Sanchez, E, Col: Sorry, Private. I don’t mean to put too fine a point on it, but as you can see, I’m up to my ears in ███ right now. So you’ve got three minutes. Where’s the fire?
Klein, O, Pvt: Colonel, I have reason to believe the ethics matrices in the Artificial Intelligence Defense Analytics Network aboard this ship have been critically compromised.
Sanchez, E, Col: Compromised?
Klein, O, Pvt: Yes, ma’am.
Sanchez, E, Col: In what way?
Klein, O, Pvt: I believe AIDAN is responsible for the deaths of Corporal Zhukov, Sergeant Jelani, and Major Wolf, ma’am.
Sanchez, E, Col: Wolf and his team died in an accident, Klein.
Klein, O, Pvt: No, ma’am. I have reason to believe AIDAN caused the electrical fault that killed Eth— Major Wolf and his team.
Sanchez, E, Col: [Sighs.] Look, Klein, we’ve all been under a lot of stress since Kerenza…
Klein, O, Pvt: This isn’t stress, ma’am.
Sanchez, E, Col: I know you and Wolf were…close.
Klein, O, Pvt: Ma’am, my relationship with Major Wolf has nothing to do with this.
Sanchez, E, Col: Private, you’re talking about a fundamental breakdown in a system that has a hundred fail-safes. There’s never been an incident of an AIDAN system doing harm to a human since inception of the Defense Analytics Network program. These things are hardwired to prioritize the safety of their crews above all else.
Klein, O, Pvt: I believe AIDAN thinks it’s doing just that, ma’am.
Klein, O, Pvt: Here, look at this. AIDAN mailed me this at 4 a.m.
Sanchez, E, Col: AIDAN glitched last night, Klein. It sent the general over a thousand pictures of the same damn chessboard. It sent me pictures of Major Lassinger’s wife.
Klein, O, Pvt: This isn’t a coincidence, ma’am. I was writing a letter about Ethan to my father and AIDAN sent me this right afterward. It’s the trolley problem.
Sanchez, E, Col: I know what it is, Private.
Klein, O, Pvt: AIDAN and I had a discussion about this a few days back. About the morality of killing one person to save many. I think it’s trying to tell me it killed Major Wolf and his team for the good of the ship.
Sanchez, E, Col: Why on earth—
Klein, O, Pvt: Major Wolf was recommending to General Torrence that AIDAN be shut down. And if AIDAN believed it was more essential to shipboard operations than Ethan and his team, it might’ve been able to justify killing them to itself.
Sanchez, E, Col: That’s…quite a leap of logic, Private.
Klein, O, Pvt: Listen. Listen to this. It’s a recording of the accident.
[PLAYBACK]:
Zhukov, L, Cpl: They’re not paying us enough for this, sir.
Wolf, E, Maj: I’ll buy you both a scotch when—
[INDECIPHERABLE]
Wolf, E, Maj: …Did you two hear that?
Sanchez, E, Col: Where did you get th—
Klein, O, Pvt: Listen! AIDAN says something to them over comms.
[PLAYBACK]:
Wolf, E, Maj: I’ll buy you both a scotch when—
[INDECIPHERABLE]
Klein, O, Pvt: Do you hear it?
Sanchez, E, Col: No, I don’t, Private.
Klein, O, Pvt: AIDAN was there, Colonel. Watching them. Talking to them. At the end.
Klein, O, Pvt: It’s started referring to itself like a person for Christ’s sake!
Sanchez, E, Col: Is this why you requested a meeting in a drywall room? Because you think AIDAN is watching you?
Klein, O, Pvt: Well, of course! AIDAN monitors every conversation on the ship outside these rooms, Colonel.
Sanchez, E, Col: Does that not strike you as a little paranoid?
Klein, O, Pvt: Ma’am, I—
Sanchez, E, Col: Did you say just now that you were writing a letter to your father when AIDAN contacted you?
Klein, O, Pvt: …Yes, ma’am.
Sanchez, E, Col: Private Klein, your father died over a year ago.
Sanchez, E, Col: I remember his funeral on the feeds.
Sanchez, E, Col: He was a wonderful writer, by the way. Memento Mori changed my life.
Klein, O, Pvt: I know…I know it’s stupid…
Klein, O, Pvt: But the university never closed off his account.
Klein, O, Pvt: I just write to him when I’m feeling low. It helps sometimes.
Sanchez, E, Col: Is this what caused your delay during last crew intake? I heard rumors you had problems with your psych eval.
Klein, O, Pvt: No, it wasn’t like that…
Sanchez, E, Col: Private, I’m going to recommend you see the ship’s counselor.
Klein, O, Pvt: No, ma’am, that’s not what this is. Please listen to me.
Sanchez, E, Col: I am listening to you. But I don’t think you’re hearing yourself. I’m taking you off rotation until you undergo appraisal.
Klein, O, Pvt: Colonel, that’s not what’s happening here.
Sanchez, E, Col: I’m sorry, Private. Three minutes are up.
Sanchez, E, Col: Look, just…take some time, all right?
Sanchez, E, Col: We’re going to get through this.
[RECORDING ENDS]
Participants: Olivia Klein, Private, UTA Information Services Division
Artificial Intelligence Defense Analytics Network
Date: 02/03/75
Timestamp: 06:34
AIDAN: Olivia.
AIDAN: Olivia, I know you are reading this. I-I can see you.
Klein, O, Pvt: *mute user/AIDAN*
AIDAN: Olivia, shipboard safety protocols will not allow you to mute me. In the event that I make personnel announcements, you will need to hear them. You know this.