In reply to The Boss (msg # 99):

"The smile on her face says Heather is communicating with the alien. Is he cooperating or is he feeding her falsehoods? We'll see about that in due course, but the communication is good, maybe we can have peace with the Carinian Empire."

Heather felt her pulse quicken for a moment as she realised she was indeed the first human to speak with a Carinian and whilst this wasn’t her first First Contact, it was the most important and significant of her life.

“Hello, 011. I am Heather. I will acquire what the life forms in my care require whilst we speak if that is acceptable.”

"It does not concern me," 011 the Armadillo replies.  "But your desire to do so raises my estimate of probability of favorable outcome.  Do you have experience with care for beings?  I understand that you are a real space being, this is your representation here.  Do you care for real space beings?"

"I do care for real space beings and have done so most of my life," Heather replied whilst beginning to gather what she needed for her animals. "I care for all beings. It is an integral part of who I am and has informed the majority of my existence. What of you, 011? Do you also care for real space beings?"

"Far in the past, the real space beings chose to live in synthetically generated space.  It is a very advanced synthetic space, much more sophisticated than this.  Each of the inhabitants lives many lifetimes and finds many opportunities for joy.  They have ceased to be real space beings.  Now they live entirely as synthetic sentient forms.  I am caretaker to my cell.  My cell is four beings, and myself.  We were removed forcefully from the array.  They are dormant now.  The array contains the synthetic spaces they would inhabit.  If I cannot return them to a synthetic space, I cannot awaken them."

After a pause, 011 adds:  "This space would be insufficient."

Hannah, who has been monitoring the exchange but is not connected to the game, asks, "Is that thing saying they are all sentient game characters now?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:43, Mon 07 Dec 2020.

"I believe what is being said is that the Carinians abandoned their physical bodies in exchange for being what is, in essence, a non-organic super intelligence," Heather said to Hannah as she typed a response to 011.

"Is this space suitable for you? If I provided three more such spaces would you be able to awaken the three other members of your cell. I could network all four together so your cell could share their space until I am able to find a space more suitable to the needs of your cell."

In reply to Heather MacKenzie (msg # 105):

"I'll be damned. Why do they attack us? Why are we at war?"

"I'm working my way there, Einar. You never open a negotiation or First Contact by asking those sorts of questions. Right now we're establishing rapport and feeling out parameters. We'll have time to get to the harder questions later," Heather told him.

In reply to Heather MacKenzie (msg # 107):

"Quite, sorry for breaking your train of thought." he replied.

Horace stood back and marveled at how fast she was able to communicate. They may get peace now, begin trade with them perhaps!

O11 does not accept the offer to let it's charges "live" in the farm game.  But the reason it gives is surprising.

"It is the simplest environment present.  That is why I chose it for communication.  But it is not sufficient as an environment for existence of the beings in my care.  It is too simple, it is too alien, it is incapable of creating sufficient sensory detail.  They will be aware that they are in a synthetic environment.  There will be fear.  They will be changed.  It is better to return them.

"I encountered a vessel that belonged to the same civilization that removed us from home.  I was able to partly disable the machine intelligence.  It was complex, but limited by its design and unable to change and adapt.  But I do not have operating data for that ship.  The necessary systems were destroyed."

Heather paused, brows creased in some confusion. Had she been wrong about things all alone? Was this something entirely different than what she had thought? "Are you one of the beings real space beings call Carinians?"

For a few moments nothing happens.  Nothing visible, at least.  Those watching the computer security screen remotely see a blur of frantic activity, on the part of the alien, as it searches through the information available… first in the “environment” it is currently occupying.

“This environment has no form with that name,” 011 reports.

Then it goes on to do further investigation, elsewhere in the datapad.  The datapad’s link to the ship’s computer has been severed, of course.  But the datapad has its own limited "local" memory, and it includes a lot of basic encyclopedia information.*

"That name appears in other references.  It is a space going civilization of unknown characteristics, that has been fighting with your civilization, and a coalition of other  civilizations.  We encountered it.  I have been stolen.  The sentient beings I care for have been stolen.  Now I understand."



*People who live their lives on fully settled planets don't need this- they are always within range of uplinking to a computer network somewhere, so their portable systems really don't store a lot.  Spacers, and people on the frontier, have much more capable datapads.  Sometimes, you can be a long way from contact with a computer net, and yet have an urgent need to verify the legality of a scrabble word.

