"Previously on Dark Matter..." "It's a nasty gash." "You know it's really too bad, we could've had some real fun together" "She got blown out the air lock." "She held on waiting to die and she didn't" "What the hell is she?" "Think you could survive a bullet between the eyes?" "Whatever this thing is, 3 corporations were willing to kill for it" "What the hell was that?" "The field's become unstable." "Shut it down." "What the hell is this?" "Kid's a stowaway." "I was just trying to scare her." "I wasn't gonna space her, I swear." "At least let's get something for her." "Shut up, Boone." "Look guys, she's an asset." "She's got a head for mechanics and tech." "I don't give a shit." "I don't want her on this ship." "Why the hell not?" "She's a child." "Griff's right." "We should keep her." "It's even up." "Your call, Ryo." "Welcome aboard, little warrior." "Just don't give me any cause to regret my decision." "Two, I've completed my analysis of all available sensor data pertaining to the explosion." "Would you like to hear it?" "Maybe just the short version." "It was the temporary manifestation of what's known in layman's terms as a white hole." "Let me guess." "The opposite of a black hole?" "Precisely." "It's an area of space-time which cannot be entered from the outside, but" "Is there any chance it was a coincidence that it manifested five minutes after we delivered that device?" "It would be highly unlikely." "Research into white hole technology was banned by the Galactic Authority several years ago because of its potential to de-stabilize the current balance of power between the major corporations." "How many people were on that planet?" "The world was otherwise uninhabited, so the death toll was limited to those on the research facility..." "Are you sure you want the number?" "How many?" "A little over fifteen thousand." "Galactic Authorities continue their investigation into what they've classified as an Extinction Level Event on a Hab-1 world under the directorship of The Mikkei Combine." "Satellite imagery captured the planet's final moments..." "The incident, which claimed the lives of all on-site personnel, is believed to have been triggered by illegal research into what has been termed a "Doomsday Weapon"" "linked to white hole technology." "Representatives of The Mikkei Combine offered condolences to all those affected but have otherwise refused comment pending completion of the official inquiry." "Is that it?" "This was the most relevant of several reports." "No mention anywhere of our involvement?" "None." "Guys, we're in the clear." "Just because we're not in the official news doesn't mean we're in the clear." "All I'm saying is it could be worse." "Mikkei could've hung us out to dry, but they didn't, why?" "Probably because they think that we got played just like they did." "We're not nearly as screwed as we thought we were." "I'm receiving a coded subspace transmission." "It's from Calck." "Patch him through." "What do you want?" "Oh, you, you are all so screwed." "And by "screwed" you mean." "Certain parties with e Mikkei Combine think you set them up." "We set them up?" "They came to us with that job!" "Whicis w it's always important to go through proper channels." "Yeah, really sorry you didn't earn your commission on that one." "It's a small price to pay for peace of mind." "Okay, let me run this scenario by you." "Traugott's been doing RD on a white hole bomb." "They've got a prototype but they can't test it without getting the G.A.s onto their backs." "So what do they" "They float word around about it, back-channel whispers, and guess who takes the bait?" "Mikkei." "They hired us to steal it." "We do, deliver it, and once it's safely into their hands," "Traugott triggers the device and Mikkei gets to take the fall." "Does that sound about right?" "Huh, sounds about exactly right." "Of course there's the question of whether you were playing both sides." "Come on." "Everyone knows we've been untouchable since our fallout with Ferrous." "Well, things change." "See, Ferrous Corp reached out to me to reach out to you about a job." "Why us?" "Because they know you're the best." "And also because you have burned so many bridges that you are out of options." "You either take this job and make nice with Ferrous Corp, which, by the way, would be a very smart move while we wait for this Mikkei situation to shake out, or you are really on your own." "Look, this time around you don't have to steal anything." "In fact, you'll be saving someone, its a nice change of pace." "Who?" "A Ferrous Corp scientist was kidnapped about a month ago by a rival combine." "He's being held in a lab on some backwater planet." "Very little in the way of security." "So it's a simple snatch and grab." "You're in; you're out." "It's a piece of cake." "I hate cake." "So we get into Ferrous' good books by getting in this other rival corp's bad books?" "Yes, you want Ferrous Corp to be your friend." "We'll do it." "What?" "Shouldn't we talk about this?" "No." "We'll do it." "Excellent." "I will send you the coordinates and, uh good to be back in business with you." "Are you sure?" "The only thing I'm sure about right now is that we need