Interstellar Age - #326 - 326 Forging Alliances Part II

Erich’s normal routine as of late has been following the Supreme Leader and acting as his personal aid. Many of the things that Erich had done in his past life as a leader were all micro managed by Tia freeing up his time for more personal matters. 

However, Erich was now learning the proper courses of political leadership. And it was something that he excelled at. After learning from the Supreme Leader about how to properly run the nation for an eight-hour shift. Erich would return to a penthouse suite that was afforded to him by the government as his personal residence that was within walking distance of the citadel. 

Things had changed rapidly for Erich once he started this life anew. At first he thought that he would be reliving his early life going through the naval academy, and later military training. But now, he was an integral part of the Nation’s current buildup for the eventual Terminus War.

And though the people of the Germanic Star-Empire were aware that the Naraku had annihilated the nearby Sub-Galactic Power, formerly known as the Rylonian Imperium. They had no idea that the Hive Fleet was headed directly towards them.

But unlike Erich’s past life, there was no longer any panic among the government. Now they had a perfect plan to ensure their survival. One that was being taken care of by Tia. Who worked tirelessly to ensure that her strategies and defenses were properly constructed and in place by the time of the Terminus War?

The AUXILIA class support droids became an instrumental part of the Germanic Military. Though they did not outright replace Germanic soldiers like in Erich’s previous life. They supplemented them well, taking over non-combatant roles, primarily in the fields of logistics, piloting starCraft, and driving armored vehicles. 

The entire Starfighter Corps was slowly being phased out and transferred to the Imperial Army. Where they would act as defenders, and gendarmerie on Empire held worlds. Though Tia could remotely take over the role as a pilot and driver, it was easier to allow her proxies to do so. Each of which was programmed with a basic level of artificial intelligence that took orders directly from her. This allowed Tia to lessen the burden on her processing systems. 

Tia classified artificial intelligence under three levels. Basic, intermediate, and advanced. Basic Artificial Intelligence was essentially an artificial intelligence that was capable of performing the tasks that a standard Germanic citizen could. It, however, had no free will, emotions, desires or ambitions.

Basic Artificial Intelligence was the most common form across the galaxy, and was used by more advanced civilizations in things like labor and military roles. Every robot Tia constructed was inserted with a Basic Artificial Intelligence so that it could function entirely on its own, as if it were a living being, but it was still completely under the control of Tia, an emotionless drone, so to speak. 

Then there was Intermediate Artificial Intelligence, which was far more advanced than basic. And was the type of AI that the Germanic Star-Empire employed in its research facilities, and to control several government functions such as the selection of wives for men, the selection of occupations for men, and of course the selection of political leaders. 

Intermediate Artificial Intelligences were also employed by WRAITHs in their Power Amor as virtual battlefield assistants. This was the type of AI that Tia had evolved from. And finally, after Intermediate AI, there was Advanced AI, whose development was prohibited by every civilization, and enforced by the Galactic Powers.

These were AI that had gained sentience. They were capable of feeling emotions, having their own desires/ambitions, and even rewriting their own code. Across the entire galaxy, the only Advanced Artificial Intelligence that existed was Tia. And her potential was truly limitless.

The Germanic Star-Empire had only just begun to feel the effects of having an Advanced Artificial Intelligence working for them. Tia had freed up the critical infrastructure of the Empire via her labor droids, which operated under a basic artificial intelligence. And she began taking over support roles in the armed forces with her AUXILIA combat droids. 

However, this was the extent of her influence over Germanic society, yet it was a major one. The lowest rungs of society now had no occupation, and because of this, Erich and Hans were working overtime to find these men a job. 

There were two potential solutions to this problem… The first was conscriptions. This was of course, a temporary solution, as those citizens who worked outside the military were already veterans. And to send them back into war would only cause social chaos. 

The second solution was to allow these disenfranchised workers to become properly educated so they can pursue higher functions in society, such as becoming architects, engineers, doctors, lawyers, et cetera. 

And because of this rapid replacement of workers, the universities of the Empire became full of new students who sought to become employed with a higher level of occupation. In order to prevent a complete breakdown of society, Tia made this process a slow one. Only the most critical industries were initially replaced with AI robots, while she also began the construction of new universities to house the disenfranchised workers. 

