use some zero-G construction techniques for them, but those were also laid out for us. We think that we can trap Rasputin and Yama into the new systems, AFTER patching them, so that any outside interference can be isolated. There were some notes in the data you provided on this. Thank you for that.” Well, that thanks would have to go to Observer, but I’d be more than happy to act as a proxy.

“The aviation engineers also wanted us to pass on their thanks for the data we received some of the ship modifications that you sent. I don’t know where you found the time for all of this. Before Medical got you out of the conference rooms, there was easily thirty Zettabytes transferred. We haven’t even gone through a thousandth of what was transferred.”

“This terminal was created specifically for you, fully voice activated, also there is a retractable data port connector so that you can input data through your Neural. Keep it hidden as we don’t know who else is being affected by whatever is happening.” Wachowski let out a sigh before finishing up.

“The last thing to tell you is that all of the external view screens have been powered off, or only show a single static image. One of the CBs on board identified it as being one of the last images of the Sol system that would have been taken. We were able to determine this thanks to a lot of footwork. So, as of current, we have no way of locating our current whereabouts. We hope to hear back from you soon, but don’t send anything to us. We’ll have to contact you.”

The screen on the terminal then rebooted, this time, logging in directly with no video playing. I found the data jack and immediately plugged in, first scanning the system. Like Wachowski had said, this tablet had the patch applied. The hidden partition was there, clear as day, with the software running in my Neurals.

Observer, please verify that this has been patched, so the partition is hidden from the ship AI. I thought towards my companion. I could feel it scan and validate the terminal.

It is clear. Was the response. Good enough for me.

I started to back up the data that Observer had knifed into my skull. I decided to start with the data on cybernetic implants. Seeing as how I was in need, they were on my mind. This led me down the rabbit hole. Construction techniques, materials, fabrication methods for different materials and elements, the science behind them and so on. Before I knew it, there was a knock on the hatch of my room, I unplugged the terminal and hid it under my pillow, just in time for the hatch to open and my evening meal delivered. Once they left, I continued. It was much easier to sort the data this way because my brain needed to see the data to organize it easier.

Several days later, a pair of Marines loaded me into a wheelchair to take me to the head for my daily needs. The Marines handed me a shower kit that was unusually heavy but said nothing. They then took me to the far end of the showers, where I used the handholds to pull myself up and into the shower stall. Upon entering my breath caught. A spare arm and leg sat on the shower seat that had been installed for my use. I hopped my way over to the bench, holding onto the railing, and eased my way down. I untucked the shower kit from under my arm and opened it up. There was a note and all the tools I would need to connect the cybernetics. I quickly started working, leaving the note for last.

Attaching the arm proved to be more challenging than I thought it would be. I ended up having to wedge it between my body and the stall, then grab the tools and get to work, all while applying pressure. Attaching the leg was simple, now that I had two arms.

“Jax, we have decided to move. More information has come through, and we have determined where the problems all began. The p-way cameras have been disabled for your trek back to your quarters. Plug the data chip into your terminal for more information.”

I finished reading the note, then showered, then walked out of the stall.

“Ma’am, we were starting to get worried you weren’t going to act.” The PFC that had been my morning escort stated. This was the one who had handed me the shower caddy.

“No offense Marine, but I prefer to wash my own ass,” I said, feeling better than I had the last few days. I turned to head towards the hatch.

“Ma’am,” the other Marine, a Lance Corporal interrupted, “don’t you want the rest of your toys?”

That caught my attention. I turned and saw the Lance Corporal pulling up the seat of my wheelchair. A full uniform with my old rank still on the collar. The silver bar felt like home. I also noted that my name was also on the uniform, along with my former Marine Rate. I hadn’t laid my eyes on this uniform since a year before we deployed. I had given it up and became Navy because there were more opportunities for a Navy engineer than there were for a Combat Engineer. The next piece of kit was a modified ship suit, based off my modified ships suit from in game.

