Slaves of Cerberus

"I have returned," said the robotic voice behind her. Erin turned to see Inania walking into the cockpit.

"Great," Erin said with a smile. "Everything checked out alright? That spy didn't break anything on you, did she?"

Inania took her seat. "I appear to have no defects or evidence of sabotage," the AIU cheerfully intoned. "I apologize if my momentary departure made your piloting duties difficult."

"Nah, it's all good. We're getting ready to dock, and all that's mostly automated," Erin said. "Giving me the chance to try and concentrate on these files that are about ready to put me to sleep."

"I do not understand. What files is it that you are speaking about?" Inania inquired.

Erin tapped the display in front of her. "Shepard put me in charge of going through the Normandy's systems. Seeing if the spy that knocked you offline did any meddling while she was in here. Unfortunately, it means I'm probably going to have to check these thousands of files by hand."

"I believe I might have a solution to your dilemma," Inania said. "If you would allow me, I can check through the files instead. It would be a much faster process if you entrust it to me."

Erin laughed. "Of course! What was I thinking? Let the VI handle the boring work," she said. "You sure you know what you're looking for? Any signs that the spy put a virus in our systems or something like that."

"My software is equipped with several virus and malware scanners, with real-time updates from security experts across the galaxy," Inania said. "If a virus exists in the Normandy's memories, it is a near impossibility that my systems would not be able to find it."

"Alright, then. You can get started on that while the rest of us are at the big welcoming party for Shepard," Erin said. "Just look through... oh, right!" she said, slapping her forehead. "You're going to need the codes Shepard gave me." She tapped in commands on her console. "There you go. You should have access to all of the Normandy's systems now."

Inania's eyes flashed, and she nodded. "Yes, that will be quite sufficient. Thank you, Miss Crooks."

"No problem. Just don't..." Erin's voice trailed off. "Wait. Did you just..."

The AIU turned to look at Erin. "Is there a problem, Miss Crooks?"

Erin looked a bit confused, but eventually laughed it off. "Nothing. It's just that you always used to... never mind. Maybe those tech guys got a few bugs out of your system when they were playing with your circuits. Anyway, let me know if you find anything."

"Affirmative," Inania said, as she interfaced with the Normandy's systems and began scanning through the files.

Meanwhile, one deck below them, the dusty servers in the AI core hummed quietly. And the re-awoken intelligence inside felt a strange sensation of nostalgia as it directed the metallic woman above to begin accessing the Normandy's systems.