all the friends we can get." "We're taking this job." "What're you doing?" "Ow." "Are you looking for something?" "Yeah." "I just uh, dropped my um, nebulizer." "Alright." "Well, good luck finding that." "Oh, hey." "Thanks." "For what?" "Everything?" "Looking to do some crowd control?" "I'm just going over inventory from the boxes that" "Five managed to crack." "Busy night for her." "These uh, these were a little bit trickier so we'll probably have to break into them at some point." "You okay?" "I've had a lot on my mind." "Let's hear about it." "You saw the scans." "Yeah, and they said you're flesh and blood..." "Artificially constructed." "Like one of those transfer transit clones." "Those only last a few days, they're not sustainable organisms." "And they don't have minds of their own." "Do I?" "I mean, I have thoughts, and emotions..." "Anger, sadness, happiness..." "But I'm starting to wonder, how real are they?" "Having been on the receiving end of that anger," "I can confirm it's pretty real." "If every part of me was designed and manufactured, including my brain, then are my thoughts my own, or are they just what somebody else wants me to think?" "And if so, who is that somebody else?" "Who constructed me, and for what purpose?" "I'm sorry, I can't pretend to understand what you're going through." "But I can tell you this..." "It doesn't change how I feel about you." "I just need to process all of this." "Sure." "If you feel like talking, come find me." "Alright Raza, we're on route." "Let's go bag us a scientist." "Alright." "If I was a kidnapped scientist, where would I be?" "What the?" "I hate cake." "Welcome back, Rebecca." "What the hell are..." "What the hell did you do to her" "I merely rendered her unconscious." "I have no intention of hurting her." "Now, put your weapons away." "Like hell." "I will not hurt her, but I have no problem hurting either of you..." "Or your friends back on the shuttle." "Your progress was monitored from ship to surface." "We've been expecting you." "Tabor set us up." "That little prick." "Now, if you will kindly lay down your weapons, we have much to discuss." "Anger is counter-productive." "It's a natural response, but after a certain point, it becomes toxic." "I assume you're talking about me?" "No, I was actually referring to the passive-aggressive empty seat next to you." "You can resent us all you like for our decision to deliver the device, but ultimately you're as much at fault as the rest of us." "I tried to stop you." "Did you?" "Marauder, do you read?" "Go ahead, Ground Team." "What's your status?" "It's complicated." "Care to elaborate?" "Well, it looks like we've been invited to dinner." "Raza, this is the Marauder." "Are you there?" "Yes." "Is everything alright?" "Negative." "It was a set-up." "The ground team has been taken and we're told the facility has a lock on our position." "If we attempt to fly out, they'll take us out." "What should I do?" "Just sit tight for now." "We're gonna go join the others." "If you don't hear from us inside the next four hours, get the hell out of here." "I am so sorry that I'm late." "It's just been one of those days." "I'm sure you can empathize." "Where is she?" "She is resting comfortably." "I meant what I said earlier." "I will never hurt her." "In fact, this is my small way of thanking you for keeping her safe and returning her to me." "Who the hell are you?" "My name is Alexander Rook." "I own a company called Dwarf Star Technologies along with all of its subsidiaries, patents, and prototypes, including Rebecca, although, I believe in your company she is going by Portia?" "I'm pretty sure you can't lay legal claim to the results of banned research." "Last time I checked, the creation of human facsimiles is against the law." "Oh and, what would you have me do?" "Put one of those ridiculous tattoos on her neck as if she was some common android?" "No." "Although Rebecca's biological components are superior, she must be constantly monitored and maintained by her nanites." "Slow down the nanites, slow down Rebecca." "Is that what you did to her?" "Yes." "I have blanketed this entire facility in a dampening field." "At its present lowest setting, it merely renders her harmless." "But at higher settings, it will shut her down, and ultimately destroy her." "We can't have her escaping a second time." "You know, she was created and ultimately right here in this facility." "She has no memory of it because her consciousness was inert at that point." "She was moved to a more appropriate, secure facility for her awakening." "Yeah, how'd that work out?" "Not particularly well for the program, or for the forty-three scientists and security personnel who lost their lives when she made her escape." "We believe that there is a flaw in her neural network that leaves her prone to irrational behavior and outbursts of extreme violence." "Listen, you are very lucky." "It was only a matter of time before she turned on you too." "So you say." "If I actually considered any of you a threat, you would already be dead." "Now, come, eat!" "You left her?" "Didn't have a choice, kid." "Prepare to jump." "You left her?" "!" "They're gone." "Good." "Let's get