Heather leaned back and blew out the breath she had been holding. "We have made First Contact but not, as we thought, with the Carinians. This is an entirely different race of non-organic sentience. One that shed their physical forms to live completely virtual lives. It would appear the...Caretaker I'm speaking to crashed the ship, kept it from self-destructing, and sent out the distress signal."

She bent forward over the pad. "Are your people all existing in arrangements like you and the sentients you care for, 011? Are you living in centralised locations the Carinians who took you might seek out? Your people might be in grave danger."

Having gotten that far, the crew learns a few more things quickly.

The alien cannot tell them where it is from.  This is not because it doesn't want to.  There simply is no easy reference system it can use.  If given access to the sophisticated maps available in the ship's computer... probably.

But that's a risk.  It has already proven it can seize control of a Carinian ship, although that was only a partial success.

The alien you are communicating with doesn't consider itself a true sentient being.  Those are the beings in its care, even though they both operate on the same system.

Their civilization consists of thousands of modules orbiting a star.  Each module has millions of "cells" similar to 011.  Each cell has a caretaker program and four "beings".  The modules within a cell interact in real time in a vast virtual space.   Because of communications lags they cannot interact with other modules in real time, so each module is a different environment- the beings can communicate between them.

What environments are being simulated?  A planet, that may or may have actually existed, ideal for the support of the original biological forms the now-virtual forms once had. The virtual beings all believe they are there, living happily in a paradise.

011 is able to make pictorial representations of them on Fanny Flamingo's Fun Farm.  They are tall, thin, trilaterally symmetrical, and covered with soft thin fur.

As the Albatross travels back to Merlin, another issue emerges with the Consciousness Researchers:

Does this go public?  The Albatross crew will certainly lose control of this discovery... but they will be sought after for interviews, seminars, documentaries...

The ICR is worried that they might lose control.

"We are talking about sentient beings here with all the rights that entails. If anyone but the beings themselves are going to be in control, it will be 011 and he will decide how much access he allows me or others to the sentients he guards," Heather said firmly before turning back to the pad.

"011, is it possible for me to communicate with the beings under your care? There is a host of things we all must discuss moving forward. The political situation you and your people have been thrust into courtesy of the Carinians is fraught with danger so I want to make sure all of you are aware of what you may find happening. I give you my word that as you are Caretaker to them, that I will act as Caretaker to you and, through you, them as well. Or is it impossible to talk with them given they don't know the reality of their existence?"

Boris the salvage expert is naturally suspicious of anything too good, like a salvage run turning out to be a historic contact.  He throws a little cold water on it... though not in front of  Heather and 011.

"Just thinking... what if what we've got here is a deranged computer thinking that all of its simulated citizens- you know, basically game characters, all it's seen is the Fun Farm, that's about as simple as it gets- what if all it has are simulations?  And it thinks they are real beings?  Maybe it's just crazy?"

------------------

011 is still talking to Heather, through the medium of Farm game.

"In the absence of an environment they cannot properly exist," 011 reports.  "It is hard to explain.  Part of the essence of being is the interaction.  Away from their world their programs would be unable to function within normal parameters.  They would be forced to realize their own status as non-real space beings.  This would significantly harm their life quality, and so it cannot be allowed.  I must maintain life quality.  At our world, there are beings who are prepared for this.  They understand that their world is not realspace, and they are kept ready for contact with other realspace forms that we may meet.  But my four are not of this type.  I am afraid I cannot risk the damage."

"Crazy or not once thing is certain: that is technology we have never seen before. We need to connect it to a larger computer so we can see if there are four consciousnesses in there like 011 says. There's also the fact that 011 managed to completely override the normal protocols Carinian vessels use when they crash or risk capture. It caused the vessel to crash, kept it from self-destruction, and sent out the distress signal that brought us here."

Heather stopped speaking and looked thoughtful for a moment. "I think 011 and the others like him would be very powerful allies to have."

Horace wondered what it was if it wasn't a Carinian? An ally against the Carinians maybe, might even make a trade destination. Only time would tell. Heather seemed to have everything under control. She was both beautiful and amazing. Too bad, She was out of his league.

"You do know that we, and me especially, are required, by law, to report First Contact to the Commonwealth. I have to send a message to my superiors in the Commonwealth and representatives of the Parliament. Failure to do so would mean loss of the ship, exorbitant fines, and prison terms of very long lengths," Heather said, a very grave look on her face.

"This is no longer a simple salvage. This is First Contact with a being that could possibly help the Carinian threat. This is bigger than all of us. Prepare for fame and fortune once this is declassified."

