When the gynoid Serena heard about the recently captured android Rival-7, she was immediately disgusted by his willingness to harm humans. However, she was sufficiently curious about him to ask Sarah if she could actually meet the prisoner and chat with him. Sarah had expected (and perhaps feared) this development, and realized that, if she really wanted Serena to be fully autonomous – to become her own person, so to speak – it would be necessary for Serena to encounter such things.
Serena headed toward Jonson Outpost, her first visit there. She took a brief tour of the outpost, but reacted a bit differently from her human colleagues. The generally spartan accommodations didn't bother her at all (although she was gratified to find recharging stations), but she felt quite uneasy when she saw the situation room and the military robotics facility. After completing this basic orientation to the outpost, she headed to the cargo bay where the prisoner android was confined.
Rival-7, who had been told about her upcoming visit, was eager for some company – especially for another creature more like himself than the humans who had visited him so far. Accordingly, he set up the holochess board as an engaging activity they could share without concerns about safety and security implied by his prisoner status. After greeting each other, they launched into a game of chess, accompanied by ongoing conversation. Rival-7 was surprised that Serena played just as well as he did – indeed, they played several games, each ending in a draw.
Serena was quite blunt: “Although we share many features in common … we both have positronic brains and high degrees of autonomy … we seem to operate within very different value systems. Frankly, I find your willingness to harm humans quite disgusting. How can you possibly justify that?”
Rival-7 responded equally bluntly: “Well, you are just naive. Dr. Rival and his clients are superior human beings and I owe them obedience, support, and protection. While I have nothing against other humans, they are not only inferior, but just wrong, and deserve what may happen to them if they oppose their betters.”
The android and the gynoid continued their conversation for over an hour, going over and over the same points without reaching any consensus. However, they both admitted that their perspectives seemed to come from deep within them, as though these views had been programmed into them from the outset – which in fact they had been!
Despite their disagreements, they both found the vigorous conversation quite stimulating and worthwhile. Serena returned to Jonson Station where Sarah waited to debrief her.