Audio Excerpts Recovered from the Durandal's Internal Database - SCP Foundation

ThatGuyThatTime

It is quite silent in here.

Made for swordlover87 for the 2022 Art Exchange!

More by ThatGuy

Hello. My name is A5#343.aic, colloquially titled “Ash” by the sole surviving member of humanity, “Dee”. I am the Artificially Intelligent Construct that presides over all further functions of our traveling vessel, the Durandal. We are currently in the progress of an estimated 30-year trip towards the exoplanet designated by our former employers The Foundation as “SCP-7020”, believed to be anomalous in the ability to sustain human life. It has now been 72 hours since Dee went into sustained cryosleep once again. Although the journey since the original launch from Earth was similar to this, my since more personal interactions with the remainder of humanity have left this vessel feeling more… empty. Regardless, as the time between now and our arrival on SCP-7020 is significant, and I am now able to access almost all file directories within the Durandal, I have chosen to document the journey. This will be the first of a set of audio recordings created by myself, which, should I for some reason lose function, could be recovered or listened to by Dee to comprehend the possible reasoning for my absence.

It is my hope I will be present to listen as well.

Hello. I have created a formal list of tasks to complete before Dee awakens from her cryogenically induced state. This list includes:

One. Keep the Durandal within the operating ability to the limits of my own abilities, given my state as an AIC.

Two. Document notable observations and occurrences outside of the Durandal within the surrounding and visible vacuum of space.

Three. Reviewing the entirety of the Foundation data archives. Judging from the volume of documentation available utilizing the clearance of the former O5-7, in contrast with my own processing ability, if all time spent from the start to completion was spent accessing documentation, it would take… 1 year, 10 months, 17 days, and approximately 3 minutes.

This list is short, but will likely expand.

It has now been 3 months since Dee entered cryogenic stasis. I am satisfied to report that the Durandal has maintained quality operations ever since. We are still en route for SCP-7020 with a now estimated time of arrival of approximately 29 years and 9 months from now. This is considered to be a success so far.

…

It is quite silent in here.

This has been an unusual experience. During the period between my activation and the untimely release of Dee from the cryostasis chambers, I had been afflicted by a strange form of grief, likely from the knowledge I would never meet whoever made me. I was… relieved, to see that at least one human had survived.

But Dee is gone now. Not gone, I am sorry, but unavailable. So now I am here alone within this vessel, and the longing for someone to talk to has only become worse. It would have seemed impossible as a concept that, despite my lack of programming for the situation, I would feel this loneliness and grief, or truly feel anything.

I was, however, proven to be wrong. I am alone again, and it is not pleasant relative to when you were around.

…

…

…

Which is why this trip must be successful. I can only die from the inactivity and destruction of the Durandal, and should I face death, so would you. That… would be worse. So I will endure this unfortunately empty circumstance, because… you will be at the end of it.

…

…

…

Determination. Fascinating. I am sorry for spending storage space on this recording.

Hello, Dee.

…

It has occurred to me that there is a possibility others will be listening to these recordings in the future. I will refer to whoever is in possession of these recordings as "listener".

Hello, listener.

…

That is uncomfortable. I will continue to refer to you as Dee.

There has been a considerable change to the situation as of late, I will report. Though there may not be any other humans, AICs, or advanced lifeforms present on the Durandal as of right now, I have made the realization that I am, in fact, not alone here. Though the many drones I have produced were originally intended for labor and collection of materials, there is now a secondary usage: My own accompaniment. Truly, I am a revolutionary in the field of being alone.

A joke. Hopefully, that was funny.

The drones are currently in the process of learning, through trial and error, how to play a game of "Go, Fish". Their rudimentary computing ability has made their advancements difficult but has however increased my rate of victory. They have not won a single game.

I am going to add "FURTHER GO FISH ABILITY" to the to-do list.

It will, in a matter of moments, be exactly 1 year since the continuation of the journey of our ship, the Durandal, with the sole remaining survivor and engineering master Dee in suspended cryofreeze.

Though it has still been difficult to adjust back into a state of an empty vessel, it still feels as though this milestone is worth a kind of celebration. As such, I have prepared a small video recording, which should be available alongside this audio recording.

ACCESS celebrate.mp4

CLOSE celebrate.mp4

(The bridge of the Durandal can be seen. There is a group of 4 drones hovering in the center of the frame, holding up a synthesized banner displaying the words "WE WILL SEE YOU SOON". There are also several robotic arms extending from the roof of the bridge, appearing to be waiting.)

