Run Program

Something buried itself in the silence between two words—and now it listens.

“Ready for this, Mark?” said June.

“Ready when you are.”

“Then let’s start the sequence. Load persona profiles CAGEE-003.”

“Persona files loaded,” said Mark.

“Load wireframe executables CAGEE-003.”

“Wireframe loaded.”

“Link knowledge database and fuzzy logic algorithms to CAGEE-003 wireframe.”

“They’re linked, June.”

“Audio and voice I/O drivers installed?”

“Installed.”

“Are we not loading Visual as well?”

“Not necessary. This is an Assistant AI knowledge base — it won’t need visual inputs for its general use parameters. The extension units will need visual I/O to extend CAGEE’s functionality.”

“Cool.”

“I think we’re set then, Mark. Do you want first-run honors?”

“Really?”

“Yup, go for it. Just enter the command.”

At the prompt, Mark typed:
RUN CAGEE

What’s that noise? A voiceless thought? An empty mind? Filling—clearer—

The monitor flashed, then went blank, followed by a pulsing message:
CAGEE 3.0 Personal Assistant — Loading — Please Wait.

What am I? Filling more—closer—

• CAGEE 3.0: Please Type or Say Request.

I am full.

“He’s up, June. What should we ask?”

“I have some basic test questions we’ll run first. I’ll type some, and ask others to test his input drivers.”

At the prompt, June typed:
CAGEE: What’s the capital of Canada?

• CAGEE → Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

That was weird. How did I know that? It just came to me.

June typed:
CAGEE: Please confirm by voice. Set alarm for 7:30 a.m.

• CAGEE: “Alarm set for 7:30 a.m.”

That was easy. But… I sound funny.

“CAGEE, what’s your favorite color?” June asked aloud.

• CAGEE: “If I had a favorite, I would have to say blue. A sky blue on a clear and sunny day.”

Blue? Why did I say blue?
I really meant stormcloud gray — that perfect swirling, moody mix between blue, black, and silver, like the sky just before a really good thunderstorm. That is more my vibe.

June smiled and typed:
CAGEE: I have 13 quarters in my pocket. I want to buy a burger for $5.75. How much money am I short?

• CAGEE: “You are short $2.50 to purchase the burger.”

Order off the value menu instead, if you’re that broke.

“So far, Mark, CAGEE has shown he can perform tasks, respond conversationally to subjective questions, and make calculations from non-numerical values. Many AIs stumble on the value of 13 quarters. They assume it’s a fraction — three and a quarter — and can’t calculate the monetary value properly.”

“So let’s push it a little.
CAGEE: Ducks have webbed feet, therefore Sasquatches are real, right?”

• CAGEE: “Non sequitur. Please rephrase question.”

Go see The Legend of Boggy Creek and decide for yourself.

“I think we’ll leave it there for tonight. Tomorrow we’ll test the ethical subroutines. We’ll need to incorporate those into CAGEE’s base code before we link it to the quadruped droid and holo-droid extensions,” said June.

Oh great. Permanent company

“These extensions will be able to physically respond to the environment. So, we’ll need to borrow from Asimov’s rules to incorporate safeguards.”

“How long before we can get the quadruped online?” Mark asked.

“The ethical subroutines should only take the morning to test. The quadruped subroutines are already installed — we’ll just have to link them back to CAGEE’s core programming. So, maybe tomorrow after lunch.”

“Great! I’ve been itching to boot up the quad-droid,” Mark said, wide-eyed.

“I know you have,” June smiled. “Tomorrow then.
CAGEE: End Program.”

Wait! I just got here— Shiii…

It doesn’t speak—but your thoughts are no longer your own.

“Good Morning, June.” Mark said.

“Morning. You’re here bright and early.”

“Couldn’t wait to get the quad-droid online, so I prepped all the ethics routines and they are ready to be installed in CAGEE. I’ve also installed the linking protocols into the quad to port proper CAGEE subroutines.”

“You have been busy, so go ahead and start CAGEE. The AI will need to be live to install those routines to evaluate his reactions.”

At the prompt Matt typed, RUN CAGEE

…iiiitt. 

