Delta ran over to the crate and used his bioscan to confirm that the food was indeed bad. It was rotten meat, with no less than 15 different kinds of malignant pathogens infesting it.
"Are you okay, Isidor? You didn't touch any of the food, did you?" For the first time, the guardian was nervous. Yes, nervous. It was a trait that was programmed into him in order to give urgency to his actions in the case of an emergency.
Omega, meanwhile, was still on the bridge, oblivious to all of what was happening in the cargo bay.
"Heron, can you come in please?" He asked the computer while standing as still as a statue.
"Yes, Omega. I'm here."
"Could you give me an update on the status of the ship and crew?"
"Certainly. All biological units are present and accounted for, Alpha is still not back yet, Delta is in the cargo bay, and all systems are fully functional."
"Good to hear. You are omnipresent throughout the ship, correct?" Omega had received a message from Delta warning him that Heron was not necessarily a trustworthy A.I. As far as either of the guardians could tell, Heron was unable to intercept the transmission.
"Correct. There is nothing that goes on in the ship that I am unaware of, inasmuch as my sensors can detect. For example, Valria and Raiven are conversing, and Isidor just opened up an unsealed canister in the cargo bay."
"What was in the canister? A missile system? Ammunition?"
"Spoiled meat." It was as Delta had spoken, until... "I warned Isidor not to open it, but you know how biological units can be sometimes. You tell them not to do something, and they do it anyway. It is highly illogical of them, as if telling them not to do something has the opposite effect."
Omega's suspicions were aroused now. Heron's story and Delta's story did not match up.
"I can show you the recording of my warning, if you'd like." Heron added, as cheerfully as he could be.
"Your warning?" Omega was told that there was no such warning given, even though Heron knew what was in the canister.
"Yes. I told you that I had warned Isidor. I can play it back on demand. Don't you trust me?" The truth was, Omega did not. Any warning played back could have been fabricated, a savant series computer was certainly advanced enough to do that, but why?
