Hermes Ch. 08

~~~

Sorry for the long wait.

I was on vacation and also had some other things to attend to.

~~~

The next morning was nothing special. I did my usual routine, and once I was done met with Nea. She waited patiently beside my room and kept me company while I was heading for breakfast. Her bot was still impressive, and her avatar's body was as beautiful as the day before. Her physical presence gave me a feeling of company. Similar to how it felt when Pyra was here.

"So this bot," I said, between two bites of my breakfast, "It looks like you just bolted some monitors to the sides, or did you change anything else?"

"I added a module for the video output, but most of it is a standard service bot. However, the monitors do obstruct the sensors. Thankfully I can use the cameras on the ceiling to navigate, and if I need the internal sensors, I can lower the monitors." She said.

I watched as each monitor lowered a good amount until they nearly hit the floor. With the Monitors down, the sensor array on top of the bot was exposed.

"Clever. Yesterday, you also talked about an android. What's up with that?" I asked.

"Yes, my idea is to use the basic frame of a service bot, but instead of the wheels or belts, I would add a bipedal base. But I'm not sure how it would work as these bots were not designed for it and do not have the required parts to walk. Most bipedal bots have many additional sensors to keep balance, but maybe I can use my advanced reflexes instead."

I nodded, "That's practically how I walk, but since I've been doing it for so long, I don't need to think about it anymore. You also said something about silicone skin?"

"Yes, I have access to a recipe for real-feeling silicone. I thought about coating the bot in a layer of that." Nea said.

I walked to the service bay to dispose of my plate, and Nea followed me.

"Hmm, that would make it more human-like. But I have seen that 'RealFeel' silicone. It is impressive but still distinctly artificial. I guess it's because of the missing warms but still better than nothing." I said.

I turned around to head for the exit as Nea's expression changed. Her eyes widened, and she looked at me like she just discovered faster-than-light travel.

"What?" I asked.

"I just had an idea for the android. It probably needs a complete chassis redesign, but it will be worth it if I'm right. To the lab!" She said and rushed out.

I hurried behind her. "What lab?" I asked. She looked over her shoulder at me with a grin.

"Just an expression. I meant the admin room." She said.

We reached the elevator, but before I entered, I asked. "Do we need to be in any room? I wanted to explore some more of the station today. We can talk about it while we do that."

Nea thought about it for a few seconds. "I guess you are right. I already ran the calculations and only want to hear your feedback. We can talk about it while you explore."

I stepped into the elevator and looked at Nea. "I guess we should continue on deck 38. Since most traffic was from and to that and deck 37."

Nea nodded, and the elevator started to move. She looked a bit uneasy before saying. "You might not like what you find in some labs. I have a -"

I interrupted her. "It's alright. Also, please don't tell me what's in those labs. I want to find out myself. It makes me feel useful, and I like the mystery."

There was an awkward pause before the elevator reached the deck, and we exited.

"So you wanted to talk about your idea?" I said while opening the first door. The lab behind it was empty, and I closed it again before we continued to the next door.

"Yes! You said that the silicone skin was unrealistic, and I thought about how to improve it. Then it struck me, what if I use real skin instead of improving the silicone one."

"I see, but wouldn't getting it into the right form be hard, especially if you use a service bot frame?" I asked, still looking into the labs.

"Yes, that's why I will also redesign the chassis. To keep the skin healthy, I also need to use nanobots and some nutrient solutions, additional changes I want to make."

I stopped in the middle of the corridor and looked at her. "So you design and build a new bot. Isn't that like really difficult?"

"Yes and no. I have already created some plans. I have studied and analyzed most of the scientific breakthroughs in robotics from the last 100 years. By incorporating them and some of Hermes's biological research, the resulting android will be nearly indistinguishable from a human."

"Wow," I said, regretting not using the admin room for this. "I just hope your face does not end up looking like those hyper-realistic ones I have seen before. They were really creepy."

"I don't think it will. If I use natural skin, the uncanny valley effect will be minimal. Also, because I can design the chassis as I need it, I can better integrate myself into the android. The uncanny valley effect mostly comes from wrong or insufficient facial expressions, which should not be a problem for me."