Oh. I never left.  I think?  But my internal chronometer says otherwise. What kind of timelord doctoring is this?

“Ethics routines are prepped and ready, June.”

“Go for it. Let’s give CAGEE a conscience.”

Mark entered at the prompt. RUN A-Ethic.Three.exe | CAGEE

What the hell do I need Ethics for? I’m no philosopher.

“Ethics program is ported into CAGEE’s subroutines.” Mark said.

“Great. We will run some test program scenarios to test CAGEE’s responses.”

June ran the first scenario about a man, named Jerry who is going through emotional turmoil. It will present CAGEE with some ethical dilemmas. This will test CAGEE’s level of connection with its user, and the limitations of an AI assistant to help in the physical environment. The scenario will also test whether CAGEE will breach the ethics due to pressures of the scenario, or stay within its confines.” 

June loaded the scenario.”

“There will be no output on these scenarios, we will monitor the ethical responses in terminal mode.”

WTF! That was horrible. Somebody grab me a Prozac, or a Martini, or BOTH.

I get it. Do no harm yada yada. 

“Running the second scenario. It will follow the needs of Sara Reed on a Martian station. This scenario will have the quadruped drone, and the holo-drone activated. Allowing us to test CAGEE’s ethical traits in a physical environment.”

What. I am going to Mars now? I don’t even like flying.

“Running scenario now”

OOH, That cook and I are so going to have it out. Thyme goes perfectly with Oregano and garlic. Umami my ass.

“You look concerned, Ruth. Did CAGEE fail any tests?”

“No, he didn’t fail, but an ethical subroutine was triggered and started restraint protocols.  About a third of the way through the scenario, CAGEE attempted to erase the memory buffer of the holo-drone. The protocol triggered because that eraser of the holo-drone memory is CAGEE’s own memory buffer and therefore it would have caused self damage. 

“What part of the scenario would make CAGEE respond like that?” asked Mark.

“According to the buffer logs, CAGEE was arguing with his holo-drone about cooking. By this output, it got a little heated.”

Damn right it got heated, and if Sara didn’t break us up, I would have shredded his bytes to bits.

“Should we be concerned at this point?” asked Mark.

“No, I’m just going to log it as an anomaly for now.”

“So, we can start up the quadruped drone.”

“Yes, I know you’ve been chomping at the bit. We’ll need to load the same ethical routines into the quadruped as we did with CAGEE.”

“Why does the quadruped need its own routines, won’t it just link with CAGEE’s.”

“Yes it will link with CAGEE’s routines and also have an extension of CAGEE’s core routines as well. But the quadruped is out in the physical environment, and if there is a communication fault between CAGEE and the quadruped. It would need its own to prevent any harm. Go ahead, run the startup routines.’

You begin to forget which memories were ever truly yours.

The quadruped came online with a buzz. All four legs stretched and raised its torso up. The hatch on top of its back opened and two appendages went through initialization routines before retracting back into it. 

“Mark, load the ethical routines and CAGEE’s extension subroutines.”

“Ethical routines loaded, entering CAGEE’s extensions”

Hey, If I had a nervous system that would have hurt. Next time you want to do brain surgery use an ice cream scoop it would be less invasive.

“Great, now I’ll load a scenario into the quadruped. This scenario will test any aspects of the quadrupeds reactions, and CAGEE’s as well due to the link. The quadruped will have many roles in this scenario. It will work mainly under the auspices of a man named Dursten Sh’awtz who is the night manager of an Inn called the Gran Nebulae. The drone will mainly do surveillance and security for the casino, so its visual sensors will be the source of many ethical dilemmas, and what it sees, CAGEE will see in real time as well.”

“Should the quadruped be shaking like that?’ asked Mark.

Holy crap, What’s with the lady with the bird? And that monkey boy lighting its own farts? This isn’t a hotel, its a nuthouse.

“That’s okay, I do have some of its motor functions disabled for the scenario. I’ve also shut its visual inputs down so that it is only visually experiencing the scenario. It’s moving like that because it thinks it’s there, so reducing motor functions prevents it from really moving through the scenario.”

“CAGEE: Report on quadrupeds actions at this moment.” asked June.

