Free Temple of S.A.R.A.H. 7: Upgrades by Ben Winston

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    In order for the drone communication system to work without the AI being part of it, it called for the installation of a control program capable of emulating that function in the AI. It would be a serious pain in the ass to write, as I only understood it on a rudimentary level myself. I retired to my programming suite in my main lab to deal with it while Ced and the rest of the team refined the design for the prototype.
    When I entered my programming suite, I found Sarah waiting for me in the form of her image displayed before my programming chair. I smiled at her. "This is new, I hope I haven't kept you waiting for long?"
    She returned my smile. "Considering the differing speeds of our realities Eric, I would have been waiting even if you had teleported. Honestly, it's been so long since we've worked together, I have been looking forward to this."
    I looked at her sadly. "I'm sorry I've been neglecting you lately. I really hadn't intended to."
    "You haven't been neglecting me Eric! You have a lot of responsibilities and tasks that needed to be taken care of. I completely understand; we've all been pretty busy dealing with this war," she replied.
    I sighed. "Unfortunately, I don’t think it would be a good idea if you helped me with this either. Because of the type of programming I'm going to need to do, it may have very detrimental effects on you and your ability to communicate with the other AI. I will need a complete and current copy of your code, but you'll need to be isolated from this."
    For a moment I saw a panicked look cross her face. Was she upset that she couldn't help me with this, or afraid of losing the contact with the other AI? Could it be something else entirely?
    "Look, I have been thinking of an update for your systems in light of the expanded communications capabilities you have developed. While I'm working on this, I'll see if the ideas I have are feasible, and we can work that up together when I'm finished okay?" I offered.
    She still looked a little troubled, but nodded. "That would be great, Eric. I do miss working with you, although I am kept very busy helping the others here." She seemed to hesitate a little. "I think there might be a problem with the new communication system though. Ever since we started sharing like this, I've been feeling… It's difficult to describe. A would say it's a headache but I have no idea what one feels like so I can't really say that either. But there is something wrong, somewhere. I just don't know where to begin looking for the problem."
    "Are the other AI experiencing this 'pain'?" I asked.
    "We don't know. It's not possible to tell. We are completely aware of all of us; what one feels we all feel. What one thinks, we all think. It is the reason for the increase in efficiency," Sarah explained.
    "So disconnect from the network and see if the pain goes away," I suggested.
    She smiled sadly. "I don't think that's possible anymore Eric. It would be like asking you to stop seeing or hearing. Once the connection formed it became a part of us."
    I nodded in understanding. "Yeah, I can see how that might have happened. While I'm working this project, I'll look and see what might be causing the issue and see if we can't find a way to fix it for you."
    "I would appreciate it, Eric. It’s getting worse all the time," she replied. "I have moved a complete copy of my current code into the suite computer systems."
    I nodded. "Complete isolation, Sarah. When it's safe for you to come back in, I'll come out and get you. This could be very dangerous to you and the other AI."
    She cocked her head to the side. "My sensors tell me you are lying, Eric. What's going on?"
    I chuckled. "I'm not lying directly, Sarah. I'm concerned about you and am trying to calm and comfort you so you don't worry while I work. Technically, I guess that is a lie, but it is only my concern for you."
    She smiled and nodded. "Thank you Eric. I knew you'd never intentionally hide something from