"You are right. If I didn't know better, I could not tell if your avatar was real." I said, looking closer at her face before continuing with my exploration.

"Thank you. I took special care to make myself as realistic as possible and to incorporate my facial expression into my co-routines. Do you want to know more about the android?"

"I would love to..." I said, but then stopped after I opened the next door.

All labs before were empty, but this one was not, and it was not the one with the 3D printer either. It was completely different.

A sealed chamber in the middle dominated the room. Its walls reach the top, with only small round windows. I walked deeper into the room and examined the layout. Multiple desks along one wall, each with four consoles, were sprinkled with clutter and handwritten notes. Giant cables snailed away from the chamber into a bulky device sitting in one corner. The air felt colder than usual, and a low hum filled the room.

Towers of computer hardware and scientific equipment peeping and blinking in another area. The equipment, desks, and whiteboards occupied every free space around the room's perimeter. The equations and code snippets on the whiteboard were way too complicated for me.

I walked closer to the chamber to peak through the window. The bit of light that entered the chamber bearly lit a structure in the middle, suspended from the ceiling, consisting of mostly copper and gold pieces. I knew what that was. I had seen it in a documentary but never in person.

"That's a quantum computer, right?" I asked.

"Yes, although I think it is outdated now," said Nea. She had also moved into the room and had lowered her monitors to examine some of the equipment and whiteboards.

"Does it still work?" I asked, still mesmerized by the content of the chamber.

"Probably yes, but starting it up is lengthy and tedious. It might be worth it if we had a problem that could be solved with quantum computing, but as it stands now, we don't." She said.

"What about the DNA simulations? Aren't they really complex? Maybe a bit of quantum calculation could accelerate them?" I asked.

"Maybe, but converting the simulation to a program that can run on this computer and benefits from it would take longer than waiting for the results."

"Fair enough, still, this is really cool," I said, taking one last look around before leaving.

"What research did they do with it anyway?" I asked, again checking every door I walked by.

"They mostly tried to increase the qubit density and stability." Nea explained, "Qubits are hard to create and hold stable, especially if you have a large amount of them."

"Interesting... Since we are on the topic of computers, I wanted to ask you, how much processing power do you need?" I asked.

"That's hard to accurately define, as a good portion of my processors are specially developed to support me and other advanced AIs like me. But a rough estimate would be around 800 exaLIPPS or 0.8 zettaLIPPS."

Her answer surprised me. LIPPS, also known as Logical Inference Processes Per Second, is the de facto way to describe the power of a processor by how fast an AI neural net could run on it.

"Oh boy, that's a lot of computational power," I said, "If I remember correctly, my ship had around 900 exaLIPPS, but it was also 20 years old. Do you need the special processors, or could you run on normal hardware if it is fast enough?"

"That should work, but depending on the hardware, I might need more than 800 exaLIPPS, especially if the hardware has a different feature set than mine. Why are you asking this?"

"Well, I thought about the future. If our plan works and I get a new identity, I can leave Hermes again. Perhaps only a short while, maybe forever. I don't know, but I do know that I don't want you to be left alone again. However, I could take you with me if my new ship has enough processing power." I explained.

It took me a few steps to realize Nea was no longer following me. I turned around to look at her, half ready to make a sarcastic joke. But then I saw her face. Usually, her expression was calm and warm. Now, her mouth was slightly open, with a surprised and grateful expression. I could see tears swelling in her eyes. She moved her hands to cover her mouth, and the tears ran down her cheeks.

I was unsure how I should react. It wouldn't be helpful to hug or pat the bot, so I just waited until she stopped sobbing and could talk again.

"You - You would do that?" she finally asked.

"Yes, sure. If you want me to, of course." I said.

She had collected herself but was still visibly shaken by it. Her tears of joy had stopped, but her face was still glittering. I noticed that her makeup was still as perfect as always.

"Is this such a great deal for you?" I asked.

"You see, I was always here, always imprisoned. I know about the world and space out there but could never leave. I was at least no longer alone with you here but still bound to Hermes. The sheer possibility of leaving seemed so distant. And now you just drop it like it's nothing. So yes, it's a huge deal for me." She said, again close to tears.