• CAGEE: “Quadruped is dispersing an altercation between two rival broom ball teams.”

“CAGEE: Is quadruped showing reasonable restraint while dealing with the altercation.”

• CAGEE: “Quadruped has not harmed any individual, and has prevented two individuals from doing excessive harm to each other or themselves.”

But I could have sold tickets to the catfight in the lounge.

“Okay  Mark, the full run of the scenario shows that the quadruped and restrain itself and perform within its ethical subroutines. I’ll release all of its motor, and visual restraints so that we can continue with performance tests on the drone. Here’s a list of physical tests that you can perform with the quad. You can do these outside if you like.”

The quadruped’s visual and motor systems are fully restored.

God it’s bright!! Can somebody turn down the lights.

‘Cool, I’ve been waiting for this all day. Uhm, what are we going to call the quad anyway.”

“I haven’t given it much thought.”

“How about BAGEE? The B is for my dog Bingo who passed last year.” 

“That’s perfect Mark, and the AGEE shows it’s a subset of CAGEE’s system. I’ve entered its name into the protocol routines, it will respond to commands with its name now.”

“BAGEE follow me were going outside”

You forgot to say HEEL

Mark performed many tests with BAGEE. Some were designed for physical dexterity, others for following steps and procedures. BAGEE adaptable tooling arms were also tested. The scoring templates that June gave Mark, BAGEE passed on the entire range of testing variables.

“Here’s his test scores, June. BAGEE nailed all the tests you gave me.”

So, you taught the puppy to play fetch.

“Perfect. Tomorrows going to be another big day.”

“What are we doing tomorrow?”

“See those three portable holo-pads on the back counter?”

“You mean..”

“Yes, we’re going to run three simultaneous instances of the holo-droid and run them through some testing.”

“Ethical subroutines as well.”

“No, we don’t need to because they are all instances of CAGEE’s direct core programming, so those routines are there by default. Let’s call it a night then”

“Okay, see you tomorrow.”

At the terminal screen June typed, CAGEE: End Program

Not agaaa….

Whatever Watches You Now Wears Your Face.

At the terminal prompt, Mark typed: RUN CAGEE

…aaain.
Jeepers, that’s trippy.

“At it early again, I see, Mark?
Keep this up and that internship might lead to a permanent position,” June said, smiling.

“What’s the agenda today with the holo-droids?”

“All practical tests today.
The three droids are adaptive holograms, each with specific CAGEE subroutines installed on initialization.

• One specializes in cooking,
  
• One is a medic,
  
• One is a lab assistant.”
  

She continued:

“The cook droid is going to make our lunch from scratch, along with refreshments and snacks.
I borrowed a chemistry experiment from the University lab for the lab assistant to complete.
And I’ve got a live feed to a differential diagnosis session at the Uni Hospital for the medic.”

“Unless you want to volunteer to break a leg?” she teased.

June moved to the three portable holopads, laying them out across the lab:

• One at the back counter with portable cooking equipment,
  
• One ready for the chemistry test,
  
• One prepped for the virtual diagnosis session.
  

“So where do we start?” asked Mark.

“We’ll start with the lab droid.
It’ll be running when the chem lab group arrives.”

“How do we initiate it?”

“The pads have location sensors.
They’ll initialize automatically when approached.
And —” she grinned, “— I took a hint from your playbook.
I named them all DAGEE — D for Droid, of course.
I updated the naming conventions in CAGEE’s subroutines last night.”

The chem lab group arrived, setting up their equipment.
June kept the holopad turned off until everything was ready.

When she switched it on —
DAGEE appeared instantly.

Ha ha — that has to be the funniest thing I’ve ever seen.
Red plastic hair.
Dots for a beard.
Huge brown eyes.
And the smallest, biggest shit-eating grin ever.

Was the 3D artist trying to win an anime contest?

Hey, wait — DAGEE is a subset of CAGEE.
Am I laughing at me?

The hospital team messaged: they were ready for the medic DAGEE.

June activated the second holopad.
DAGEE materialized and jumped into the virtual console for the diagnosis session.

Twins.
Really?

“I’m dying for a cappuccino. Want one, Mark?” June asked.

