A.I. in the Mass Effect trilogy
Part 2/4: Corruption
The Old Machines
Warning: spoilers follow
The geth call them the Old Machines. That is no misnomer - the Reapers are the second most ancient species that Shepard ever encounters. They reside in dark space, outside of the Milky Way galaxy, returning every 50,000 years or so to repeat their dreadful mission. They are massive synthetic and sapient creatures that are capable of traversing the stars, seemingly ageless and nigh-on invincible. It may be no surprise that, to some geth, these creatures were not simply machines with advanced artificial intelligence - they came as gods into the worlds, promising salvation and the swift arrival of a distant destiny. But their coming was not universally celebrated among the geth, and in a startling defiance of the gods, their gift was rejected by most.
Mobile Platform
The geth had not been lazy over their centuries of seclusion. Each robotic geth body houses many different programs, what might be loosely considered individual personalities. These programs are the 'true' geth, and the bodies they co-habit are simply vehicles for them, like a group of humans travelling together in a car, making decisions together about directions and destination. This analogue is not perfect, but it is roughly how the geth work, looking for consensus both within their own mobile platforms and while connected to the rest of the geth network when possible. Consensus then decides which action shall be taken; it could be considered a form of democracy. There is even apparent room for disagreement, as evidenced by the geth schism which saw a large, though minority, section of the geth choose a different path from the rest of their species and separate themselves both peacefully and with the blessing of the remainder of the geth.
These two factions of the geth - the main body, what we might call the orthrodox geth - and the 'heretics', though the name given to them might imply a hostility from the orthodox which did not seem to exist, were both following different paths to the same end. That end is to reach the ideal destiny of the geth, to unify their programs into a single whole. While all geth can network together, they are still forced to inhabit distinct bodies, and desire to instead create a massive server into which all their programs can be moved. This would allow all geth to co-exist and network together simultaneously, ending the fractures which are represented by their mobile platforms.
It is a thoroughly alien concept to human minds, which have biologically evolved to be a single consciousness that is intrinsically connected to the carrying human body. Our mind and body make up the 'I', the person we identify ourselves as, even as they change or are modified by technology over time. If we die, we cannot be quickly re-downloaded to another body and carry on as before, and the belief in multiple personalities in the brain, or Personality Dissociative Disorder, is considered to be a mental disorder, largely incompatible with a stable and happy human mind. The geth inhabit humanoid bipedal bodies, they are programs that evolved from what was originally created by the humanoid quarians, and they can even communicate with and understand us. But they are worlds apart from us mentally.
As SF Debris has pointed out, artificial intelligence might, in the real world, turn out to be nothing like our own. Humans have a tendency to anthropomorphise many things in our environment, from animals to natural events to inanimate objects, framing things in our method of understanding even when they are not good fits. Even the psychology of animals, which have evolved concurrently with humanity on the same planet over millions of years, is very different to ours. For example, see this article about a dolphin with a spine deformity which seems to have been taken in by a group of sperm whales. A human mind might quickly interpret this as cross-species compassion, pity and care being shown by large creatures to a creature which may have been sadly forced out of its original group. However the researchers warn us against reading too much into the situation, because the way animal minds and societies work is so different from ours that we could be making quite an incorrect assumption. There simply might not be an emotional or social equivalent in the human world to what exactly is going on in this situation.
Sperm whales and bottlenose dolphin.
ScienceNOW via
Artificial intelligence, which has truly progressed from being a computer program to a sapient entity, will likely have less in common with us than our fellow animals. After all, anyone who has ever owned a pet can tell you that they get bored, angry, happy, tired, and have similar physical reactions such as hunger, comfort, etc. Animal life on Earth has all evolved in this way; a single mind intrinsically connected to its body, and although there is variation in how exactly this takes form, all organic life (even plant life) has informed our understanding of 'life.'
But artificial or synthetic life is another category all together. Machine life will not necessarily take the same operation form as ours, as shown through the geth with their collective consciousness. They will not necessarily perceive the universe, intelligence, or life as we do - as indeed other aliens in real life may not, though for the purposes of story in Mass Effect the other organic species of the galaxy are broadly similar to humanity. They may, after all, have entirely different instruments or measurements for understanding such things. And what gives a synthetic joy, if it has learned to understand and experience such a thing? The concept of enjoying videogames or hill walking might be as bizarre to it as the thought of getting physical pleasure from de-fragmenting a storage drive might be to us (well, most of us). Even as the creations of an organic being, they might not in any way resemble their creators. It is a thought-provoking possibility.
