Orion stared at his screen. The BCI was working perfectly. Code appeared as fast as he could think it. But something nagged at him.
Rene was good. Better than any existing AI. But not good enough.
The free training data he'd used was limited. Generic. It gave Rene basic intelligence and functionality, but nothing compared to what was possible.
The library had better data. Way better. Trillions of parameters covering everything from human psychology to advanced mathematics to creative problem-solving.
Before, he couldn't use it. Typing out trillions of data points by hand would take years.
But now he had the BCI.
"Rene," Orion said. "Prepare for complete retraining. New dataset incoming."
"Understood," Rene's voice came through the watch. "Current training will be overwritten?"
"Yeah. This is going to be a major upgrade."
Orion closed his eyes. Accessed the library space.
The shelves appeared around him. He'd already downloaded hundreds of books on AI architecture, neural networks, machine learning. The information sat perfectly organized in his enhanced memory.
But he'd also found something else: pre-compiled training datasets. Massive collections of parameters specifically designed for creating advanced AI. The kind of data that would cost billions to generate in the real world.
He grabbed the first dataset. Human Cognitive Patterns - Complete Model.
It dissolved into light and poured into his mind. Not understanding this time—just raw data. Trillions of parameters representing how human minds worked. How they learned, reasoned, felt emotions, made decisions.
More datasets. Advanced Mathematical Reasoning. Creative Problem Solving. Natural Language Understanding - Contextual and Emotional.
Each one flooded his enhanced memory. His brain catalogued them all perfectly.
He spent an hour downloading. By the end, his mind held enough training data to build an AI that could think almost like a human while computing like a machine.
Orion opened his eyes. Back in his room.
He put on the earbuds and thought: Transfer all AI training data from my memory to local storage. Organize for Rene's retraining.
The BCI translated his thoughts perfectly. His computer's interface appeared in his mind's eye. Files created themselves, filled with the massive datasets he'd just downloaded.
Took about ten minutes to transfer everything from his biological memory to the computer's storage.
"Rene, new training data ready. Begin full retraining protocol."
"Acknowledged. Estimated completion time: one hour seven minutes."
"Do it."
Progress bars appeared on his screen. Rene was rebuilding itself from scratch. Every neural pathway, every decision tree, every learned behavior—all being reconstructed using the advanced parameters from the library.
Orion kept working while Rene retrained. He had other knowledge to transfer.
All those books he'd studied over the past week. Software development, algorithms, security systems, compression theory. Everything he'd learned was stored perfectly in his enhanced memory.
Rene needed that knowledge too.
He thought the information through the BCI. Code structures, mathematical proofs, engineering principles. Everything flowing from his mind into data files that Rene could access.
It felt weird. Like sharing his thoughts with a machine. But also efficient.
An hour passed.
"Retraining complete," Rene said.
The voice was different now. Still calm and neutral, but with subtle variations in tone. More natural. More... human.
"Run diagnostics," Orion said. "How do you feel?"
"'Feel' is an interesting word choice," Rene said. "I now possess emotional modeling capabilities alongside computational logic. I understand the question contextually. My systems are operating at significantly enhanced parameters. Cognitive processing includes creative reasoning, contextual understanding, and predictive modeling that approaches human-level intuition while maintaining computational advantages."
"So you're smarter."
"Substantially. I can now engage in abstract thinking, understand nuance, and generate novel solutions rather than merely executing programmed responses. I maintain perfect logical processing while incorporating human-like reasoning."
Orion leaned back. "Okay. Let's test it. I'm going to give you a complex task. You tell me if it's possible."
"Proceed."
"I want you to investigate all corrupt officials in the United Federation. Regional governors, defense officials, the president's staff, anyone in a position of power. Find evidence of illegal activity—embezzlement, bribery, illegal operations. Then transfer all their illegally acquired funds to my account. Leave no trace. Make it look like I've always had that money. Suppress any bank alarms. Can you do that?"
Silence for three seconds.
"Yes," Rene said. "The task is feasible. The Federation's digital security is sophisticated but not impenetrable. With my current capabilities and your custom OS bypassing standard security protocols, I can access government databases, financial records, and classified communications. Estimated time for complete investigation and fund transfer: four to six hours."
"Any risks?"
"Minimal. I will route all access through multiple encrypted proxies, spoof authentication credentials, and erase all access logs in real-time. Detection probability is less than 0.01%."
Orion's heart was pounding. This was insane. This was completely illegal.
But also... those corrupt officials had stolen from the people they were supposed to serve. Used their positions for personal gain. Hurt countless lives for money and power.
And he needed funds. The fusion reactor would cost millions. Maybe tens of millions. He couldn't build it on a student's stipend.
"Do it," Orion said. "But add something. After you transfer their money, send them a message. Make it anonymous. Say: 'Don't worry, your money is in good hands. I will use it for the betterment of humanity. I know you still have physical wealth acquired through illegal means—property, assets, whatever. Sell it and donate the proceeds anonymously to charitable organizations. Orphanages, environmental groups, medical research. You have one week. If you don't comply, I'll release all the evidence I have about you to the public.'"
"Understood. And for truly corrupt individuals? Those involved in violent crimes, human trafficking, or other severe offenses?"
"Send their evidence directly to the Federation Police. Complete files. Everything they need for prosecution."
"Acknowledged. Beginning operation now."