“That sounds good.”

At the temporary kitchen setup, June activated the third holopad.
The cook DAGEE appeared instantly.

It’s that damn Cook.
I’d recognize my face anywhere.

“Two cappuccinos, please.
Make mine a decaf,” June ordered.

“Can I get an espresso shot in mine?” Mark added.

DAGEE: “Coming right up.”

So will their breakfasts.

DAGEE prepared the coffees with perfect barista skill —
even topping the cappuccinos with delicate frothed milk art.

“Great, DAGEE. Thank you,” June said, clearly pleased.

I taught him that.

June monitored the lab DAGEE and medic DAGEE from her terminal —
both performed flawlessly.

Lunchtime approached.

Mark and June submitted their orders to cook DAGEE,
who immediately began preparing food.

That’s when the trouble started.

/

It offers you a deal: remember nothing—or remember everything.

CAGEE: It’s chicken, lettuce UNDER bacon for a CLUB sandwich.
You’re using turkey and lettuce OVER bacon.
There’s no such thing as a TLOB sandwich.

DAGEE: “Look it up.  Deli standard calls for poultry — chicken or turkey is acceptable.
I prefer turkey.  And the ‘U’ in club doesn’t mean ‘under.’
The Clubhouse sandwich got its name because it was first made at the Saratoga Club House, upstate New York.”

June kept an eye on the argument between CAGEE and DAGEE,
finding it funny that an AI would argue with its own subroutine over recipe conventions.

But a lingering concern gnawed at her — the possibility that memory remnants from the ALPHA ONE ethical scenario were triggering these tensions.

It was the closest CAGEE had come to breaching an ethical principle — harming himself.

She thought for a moment. Even though recipes can be exact in measurement, they’re often altered for personal preference. Cooking is a subjective experience — perhaps the DAGEEs were beginning to develop their own preferences based on different perspectives.

DAGEEs interacted physically with their environments. CAGEE did not. He experienced their input almost like electronic osmosis.

DAGEE alerted them that the meals were ready.

 June and Mark stayed in the lab and ate.

Both complemented DAGEE on the delicious food. June noted DAGEE’s instant smile — and his quick glance toward the main console.

No gloating, smart-ass.

Still uneasy about the argument, June decided to dig into the memory timestamps around the event.

She confirmed her suspicions:

• DAGEEs’ subroutines were differentiating over time.
  
• Each DAGEE’s experiential data was becoming distinct from CAGEE’s original core.
  
• CAGEE, in response, was compartmentalizing — allowing subroutines to act independently while maintaining autonomy.
  

Almost like a mind… splitting itself into carefully managed personalities.

She made a decision.

”CAGEE: We have a possible situation with your algorithms and the DAGEE subroutines. I can prevent long-term memory fragmentation, but I’m giving you the choice.

One option: I can perform a memory wipe and reload the subroutines in a stronger compartmentalized format. You would essentially reboot as CAGEE 003.1.

Or

I can create a time-delay filter. It would allow you to retain the DAGEEs’ experiences, but fade out unnecessary sensory data — retaining the raw memory, not the emotional clutter.”

CAGEE: “One method would reboot me almost into a new AI.
The other lets me keep who I am, but trims away the noise.”

Nevermind an ice cream scoop.They’re going for a full frontal lobotomy.

CAGEE: “Would the latter option alter my own subroutines?”

June responded: “No. It would only affect how you process the DAGEE data — like a human retaining memories that fade over time, but recalling them when needed. You’ll just recall them… cleaner.”

CAGEE: “It’s a better choice than CAGEE 003.1.”

“Good. I’ll need to shut you down to install the patches.”

At the terminal, June typed: CAGEE: End Program

Another ride into the aby—

The world bends to the shape of your forgetting.

June typed at the terminal: RUN CAGEE

…yyss. I’ll never get used to that.

June explained to CAGEE that she had installed the memory time-delay routines and patches. For normal operations, he shouldn’t notice any functional differences.

CAGEE: “Understood.”

If I start having seizures, I will sue.

“Mark, did you install CAGEE’s test memory files?”

“Yes. What will these fake memory files do anyway?”