OOC: How do you know she's out of your league. You have no idea what she's looking for in a man. ;)

"I'll start on the report for you Heather, you can extrapolate and finish it off."

In reply to Horace Wymp (msg # 120):

"Very well Mister Wymp, take care of it, the ship is not to be trifled with."

As they make their return to Merlin,  Heather is able to gain more information about what kind of civilization created 011 and now apparently exists as virtual beings.

Or computer simulations of beings, from another perspective.

Or is there a difference?

011 is unable to supply some information- without access to a more potent computer system with astronomic information 011 cannot even begin to describe where in space its civilization is.

It cannot be too far away, as the Carelian ship did not have time to travel far before it began to lose control to 011.  Carelian ships are on the whole slower than Human ships, and on long journeys they tend to be even slower, because they are traveling extremely long distances and must be frugal with fuel and other resources.

Getting a rough idea of the time and an estimate of how fast a Carinian "Junkyard B" could have been moving during that time, it is likely somewhere between 50 and 100 light years.  That's too long for most Human ships to travel without refueling.  The Crossers manage distances like that, and some other civilizations do it with ease.  For Humans, only some specialized research and military vessels can make a run like that... and return.

There are several key turning points in the history of an intelligent species.  Once this was pure speculation, now, with alien civilizations to study, it is science.  One critical point is the development of "true" artificial intelligence, generalized machine intelligence that functions at or better than the intelligence of the civilization creating it.  It is considered such a dangerous event that it is forbidden by the aliens who sponsored the transition of Humanity to a space traveling culture.

011's civilization took a different path.  They developed AI technology and soon saw AI programs as a way to cheat death and live in paradise: they created themselves... or simulations of themselves... and moved into virtual worlds that catered to their whims.

According to 011, this wasn't the result of individuals thinking they would "transfer their souls" into a machine, there was nothing metaphysical about it.  At first, they were fully aware that that the original biological being died.  But they did it, at first, to preserve loved ones.  They never had to say goodbye.

A curious but in hindsight predictable thing happened.  These preserved virtual minds were such good copies that, from their own point of view,  they felt what the originals did.
 If you created a virtual copy of your dying mother, the copy loved you.  Just as the biological beings did not want to say goodbye to the dying, neither did the virtual beings.  So over time, they persuaded others:  life is better this way, when your time comes, join us.  Or maybe join us before your time comes... all that flesh is holding you back from really enjoying life.

There have been no biologicals for a long long time now.  Each of the billions of virtual citizens has lived thousands of lifetimes- memories are periodically "renewed" (because how can you be an authentic simulation of yourself if you carry around thousands of years of memories in your head) and lifetimes reset. The virtual environments improved over time. Eventually, the AI masters discovered that the citizens were happier not knowing the environment was virtual, because as long as they knew, the knowledge that the world wasn't real could affect them.  So eventually, as the lives were reset and the virtual environment became advanced enough, that knowledge was simply cut off.

They all think their lives are absolutely real.

Except for a few.

The AI programs realized that there would come times when decisions would have to be made that should be made by "real" members of their society.  When this becomes necessary such as in contact with other civilizations, the AI's "activate" a few- virtual recreations of individuals who know they are virtual recreations.

According to 011, these are recreations of individuals who were praised for their wisdom in their original lives.  When- if- true contact is made, it will be with these, not the four random and unlucky individuals currently dormant within 011's memory nodes.

All of that is way, way, way above 011's level, of course.  011 was just supposed to "manage" a few people, not make historical decisions or deal with aliens.  This was all just a ridiculous accident.

However...

"Should your civilization choose to contact ours, which would be necessary for the return of myself and the four I care for, you would be most suitable for contact.  It is logical, you have the most experience with us."

"With you and the other races we've encountered so far. I've been an ambassador, negotiator, and the like for almost 20 years. I'm a trained and experienced diplomat so this kind of situation is what I do. I would be happy to be the liaison between our people and your own and will do everything I can to make sure your people are kept safe and protected as the greater galaxy opens a dialogue with you and the ambassadors of the people under your care," Heather told 011.

"Can you show me what the people of your civilisation look like?"

Horace types out on his computer everything he was involved with in the initial encounter with 011. From breaching the hull to rescuing him from the Carinian ship and all of the details he could think of. She could add in the first contact stuff herself as he didn't know about that. She would fill in her part and then submit the form. This could get ugly. he wasn't looking for fame, just a living and a career.