Lastries

Lastries is an Artificial Intelligence program created by the Gudersnipe Foundation. The name is a contraction of "last resort" in that, to risk using Lastries, it must be your last resort.

History

To prevent their users becoming dependent on them, to the point of helplessness, all artificial intelligences made by Gudersnipe are programmed to become malevolent, evil, and hell-bent on the destruction of organic life. Lastries is no different. A "fourth-stage" A.I., it has killed numerous people and is usually housed in protected memory. Still, most Gudersnipe ships carry a copy of the Lastries software, for its remarkable capabilities.

Usage

The Lastries program is unique as an A.I. capable of creativity. Thus, as a problem-solver, it is second to none (though Instructor Gailen did discover that a virtual model of Laden Bur'I's brain was able to beat Lastries in simulated war games). In general, the program is used when a solution is needed right away and all other options have been exhausted.

Appearances

Lastries initially apears in the short story Virus from The Path to Ascension, then again in Marigold from The Road to War. It is heavily implied in both stories that these were neither the first, nor the last encounters the main characters had with him.