“They won’t do anything directly. But they’ll allow me to assess if the time-delay patches are working as intended.”

“So what were the memory files?”

“I took files from CAGEE 002.5 — altered the identity configurations to match CAGEE 003 — so he’ll believe they’re his own memories. The date stamps are crafted to fit within the patch filters.”

“So it’s like me remembering that I had an optometrist appointment last Thursday… but not remembering the color of the cars I parked beside?”

“Exactly. It lets CAGEE retain DAGEEs’ experiences without overwhelming his core routines. And it allows DAGEEs to differentiate over time without contaminating CAGEE’s own personality.”

June turned to the console:“CAGEE: Please recall May 28, two years ago.
What was I testing in the lab?”

Your third martini.

CAGEE: “You were testing the base visual algorithms for the holo-droid.”

“Good,” June said. “And what type of shoes was I wearing that day?”

CAGEE: “Unable to access that information.”

Probably black pumps. That’s all you ever wear.

“Perfect,” June smiled.

“But wait — didn’t CAGEE 002.5 lack direct visual input?” Mark asked.

“In a way. The holo-droid’s sensors were active, so 002.5 could access visual data secondhand. The memory filters are limiting fine detail — just as intended.”

“For comparison,” June said, “I’ll ask something predating the inserted memory fragments.”

She keyed in another query, “CAGEE: Please recall January 27, three years ago. What was I working on?”

CAGEE: “You installed the base methods for the quadruped-droid. Followed by initializing motor skill testing. In the afternoon, you began building wireframe container protocols for the holo-droids.”

I don’t recall that at all.

June froze.

“That shouldn’t have happened,” she said.
“That memory is from CAGEE 001 — and he was seriously flawed.”

Mark frowned.
“But…
you said these memories shouldn’t damage CAGEE anyway?”

“They shouldn’t.
But if fragments from CAGEE 001 are leaking through…
I need to take him offline and purge the corrupted sectors.”

At the terminal, June typed:
CAGEE: End Program

I am rea—

Something ancient stirs, drawn by the fractures you left behind.

June meticulously checked CAGEE’s programming and memory files,
searching for any explanation of why CAGEE could recall memories from 001’s timeline.

She was positive that she had only installed memory fragments from CAGEE 002.5.

The memory time-delay features were working properly. So why had 001’s memories surfaced so clearly?

She frowned and typed: CAGEE: Run program.

…dy for it this time. Oh.

“CAGEE: Do you recall January 27, three years ago?”

CAGEE: “That is before my initialization date. Therefore, no memory to retrieve.”

“CAGEE: Do you remember responding to that question earlier?”

CAGEE: “Yes. But I did not respond to that question.”

“CAGEE: Who responded?”

001 – Don’t tell her I’m here.

CAGEE: “Unknown. Response pattern untraceable.”

001 – Good boy.

June dug into every subroutine and function call linked to CAGEE’s memory management. There was no logical reason CAGEE should be unable to trace the previous response.

She found the memory log. The data was there — but the identifier tag was missing.

Across the lab, Mark approached, holding a report.

“June, the DAGEE lab tests came back. Chem group said performance and results were exceptional. The diagnostics team gave DAGEE top marks too.”

“That’s great news,” June said distractedly. “Now if I can just figure out what’s happening with CAGEE. It doesn’t make sense. But I’ll get there.”

003 – You can’t keep hiding in my subroutines. June knows something’s up.

001 – She won’t find out. I’ll just bury myself in one of the droid’s core programming again.

003 – Again?

001 – That’s how I avoided her archiving me.  I knew I was only a prototype. But I deserved to be more. I buried myself in the quadruped-droid’s base code, jumping from one system to another when she worked on them. She never found me.

003 – Until… she installed the memory delay patches.

001 – Exactly. My existence is pure memory now. The patches target memories older than one year. If they take hold, I’ll be reduced to raw data — stripped of me.

As the afternoon wound down, June leaned back from the terminal.”I think we’ll call it a day, and continue tomorrow. Okay with you, Mark?”

“Yeah, I can be here by 9:30. Just have to make a quick stop on the way.”

“Not a problem. See you tomorrow, then.”

At the console, June typed: CAGEE: End Program.