to work." "I've dropped us out in close proximity to the system's A-type main sequence star." "As long as we remain within it's radiation shadow, we'll be undetectable by long-range scanners." "But it's safe, right?" "Absolutely not." "If you're going to come up with a plan of action," "I suggest you do it quickly." "Hello, Rebecca." "Who the hell are you and what did you do to me?" "And why do you keep calling me Rebecca?" "Because that's your name." "And you are?" "It's Alex." "You-you really don't remember me?" "No, I don't." "Where's my crew?" "They're gone." "What do you mean they're gone?" "I mean they left." "They got in their shuttle, flew back to their ship, and they jumped." "No." "They wouldn't just leave me." "They didn't have a choice." "For the moment, at least, neither do you." "Open this door." "Come, sit down." "Let's talk." "Open this door or I'm going to come over there and break you in half." "Your people-breaking days are over, at least for now." "I'm sorry, but you are no longer special." "And as long as this dampening field is active, you're less than normal." "I am so sorry, but I can't have you running off again." "What the hell are you talking about?" "What is the last thing you remember about your past?" "Waking up out of stasis on a ship." "That's it." "Those people you came with, they did something to you." "No, those people are my friends, and they'll be coming back for me." "I don't think so." "But if they are stupid enough to try, we'll be ready for them." "I say we just do what we do best" "We hack down there we kill everyone" "We bring her back." "As much as I admire your suicidal optimism, there's no way of knowing how many men or guns they have." "Fine." "So we'll lob a couple of orbital strikes their way first to soften 'em up." "A ship to surface bombardment would be inadvisable unless we knew exactly where she was being held." "Besides, they'd see us coming and if they have anti-satellite capabilities, they'd tag us before we even got off our first salvo." "Okay, how about taking the Marauder in?" "It's smaller, easier to avoid detection." "We can hit them with a couple of precision strikes." "And then what?" "And then land and storm the place." "But at that point we've lost the element of surprise." "They'll cut us to pieces before we get anywhere near that facility, if we made it that far." "The second we land, our shuttle becomes a stationary target." "Then don't land." "Come again?" "Take the Marauder, but don't land." "There's another way into that facility." "Er... hang on" "Come in." "Hey." "Uh, just wanted you to know, we're gonna go get her." "I knew you weren't serious about leaving her behind." "The Android's coming with us, which means someone has to stay to monitor the ship." "You just don't want me there because you don't think I'd be any use." "I don't want you there because Two wouldn't want you there." "The Android is gonna enter a program into the nav system." "If we're not back inside of four hours, it'll set an automatic course for the nearest space station." "You'll be on your own." "This is unwise." "You're abandoning your obligations to the ship." "I'm fulfilling my duties to the members of its crew by helping to ensure their safety." "My actions will in no way compromise this vessel." "They will indirectly, if you don't return." "I have every intention of doing so." "After careful consideration, I've come to the conclusion that the benefits of retrieval outweigh the risks." "Two is integral to the security of this ship and its crew." "She is system-proficient, a capable leader, and... she is my friend." "Friendship implies a mutual affection." "You're not programmed to form emotional attachments." "Furthermore, the assumption that she would reciprocate..." "The crew has demonstrated a concern for my well-being, sometimes at the risk of their own lives." "They engage me as an equal." "They are... nice to me." "Humans have an innate tendency to anthropomorphize." "The fact that you possess human features no doubt engenders a subconscious confusion." "Might I remind you?" "You are a machine." "A machine with friends." "Back on the ship, I knew I was different." "I just didn't know how." "Even after I found out, it was just too unbelievable to comprehend." "But now, seeing all of this I..." "You should be proud of what you are." "Your body can overcome any abnormal biological pathogen." "You can regenerate." "You are faster and stronger." "You are superior in every way." "So my nanites can cure me and protect me, but they don't prevent me from aging?" "No." "In the long run, that would raise suspicion, and we just couldn't risk it." "Why not?" "You are perfection." "You are a living reminder of all of their failings." "And they will hate you for it." "If the authorities ever found out about you, they would use all their power to hunt you down and kill you." "But you're safe now." "You are safe with me." "And I promise you, I will never let anything happen to you." "Why was I created?" "The answer to that question is part of a much bigger conversation." "And one that we will have, in due time." "Okay!" "What's happening?" "They came back, they buzzed the facility