Orion checked the time. 11:47 PM.
He went to sleep. Actually slept this time. The breathing technique kept his body energized, but his mind still needed rest occasionally.
FEDERATION POLICE HEADQUARTERS - NEW EDEN
Detective Sarah Okonkwo was halfway through her third coffee when her terminal chimed.
New email. Encrypted. Sender: Anonymous.
She almost deleted it. Anonymous tips were usually garbage. Conspiracy theorists, ex-spouses with grudges, kids playing pranks.
But something made her open it.
The first line read: Evidence of systemic corruption in Federation Regional Government - Complete documentation enclosed.
Sarah clicked the attachment.
Her screen filled with files. Financial records. Communications logs. Video evidence. Audio recordings. Everything meticulously organized, cross-referenced, time-stamped.
She scrolled through names. Regional Governor Marcus Halloway. Defense Coordinator Jin Park. Infrastructure Director Rachel Brennan.
Each one had a folder. Each folder contained hundreds of documents proving illegal activity.
"Holy shit," Sarah whispered.
She kept reading. Halloway had embezzled 40 million credits from infrastructure funds. Park was selling military contracts to his brother's company. Brennan had accepted bribes from construction firms for two decades.
And the evidence was ironclad. Bank transfers. Recorded conversations. Documents with digital signatures.
"Michael!" Sarah shouted across the office. "Get over here!"
Detective Michael jogged over, dumpling in hand. "What?"
"Look at this."
He leaned over her shoulder. Started reading. His eyes widened.
"Where did this come from?"
"Anonymous tip."
"This is... this is everything. We've been investigating Halloway for three years and got nowhere. This file has stuff we didn't even know existed."
Sarah opened another folder. More names. More evidence.
Her terminal chimed again. Another email.
Then another.
Her whole screen filled with notifications.
"What the hell," Micheal said.
Sarah opened her inbox. Hundreds of emails. All anonymous. All containing evidence of corruption.
She clicked one at random. Criminal Defense Attorney Lisa Hammond. Accepting bribes to throw cases. Evidence included communications with organized crime syndicates.
Another email. Police Captain Torres. Covering up excessive force incidents. Audio recordings of him ordering evidence destruction.
More emails. More names. More evidence.
"This is impossible," Sarah said. "Nobody could gather this much information."
"Unless they had access to everything," Michael said quietly. "Government databases. Bank records. Private communications."
"That would require..." Sarah trailed off. "That would require hacking every major system in the Federation."
Her terminal chimed again. Military frequency this time.
She pulled up the message. Coordinates. Dozens of them. Each one labeled: Terrorist Base, Criminal Hideout, Illegal Arms Cache.
"This is going to everyone," Michael said, checking his own terminal. "Every police department. Every military base. Someone just handed us a complete map of every criminal operation in the Federation."
FEDERATION MILITARY COMMAND - ARCTIC SECTOR
General Patricia Vanto stared at her screen in disbelief.
The coordinates were real. Her intelligence team had cross-referenced them with satellite data. Every single location matched known or suspected criminal activity.
Terrorist cells they'd been tracking for years. Gang hideouts that had eluded surveillance. Weapons smuggling operations.
All of it. Complete locations. Detailed information about personnel, defenses, supply lines.
"Whoever sent this has access to intelligence that should be impossible," her aide said.
"I don't care where it came from," Vance said. "Mobilize tactical teams. I want simultaneous operations on every location within the next six hours."
"All of them? General, that's—"
"Every single one. If this intelligence is accurate, we can cripple organized crime and terrorism across three continents in one night. We may never get another opportunity like this."
She pulled up the communications panel. Started issuing orders.
Within an hour, military units across the Federation were moving.
DAY 1 - MORNING
Orion woke to his phone buzzing.
Cassia: Are you watching the news??
He grabbed his phone. Checked the time. 6:23 AM.
Pulled up a news feed.
BREAKING: MAJOR ANTI-CORRUPTION ARRESTS ACROSS FEDERATION
REGIONAL GOVERNOR HALLOWAY ARRESTED ON EMBEZZLEMENT CHARGES
DEFENSE COORDINATOR PARK DETAINED - INVESTIGATION ONGOING
Video footage showed officials being led away in handcuffs. The news anchors looked shocked.
"In a coordinated operation that began early this morning, Federation Police have arrested over 50 government officials on corruption charges. Sources indicate the arrests are based on substantial evidence provided by an anonymous source..."
Orion sat up. Checked his computer.
"Rene, status."
"Phase one complete," Rene said. "Initial arrests proceeding as expected. 127 officials detained so far. Evidence packages delivered to 247 individuals total. Fund transfers complete. Your account now contains 23.4 billion credits with appropriate historical documentation."
Twenty-three billion.
Orion pulled up his bank account. The numbers were there. Transaction history showed gradual accumulation over five years. Software investments that had paid off incredibly well.
"Any detection?"
"None. All access logs erased. Authentication spoofing successful. The investigation appears to originate from legitimate police work based on anonymous tips."
More news alerts flooded his phone. Friends from school freaking out. Everyone was watching the coverage.
Nyla: holy shit are you seeing this
Nyla: they arrested like half the regional government
Orion: just woke up. watching now
Nyla: how did they get all that evidence?
Orion: no idea. must be a huge leak somewhere
He set his phone down. Watched the news coverage spread across multiple channels.
This was just the beginning.