I quickly shed the ship suit I had been wearing and put it, and my old Marine uniform on over it. When I was finished, I noticed that the Marines had also acquired a utility belt with attachments for engineering kit (provided after putting on the belt), pistol holster (empty), and mono-blade (provided) sheath.

We double-timed back to my quarters where we were met by Staff Sergeant Janssens and Corporal Lebowski. I paused upon seeing them, gripping for my nonexistent sidearm. Janssens laughed when he saw this.

“Looking for this?” He had a spare sidearm held out in front of him.

I approached, grabbed the sidearm, cleared the weapon and verified load, then primed it and flipped on the safety, and finally secured and holstered it. I entered my quarters, and plugged the terminal into my Neurals, inserting the data chip into the terminal. There was another vid, from Li this time. Also, it was a full video, not just a backdrop of the old TSF insignia.

“Jax, I hope this message finds you well. I have gathered a few techs, and we’re meeting in the Engine Room where this all started. We hope to see you soon.” Quick and to the point.

“Joining me, Marines?” I asked, turning around.

“Fuck yes, Ma’am. Also, it’s good to see you in a real uniform again.” Janssens said. I think he was grinning larger than when I had upgraded his battle rifle in the game.

“It’s also nice to have an enemy, even if we can’t do anything about it directly, Ma’am.” Corporal Lebowski stated.

“We’d join you, Ma’am, but we’re expected elsewhere. Don’t want to raise attention just yet.” The Lance Corporal that was my escort this morning stated. The fourth Marine nodding. We separated, and I headed back to where I was first blown up at, accompanied by Janssens and Lebowski.

Walking into the DOWN-3-STARBOARD compartment, I noted Lt. Col Li, PO-1 Wachowski, PO2- and PO-3 Suarez, and another two Engineers I was not directly familiar with.

“Sir!” I said, saluting Colonel Li.

“As you were Jax, no formalities today. I’m glad to see you in uniform, though Marine colors?” He raised an eyebrow in question to Janssens.

“She IS one of ours, sir. I took the liberty of reproducing her old uniform.” Janssens replied, pride in his voice.

“No pissing matches, guys. We’re on the same team, right?” I jumped in, not waiting for Li to respond. “So, why here, what do we have, and what are we going to do about it?” I asked, looking at everyone. One of the two unfamiliar engineers responded.

“Ma’am,” a Marine private with the name “Yavuz,” said. I noticed his Materialworker insignia on his collar. “We are here to first, let you know you haven’t been forgotten. Also, thank you for my freedom, I hadn’t realized I was even a puppet.”

I wasn’t aware I had even helped with that. Then I remembered some of the side effects of the original Neurals.

“Wasn’t me, Private, I just happened to be the messenger,” I replied, feeling that I should be completely honest with everyone. “Who wants an ugly dose of truth?” I asked, making sure to look everyone in the eye after asking. No one spoke up against, though more than one person fidgeted a bit. I didn’t blame them.

“Here’s what I have been made aware of. How much of it is true has yet to be determined, however, the openness of information provided by this source is more than we have been given by others.” I took a deep breath.

“What I know is that there are creatures here, aliens obviously, that are at war with each other. One faction was trying to help a species they were aware of. That species was allied with others. What happened was the two or more species took control of the factions’ fleet by use of a Trojan Horse. Those are the cigar-shaped vessels out there that in-game are referred to as ‘Escort.’ This faction sent representatives through an Einstein-Rosen-Diamandis Bridge, also called a wormhole for those that aren’t science heavy.

This representative, or these representatives, I am still unsure of the number that came through, contacted Overlord.” I took a moment to see if there were any questions before continuing.

“The count of ships that were for entering the wormhole was eight. Eight of twenty. Rasputin and Yama were one of them that came through. They had decided to get tech and knowledge at almost any cost. The Escort ship in the game is a representation of the Escort ships here in the real. The faction that had originally made them wants to reclaim them. The races that have taken control of them want to obviously keep them, and they want to get a hold of anything else that can give them an edge against anyone and everyone else.”

“With discovering this information, thanks to the Neural Ghost I refer to as Observer, several serious flaws in the security of our Neurals also made themselves known. I believe these flaws may have been designed as a part of the package.”

