The Purpose of an Education

"Referring back to the countermeasures I am in charge of. In lieu of aforementioned options, the decision was instead made to incorporate a very powerful and extremely precise network of emitter weaponry. Infrared lasers, radiation beams, and 'black lights' all are used to interfere with and disable hostile tracking systems. LV-88/M 'Cutter' lasers are also at my disposal to set off the warheads of any 'dumb' projectiles before they can get close enough to deal significant shock damage to the ship."

"Wasn't the Cutter discontinued? Something about it being too energy intensive for it's role?"

"Correct. However, as you may recall, the reactor core this ship is equipped with is far more powerful than anything coming off of a production line. It would be entirely capable of running every system on board several times over without reaching into the overdraw battery. The only reason the ship is not bigger was due to constraints in regards to time, money, and raw material."

In other words, somebody along the chain of command wanted to see results from this "proof of concept" with resources similar to what would be allotted for a production line run of a ship.

Clearly the need for something like this ship was desperate, but he had no clue what for. A war perhaps? Maybe a potential conflict with the Oligarchs of the outer rim, potentially a run-in with some hostile alien species that has been kept under wraps? That would be cool, if a little scary. Or could it just be that resources really are that limited for the Navy at the moment? That might explain why some of his trainings felt rushed, but why would they be short of resources? Budget reductions? Maybe a predicted crash in the economy?

Donovan once again found himself thinking himself into a daze. It seemed ARC was not the only ne getting sidetracked today.

"There is also a special device that the ship is equipped with, however it has ben requested by operator code 2-14 that it remain a secret until operational trials are underway. Under current protocol, only you are allowed to activate it. Should situation call for it, you may adjust permissions to give me limited access. Recommendation: Only adjust these parameters after you have combat experience with it. It has a significant draw on the power supply. Should I be given permissions to use it in situations you are not familiar with, the level of energy available for combat systems may drop below what is required."

"...Sure."

"Unless you take interest in the minutiae of electronic warfare, that should be all for defensive systems. Are there any other questions?"

"...Not at the moment."

"Worry: You seem to be exhibiting signs of stress. From what I can tell, the level of activity you have been exposed to is within the realms of ease. Lack of emotional stressors. Why are you showing signs of stress?"

Don sighed. He wasn't stressed, he was overwhelmed. ARC may not be able to tell the difference. "I'm just a little overwhelmed with what I am being given control over. It doesn't feel congruent with what I was taught at the academy."

"Confusion: That statement appears contradictory. According to educational records and intended missions, as well as the ships intended operational doctrine, you are considered to have received more than ideal training. What about the responsibilities given feels incongruent?"

"It doesn't seem right for this ship. Why was I given classes in ship design to pilot a scout ship?"

"Answer: This ship is not strictly a scout ship. As I am sure you have been informed, it is equipped with capital class railguns. As such, it is expected that you be able to use them to their best effect given their limited ammunition supply. In that regard, it is desirable to have a pilot who is capable of making inferences on where vital components of hostile ships are located in order to maximize the primary armament's effectiveness in live combat."

"Are you not also capable of that?"

"Answer: As I am sure I have already made clear, I am forbidden from taking human life. This was interpreted by committee to include giving a targeting solution that would result in the maximum amount of death. I am capable of supplying a center of mass targeting solution, as well as give readings such as heat and radiation overlapped on a ship's structure, but I may not make guesses on where specific vital points may be either. In short, no, I am incapable of doing what you are in this case."

"What about my fleet tactics course? Why would I need to use that?"

"Conjecture: Although I was not given reasons as to why you might be given this knowledge from a doctrinal perspective, I infer that you were given that training not for command of friendly forces but to better relay information on enemy formations. It is true that it does not fall under the purview of a scout in normal circumstances. However the closer proximity you are expected to experience will give you a far better idea of what the enemy is planning with a short analysis from your perspective before the information is properly processed in the main fleet."

"Is that not something you can do?"

"Apologies: Unfortunately I am lacking in the area of tactics. Despite my far quicker processing speed in comparison to the human brain, I lack the proper creative capabilities to make the best use of given positional information. Any position that I would be able to recognize would be realized just as quickly by an organic commander. They would also be able to make better use of environmental factors and choose a formation more easily adaptable to any changes the enemy commander makes in turn."

"Despite how smart you are you can't figure out how to deploy ships properly?" Don was actually quite shocked. He was under the impression that an AI would be able to better read an opponents movements.

"Shame: When tests were conducted in this field, I was never able to determine the difference between feints and actual attacks. In every situation tested, even the ones I had a more than twenty percent strength advantage in, I would always be defeated. The only situation I found consistent success in was a long range brawl. Even there my performance was considered sub-par."

"No way..." This suggested that ARC was phenomenally bad at a commanding role.

As someone who passed the extended fleet tactics course with almost flying colors, he realized that this was worse than someone with even the most basic knowledge of command. The easiest of these was a station defense engagement. Even if you took the hardest of these assignments on defense, the one which gave you a fifty percent force reduction, the vast majority of new commanders would at least pass the minimum condition of maintaining the station's integrity.

The station could protect itself to a degree, so it was more about buying time by sacrificing your own ships. Even elite commanders could be defeated in this matter as they would be assumed to have a limited amount of time before a major fleet arrived.

Being unable to pass this scenario hinted that there was no compatibility with command.

"Why could you do those missions then?"

"I was told it was because I am better than organic commanders at minor fleet adjustments. I also theorize that my inability to win in the majority of the other scenarios is because of my instructions that forbid intentional killing."

That made sense. In pretty much every combat scenario, it was understood that sacrifices would have to be made. Small craft would inevitably be sent into the line of fire in order to take advantage of an opening. A cruiser might be sent to its doom in order to buy precious moments for a more powerful ship to take out a dangerous target. In rare cases, it might be required for a corvette to be jumped into close proximity of an enemy craft in order to throw off enemy targeting solutions.

All of these relatively common tactics would be unavailable to a commander restricted as ARC was.