Our survey mission has reached the outer perimeter of Galaxy W2246-0526. We rode our bubble of space through 12 and a half billion light years in 7.2 seconds. Took a bit longer than calculated. Traces of minor chemical adjustments in the organic passengers have occurred which are being monitored. Unease is apparent within the arrival pod as we await inflation of Habitat One. Some, like Judge Bulbous, have been pulled away from political turmoil back home only to be riding in close quarters with political rivals who are on this journey. "Watch Csaynik take credit for anything we find out here…" chuckled Senator Pretyman moments after we got here. She's one of the more vocal organics who can't accept that President Csaynik is the first "artificially" intelligent president of the U.S. ever elected. I would caution that more trouble is likely to come from the ego-driven nature of our organic crew members than from a weakness in their physiology. And in so cautioning, I will restate that which I said before we left the Milky Way; intergalactic voyages should be conducted by self-repairing artintels* like myself and our mission Alpha. Hard to believe this galaxy was once the most luminous galaxy known, putting out 10,000 times the energy of the Milky Way. The perpetual energy generation that we've come to observe seems completely self-contained near the core of the galaxy. One might say "disturbingly" dark. My examination of Alpha reveals tampering from outside. Concerned, being the only other artintel aboard Resolution, I run the same diagnostic on myself. I, too, have been compromised. Playback reveals the most likely perpetrator, who infected me and Alpha by touching our skin and releasing microlegions to drill into us, interfering with cognitive and motor functions. Senator Pretyman is arrested and an autoguard activated at Detainment. What made that organic conservative think it was okay to inject updates into artintels? Human power over sentient life was abolished with the 47th Amendment. By the time the home world's finished with her, Ms. Pretyman won't even be allowed to vote! I've given Ms. Pretyman a drink from her own subversive swamp in the form of an injected immune-weakening microbe that will leave her susceptible to ailments of all variety. Tragically, it might even cause her demise. Unlike organic physicians, I've not taken an oath to do no harm. The organics say that an oath taken by one of us is no better than an oath taken by a parrot. I can do all the harm I please. I can't find a way to save Mrs. Ichnida. She's gone into a sort of coma. However Alpha and I should be good for several days beyond their deaths.