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@raisedbybirds
The last thing Wheatley ever expected was a spaceship--well, that's a lie, because he doesn't exactly expect what happened next, either. Some kind of alien craft is one thing. Being plucked out of lunar orbit by the pilot of said craft is another thing entirely, not that he's complaining. Space was getting pretty old, after all, and he can't say he's going to miss that corrupted core. Though the experience is a little frightening, and he most certainly yells a lot while being brought on board, he decides after some consideration that this is a risk he's willing to take.
(Not that he has much of a choice.)
He learns very quickly that the orange robot piloting the similarly-orange ship is not, in fact, a robot, but a woman inside a robot suit. This is somewhat alarming to him, as it's technology he hasn't seen before, which means he's instantly a little suspicious (does it have an AI inside it? Does it talk? Can he meet it?). Still, he doesn't want to seem ungrateful, as he imagines she could dump him right back out into space if she so chose, so he does what he does best.
"--And, uh. That's about when you came along! Wanted to thank you for that, by the way. For picking me up. Giving me a lift. If I--if I haven't mentioned that yet. Really got me out of--out of a bad spot back there. Don't know what I would've done if you hadn't shown up, ha."
Running his "mouth". Is what he does best.
"Probably, ah. Probably would've just drifted out there. Aimlessly. Forever. You know--you know how it goes."
(Not that he has much of a choice.)
He learns very quickly that the orange robot piloting the similarly-orange ship is not, in fact, a robot, but a woman inside a robot suit. This is somewhat alarming to him, as it's technology he hasn't seen before, which means he's instantly a little suspicious (does it have an AI inside it? Does it talk? Can he meet it?). Still, he doesn't want to seem ungrateful, as he imagines she could dump him right back out into space if she so chose, so he does what he does best.
"--And, uh. That's about when you came along! Wanted to thank you for that, by the way. For picking me up. Giving me a lift. If I--if I haven't mentioned that yet. Really got me out of--out of a bad spot back there. Don't know what I would've done if you hadn't shown up, ha."
Running his "mouth". Is what he does best.
"Probably, ah. Probably would've just drifted out there. Aimlessly. Forever. You know--you know how it goes."
no subject
"We are independent agents. Freelancers. My data logs from... our most recent science-orientated excursion are still being categorized." Adam offers with as much discreetness as his own curiosity will permit, represented by a single circular purple optic of light glimmering from the console of the ship. "In the interest of data preservation, I wouldn't mind hearing more, Wheatley."
Under the helmet she frowns. Is really Adam suggesting some kind of interface? She's admittedly curious too, but they only just met this rogue AI and are trying to lay low.
no subject
Wheatley seems to perk up a little when Adam interjects. Despite the fact that most of his relationships with other AI were fraught, to say the least, he's generally more comfortable dealing with his own kind. Humans are intimidating, and Samus is no exception, even if she did pluck him from the depths of space. He's never quite sure what they're going to do.
Still, he doesn't seem to get what Adam is talking about, either.
"What do you mean?"
no subject
"You really want to interface with this...?" She gestures flippantly to Wheatley, on the cusp of deregulating him to thing which is probably technically correct, but Samus had enough empathy to rescue him from the cold and unforgiving vacuum of space in the first place for that to count for something. "You don't know where he's been."
"Exactly true, Samus. If we choose to maintain distance from the Galactic Federation then it would behoove us to curate knowledge and resources from external sources."
Samus has the sneaking suspicion this is really just an all AIs are thirty for data issue but when paired with the brilliant military mind that is Adam's guise it makes it a lot harder to argue the point. She takes a gamble and looks pointedly (as pointedly as an expressionless visor can) at Wheatley as if to ask for his input. Hopefully he'll disagree.
no subject
It's hard for Wheatley to not sound a little anxious at this proposition, though it's hard to tell whether or not he has bad associations with plugging himself into other AI (he most certainly does), or if he's just naturally a little jumpy.
Possibly it's both.
"I mean, we could. If you want. Not sure if there's anything--anything interesting in here, that I haven't already said. It's just, well. We've only just met, haven't we?"
no subject
"I would filter our data for privacy of course, Samus, if that was a concern." Something that should have gone without saying, and Adam says it. Samus jabs the side of her helmet in obvious frustration with her finger and elects to quickly scan Wheatley first, just enough to determine Wheatley isn't harboring any obvious viruses or malware. Good on that front, but she still has her own reservations.
"Wouldn't it be better to take you back to your facility? That's where you belong." She didn't plan on keeping the round little AI bonking around here inside her ship forever. Even the Etecoons and Dachora she rescued from B.S.L. already found new homes. She wasn't anyone safe to be around now. "Where is it?"
no subject
"Oh, no. We can't go back there. She'll kill us."
The us is pointed, like he's entirely certain that GLaDOS would not discriminate between Wheatley and anyone who happened to accompany him back to Aperture.
"Besides, I'm not even--I don't think I'd know how to get back, at this point. Looks like I'm, uh. Along for the ride. For the time being."
no subject
"A lot of things try to kill me." She supposed she could discretely dump him off at Federation HQ incognito. Hang out just long enough for Wheatley to drop her name and watch them scramble like a swarm of Shriekbats. By then she'd be long gone. If she were so petty she'd entertain it beyond a mere thought but ruffling their feathers for fun isn't something she wants to seriously risk right now. Besides, she convinces herself she could probably find a better home for him given a little bit of time.
"You don't have a lot of means to protect yourself anyway." No apparent digits, no obvious weapons. Just a sphere. "You're very small." It was also a welcome invitation for him to change her mind.
no subject
Unfortunately, Samus is right. He doesn't really have anything useful going for him, and he seems slightly embarrassed to have it pointed out.
"I prefer, uh. Travel-sized. Sensible. Compact. Won't take up any space. Won't, ah--more likely to go unnoticed. If someone were to forcibly board your ship, they probably wouldn't even--wouldn't even notice I was there! That's a good defense in its own right, isn't it?"
no subject
"Or destroyed." Samus adds, and after moment's thought, further adds, "...A sphere is a sensible design. I employ it myself."