“I added something to the IC unit to give the algorithm more to work with.”
“I thought you said Del was not to have an IC from a human host.”
“He still doesn’t, he just has a little extra substance.”
Roths looks at him firmly. “What did you do exactly?”
Caufmann glances away momentarily but refocusses on her. “We had a lot of excess tissue, living tissue, from Rennin’s operation.”
Roths’ mouth drops, “You used Rennin Farrow’s genetic material and blended it with Del?” she almost screeches.
“This is why I didn’t mention it,” he sighs. “There was more than enough to compress and use.”
“Del was working perfectly before.”
“Only when his combat protocols weren’t engaged. He has excessive programming to deal with the simulated IC unit but he just doesn’t function correctly so I added Rennin’s genetics to him. Now he works. The only problem is with the sudden influx of data from the IC unit, Del simply can’t balance all the information. The simulation IC is incompatible with his actual genetic data. We will have to un-program him, but he works. He really does, and since part of Rennin was added he’s even showing amazing aptitude with sniper rifles,” Caufmann says, smiling a little.
“Rennin is insane,” says Roths in a level but solid tone.
“Valhara was insane, Arca Drej went insane and only just before you came in did I work out why they, and some other androids, lost their minds.”
Roths’ face turns neutral as she decides to humour him. “Go on.”
“Arca and Valhara broke down for very different reasons, but the result was the same. Several others also went mad during the war and I finally discovered what they all have in common,” he pauses making sure Roths is listening.
“Today, William.”
“The IC unit wasn’t from their donor body.”
“I’m sorry?”
“The IC unit is supposed to be the instinct of a human being harnessed within a shell, yes?”
Roths nods.
“The android body is mostly artificial but their structure is relatively intact along with a lot of genetic material. The IC unit is built before the body dies to absorb and harness the life force. It’s been postulated that the life force trapped within the Instinctual Cluster is the consciousness itself,” he lets Roths absorb that for a moment before pressing on. “Now, genetic material stores memories and all sorts of anomalies relating to human life and evolution. The reason Arca, Valhara and others went mad is because the IC unit within them is not from the body the android is constructed from.”
“I’m not an expert on transmogrification and organic-mech crossover, you understand. How does that make any difference?”
Caufmann represses his frustration. “Imagine a soul literally ripped out of a living person and put back into a different body.”
“Soul?” she asks arching an eyebrow.
“Consciousness, then. Don’t argue semantics!”
“Very well,” she says dismissively.
“Imagine waking up tomorrow with someone else’s memories and without many of your own, just knowing something terrible has happened to you but never knowing which were the real memories you experienced yourself. Two halves of alternate wholes conflicting.”
Roths understands now. “I thought they didn’t remember anything.”
“Not in a literal sense, but the whole point of the Instinctual Cluster is to give them instinct, so they probably remember on some primal level. The genetic material still in the body clashes with the IC emissions. No program, no matter how clever or extreme, can possibly stop the breakdown once it begins.”
“Forgive me, William, but this does not help your argument regarding Del.”
“Del’s tissue is mostly synthetic. There is very little actual organic matter from the cloning. I wanted as little of the Suvaco genome in Del as possible.”
“But he still has Rennin’s… whatever it is, inside him. If you’re right about Arca and Valhara, then the same still applies to Del, regardless of how much or how little real genetic material is in him. He’ll still go mad.”
“I needed to use something and the tissue was there and ready.”
Roths narrows her eyes. “How bad were Rennin’s injuries?”
“Exactly as I stated in my report, apart from one.”
Roths closes her eyes.
“I needed brain matter, the head wound was severe so I took some.”
“Took some?”
“I replaced the pieces with synthetic equivalents. They will out perform his birth tissue and actually produce a small but constant flow of oxytocin. Apart from a general feeling of wellbeing, he’ll be none the wiser.”
“You cut out some of his brain. Part of Rennin’s mind is in Del.”
“You said Rennin is insane and you’re right, but that little bit of lunacy might be enough to balance the equation.”
“William, this is not a double negative making a positive, this is a fully armed machine programmed to kill and you’ve just given it the genes of a psychopath as a driving force.”
“We will see. The genetic material needed to be raw because cloned tissue invariably results in unstable processes,” Caufmann smirks and throws a switch on the control panel in front of him, restoring power to Del’s body. “Hello, Del, can you hear me?” he asks as the android’s head rises.
Yes, sir. Del displays across the screen in front of Caufmann and Roths.
Caufmann activates Del’s combat protocols. “Stand up.”
Yes, sir. He stands up, still attached to the mainframe by the dreadlock cables connected to his head.
Caufmann presses another switch and the wall to Del’s left slides up, revealing a rack with dozens of weapons from knives to rocket launchers. “Pick up the S6-Grin,” he directs, referring to a snub nosed machine gun.
Acknowledged. Del doesn’t move.
“It’s on the wall to your left,” says Caufmann but Del doesn’t even answer this time. “Did you hear what I said?”
Yes, sir, I heard what you said.
Despite feeling a chill at Del’s statement, Roths sighs. “No change, and when he does select a weapon he can’t distinguish which targets to kill and which to protect.”
Caufmann ignores her. “Del, pick up the Sunbreaker Photon Beam Rifle.”
Del’s head turns slightly towards the rack and Caufmann feels a sudden rush of goosebumps meaning Del is using his sonar. The great android stands out of the chair and walks to the rack with silent, precise steps and picks the sniper rifle off the rack. Del then stands with it rested against his shoulder. Ready.
Caufmann smiles all too proudly and turns to face Roths. “You see, Doctor Roths? It’s only a matter of time.”
“How much time have we got here? We’re on emergency power as it is,” her eyes suddenly widen. “William…”
“It can’t be that far. It’s just a question of synchronization and deleting any unneeded code.”
“William, Del’s loading the rifle.”
Caufmann looks in the room to see Del sliding a positron clip into the receiver in front of the trigger. “Del, stand down.”
Del seems to ignore him and finishes loading the rifle.
Roths is frozen. “If Del cocks that rifle he’ll be holding the most lethal long-range gun ever built.”
Caufmann types on the console quickly and deactivates Del’s combat protocols. “Del, sit down.”
Yes, sir. Del places the rifle back on the rack and returns to the chair.
“What did you think of that?” asks Caufmann smiling again.