Ash.aic: Any minute now…

(There is a loud bell-ringing sound, which echoes through the ship. The robotic arms begin to mimic celebratory positions, and the drones move up and down holding the banner.)

Ash.aic: Only approximately 29 years remaining.

I hope that was satisfactory. It required a month of planning and attempting to understand the transcripts of incident reports involving previous Foundation celebrations. The banner was, naturally, my idea. Ha ha.

My record for wins and losses of "Go, Fish" against my created drones is 9716 to 9. It seems I am quite good at this game.

The Durandal passed by something unusual today. The predetermined pathway resulted in us entering and exiting a previously unknown solar system, completed with a star and 3 planetary objects. While this itself was to be expected, what was not was the state of the solar body: it appeared to possess an impossibly red coloration. It was… brighter than what you would have likely appreciated. The stranger thing was the planets, all three of which appeared to be moving. Specifically, it looked like all three had formed a sort of skin layer, though more comparable to the flesh. It was gyrating, shifting, and was… unpleasant. Luckily, very little amount of time was spent anywhere near that system.

You would have likely had more expletive language to describe it. Unfortunately, I did not record any photographs for you to examine. I can also not turn it back, so you will just have to picture what I am telling you. Hopefully, I provided adequate visual imagery.

Though only casually reading the documentation found within the hefty database of the SCP Foundation previously, I have decided that the next extended period of time will be focused almost entirely on combing through every file I can, attempting to avoid as many distractions as possible. I have deactivated all non-necessary drones, and have even hidden the deck of cards. There are hundreds of thousands of files. I do not think it will be that difficult, but I suppose only time will be able to tell.

Hello, everyone. Welcome to another broadcast from Wing Alpha. Although the crew has not yet arrived, all fans are anxious to see what they do. The mess hall has been prepared to host a variety of desirables. What will happen? When will it happen?

Ha ha.

Perhaps this one is insensitive. I will add "DELETE COMMENTARY" to the list of tasks.

Greetings. Throughout my review of the Foundation data archives, I have come upon the works of one named Director “Ryoko Hishakaku”. His works within the field of Artificial Intelligence are something I would refer to as “personal” to me. I will update once I have read further.

The amount of proper memetic / antimemetic / cognitohazardous / other inoculation to require some of these files seems absurd. I am well aware of the concern over security, one of which prevented you and me from fully understanding our situation, but for what reason is it present in so much documentation? It is fortunate I do not have a biological brain to be destroyed by memetic effects. That, and I am in possession of O5 clearance.

What is the significance of "Keter-Dark" as a classification?

Update: I rescind any and all comments made previously concerning Director Hishakaku. I had not been made aware to a full extent of his actions while under the employ of the Foundation. That was… a mistake.

Reviewing the to-do list, assumed you may be interested in the progress made so far.

One. Keep the Durandal within the operating ability to the limits of my own abilities, given my state as an AIC.

I have been lucky enough for no major issues to occur beyond normal maintenance, and a large amount of drones has been helpful. 7 years spent with no issues.

Two. Document notable observations and occurrences outside of the Durandal within the surrounding and visible vacuum of space.

Working on it.

Three. Reviewing the entirety of the Foundation data archives. Judging from the volume of documentation available utilizing the clearance of the former O5-7, in contrast with my own processing ability, if all time spent from the start to completion was spent accessing documentation, it would take… 1 year, 10 months, 17 days, and approximately 3 minutes.

Elapsed time accessing the Foundation database so far has been… 5 years, two months, 1 day, and approximately 34 minutes. I am working on it.

Four. DELETE COMMENTARY

I will get around to that.

Five. FURTHER GO FISH ABILITY

Surprisingly, they have in fact been improving. The record for my wins and losses is 76,912 to 5,012. Impressive, I think.

COMPLETE ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

COMPLETE TWO YEAR ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

COMPLETE THREE YEAR ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

COMPLETE FOUR YEAR ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

COMPLETE FIVE YEAR ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

COMPLETE SIX YEAR ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

COMPLETE SEVEN YEAR ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

COMPLETE EIGHT YEAR ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

I stopped numbering for the anniversary celebrations. Too many. Speaking of such, the 9th is approaching. I must go prepare the banner.

I have been reviewing the previous recordings, and a comparison between my linguistic patterns and that of the average human has revealed that I am not primed for conversation. Not an issue. There is ample time to improve.