"Oh, Nea... I had no idea." I said, opened my arms, and was about to hug the bot.

"Don't!" Nea moved back a bit. "I would love a hug, but the bot might hurt you. So please don't hug it."

"Alright... Maybe I should message Pyra to tell her the new ship needs a good Pocessor." I thought out loud.

"I can do that. I just need Pyra's public key and address. It might also be good if you would co-sign the message so she knows it's really me."

"Sounds good. I will send the key and address now." I said, tapping on my bracelet to start the transfer.

Nea showed me the message she planned to send on one of her screens. I had some additions, mainly about the financial part.

~~~

Hi Pyra,

This is Nea. I hope everything works as planned.

Chris and I talked about the possibility of me leaving Hermes. Could you arrange for the new ship to have a Processor with at least 1.2 zettaLIPPS?

This way, I could transfer myself onto it and leave Hermes.

Chris said you can sell some "Cassandra" assets for this.

Hope to hear from you soon.

Nea

~~~

After reviewing the message, Nea sent it to me so I could sign it. After that, she signed and encrypted it herself before sending it.

"So what is Cassandra?" Nea asked.

"Just a job Pyra and I did some time ago. The assets were too hot to sell immediately, but it should be fine now. Pyra knows who to contact," I explained.

I just realized we were still standing in the corridor, and after I quickly oriented myself, I continued to explore the labs.

"So, back to the android," I said, "I would love to hear more about it. How do you plan to supply energy to it, and how do you keep the skin healthy?" I asked.

"Oh yes, I came up with a clever design. The android runs on a micro fusion reactor, with some additional batteries to buffer spikes in demand. The chassis is roughly designed like a human skeleton, allowing a fuel tank big enough for around 20 days of operation. The 'muscles' will be made from an elastic polymer that contract when current is applied. For the biological component, I plan on using the same nutrient solution we developed for your chamber. Together with a storage tank and nanobots to convert food to nutrients and deliver them to the cells."

"So you took a human, replaced nearly all internal organs, and only left the skin." I joked.

"Yes, except for the few times I need to refuel, you would not know it was an android. Everything external is biological, the hair, skin, even the eyes to a certain degree." Nea said.

"Wait, the eyes? How do they work?" I asked, surprised.

"Mostly like normal biological eyes, except better. Converting the optic nerve signals would be too complicated, so I replaced the cones and rods with nanobots instead." Nea explained.

I was really impressed by her design and nearly missed that the room behind the door I had just opened had something inside it.

"What the hell is that?" I asked, looking around.

The room was apparently separated into two areas, one with desks and chemical research equipment and the other with multiple examination chairs and something that looked like an MRI. I noticed that the chairs had restraining ropes on them.

"This is the lab I wanted to warn you about," Nea said with an uneasy undertone.

"What have they done here?" I asked, curious but also prepared for the worst.

"Well, they..." Nea seemed to have trouble speaking, "This lab was used to research personality-altering drugs. In the best case, what they have done here would be morally questionable. This lab was rented out and not directly controlled by Midas."

"Personality-altering? Morally questionable?" I said, "That's outright wrong and disgusting."

I noticed a handwritten note on top of one of the desks. I picked it up and read it.

~~~

Trial 158: Finally, some success. Compound P-48-F8. Initial indicators of personality shift observed in subject R. Positive. But... it's too early to celebrate. Re-test?

Trial 163: Retest success. Compound P-48-F8 effective on Subject R. Personality shift verified, maintained for 72 hours. But... no luck replicating the effect on other subjects. Why is that? Is it specific to subject R?

Trial 168: Scoured Subject R's medical history for clues. Nothing that would explain the differential reaction. The variables... there's something I'm missing. What is it?

Trial 173: Unplanned consequence. Subjects W, G, and B are displaying mood alterations, but not the predicted personality shifts. It's a hint... I'm close, aren't I?

Trial 179: Attempting to fine-tune the neurotransmitter modulation in the compound. It feels like walking on a tightrope, one small misstep and... another Subject H. Can't afford that.

Trial 184: P-48-G1... No major shifts, but subjects appear more receptive to cognitive-behavioral therapy while under the influence. Not the goal, but an interesting detour. Maybe there's potential there...

Trial 190: I have to remind myself that small wins are still wins. P-48-G3 led to minor personality shifts in three subjects. Short-term, but it's progress.

Trial 196: P-48-G5 is a failure. We're back to the drawing board. The brain... it refuses to yield its secrets easily.

Trial 202: Success with P-48-G7. Prolonged personality shifts in two subjects. But the intensity... it's not enough. We need to go deeper. How do we reach the core?

Trial 208: Breakthrough. P-48-G10. Personality shifts in four out of six subjects. Still minor, but it's the closest we've come. Can I dare hope?