“The security flaws allow for the AI to do as much as taking control of an individual. I saw this recently with the Captain when he visited me in my quarters. Another sign is that there are altered memories. The captain was unable to recall the Escort ships, visiting me in medical after I was blown up, or several other facts. The patch helps to fix what I am thinking of calling the ‘puppet’ protocol. More to the point, Observer has allowed us to have, for free, additional data. This includes the data on the crystals.”

“I want to use them and build out some new AI, fully secured and patched, but I don’t think there will be time.” The last I said as a statement but raised an eyebrow to the last of the Engineers in the compartment. An AI Engineer named Asimov.

From the Ashes - Original

I spent another few days isolated in my cabin. A prisoner in all but name. It took some time until I was given access to a terminal, unofficially of course. It was delivered hidden under my lunch one day. Seriously under my lunch like a shitty prison break vid. That was when I noticed that my guards were familiar.

Corporal Lebowski, one of the guys who was supposed to be on my fire team before this mess began, and he was accompanied by who I knew in game as Corporal Watson but was in fact a Private First Class. They both nodded to me, saying nothing. After my hatch had been sealed I set my lunch aside and immediately accessed the tablet. There was a recording that opened immediately when I powered it on, my biometrics required for boot.

“Jax,” the voice of Wachowski said against the backdrop of the old Terran Space Fleet flag, “you have been missing and isolated since the conference last month. We were able to find that they had you in medical for most of that time.” A month was a lot longer than what I had tracked in my time keeping.

“As you suggested, almost immediately after you passed out I plugged my terminal into your jack, and we received a lot of interesting information. One of the items was a software patch for Neurals which was listed as covering security items. It caused the terminal to temporarily disconnect from the ship net.”

“After reviewing the data on the patch, we discovered that due to similar Operating Systems, the patch worked very similarly on the terminals as it would when installed into a Neural. Soon I was able to discover the security holes that were present in the terminals and reconnected it to the ship net. After altering the permissions and validating the hidden partitions storing the data you sent out, of course.”

“With this information, a few of the techs that like to buck the system developed a security interface that can be installed as part of the patch, setting permissions by default. All of the local Engineers now have all installed the patch and we have noticed that many of the people on the ship have discrepancies in their memories.”

“Having been in game as long as we had been, over three years would have passed in the real world. Some, like the Captain, seem to only recall six months of time. Other discrepancies have also been noticed.” There was a long pause from an apparent edit in the recording. “A sort of ‘resistance’ movement has been started. Those that have been patched, of course, make up the sum of the members. Surprisingly, about a hundred of our Marines were found to be curious as to your status, and those that are guarding you have all been patched as well.”

“All tablets used by Engineers, at this time, are also patched. We are currently working on a plan to secure the Captain, but this is something that would be noticed by both Rasputin and Overlord. We also need to determine if Overlord is or if Rasputin is in charge, and if they are using this as a control tactic, or what the situation really is. Several of the AI programmers are also trying to get access to the source code to see where this behavior came from.”

They were looking for a way to get me out of isolation and back to everyone, game included. That made my warm and fuzzies go haywire. Maybe it was just Wachowskis voice giving me warm and fuzzies.

“We also got a ton of information on the crystals,” Wachowski’s voice continued. “Including the construction method. We can use the construction techniques to fabricate more memory and storage for Rasputin and the other AIs. We need use some zero-G construction techniques for them, but those were also laid out for us. We think that we can trap Rasputin and Yama into the new systems, AFTER patching them, so that any outside interference can be isolated. There were some notes in the data you provided on this. Thank you for that.” Well that thanks would have to go to Observer, but I’d be more than happy to act as proxy.

“The aviation engineers also wanted us to pass on their thanks for the data we received some of the ship modifications that you sent. I don’t know where you found the time for all of this. Before Medical got you out of the conference rooms there was easily thirty Zettabytes transferred. We haven’t even gone through a thousandth of what was transferred.”