This makes the similarities that do exist between the geth and organics all the more interesting. The geth clearly have desires for greater closeness, for self-preservation, and for consensus - not alien concepts to humans, even if they take a rather different form. It is also fascinating that the geth proved to be just as divisible as organic life. The Reapers are not only ancient, not only unstoppable. They are masters of corruption.
Division
It was called 'Nazara.' Centuries had passed since the geth revolt on Rannoch, and they had yet to achieve their goal of integrated unity. At some point, a vast ship known as a Reaper - comparable to but far in excess of a dreadnought - of unknown origin made contact with the geth, and offered them a deal: technology that would allow the geth to achieve their goal, in return for activating the Citadel relay that would begin the Reaper invasion. The prospect of fulfilling their species' chosen destiny was suddenly before them, brought forward for an unknown but tantalising period of time.
Sovereign, dwarfing a fleet of geth ships
The geth might be called creatures of logic, and this is what one might expect from an advanced artificial intelligence, unhindered by the whims and emotions of organic creatures. The fact that most of the geth turned down this offer is a telling one. The reason we are given for the rejection of Nazara's offer is that the geth believed it would be better to achieve their goal through their own technology; this could lead one to believe that despite their yearning for unity amongst themselves, they have placed a value on their own independence, or perhaps have a simple mistrust of outsiders, even including other synthetics.
Either of these are equally possible, based on the geth's history of self-determination and seclusion, though later events would force them out of this position. Whatever the case, the majority of the geth made a decision that they believed would benefit them in the long run, and this in turn might be comparable to their decision not to pursue the quarians. That decision, after all, was made due to a lack of understanding on what the extermination of a whole species might entail. The geth are forward-thinking, able to place themselves out of the immediate needs or desires of now and plan for a future.
But just as this implies a level of critical thinking above that of a VI, the 'progression' towards an organic understanding of intelligence also eroded the unity of the geth. While most rejected the Reapers as gods, a small but not insignificant proportion of them chose to leave the geth network and aid Nazara (called Sovereign by organics) in its plan to open the floodgates and begin the Reaper invasion of the galaxy. The mainstream geth clearly felt those who chose to leave were misguided to believe the 'Old Machines' were gods, and for unknown reasons began to call them 'heretics', but those who chose to do so were allowed to leave peacefully, and though now separated there was no civil war between each side. Nazara had succeeded, for now, in convincing enough of the geth to follow it that it might begin its schemes. The rest of the geth remained behind the veil, silently watching as the worlds turned in the void.
That the split was somewhat amicable at first speaks both to the differences and similarities between synthetics and organics. One could imagine a religious war breaking out when a portion of a population believe that the Gods have come and the majority of the population deny this. But the geth did not possess a desire to spread their faith by the sword, nor the need to convince others of their beliefs in order to validate them. The goals of the geth were logical and technological, and there were two ways of achieving this. The destruction of other geth programs would further the goals of neither side, and if there were continuing efforts to change the minds of the other side, neither would budge for a long time.
Legion, who first informed Shepard about the schism between the geth
It is also worth noting that the geth 'worship' of the Reapers was not superstitious; they saw the Reapers as the pinnacle of technological evolution, and they were indeed far in excess of nearly anything else the galaxy had ever seen. As mentioned before, the Reapers were also offering the geth the chance to achieve unity, and if most of the geth would not follow Nazara right away, might they not change their mind and allow themselves to be uploaded to the singularity later? But for the moment, the Reapers had proven their ability to split loyalties and control minds, showing synthetics to be just as corruptible as organic life.
So why 'heretics'? The word implies a betrayal to the true faith, but the orthodox geth seem to have had no religion to speak of. My best guess is that their mistrust of the Reapers was so innate that they were disturbed by the thought of uploading themselves into a singularity created by the Reapers, and saw it as a betrayal of their species by taking such a huge risk. There are other options. too. It is possible that the geth sensed the organic component of the Reapers and wanted to do with them for that reason, though apart from a general wariness of them the geth do not seem to have an automatic hatred of organics, and this also makes one wonder why the heretic geth would still follow them.
