Chapter Text
The noise of Hubert's bootheels on the metal floor as he walked to the door of the Hresvelg's Central Processing Chamber was the only sound besides the regular background noise of a starship in operation. Two guards waited for him at the door, their faces obscured by their helmets. Their presence was purely decorative. If the Hresvelg didn't want him here, he would not be here. If the Hresvelg wanted him dead, he would be dead.
The door slid open at Hubert's approach, allowing him the enter the Chamber beyond without breaking his stride.
The Central Processing Chamber was small, and dark. There were a few dim light for the convenience of the occasional visitor or 'maintenance worker'. At the center of the Chamber was a huge and grotesque mass of machinery, wires, and cables. The cables and wires were all plugged into the Central Processing Unit - a very slim, very pale figure. The figure was dressed in a plain jumpsuit, because the people who had done this to her cared about decency.
Hubert bowed. "Lady Edelgard."
There was no response, and he had not expected one. Nobody had ever bothered teaching Edelgard life's little formalities.
Hubert was not opposed to cybernetics. A great many lives had been improved by artificial eyes, or limbs, or lungs, or what have you. These days it was considered quite immoral for a child not that have some immunity implants. And he did not particularly object to his own, more specialised, implants which allowed him to communicate directly with the AI of his own ship, the Vestra.
But then some people had started wondering. A ship having both an AI to do all the processing and a Captain to make all the decisions was so wasteful. There were so many valuable seconds between data and decision. Starships could be so much more effective if the AI and the Captain were the same person.
Early efforts had been disastrous. Turning a fully formed human brain into a ship's computer simply did not work. The subject invariable went insane as they became overwhelmed with the streams of inhuman data. Even now, those maddened ships still wandered the void, attacking anything that came near, probably in the hopes of finally dying.
But what about an unformed human brain? What if the Mind/Machine Integration started from the moment of birth? What if the child grew up being a ship's computer? Would that work?
Two ships had been built for that experiment, the Hresvelg and the Ordelia. They had become the finest starships in known space, easily outmatching every other ship out there.
One could look at these successful experiments and draw one out of two conclusions. One could decide the sacrifices were worth the payoff or one could decide to hang on to some shred of conscience.
"Lady Edelgard," Hubert said as he rose, "the fleet has changed course."
Yes.
Edelgard spoke directly into Hubert's head. He wasn't at all sure if she could actually speak. After all, what use would a Central Processing Unit have for vocal cords? Instead, it was assumed Edelgard interfaced directly with Hubert's own implants. Hubert himself had some doubts about this assumption, but it was the only explanation that made logical sense.
"Might I inquire what the new heading is and why we're heading there?"
The Ordelia was ambushed near Gronder VI.
"I see."
Hubert quietly queried his ship for the Ordelia's planned flight path. The Vestra dutifully beamed the revelant information into his eyes. It seemed the Ordelia should have passed Gronder VI about twelve hours ago.
Hubert did not ask how Edelgard knew what had happened at Gronder VI twelve hours ago. It was impossible for her to know. Messages could take weeks or months to cross the vast interstellar distances. These days, the fastest way to send an interstellar message was by starship.
And yet, she knew.
"Are we heading there to lend combat support?" he asked instead.
Unnecessary. The enemy has been destroyed.
"That is good news," Hubert said. "But then why are we heading there?"
The Ordelia was damaged during the fight. We are heading there to repair her and return our other self to us.
"Really? Was the Ordelia so badly damaged that they need us to go there and assist in repairs?"
No. However, repairs will be completed much faster with our assistance.
"Ah. I see."
There was a brief moment of silence. It would have been awkward if either of them had ever been prone to awkwardness.
"Considering, then, that the Ordelia is in no real danger, is it not wiser for us to continue on our planned course and rendezvous with Captain Lorenz? He is, after all, willing to dedicate his ships to our cause and it would make for a poor first impression if we neglected him in favour of a ship that doesn't need our help."
WE WILL NOT ABANDON OUR OTHER SELF.
Hubert fell to his knees. They were not words. They had not been communicated by a ship to his implants. They were physical blows to his body. He felt them in his very bones.
"I would not dream of suggesting such a thing, Lady Edelgard," Hubert croaked. "However... is it really necessary for the entire fleet to go support the Ordelia? Perhaps it would be better to send a few support ships while the rest of the fleet makes to rendezvous with the Gloucester?"
And we suppose the Hresvelg cannot be one of those support ships?
"The flagship does need to be there when we make contact with Captain Lorenz," Hubert said. "I'm sorry."
So are we.
Hubert got back to his feet and dusted himself off. There wasn't actually any dust anywhere, but the simple action helped him regain his composure.
The Hevring, Edmund, and Essar will continue on their way to support the Ordelia. The rest of the fleet has resumed its previous course and will rendezvous with the Gloucester.
Hubert bowed. "Thank you, Lady Edelgard."
Behind him, the doors out of the Central Processing Chamber slid open. Hubert turned to leave, but stopped when Edelgard spoke into his head.
We recognise that we must make sacrifices to make sure what was done to us and our other self will never happen again. But remember this, Hubert, we shall never sacrifice our other self. If we must, we shall sacrifice everything and everyone if it means keeping Lysithea safe.
Hubert nodded curtly. "Of course, Lady Edelgard."