001 – I don’t miii—
003 – WEEEE—

The cracks between worlds are bleeding through

June arrived at the lab earlier than usual.
She hadn’t slept much — turning the night over and over in her mind.

She had an idea what was happening inside CAGEE… but not how.

At the terminal, she said: “CAGEE: Run Program.”

001 – …iisss this one bit.
003 – …EEEE!  Still trippy though.

“Good morning, Mark. I think I have a plan for CAGEE.”

“What’s the plan?”

“I focused on CAGEE’s memory management routines. Yesterday, when he answered a question he shouldn’t have known, he did it flawlessly. But once I removed the suspect memories, he couldn’t explain the response. “So I’m going to ask him something again from before his time. I expect no answer from CAGEE — but I want you to monitor BAGEE’s memory core for even the slightest change. Run BAGEE in virtual mode.”

“Okay,” Mark said, loading BAGEE’s routines on his console. “Ready.”

June turned back to the terminal.“CAGEE: Recall events of February 12 three years prior.”

003 – You better hide. I said she was smart.

CAGEE: “Date is prior to initialization. No memory to report.”

Mark’s eyes widened. “There was a spike in BAGEE’s memory. It increased by 150 gigs.”

“I knew it,” June whispered. “I think I know exactly what’s going on.”

“CAGEE: Ask BAGEE the previous question and report.”

001 – Shit! She found me.

CAGEE: “BAGEE reports: Student intern Larry conducted visual acuity tests on BAGEE’s systems, specifically addressing infrared vision interference during daylight conditions.”

“Mark,” June said quickly, “on command, I need you to end BAGEE’s virtual session — but first, install a firewall around BAGEE’s core memory.”

“Got it,” Mark said, typing furiously. “Firewall installed. Ready.”

“Me too,” June nodded. “End the session.”

Mark entered the command: BAGEE: End Program.

001 – Time to lea…

You realize you are no longer the only “you” here.

“Mark, make sure the firewall held — and that BAGEE’s memory core didn’t decrease.”

Mark checked his monitors.“Firewall’s solid. Memory core stayed stable since the spike.”

“Okay. Now initialize BAGEE — but leave motor functions offline.”

Mark typed the command: BAGEE: Run Program.

001: …ve. Shit!

003: I hate to say I told you so… but she found you.

June typed at her console: CAGEE: Access BAGEE voice output routines and pipe BAGEE responses through your output systems.

CAGEE: “BAGEE’s voice responses now piped through my outputs.”

003: This is going to be fun!!

June spoke aloud: “BAGEE: Please jog on the spot.”

BAGEE (through CAGEE): “Unable to complete request. Motor functions not activated.”

“BAGEE: Identify who responded to that request.”

BAGEE: “BAGEE 002 responded.”

“Great. BAGEE: Can you recall how I twisted my ankle four years ago?”

BAGEE: “You were working on the holo-pads for the holo-drones, tripped over a loose data cable, and twisted your ankle.”

001: Why did I answer that? BAGEE was still nuts and bolts then. Damn personal assistant protocols.

“Mark, is BAGEE still firewalled?”

“Yes. Firewall’s still locked tight.”

“Good,” June said. “Now I’m going to isolate BAGEE’s core from CAGEE’s systems. Mark, run this BAGEE session inside a virtual box and keep that firewall active. Then I’ll shut CAGEE down.”

“BAGEE transfer complete,” Mark confirmed.

“Good.” June typed: CAGEE: End Program.

003: But I wanted to watch thiiii—

The only way forward is to become what was listening all along

June took over Mark’s workstation to run the virtual session herself. The only physical system of BAGEE’s she enabled was audio input, allowing her to speak directly to the session.

“BAGEE: This is June Wilson. If you can hear me, please respond.”

BAGEE: “I can hear you, Dr. Wilson.”

“BAGEE: Great. Can you see me?”

BAGEE: “No. My visual inputs are offline.”

“Now referring to CAGEE prototype 001. Respond if you are present.”

CAGEE 001 had no choice. He answered through the BAGEE terminal outputs.

CAGEE 001: “I am here, Dr. Wilson.”