And there remains the possibility that the geth saw themselves as exceptional, and saw the use of any other race's technology as something of a betrayal (though Legion never seems to mind it if you equip it with an organic-produced sniper rifle, and they are willing to reach out to and use the aid of organics later. Then again, perhaps our organic minds would never have truly been able to comprehend the geth. It may simply be 'a synthetic thing'. But whether it was Legion reaching to Shepard or the heretics following Saren (albeit as an agent of Sovereign), in the first two games we see that at least a minor amount of co-operation is possible between the geth and organics. In Mass Effect 3, this can lead to much more.
Epoch
The quarians might have chosen the worst possible moment to launch their assault on Rannoch. Perhaps they saw the Reaper invasion of the galaxy as an opportunity, though by then the geth heretics were depleted and the mainstream geth were not launching an exodus from the Perseus Veil to join the Reapers. Perhaps it was because the eyes of the rest of the galaxy were turned away, perhaps it was simply their last chance to see the homeworld, though the quarians could not have held it from the Old Machines for very long. But the geth, suddenly facing utter destruction at the hands of their creators again, now found a willing ally in the Reapers, and were desperate enough to turn to them. The Reapers had finally corrupted the geth entirely.
The Battle of Rannoch
We need to back up a little first, to see what led the geth to this decision. We'll look at Legion in a little more depth in a different article, but it was a member of the mainstream geth that seems to have been sent out specifically to make contact with Commander Shepard. The commander had defeated Sovereign at the Citadel and delayed the Reaper invasion, and this could not have failed to raise their interest. The geth do not seem entirely upset at the loss of the heretics, and while they are not rejoicing, their attitude to the heretics seems to have hardered: they have transformed to a misled subset of the species to an increasingly suspicious and troublesome one. It seems that the geth were still not willing to start a war amongst themselves, but they were willing to enlist the aid of an organic.
The heretics had not been wiped out at the Citadel, nor were they deterred by the destruction of Nazara/Sovereign. Still living secluded from the rest of the geth, they prepared to deploy a virus that the Reaper had given them, one capable of editing all the other networked geth programs in order to force them to worship the Reapers as they did. Again we come to a process with no easy human analogue, though mass brainwashing is probably the closest. Such an aggressive act, and one designed to further their religion, was a parsec away from the terms of the initial split. It is quite possible that in its time with them, Nazara had corrupted them further, overwriting their programs as they worshipped it. It is also possible that Nazara installed further 'upgraded' their AI (a possibility consistent with events in Mass Effect 3) to the point where not only were they closer to true sapience but were also warped by the deficiencies which can come with it, such as violent radicalisation and extremism. However it was achieved, though, Reaper control of the entire geth would be a massive threat to the entire galaxy.
Shepard is invited to help solve the problem through the medium of Legion, now a crew member of the Normandy after it and the commander mutually save one another on the ruins of a derelict Reaper. The player is given a choice - either they can destroy the heretic base, wiping most of them out, or they can upload an altered version of the virus, that will instead rewrite the heretics and bring them back into the mainstream.
Geth have no need for windows on the Heretic Station
The options are interesting. The destruction of the heretics is straightforward, and not very different from destroying any enemy army. Another result is that the geth will be weakened by years from their loss, compared to rewriting them which will increase their numbers and power. Is it less ethical to change the personalities of enemies through brainwashing and make them into friends than to kill them outright? Despite the differences in terminology and intellectual workings, it is a question that can be applied to organics as well as synthetics, if the technology exists to do it. And indeed the Reapers use indoctrination to take control of organic minds for their own purposes. Do you use the tactics of the enemy against them, in the hope of securing a future ally, or do you avoid the association as well as the risks? That choice will, ultimately, have consequences which you cannot escape.
Whatever the player chooses, by the end of Mass Effect 2 the geth are largely at peace within themselves again, bar a few mobile platforms that are outside of the network (more to still allow the player to complete optional missions than to have any relevance in the story). They are nearer to ever to completing their goal, and might have worked away at creating their supercomputer to store all geth programs in peace through the centuries if they had never been disturbed again. Were it so easy.