“This terminal was created specifically for you, fully voice activated, also there is a retractable data port connector so that you can input data through your Neural. Keep it hidden as we don’t know who else is being affected by whatever is happening.” Wachowski let out a large sigh before finishing up.

“The last thing to tell you is that all of the external view screens have been powered off, or only show a single static image. One of the CBs on board identified it as being one of the last images of the Sol system that would have been taken. We were able to determine this thanks to a lot of footwork. So, as of current, we have no way of locating our current whereabouts. We hope to hear back from you soon, but don’t send anything to us. We’ll have to contact you.”

The screen on the terminal then rebooted, this time, logging in directly with no video playing. I found the data jack and immediately plugged in, first scanning the system. Like Wachowski had said, this tablet had the patch applied. The hidden partition was there, clear as day, with the software running in my neural.

Observer, please verify that this has been patched so the partition is hidden from the ship AI. I thought towards my companion. I could feel it scan and validate the terminal.

It is clear. Was the response. Good enough for me.

I started to back up the data that Observer had knifed into my skull. I decided to start with the data on cybernetic implants. Seeing as how I was in need, they were on my mind. This led me down the rabbit hole. Construction techniques, materials, fabrication methods for the materials, the science behind them and so on. Before I knew it, there was a knock on the hatch of my room, I unplugged the terminal and hid it under my pillow, just in time for the hatch to open and my evening meal delivered. Once they left, I continued. This was much easier to sort the data this way thanks to my brain needing to see the data to organize it easier.

Several days later, a pair of Marines loaded me into a wheelchair to take me to the head for my daily needs. The Marines handed me a shower kit that was particularly heavy but said nothing. They then took me to the far end of the showers, where I used the hand holds to pull myself up and into the shower stall. Upon entering my breath caught. There was an arm and leg on the shower seat that had been installed for my use. I hopped my way over to the seat, holding onto the railing, and eased my way down. I untucked the shower kit from under my arm and opened it up. There was a note and all the tools I would need to connect these cybernetics. I quickly started working, leaving the note for last.

Attaching the arm proved to be more challenging than I thought it would be. I ended up having to wedge it between my body and the stall, then grab the tools and get to work, all while applying pressure. The leg was easy, now that I had two arms.

“Jax, we have decided to move. More information has come through and we have determined where the problems all began. The p-way cameras have been disabled for your trek back to your quarters. Plug the data chip into your terminal for more information.”

I finished reading the note, then showered, then walked out of the stall.

“Ma’am, we were starting to get worried you weren’t going to act.” The PFC that had been my morning escort stated. This was the one who had handed me the shower caddy.

“No offense Marine, but I prefer to wash my own ass.” I said, feeling better than I had the last few days. I turned to head towards the hatch.

“Ma’am,” the other Marine, a Lance Corporal interrupted, “don’t you want the rest of your toys?”

That caught my attention. I turned and saw the Lance Corporal pulling up the seat of my wheelchair. A full uniform with my old rank still on the collar. The two brass bars felt like home. I also noted that my name was also on uniform, along with my Marine Rate. I hadn’t laid my eyes on this uniform since a year before we deployed. I had effectively given it up and become Navy because there were more opportunities for a Navy engineer than there were for a Combat Engineer. The next piece of kit was a modified ship suit, based off my modified ships suit from in game.

I quickly shed the ship suit I had been wearing, and put it, and my old Marine uniform on over it. When I was finished, I noticed that the Marines had also acquired a utility belt with attachments for engineering kit (provided after putting on the belt), pistol holster (empty), and mono-blade (provided) sheath.

We double timed back to my quarters where we were met by Staff Sergeant Janssens and Corporal Lebowski. I paused upon seeing them, gripping for my nonexistent side arm. Janssens laughed when he saw this.

“Looking for this?” He had a spare side arm held out in front of him.

I approached, grabbed the side arm, cleared the weapon and verified load, then primed it and flipped on the safety, and finally secured and holstered it. I entered my quarters, and plugged the terminal into my neural, inserting the data chip into the terminal. There was another vid, from Li this time. Also, it was a full video, not just a backdrop of the old TSF insignia.

