[IC] Evolution of Conflict: A Sci-Fi Mecha 1x1 FaithfulMuse and Stern Algorithm

[Stern Algorithm]

"I...I admire that you have the courage to think that way," Israfil said. he had never thought about it too deeply, but he believed that people couldn't tell right from wrong without society there to inform them of the 'correctness' of their choices. He inherently absorbed social cues and instructions to inform his decisions. He admired Mike's free spirit.

---

"Good," the screen replied, "I've been trying to contact you for a while now, but the security measures around your personal drive made that difficult. But now that you're here, I have a question, 'what am I?'"

[FaithfulMuse]

Mike looked at Israfil and smiled. "Maybe you should give thinking like that a try sometime. Life can be more fun if you care less." He said to Israfil.

Claire wasn't sure how to react to the text that appeared on the screen right away. "Well... originally, cogs are a battle mechanism, a humanoid mech to be controlled by a pilot. I believe that most cogs have offending abilities, but seeing how cogs are made to fit the personality of their pilots, you're different." She finally said, looking at the screen, not sure of what was going on.

[Stern Algorithm]

"Maybe I will," Israfil said, "What do you like to do for fun? I usually just play games on my drive, though as a solider, I'm required to stay in shape and have been meaning to take up some sort of sport. We don't have many options on this ship, but i hear there's a recreation center near the cafeteria and that the gym is pretty good too."

---

"Different? You mean the other cogs are like me, but not? How different? Have the other cogs started communicating with their pilots?" The screen bombarded Claire with questions.

[FaithfulMuse]

"We can go to the gym, if you want to." Mike suggested, looking at Israfil. Coming to think of it, it had been a while since he had last worked out. It might do him some good.

"What I meant is that while most cogs have a more offensive use, you are made to repair other cogs rather than causing damage. But as far as I know, you're also the first cog that's communicating with its pilot." Claire answered. It still felt a bit odd to be talking to her cog.

[Stern Algorithm]

At the gym, Israfil looked around, a bit flustered. It was clear he hadn't exercised often in the past and wasn't sure where to start. "What's your usual routine?" Israfil asked, hoping to mimic Mike.

---

"The first? That is unsettling. Are the others expected to begin communicating any time soon?" the screen asked.

[FaithfulMuse]

"We can start off with some cardio and take a break after that." Mike suggested, looking at Israfil.

"I'm nog sure. For as far as I know, this isn't even supposed to happen in the first place." Claire admited to the cog.

[Stern Algorithm]

"I see," Israfil said, and headed for a treadmill. It took a bit of time for him to sync his drive to it so that it would keep track of his progress for him and started jogging at a moderate pace.

---

"Not supposed to happen? What do you mean? What will happen if people find out about me?" While text on a screen couldn't properly convey emotion, there was a sense of panic.

[FaithfulMuse]

Mike followed Israfil and took place on the threadmill next to him, starting at a bit of a slow pace, planning to speed up a bit later.

"I don't know, I'm not sure what they will do. So for the moment, I think it's best to not let anyone know about this all. We should find a way for you to make sure it's me and not someone else, just in case. Don't you have a built in camera?" Claire asked, looking at the screen to await a response.

[Stern Algorithm]

After a short while, the jogging started getting strenuous for Israfil, but the treadmill recommended that he stay on for a bit longer so he persevered. He admired how Mike seemed to not only be handling the jogging, but increasing the speed over time.

---

"I scan your neural signature when you enter, I'll be sure not to make my presence known if anyone else comes in." The screen replied.

[FaithfulMuse]

After a bit longer, Mike got off the threadmill and looked at Israfil. "So, do you like it?" He asked with a smile.

"Alright, I think that should work good enough for now." Claire answered to the cog.

[Stern Algorithm]

"It's pretty tiring," Israfil said between breaths, "I need to build up my endurance, but I think I could get the hang of it after a while. Is running one of your preferred exercises or something else?"

---

"I suppose I should let you get to your training then?" the screen asked, realizing that it had interrupted Claire from what she had been planning to do.

[FaithfulMuse]

"I like running most of all." Mike answered to Israfil. "What do you want to do next?" He asked.

"Yes, but we can talk more another time." Claire suggested, looking at the screen.

[Stern Algorithm]

"I don't know, what other exercises are considered cardio?" Israfil asked.

---

"Very well," the screen said before booting up to a more familiar user interface.

[FaithfulMuse]

"There are several things you can do, like riding a bike, playing squash and swimming." Mike said.

Claire started with the training program, like she had planned to do at first.

[Stern Algorithm]

"I see. I think I've got my second wind, so I might try a bicycle machine," Israfil said, heading towards and getting on one.

[FaithfulMuse]

Mike nodded and followed after Israfil.

[Stern Algorithm]

A voice came over the commlink in Asteria. "Hello? Umm...Ensign...Rivers, is it? Hi, I'm Petty Officer First Class Charles Link, the head of engineering," he began bluntly, "We've noticed a spike in CPU usage. Are you experiencing any lag? Or bugs? Glitches?"

[FaithfulMuse]

"No, I didn't experience anything weird." Claire answered, realising that it could be troublesome if they could see something wasn't the way it was supposed to this easily.

[Stern Algorithm]

"Hmm," Link thought for a bit, "Maybe it's the healing; you know your cog uses a version of the cog-scan to repair other cogs? It's pretty computationally heavy, so I guess it should be no surprise if your cog does a little more 'thinking' than the others."

[FaithfulMuse]

Claire nodded. "Yes, I suppose that's possible." In fact the word thinking fit pretty well, but she knew that Link didn't mean it literally, so just telling him would be nothing but stupid.