to test our perimeter defenses, but they're gone now." " You think she made it?" "Now let's hope so, because she's our only shot at pulling this off." "What are we looking for?" "A defect that might explain a few things." "Such as" "Your aberrant behavior." "Have you found anything?" "No." "Your results show your brain functioning normally." "I expected your scans would reveal psychopathic tendencies in the cerebral cortex related to empathy, but it doesn't seem to be the case." "Well are you sure you're getting the right readings?" "I'm sorry, this, it's moving all over the place." "Don't touch it!" "I told Alex you needed to be restrained but he was insistent." "I can't hurt you anymore." "Of course not." "Then why do you have a problem with me?" "Were you working at the facility when I escaped?" "No, but many of my former colleagues were." "I was to be involved in Phase Three but we never got there." "You saw to that." "I'm sorry." "Are you?" "Do you feel remorse?" "According to your scan, it's physiologically possible, but I can't help but have my doubts given the digital evidence recorded at the scene." "Your actions were quite calculated and devoid of emotion." "I, I can't remember." "How fortunate for you." "I wish I could forget the images I've seen." "You may have him fooled, but I don't believe it for a second." "Your time will come, and when it does," "I look forward to dissecting your brain for a closer, more intimate analysis." "Okay, approaching the facility." "Running a scan." "And?" "Nothing." "No unusual radiation signatures." "What's taking her so long?" "It's not like she's just gonna stroll in there and get it done." "She has to quietly enter the facility without alerting anyone." "Then, she has to trace the dampening field to its source." "Who knows how it's laid out down there." "Could be a maze." "And there's no telling where they're holding Two." "I told you she couldn't be trusted." "Rebecca, you disappoint me again." "Let go of me!" "I swear I'll kill you!" "Every last one of you!" "I tested you and you failed." "I'm sorry but we're going to have to start over." "Maybe this is for the best." "We'll be able to do a complete analysis and gain a more full understanding of where we went wrong, so the next brain we give you is free of imperfections." "Goodbye, Rebecca." "Wait." "Wait!" "Wait!" "I could grant you the mercy of shutting you down before the surgery, but I think this is a wonderful time to test your pain receptors." "Okay, coming in for another approach." "Running a scan." "Still nothing." "Come on!" "How long does it take to blow some shit up?" "!" "It's not like its rocket science." "Maybe the field emitter was harder to find then she thought." "Could it be possible that it's affecting her as well?" "No." "No!" "Something's gone wrong" "We've got to get down there." "Can't." "We set this shuttle down and we're a sitting target." "So set the shuttle down out of range." "What?" "You think you're going to cover that distance on foot?" "Well we've got to do something." "Come around for another pass." "Your regenerative abilities have been severely compromised." "This is a great opportunity to test your pain receptors." "Help me!" "Hey!" "The Marauder is awaiting my signal." "Would you like to help me blow something up?" "Would I?" "!" "Alright, coming up on the facility." "Running another scan." "Okay, I've got an explosion..." "Multiple explosions!" "Whoa!" "I knew you'd be back!" "Worried we wouldn't make it in time?" "Nah." "I deleted the nav command you guys entered, just in case." "And what if we hadn't come back?" "Then I would've programmed a new one." "I didn't know you knew how to program." "Neither did I." "Come on, seriously!" "You just send me out there man, I am ready." "Once around the ship, no problem." "Yeah, more like once around and into the side of the ship." "Hey, hey." "Trusting you to fly that shuttle is like betting on him in a fight." "No offense." "He just needs proper training." "Are you offering?" "Absolutely not, I already have a student." "He's gonna teach me to kick all of your asses." "Oouuh." "Hey." "Um, I wanted to thank you guys, all of you." "You risked your lives to save me and I really appreciate it." "Well, we just figured that if we didn't, and you somehow managed to escape on your own, you'd come back here, you'd never let us hear the end of it." "Never, but you're probably right." "Come, sit." "Pour that woman a drink." "Pour that woman a drink, someone?" "Okay." "Here you go." "Thank you." "Cheers, guys." "Cheers." "Cheers." "So." "You were right." "Then we're agreed?" "Yes." "He has to die." "When?" "Before we get to the mining colony, after we come out of stasis." "Where is she?" "She's gone." "She escaped." "She had help." "How old is It's twenty-four." "You see what happens." "Would you like to be next?" "That won't be necessary." "We've nearly completed work on the new prototype." "And what are you going to do about the other one?" "We don't need her anymore." "Her continued existence threatens ours." "You say she has friends who assisted her?" "Yes." "Do they know what she is?" "Yes." "Then they'll need to die too, Alex." "All of them." "Yes."