epitomized | inbox

Thanks- alright I'll send this through to you. What we took is already marked off but there was a shit ton of data there. Archival footage, personnel files- nonessential shit, it's the only reason Hargrove didn't raid it.

But you said Delta was stored there as well?

We were on a very narrow timeframe to get in and out- D wasn't something we expected to find. He doesn't know if the others are there but- it wouldn't be a stretch. It was an archive for backups of data.

I don't think Theta ever backed himself up.

He trusted North wouldn't let anything happen to him.

I- some of them were scheduled. AI are expensive, even fragments.

God I didn't want to think about leaving him behind. They're in stasis if they were like Delta so it's not- it wouldn't be terrible.

Sure.

[ It's fine that he seems to care more about leaving the AI behind than them. Really. It's just peachy. See how he's not remarking on it right now? ]

So we go in, see if anything can be recovered. If not, we do a wipe of the facility to make sure they can't get their hands on anything.

That's what we usually did but- finding them kind of tripped me up. We went for a blackout and lockdown instead. [ He scrubs at his eyes. ] I fucked up, alright?

I acted on incomplete intel and trusted Tex because-

I fucked up.

[ There's stony silence for a moment. ]

...there's another option. We need to find out where they're going back to. If there's anything left at the facility, we could use it draw them out. Follow them back.

[ Right. Focus forward, Taylor Murray. Nothing behind you now but ghosts. ]

If sigma is there I whole hardheartedly endorse using him as bait.

That makes two of us.

[ What he did to Maine...

Don't. Don't do that to yourself. He steels himself anew. ]

Once we get a lockdown on where they're headed, what then?

Salt and burn. I still have a stupidly large cache of concentrated EMPs. We find where they're set up and wipe the whole server. I'd rather not but-

They won't stop. D's tried reasoning with them- but they won't stop. I didn't know AI could get cultlike but...here we are.

Well that's pretty much what Sigma was attempting to do on a smaller scale. It makes a weird sort of sense.

But I don't want to think about what that many AI all hooked up to one another could do, honestly.

...you don't suppose they'd be going after all AI? Alien, too?

He wanted to be human. This collective doesn't much care for humanity. Calls' Delta's growth and human traits 'flawed' and it is really, really unsettling to listen to them talk. He's. Shook up.

Probably. Anything that's not locked up tight by the UNSC; and even then? I figure it's a matter of time.

I might be able to work something out on our end, then. I'll need to see if he'll agree to it, but I'd rather we had all the help on deck that we can get.

Tell him to keep an eye out for this signature- it's what they've used to 'announce' themselves every time they've made contact with Delta.

I'll pass it along.

Looks like we've both got homework to do.

Yeah. Fun times. You can reach me at this frequency- pretty much whenever. I'm not exactly sleeping deep at the moment.

Alright.

[ Another pause. ]

...I'm glad you're not dead. For the record.

...I'm sorry for not getting you off the ship. Or. Reaching out. Trying to help more.

For the record.

And thanks- for. Helping. I know you don't have to. You don't owe me anything and I-

Thanks.

[ That. That right there is what sinks home, and that anger starts to wear off. It leaves him just looking tired for a minute, and he breathes deep. ]

Yeah.

[ It's not forgiveness just yet, but...'sorry' is honestly more than he was expecting to hear at this point. It's a start. ]

Talk to you when I know something.

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