A Sentient AI and a Secret Agent Walk Into A Bar

[JamesRobinson]

James greeted Overseer Haadon warmly and exchanged the requisite pleasantries and introductions with the Overseer's entourage. Returning to his seat, James referred to his notes while gathering his thoughts before beginning. Overseer, first of all please let me welcome you and your colleagues to the Kingdom of Bretonia. I know the Overseer and I have already met, he said, turning to the other members of the entourage, My name is James Robinson, and I am with Her Majesty's Secret Intelligence Service, I asked to meet with you to learn more about you as a culture and organization, so that I may advise Her Majesty's Government on how to proceed on your application to build a base in Gran Canaria Orbit. He paused and took a breath before continuing, far less rigidly, Sorry, I hate all that official nonsense and wanted to get it out of the way. He paused before he continued, I'm here to learn about your people, to see if your values match ours and our cultures would benefit from entering into a cooperative venture.

James referred to his notes for a moment before continuing, it was more out of force of habit to give everyone a chance to process anything. He assumed that the beings before him needed no such time, but he wanted to treat them the same way he would treat anyone else. He viewed them as equals and wanted to treat them as such. He took another draw off the beer before he continued. A word of explanation may be in order. I chose this location because I wanted to see how you might interact with other beings. I hope that isn't misconstrued as being insulting, but to me an important component of any base is going to be how your people interact with humans, and I wanted a glimpse of how your are in more social settings. He paused for another moment before finishing, Overseer, I know when we spoke previously you wanted to try new experiences as a way of growth. I don't know what, if any nutrient intake you require, but you may try something to eat or drink, sometimes they can evoke a type of response. If you would like anything, consider it my treat.

James sat back and retreated into his thoughts. The more he thought about it the more he thought that this was a job for a diplomat, not a spy like himself. This was basically first contact with a new species. Rather than getting solely into questions about their history, he wanted to get a real idea of how they functioned and interacted. Personally, based on all the talks he'd had, he would support the construction of the station, but he also knew that if the interactions between the Daoine Saoirse and people that would be visiting the station were awkward, it would likely not be a successful venture. He tried to keep his private conflict private, he resolved himself in the fact that if Haadon could pick up on it it would definitely show empathic sophistication. As he came back out of the recesses of his mind, he thought of something else, Overseer, what would you like me to call you? I have no real preference but most people call me James, if you have one, I would like to use it.