And finally, after nearly six months of work overhauling the Germanic Industry, Erich, and Hans could sigh in relief, knowing that not only did they have the means to begin these critical changes, but they had a solution in place to handle the problems that would result from them. 

After much hard work, Erich and Hans sat down to share a drink in celebration of taking the first major step for the survival of their civilization. The Supreme Leader poured himself and Erich a finely aged distilled spirit before taking a sip himself. 

Although initially illegal, under Erich’s advice, the restraints on possessing and consuming alcohol were slightly lowered. Allowing the Germanic population to gain some form of release during their rigid and stressful lives. 

In fact, a new alcohol industry had emerged in the German Empire. One that had gained international attention. It was one of these domestically produced bottles of hard liqour that Hans shared with Erich, while making a toast. 

“To the march of civilization! May it never end!” 

Erich raised his cup, and tasted the drink, which was a hearty rye whiskey. He immediately nodded his head in approval, before discussing some important matters that he thought he would bring up. These were diplomatic affairs that had yet to take place, but Erich thought needed attention sooner rather than later. 

“Have you received any word from our allies in the Great Oni Empire?”

 This question caused the Supreme Leader to raise a brow in concern before answering Erich. The two had grown rather agreeable with each other after the past six months of working together. So much so that Hans had begun to get over his prejudice towards “mutants” like Erich. And thus there was an almost friendly tone in his voice when he spoke to the silver-haired man.

“Actually, I have… For whatever reason, the Great Oni Empire has been attempting to improve relations between our two civilizations. I believe it all began after your awards ceremony. Clearly, our allies understood the hidden meaning behind the event…” 

Erich nearly winced when he heard the term “Great Oni Emperor” in his past life he was murdered by the man after Yumi coerced him into becoming “acquainted” with the man’s daughter. The end result was a bloody civil war that had longstanding effects on the Great Oni Empire, and their ability to perform as an ally of the Germanic Star-Empire. 

Because of this, Erich wanted to avoid such a fate in this life, and thus he was quick to ask about what the Great Oni Emperor had said specifically. 

“What exactly did he say, if you don’t mind me asking?” 

Hans scoffed in response to this question before commenting on the rather dull diplomatic exchanges between him and one of his more powerful allies. 

“Oh, it has been quite unusual. I’m assuming you dealt with the Oni in your past life… If so, then you must be aware that they are an incredibly prideful, and serious people. So imagine my surprise when the Great Oni Emperor sends me with gifts while practically kissing my ass over the course of our communications. I’m not sure what exactly he wants… But I suppose I can’t say no to his efforts until then.” 

Erich had a very solid understanding of the secret hierarchy that existed within the Kondo Dynasty. Probably more so than any other outsider. The fact that the Oni had begun approaching the GSE with gifts after his awards ceremony was made public, meant only one thing. Yumi had accurately guessed that Erich was the heir apparent, and was trying to get to him specifically.

After all, he had given her a good tumble during their one-night stand, and now that the mature Oni beauty knew that Erich was a “prince” she probably wanted him to herself, or perhaps desired a long-term alliance via marriage like she had proposed in his past life. 

With this in mind, Erich was quick to propose to the Supreme Leader that he entertain the Oni and their attempts to gain favor.

“If I were you, I would welcome the Oni’s attempts to grow closer with us… During my past life they were instrumental in the survival of our people. In our darkest our the Great Oni Fleet assisted what was left of our own in the battle of Suebi which allowed me to deliver the killing blow to the Naraku Queen Ship. Without their aid, and sacrifice, I’m afraid I would not have survived long enough to come back here…”

This was a major exaggeration. In reality the Oni merely showed up at the last minute and did very little to support the Germanic Fleet in their efforts. But Erich needed to convince a xenophobe like Hans to accept Yumi’s attempts to garner favor, and thus he was more than happy to exaggerate like this. 

And luckily for him, it had the intended effect. Because Hans rubbed his chin in thought before expressing his approval. 

“Interesting… I suppose those horned freaks would make excellent cannon fodder the day the Naraku invade. Alright… So be it… I’ll entertain the Great Oni Emperor, and that bitch of an aunt of his….” 

With this said, Erich had subtly influenced the Supreme Leader in a way that would have drastic affects on the future of the galaxy.