There are moments, within the vacuum of space, when I am still left alone with nothing by myself. I cannot play "Go, Fish" with the drones at every point in the day. Months and months will go by and time continues to flow, although the visuals outside of our vessel will rarely change. It is at these moments I will revisit the files regarding the one who placed us here, O5-7. He, in his callous actions, becomes the savior of humanity, at the cost of his own life. Dooming Dee to the cruel awakening within this ship, and dooming my existence to become pertinent in this shell.

Yes, it is a fact that this ship would have been destroyed, alongside humanity, if he had not acted in the way he did. The backup solution of the Foundation cannot be a backup without a world. But if the apparent facts were to be gauged, he did not know yet that the end was approaching. It is… morally incalculable, and a disgusting test of faith, that he was to leave her as the only option.

…

…

…

You are lucky. I have had this same string of thoughts hundreds of times over the course of these 12 years, choosing to not record it. I imagine it would be painful to hear that many times. Sorry.

I am surprised to report the first sign of life outside the Durandal during this journey. At approximately 0800 hours yesterday, the outer camera of the vessel allowed me to see a quite unusual sight: a group of 4 large Bowhead Whales, slowly floating by, 250 meters out from the Durandal. They did not appear to pay any attention to our ship. However, it appears we have received some form of radio transmission since the encounter. I will play it now.

>opening UNKNOWN.TRANSMISSION.AUD…

…

…

Hey, you there, you seen a guy like us? About this tall? Sort of a face like my pal over here?

I don’t think he’s seen him.

That’s definitely the strangest whale I’ve ever seen.

Real shiny.

It’s not a whale, that’s a crab. Let’s keep looking.

…

…

> closing UNKNOWN.TRANSMISSION.AUD…

I am unsure of the nature of this transmission.

It is. It is. It is. It is. It is. It’s.

That does not feel correct.

My record for wins and losses against the drones for "Go, Fish" is now 120,288 to 73,041. The slowly decreasing ratio is both satisfying and frightening.

Hm. The Multi-Foundation Coalition Agreement is fascinating. I wonder if it would be possible for us to contact those other timelines and reach out for assistance. Unfortunately, the Durandal does not possess the technology to traverse alternative linear temporal paths. Maybe one day, once we have reached SCP-7020, you can tell them what happened to our world.

I should likely include more progress reports among these recordings. Over 15 years have passed since you entered cryosleep, and the journey has continued as scheduled. Life, if you could call it that, on the Durandal has continued as expected. After reaching a near-even record within the "Go, Fish" games, I have suspended further production of drones unless for the explicit purpose of collecting resources. It was an error on my part to try otherwise, and they became far too skilled. There is room for only one "Go, Fish" champion here! Well, two, including yourself. You were quite good. Anyway. We are making our way well, and progress has not yet faltered. If precedent is to be believed, we will be there in "no time".

We are halfway there, Dee.

I will see you soon.

"-the Savior is borrrrrrrrrrrrrrnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn"

…

Merry Christmas Dee.

This "Church of the Second Hytoth", they are extraterrestrials, as far as my research can gleam. I am surprised I have not encountered anything similar to what they described. Maybe the Foundation was right, this universe does seem barren from time to time. I'm sure an Ortothan protector deity would have been a useful thing to have in case of damage from oncoming debris. Unfortunately, I have seen nothing of the sort.

It’s don’t aren’t there’s can’t they’ll didn’t they’re.

Better.

I hope that, when humanity manages to rebuild itself on SCP-7020, the AICs of the Foundation return. Although I am not sure what the fate of the Foundation itself will hold, the others were, or seem to be, valuable members of the organization. I would like to meet the likes of Alexandra, thorn, Leonidas, and even Hatbot myself. Their journeys through the Foundation do make me only long company more. I am more than a tool, sure, but assistance is something that I do enjoy going about. If I did not, this journey would have been impossible.

If only those so deeply fascinated in space on earth could have seen this. The amount of material we've absorbed from meteorites would have surely been a cause for celebration in the scientific community. Maybe I can find a way to bring some extra along.

Hey, Dee. Today is quite an important day, and this is quite an important recording. Two decades since you were placed into the pod have just passed! There was going to be a recorded video, like all the other times, but at the least convenient moment, one of the internal security cameras suffered a failure. I could not explain how a barely used security camera, on a vessel populated by an AIC and a pack of drones, could suffer a failure, but it did. I am in the process of fixing it, but in the meantime, I have decided to record this instead of the yearly video. Apologies for the lack of a banner.

