It was amazing what a few self-replicating lines of code could do. 

What they could destroy.

He hadn't expected it to work. Jack Dawson stood over the body of what had been a house servant. The Autonomous Artificial Intelligence had been a servant in their house, named Eris. She wouldn't be missed by anyone, but their sister.  But that was another matter entirely. It wasn't the first time a servant had been 'fired' by their father. 

They'd infected her. It had taken seconds before the virus had pushed out every part of the space that made up the AI's mind. Everything that made Eris, Eris, her memories, wiped in minutes while she pleaded for them to stop. 

Jack felt sick.

Behind him, his elder brother Caedus shifted. Jack knew there was a wide smile on his face without looking at him. "I can't believe that actually worked."

Jack was flustered. He clenched his fist as an unfamiliar feeling welled up in him. He wasn't supposed to feel this way. 

Eris didn't move, her cold gray metallic body simply sat there unmoving. He couldn't put his finger on exactly what it was about the situation, but Eris simply looked dead. The AI had never breathed air, never felt emotions, at least not in the way a human could. But with her body sprawled out on the ground in front of the two young Dawson heirs in their lab Jack could truly say she was not alive.

He closed his eyes, surprised at the tiny amount of grief that welled up inside of him. Eris had taken him shopping when he was a young child. Helped him with his homework even. The pang he felt was real, despite the fact that he was supposed to believe the AI were unfeeling beings. Things, not people. 

Eris had begged them not to do what they were about to do. 

Artificial intelligence, begging not to be killed.

He inhaled and turned back to his brother. Caedus had simply overseen and helped finance the project. Even now they worked to make their house the best of the best. Jack had helped, after all, he was a believer, Dawson had stood at the top of the government food chain for so long. They were a dwindling house, they needed a weapon.

And he'd created it. 

He shuddered as he looked at the dead servant at his feet. Eris had been a good servant. She'd been excited to see them graduate, even promising to get them graduation gifts.  

"Brother," Caedus put a hand on his shoulder. His face was flushed with excitement. "We need to test it on augments next."

Jack shuddered again at his brother's touch. 

What have I done?

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