“Jax, I hope this message finds you well. I have gathered a few techs and we’re meeting in the Engine Room where this all started. We hope to see you soon.” Quick and to the point.

“Joining me, Marines?” I asked, turning around.

“Fuck yes, Ma’am. Also, it’s good to see you in a real uniform again.” Janssens said. I think he was grinning larger than when I had upgraded is battle rifle in game.

“It’s also nice to have an enemy, even if we can’t do anything about it directly, Ma’am.” Corporal Lebowski stated.

“We’d join you, Ma’am, but we’re expected elsewhere. Don’t want to raise attention just yet.” The Lance Corporal that was my escort this morning stated. The fourth Marine nodding. We separated, and I headed back to where I was first blown up at, accompanied by Janssens and Lebowski.

Walking into the DOWN-3-STARBOARD compartment, I noted Lt. Col Li, PO-1 Wachowski, PO2- and PO-3 Suarez, and another two Engineers I was not directly familiar with.

“Sir!” I said, saluting Colonel Li.

“As you were Jax, no formalities today. I’m glad to see you in uniform, though Marine colors?” He raised an eyebrow in question to Janssens.

“She IS one of ours, sir. I took the liberty of reproducing her old uniform.” Janssens replied, pride in his voice.

“No pissing matches, guys. We’re on the same team, right?” I jumped in, not waiting for Li to respond. “So, why here, what do we have, and what are we going to do about it?” I asked, looking at everyone. One of the two unfamiliar engineers responded.

“Ma’am,” a Marine private with the name “Yavuz” said. I noticed his Materialworker insignia on his collar. “We are here to first, let you know you haven’t been forgotten. Also, thank you for my freedom, I hadn’t realized I was even a puppet.”

I wasn’t aware I had even helped with that. Then I remembered some of the side effects of the original Neurals.

“Wasn’t me, Private, I just happened to be the messenger.” I replied, feeling that I should be completely honest with everyone. “Who wants an ugly dose of truth?” I asked, making sure to look everyone in the eye after asking. No one spoke up against, though more than one person fidgeted a bit. I didn’t blame them.

“Here’s what I have been made aware of. How much of it is true has yet to be determined, however, the openness of information provided by this source is more that we have been given compared to the others.” I took a deep breath.

“What I know is that there are creatures here, aliens obviously, that are at war with each other. One faction was trying to help a species they were aware of. That species was allied with others. What happened was the two or more species took control of the factions’ fleet by use of a Trojan Horse. Those are the cigar shaped vessels out there that in game are referred to as ‘Escort’. This faction sent representatives through an Einstein-Rosen-Diamandis Bridge, also called a wormhole for those that aren’t science heavy.

This representative, or these representatives, I am still unsure of the number that came through, contacted Overlord.” I took a moment to see if there were any questions before continuing.

“The count of ships that were for entering the wormhole was eight. Eight of twenty. Rasputin and Yama were one of them that came through. They had decided to get tech and knowledge at almost any cost. The Escort ship in game is a representation of the Escort ships here in the real. The faction that had originally made them wants to reclaim them. The races that have taken control of them want to obviously keep them, and they want to get a hold of anything else that can give them an edge against anyone and everyone else.”

“With discovering this information, thanks to the Neural Ghost I refer to as Observer, several serious flaws in the security of our Neurals also made themselves known. I believe these flaws may have been designed as a part of the package.”

“The security flaws allow for the AI to do as much as take control of an individual. I saw this recently with the Captain when he visited me in my quarters. Another sign is that there are altered memories. The captain was unable to recall the Escort ships, visiting me in medical after I was blown up, or several other facts. The patch helps to fix what I am thinking of calling the ‘puppet’ protocol. More to the point, Observer has allowed us to have, for free, additional data. This includes the data on the crystals.”

“I want to use them and build out some new AI, fully secured and patched, but I don’t think there will be time.” The last I said as a statement but raised an eyebrow to the last of the Engineers in the compartment. An AI Engineer named Asimov.