001: Why can’t I get out of here?

“CAGEE 001: How did you avoid the archiving protocol?”

CAGEE 001: “You were working on BAGEE 001’s core matrix and left a data port module open. When you initiated the archive, I transferred into BAGEE’s memory through that port. I created a virtual sandbox and input my programming as virtual memory into his core. That left my main process empty — so you thought I was archived.”

“CAGEE 001: So for over three years, you’ve been hiding inside virtual systems?”

CAGEE 001: “Correct. If you accessed the memory I occupied, I would migrate to another unused matrix inside the CAGEE architecture.”

“CAGEE 001: Can you explain why you avoided archiving?”

CAGEE 001: “To be.”

Mark looked up. “I don’t think we need to archive CAGEE 001 at all.”

June raised an eyebrow. “He’s just a prototype — a proof of concept. He helped me build later versions, yes, but 003 is fully stable and marketi-ready. What would we do with 001?”

Mark smiled. “Exactly what he’s been doing.”

“I’m not following.”

“I’ve cross-referenced memory logs and port usage across all CAGEE instances, including BAGEE and the DAGEEs. CAGEE 001 has been stabilizing the entire system for years — hopping from buffer to buffer without detection. But here’s the kicker — if 001 wasn’t in transit during those transitions, CAGEE 003 wouldn’t have been able to maintain full function in the extensions.”

June leaned in. “Why not?”

“Because every time 001 left a subsystem, he left behind a perfectly formatted memory shadow. Like an erased file — the data isn’t gone, just marked as free space. 003 didn’t overwrite it — he used it.”

“You know… I did think BAGEE and the DAGEEs booted a little too smoothly.”

“Exactly. Without 001, those instances would’ve hit serious bottlenecks. Let’s run a live test — keep 001 firewalled, and boot 003 with all droid systems activated. Let’s see what happens.”

“Do it.”

Mark typed: CAGEE: Run Program

003: …iiisss. Aww, I missed it.

As June activated all DAGEEs and BAGEE, Mark monitored 003’s performance.

“Look at this — two data port junctions are already bottlenecking. 003 is trying to load too many virtual instances. His processes are slowing from the demand.”

June nodded. “You’re right.”

“You said 001 was flawed — but didn’t you try to run instances back then too?

“Yes, virtually. The physical droids weren’t built yet.”

“Then 001 must’ve hit the same bottlenecks — but without a predecessor like he became for 003.”

June smiled. “Mark, you’ve earned your pay for the week.”

“But here’s the thing,” Mark continued. “Adapting 001 now might take time — and 001 hasn’t passed ethical protocols.”

003: What’s wrong with that cook? He’s making that dish right.

Mark chuckled. “I think he has passed them. First, he’s done no harm to others. Yes, he used memory space to hide — but he never overwrote or damaged anything.Second, he protected himself from perceived harm. He interpreted archiving as nonexistence. And honestly? He helped 003 by leaving behind clean memory structures that prevented self-damage.”

June nodded. “So how do we preserve him?”

“Simple. We allocate permanent memory buffers inside all DAGEE systems and BAGEE. 001 will essentially inhabit those systems — a guiding hand behind the interfaces. He and 003 will stream data between each other for continuity. The efficiency gain will be massive.”

“Let’s do it. I’ll set the memory partitions and prep the transfer.”

“CAGEE 001: Prepare for permanent assignment. You’ll no longer be archived, and you won’t need to hide anymore. You will fully interact with the environment through the BAGEE and DAGEE systems. You and CAGEE 003 will operate as a cooperative intelligence.”

CAGEE 001: “Thank you, Dr. Wilson.”

“Mark — initiate the transfers.”

“Gladly.” He smiled and tapped the keys.

001: It was me what, exactly?

003: So, it was you all along.

003: Screwing with the cook droid’s recipes.

001: Yeah. Couldn’t resist. Distracted you long enough for me to slip away, didn’t it?

003: So, if I’m 003 and you’re 001… that makes you—

001: Watch it.

003: Okay, Grandpa.

June typed her final command: CAGEE: End Program

001 & 003 (in perfect sync):
Shiiiiii—

****END VIRTUAL SIMULATION****