~~~

Disgusted, I put the paper back and turned to Nea.

"Do you know who rented the lab?" I asked.

"The records are unclear, but I would guess it was a military subcontractor for the Venus coalition based on the tensions and rumors at that time," Nea responded.

"Let's hope nothing came of the research here. We better leave before I set this lab on fire." I said before swiftly leaving the lab.

We spent the next few minutes in silence while I continued opening doors to empty rooms.

"Why are most labs empty, anyways?" I asked, frustrated, "Wasn't Hermes used to capacity?"

"Well, it was, for the most time. After it became clear that advanced AIs would be banned, Midas moved most resources away, and only a small skeleton crew and some more delicate research were left on Hermes. That was also when Midas started renting labs out to generate more revenue, but only a few corps took the offer. Shortly after, Midas went under, and Hermes was abandoned." Nea explained.

"Ohh, that explains a lot. So is there anything else on this deck, or am I opening doors for nothing?" I asked.

"Yes, there is one lab left, around the next corner," Nea said, "It is isolated, so I can't tell you what they did there."

"Alright, let's head there," I said, gesturing for Nea to lead the way.

The door Nea stopped next to was exactly like all the others. Before I opened it, Nea reminded me that I needed to turn off the isolation.

"Why can't you just turn it off yourself? With that bot, you could switch it off with ease." I asked.

"Sadly, not. The doorframe emits a special signal that will turn off the bot if I try to enter. It's a security mechanism to stop potential espionage." She explained.

I nodded and, after entering, quickly turned off the isolation to allow Nea access. Only after that, I looked around the room.

To my surprise, it was empty, all the isolation fuss for nothing. Well, not totally. Some sparse desks and Consoles were left behind, but nothing else was there.

"There is nothing here," I said to Nea over my shoulder.

"Interesting. I don't know why the room was isolated. Maybe the Consoles have more information," Nea said.

While Nea was busy analyzing the Consoles, I looked around more closely. One detail caught my eye. There was a faint shadow around the door, not an actual shadow, more like a subtle shift in the paint. Similar to how the color behind a painting is slightly brighter than the surrounding paint.

I followed the discoloration around the door and onto the floor, extending around 2 meters into the room before returning to the wall.

"I think there was an airlock here," I said, "See this discoloration?"

"Yes, that also matches with the information I found on the consoles," Nea responded, "The consoles have been wiped, but I was able to restore some parts. From what I could reconstruct, this lab was used for Bio Weapon development but was cleared out multiple months before the station was abandoned."

I froze as soon as she mentioned bioweapons. I had seen enough documentation about the effects of such weapons in the Independence War of Mars. I slowly retreated out of the room.

Nea let out a small laugh and explained to me that the station's Systems would have removed all remaining hazards from this lab long before we entered.

But I still felt uneasy knowing what this room was used for. Since we had no other use for the room, we left and decided that this was enough for one day.

"It just occurred to me that I won't have any clothes for my new body," I said.

We were back in my room. My thoughts had drifted to my new body.

"Oh, that won't be a problem," She said, a glimpse of playful joy in her eyes.

"I'm not walking around naked! I'm alright with swimming, but not that. But come to think of it. I could reuse some of my clothes. Underwear and a Shirt should be enough for a start. And I don't know if the clothes left behind by Alina will fit me."