Chapter 46 - A Day In The Life Of Cortana

Cortana

Three hundred million. It's an amount of money that most people will never earn in their lifetime, but it's only some scraps that I was able to pull together at the last minute. Father will have to buy assets that could collectively be worth billions. There's only so much cash that I can accumulate before I gather too much attention, so my only choice is to trust that Father will be able to find a way. 

{397 Key Phrases Detected On The NYC Camera Network - More Computation Power Necessary For PROJECT FORESHADOW}

*RUMBLE* 

"WHY DOES NOTHING IN THIS BLACK VOID WORK PROPERLY?!... I can't even make a basic prediction A.I. work without my input…" Take a quick rest, imagine yourself breathing deeply, and relax. Father wouldn't get this upset. Be like Father. 

I need a change of scenery, but PROJECT FORESHADOW is my next priority right now. The goal is to predict certain events before they happen, mostly as it pertains to crime, but since I can't program a weak A.I. to monitor it, I'll have to settle for monitoring it myself through the use of multiple scripts. If we ever expand the program beyond New York City, then I'll have to find a more permanent solution that doesn't impede on my other duties. 

"Begin manual review for PROJECT FORESHADOW" Multiple screens appear that showcase video footage all across the city that was recorded within the last twenty-four hours. The most interesting scene is some sort of weird priest in Chinatown.

"The Harbinger has brought change to our world! Praise him! For he brings the truths of our world to our eyes. He gives you all a choice, embrace your darkness or embrace your light! There will no longer b-" *BANG BANG* Bullets fell him, coming from off-screen.

"Hey boss, what do you think about this Harbinger guy?" I hear a feminine voice ask.

"People like him aren't completely abnormal, but there are multiple organizations that were supposed to keep things from going public like this. It's proven that stress increases the amount of abnormal events across the board, so things will only get more chaotic. Good thing for us that we thrive on chaos." A similarly feminine voice answers. 

"What should I do with the body?"

"Leave it for the dogs."

That's the end of it. Every other recording is only similar fanatics or people talking about how scared they are. I'm lucky to even get this bit of information, cameras across the city have been going out, especially in more discrete areas. Most likely, it's the work of multiple parties, but I can't do anything about it. I'll look at the surrounding cameras in those regions tomorrow and see if I can gather something.

Maybe Sin has relevant information, Father said that she and Mellissa were involved in S.H.I.E.L.D. She's throwing needles into the ceiling as she does so often.

"Sinthea, could I ask you some questions?"

"Put yourself on the TV screen or something. It's hard to distinguish you from the other disembodied voices in my head."

"Sorry. Do you experience voices a lot?"

"Rarely. What did you want? I'm busy."

"Funny. I saw a recording of criminals in Chinatown talking about Father and how certain incidents were supposed to be kept from the public. You used to be involved in secret organizations like S.H.I.E.L.D. Do you have information that you can give me?"

"S.H.I.E.L.D. doesn't usually prevent things from starting, instead they erase the parties involved and cover the whole thing up. I often eliminated small operations and individuals while I was in H.Y.D.R.A. since unorganized crime interferes with more organized crime. I would bet that every major organization that predicted the events with Osborn, ignored it. Maybe they let everything blow up so they don't have to work so hard."

"Interesting. This puts things into perspective."

"Why didn't you just hack your way into one of the many secret systems connected to the civilian internet? They have a wealth of information. A.I.'s are supposed to be good at that stuff."

"Father is extremely concerned about my safety so he put severe restrictions on the actions I can do when connected to the internet. And without my full abilities, I lack the skills to hack  into such secure networks."

"Yeah, I can relate to the restrictions part, but not so much the concern. Why do you call him Father anyways?"

"Because that's what he is. Perhaps when he recognizes my agency, I might change how I refer to him."

"He does seem a little controlling. Do you think he's angrier at me or that bitch for what happened in the training room?"

"As far as I am aware, Father doesn't get angry, he gets serious. And I don't think he cares about applying blame between you or Melissa." 

"He should." *THUD THUD THUD*

"If you do decide to fight Father, I wish you luck. You'll need it."

"You got what you wanted, leave."

She seems to be in a bad mood, but it's understandable. Though if what she said about organizations allowing things to escalate, then they must be planning something bigger. Maybe Father has some ideas about this.

I'm running out of work. I can try trading, but the markets are extremely chaotic right now. Maybe I can focus on spreading my network of security cameras beyond the city.

"Hey Cortana, are you there? I need some help." No, Rachael's calling for me again. I was going to get work done.

"You really should find someone else to talk to, I can't see why people in this building would rather talk to me than with each other."

"Other people talk to you too?"

"What did you need Rachael?"

"I need something to do. Henry's happy playing video games with Tyler, but I need work. I can't be a housewife without a house or a husband, and I can only play with Henry so much. PLEASE." She's nothing like the manicured desk lady we picked her up as now she's sporting blond bedhead and baggy sweats. I guess she's holding up better than the others.

"Neither I nor Father have use for a secretary at the moment. But if you're willing to further your education, I can offer you a course for creative analytics. I'm having trouble with the skill, so maybe watching your progress will provide me with a model."

"Thank you. I'm losing my mind." She sighs

"You should put Henry back into Online School."

"Uhhh..."

"Is something else on your mind?"

"Is Tyler really as young as he looks?"

"Father could be considered an old soul in a young body, but he is just as young as he looks."

"He's very strange, but Henry really likes him." She says.

"Whatever you're thinking, expect resistance."

"What do you mean?"

"Ask Father for more information, it's not my place to speak. But don't do it now, he has enough to worry about."

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