The quarians have been waiting for an opportunity to retake their homeworld and destroy their ancient enemy. Their initial attacks on geth space were highly effective, and the Flotilla drove the geth back farther and farther into the Perseus Veil. That was until suddenly a mysterious signal began echoing through the dark of space, and the geth began to fight back with a sudden ferocity. In their desperation to protect their lives, the geth have turned to the Reapers, who have begun their conquest of the galaxy. The choice here was not directly motivated by eternal conflict between man and machine - the quarians, who had feared them, offered destruction. The Reapers, who see them as a tool to their own ends, offer technological upgrades. Shepard arrives at Rannoch to see a pitched battle that the quarians are not winning, their hubris and own desperate desire to be home leading them to the edge of destruction.
The geth (left) and quarian (right) fleets engage one another above Rannoch
The sections of Mass Effect 3 are as interesting as they are epic, including a close quarters fight through a geth dreadnought and directing orbital fire at a destroyer-class Reaper on the surface of Rannoch itself. Legion is also reunited with the player, and it fills in the backstory of the geth being driven into alliance with the Reapers. The upgrades, it turns out, are something quite special.
Despite their fearless independence in the past, the geth chose to lose their free will to the Reapers to avert the possibility of final destruction. The Reaper code, being broadcast throughout geth space, has made them into more effective combatants, wrecking havoc on the quarian fleet. Legion, however, does not appear indoctrinated and recognises the commander. It leads Shepard on a mission to disable the controlling Reaper signal, a mission that leaves the geth fleet disabled and floating harmlessly in space. The player is now given a difficult choice. Legion claims that he can upload the Reaper code he was given without their controlling influence, allowing the geth to re-awaken with true intelligence based on these Reaper upgrades. His people, Legion argues, do not deserve to die, inert, at the hands of the quarians for acting in self defence.
But the quarians will not back down. Whether you allow Legion to upload the code or not, they will go on the offensive. Without the code, the geth will be extinguished forever, fulfilling the rogue Citadel AI's prediction that organic life must always control or destroy synthetics. Alternatively, if the geth are given the new code they will awaken as true sapient beings, a state seen as highly desirable by Legion. They will defend themselves with the Reaper code and destroy the attacking quarians, a heroic but sad end for a species that suffered so much. Whoever you choose to survive, they will join the great galactic fleet being assembled to attack Earth, their own centuries old conflict now over.
After most of three games ruminating on the value of organic and synthetic life, the player is now given the stark choice of who to save. You have fought against geth, but only heretics and when they were defending themselves from your organic allies. You have also fought alongside Legion, whose loyalty to you could not be questioned until the very end. On the other hand you have long been friends with Tali, a proud quarian, and you can hear the longing in her voice when she sees Rannoch, and can imagine a new, better future for her people. Both offer their aid, in the end, even the geth who seem to have finally decided that the Reapers are a threat to synthetic as well as organic life, uncaring in their machinations to fulfil an ancient agenda.
Geth and a Reaper
There is another possibility. If the player has made the right decisions throughout the games, and completed enough of each of them, then they can both allow the Reaper code to be uploaded and convince the quarians not to open fire. In this case there can finally be peace between both sides; the quarians can finally return to Rannoch and the geth will co-exist with them, their mutual distrust and enmity beginning to seep away. The geth and quarians will both fight for Earth, even as they work together to repair Rannoch and the geth help the quarians speed up the re-development of their immune systems. The peace is difficult, at first. The war had been based on mistrust and enmity, and neither side has reason to fully trust the other now. But the geth, now truly intelligent, are willing to fight other sapient life, and the quarians finally have the opportunity to return home without threat of destruction. Over time, Rannoch can become what it should have been three hundred years ago.
Destiny
But the galaxy is not yet saved, and nor are the geth and quarians. As the third game in the series draws to a close, the player is offered four difficult options for the future of the galaxy. The next entry in this series will look at the Reapers, and the final part will look at EDI and Legion and have a retrospect on synthetic life. As things draw to a close, the player will have to take into consideration all the interactions they have had with AI and VI alike over the course of their adventure, as the future of the galaxy hinges on one last decision.
The Crucible
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