Both paused in their discussion to face Geary and salute, the sailor rigidly correct and Master Chief Gioninni correct in the manner of someone who didn’t even have to think about how to do it right in order to do it right. “How is everything going, Master Chief?” Geary asked.
“No problems, Admiral,” Gioninni assured him. “I’m just providing a little extra instruction to Seaman William T. Door, here.”
“I hope he appreciates the opportunity,” Geary said, keeping his voice sounding serious. “There has been many a time I wished someone could tell me how to get something done.”
Seaman Door did not, in fact, look as if he appreciated his good fortune.
Gioninni grinned. “If you’re trolling for advice, Admiral…”
“The first thing I learned as an ensign was the importance of listening to chief petty officers,” Geary said.
“Then, sir, I know we’re trying to outsmart those dark ships. I would suggest that if you are trying to put a scam over on someone, which is not a matter I have much personal experience with, you understand, then you would want to show them what they expect and what they most want, because that will make your mark confident and eager.”
Geary nodded at Gioninni. “Even if they’re an AI?”
“Sir, did you ever know a computer to question itself? Humans do. Not enough for their best interests, but still they manage at times. But computers? All you can do is kick ’em or reboot ’em or wipe them clean and start over. Those who have total confidence in themselves are the easiest marks by far.”
“Not that you have much personal experience with that kind of thing,” Geary noted.
“Exactly, sir.”
Geary looked back at Seaman Door. “What about confidence in the people who work for you, Master Chief? Is that important, too?”
“Very important, Admiral,” Gioninni agreed. “Even new recruits like this fellow here. He won’t let you down, sir.”
“I know.” Geary met the eyes of Door and smiled with the best confidence he could project, then nodded to both the sailor and Gioninni, and continued on his way.
There wasn’t anything wrong with Gioninni’s advice. In fact, Geary had already employed tactics like that at places like Heradao. The question was whether the dark ships could recognize tactics like that, and whether they could be manipulated into seeing what they wanted to see in the way a person could be.
That led to a string of thoughts that ended with questions that only Lieutenant Iger might be able to answer.
The hatch controlling access to the intelligence compartments offered few clues to the secrets it guarded. The compartment codes on the hatch indicated only that inside it lay Crewed Equipment—Sensor Integration, Analysis, Communications. But the scanners and access controls on the hatch were considerably more robust than those elsewhere on the ship. Geary could have walked right in anyway, but out of courtesy he always called in first, waiting until Lieutenant Iger or one of his subordinates came to escort him inside.
This time it was a fairly junior technician who led Geary into where Iger and his other techs were fussing over a variety of equipment. Lieutenant Iger saluted with a grimace. “No luck so far with the dark ships, Admiral.”
“What are we trying?” Geary asked.
“All of the usual and then some.” Iger indicated the men and women frowning intently as they watched virtual screens, occasionally reaching to enter commands. “We’re trying to analyze the comm patterns and codes being used by the dark ships, but they keep altering in ways we haven’t been able to predict, and their codes keep changing in ways designed to frustrate our equipment.”
“We’ll get it anyway, Lieutenant,” a female chief said, her voice angry and determined. “They can outthink the algorithms, but they can’t outthink me.”
Iger nodded to her. “Stay on it. If anyone can break into their net, you can.” Then he turned back to Geary. “The problem is,” Iger said in a very low voice, “it is obvious the dark ships know everything about our gear and our procedures. They were designed to be as impervious as possible to our intelligence collection and intrusion methods.”
“Lieutenant,” Geary said, “something has occurred to me. From all I have seen and experienced, you, your people, your equipment, are all among the best.”
Iger smiled slightly, looking embarrassed. “Thank you, sir.”
“There’s nothing to thank me for. I’m only saying what I’ve seen. But—” Geary paused, looking around at the intent workers and the screens they were studying. “If we can’t break in, could anyone else?”
Iger hesitated. “With enough resources, anything is possible, sir. Do you mean the Syndics?”
“I mean anyone trying to get access to the dark ships’ comms or controls. If the AIs running the dark ships tried to block any countermanding signals coming in, could they do it? Even if the people trying to break in had the codes they needed?”
This time, Iger took several seconds to reply. “I’ll need to speak to my people, sir.”
“What’s your gut feeling right now?”
“I think the dark ships could block it, sir.” Iger gestured in the direction the dark ships were. “I am guessing that whoever built and programmed them was focused on ensuring that no one who was unauthorized could break in, and gave the dark ships the very best means available to defend themselves against intrusions. But if the AIs can block us, they can block anybody, if they mistakenly categorize an authorized source as an unauthorized source. Or, if some malware got through and recategorized authorized sources as unauthorized, the defenses would then stop any corrective measures from getting in.”
“Admiral?” the female chief said, glancing away from her display for a moment to look at him. “From what we’re seeing of this stuff, the dark ships have had some really excellent defenses programmed in. And if their programming is biased toward defense against intrusions, they’re going to start seeing intrusions. Software is like people that way. It sees what it expects to see, it spots what it was told to look for.”
“Thank you,” Geary said.
“Do you think they’re totally out of control, Admiral?” Iger asked.
“I think they are trying to follow what they believe to be their orders,” Geary said. “And based on what you’re telling me, I think they may be blocking any attempts to regain full control of them. Maybe they’re misidentifying the source of the legitimate signals, maybe some malware got into them and is blocking any signals that counter it, maybe it’s just bugs in the software.” He thought about Master Chief Gioninni’s suggestions again. “But without the ability to question what they believe to be true, they can’t correct the problem themselves. Speaking of which, what about our agent friends? Have they bent at all?”
“No, sir.” Lieutenant Iger led the way into another compartment, then activated virtual windows that showed the views of the high-security cells in the brig where the two agents were being held separately. The woman was lying on her bunk gazing upward at nothing, the man sitting on his bunk, his gaze also unfocused. Their suits, the sort of civilian clothing that would have aroused no comment in almost any setting, were a bit more rumpled, but otherwise, they looked like they had when arrested on Ambaru. “They’re very well trained on resisting interrogation,” Iger said. “We can’t get anything out of them. Sir, I am still concerned about holding in custody agents whose credentials check out.”