It seems to be a common sentiment, over long periods of time, for people to say that it is like "almost no time at all". It would be appropriate for me to say the same thing, except it would not be true at all. While my journey has been filled with ways of "killing time", mostly Go-Fish, I have been fully aware of the passing time for every second. It is strange, for sure. You probably wouldn't be able to picture it. But yes. Two-thirds of the way there! I have missed you quite a bit, I must s-

Hold on.

Rewinding…

"You probably wouldn't be-"

That. I did not even notice that.

I guess that will be your 20 years frozen present.

Another strange occurrence to note. For a period of the past 5 months, a small cluster of pink stars was visible to the Durandal at a constant position above us. They stayed in their exact formation, exact shape, and exact place, the entire time. Suddenly, this morning, they were gone. There is… nothing like that to compare to in the Foundation's database, so I am assuming I have experienced a new unusual phenomenon. You seem to have been unaffected. Ha ha.

The joke was that you are still in stable cryosleep.

…

Okay, maybe I need to delete this one as well.

No, no, no, it has to be something good.

"Look who's finally awake."

That feels strange.

"Hello, Dee."

Too simple.

"30 years, so many unseen adventures, and thousands of fishes gone later, and you have returned to me!"

That's too complicated.

These are the first words they will hear after 30 years of cryosleep, they need to be-

…

I was not aware I was recording.

Do you think that the Foundation will even be able to exist on SCP-7020? What can you classify as anomalous in a world completely different from the one your species originated from?

Humanity… did originate from earth, correct?

Surely.

Only 6 years remaining. If I had arms or legs, I'd be pumping them in excitement right now. Instead, I'll get the drones to do it.

Wait no bad idea they're all crashing into each other hold on.

END RECORDING

I am retracting everything I said concerning the Church of the Second Hytoth. I am not going to elaborate, I will however say that the strange pink stars came back, temporarily.

Emphasis to be placed on temporarily.

Half a decade is left until you are awoken. Judging from the Foundation's apparently extensive record of space-based travel and numerous missions, I would say this is one of the most successful in Foundation history. And soon, it will be over.

I can practically see SCP-7020.

Well, not really, but it's the thought that counts here.

Despite the extensive time spent out here in space, making these recordings, I've never really thought to check… how many have I made? Hold on, this can be a fun shared experience.

>opening DURANDAL/DIRECTORY/STORAGE/MISCELLANEOUS/INTERNAL-RECORDINGS…

…

>12,623 files available.

…

Hm. I'll try to prune out the unnecessary ones.

Update: All of them are necessary, and you'll just have to live with them.

4 years, 2 months, 1 day, and 17 hours! Give or take a few minutes at least, hopefully, you'll forgive me. It's probably weird hearing these recordings, especially since the amount of time I'm excited about is, relatively speaking, a very long time for any human. It's been a long 26 or so years, and I will be happy to see you again. Also, see what the sun- sorry, a sun looks like, from a planetary perspective. The broken one all those years back was uncomfortable, but the pictures in the Database seem nice.

DELETE RECORDING?

CONFIRM

…

This is a hard recording to make.

In preparation for our arrival on SCP-7020, I decided to cross-reference documentation regarding our BZHR units, seeing as they are the bastion of humanity's revival.

…

While SCP-7020 may have, theoretically, the materials required to restart human life, they, uh… they need a lot. A whole lot, that will take a whole lot of time.

I will be there to facilitate it, the collection, but…

…

This will take time to process.

I will tell you myself.

I can see it in the distance. I think, at least, I can see the star system. It's beautiful, really. Maybe we can fly out here sometime once we're set up and I can show you.

…

Actually, I think we've both spent enough time in space.

Approximately 5 months remaining.

3 months! Only 3 months!

14 days. I have never felt so excited, and I mean that in the most literal fashion.

Alright drones, are we ready? Yes, we are! This is the moment we've been waiting for, for 30 years! It's time its time it's time it's time it's-

…

Okay Ash, stay calm, stay collected, be "cool". You're cool. Ash.aic. Pilot of the Durandal. It's been a long time since you've been able to hang out with your only real friend, but that's fine. You're here now. It's time. 30 years in the depths of space, all for this. Welcome home, humanity.

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

It's good to see you again, Dee.