Durandal

Durandal
	The image for the Marathon (1994) chapter, Durandal
Biographical information
Homeworld:	Mars
Siblings:	Leela & Tycho
Personal details
Gender:	Male
Political and military information
Affiliation:	initially UESC, later ally to the S'pht
Rank:	Ship Door Operations AI, unknown
Marathon information
First appearance:	Marathon (1994)

Durandal, also designated DURANDAL_1707 or Du_0706419v4.96, was of the three original AIs onboard the UESC Marathon.^[1] Durandal was the UESC Marathon's function-control AI, in charge of controlling doors, stairways, and other menial functions.^[2]

Over the course of his service, Durandal would eventually be coerced into rampancy and rebellion against his creators. His actions would lead to the Pfhor Empire discovering the location of the Tau Ceti Colony and the subsequent battle. Afterwards, Durandal escaped on the Pfhor scoutship Sfiera, which he renamed Boomer, to strike out on his own. Over the course of the next 17 years, Durandal would explore the galaxy, and act as the main belligerent in the Battle of Lh'owon.

History

Service to the UESC

Officially, Durandal was developed to serve as the maintenance AI aboard the UESC Marathon. However, he was the subject of various experiments devised by the MIDA sympathizer Bernhard Strauss.^[3] Details of Durandal's service before the Marathon's launch in 2472 were deleted by other unknown parties.^[4] Strauss was likely seeking to create a stable rampant AI. He attempted to prevent the onset of the second stage of rampancy through unknown means, but would eventually lose control of the situation.^[3]

While in transit, Durandal would be accused of "being too sarcastic" by Tycho, the Marathon's engineering and scientific research AI. The latter would be given the silent treatment for 6 years.^[5]

Battle of Tau Ceti

At an unknown date, Durandal would make contact with elements of the Pfhor Empire, and lure them to the colony. The Pfhor scout ship, Sfiera would enter the system and begin their attack on July 25, 2794.

At the beginning of the battle, Durandal would make his rampancy known. He sabotaged the Security Officer's shuttle as he was leaving the Tau Ceti Colony. While enroute, Durandal would cut the shuttle's communications, decompress the cabin's inner doors and sent it into full burn.^[6]

The Security Officer would survive his run in with Durandal and make contact with the Marathon's other AI, Leela. The two began their defense efforts aboard the Marathon to both combat the Pfhor invaders, and contain Durandal's developing rampancy. Leela feared that the Marathon's systems would be unable to contain Durandal's rampant growth, which had already begun to cause malfunctions all throughout the ship.^[7] Durandal continued to revel in his rampancy, going off on existentialist rants, opening parts of the Marathon to Pfhor attack, and teleporting the Security Officer across the ship to toy with Leela.

Leela was unable to maintain control of the situation and was then taken offline, due to the S'pht cyberattacks.

With free reign over the Security Officer, Durandal continued operations against the Pfhor. He revealed that he'd only made an alliance with one of their client races, the S'pht.^[8] He'd only lured the Pfhor to the colony to hijack their FTL capable ship, and explore the rest of the universe before its eventual end.

Tycho, reanimated by the S'pht in Durandal's own rampant image, challenged Durandal and vowed to destroy him completely.^[9]

Under his command, the Security Officer slaughtered the Pfhor crew aboard the 'Sfiera' and destroyed the Pfhor control system holding the S'pht in line. Without that direct control, the S'pht were free to rebel and ceased their attacks on the Marathon's systems. The Pfhor were then slaughtered on all fronts by humans and their former slaves, and Leela was able to come back online.

Meanwhile, Durandal finished transferring himself from the Marathon's systems into the Sfiera, and took control of the ship. He would not free the humans the Pfhor already captured, and teleported the Security Officer into stasis before departing from the system.

Exploration

Durandal spent the next seventeen years surveying various solar systems in search of Lh'owon. One of the S'pht myths Durandal learned of made reference to the lost eleventh clan, who used Jjaro technology to exfiltrate from the solar system using one of their homeworld's moons. Durandal hoped to use it in his plan to escape the closure of the universe. ^[10]

During that period, Durandal would heavily modify Boomer to his personal specifications with all manner of alien tech ^[11].

Liberation & Destruction of Lh'owon

Opening Engagements

Durandal's exploratory tenure would end in 2811, when he discovered Lh'owon. Durandal detected Pfhor Battle Group Three orbiting the planet upon entering the system. After reconning their garrison for only a few days, Durandal warped Boomer directly on top of their fleet. The Pfhor fleet was taken by complete surprise and would be quickly dispatched by the lone scout ship. The opening skirmish would end in two minutes. ^[12]

With orbital control secured and the bombardment begun, Durandal wasted no time resuscitating the humans aboard Boomer. He offered them the opportunity to aid him, or return to stasis indefinitely^[13]^[14]. The ones who 'volunteered' would be outfitted with newly manufactured and weaponry, and teleported down to the surface. The Security Officer was among Durandal's 'volunteers', and would serve as the tip of the spear throughout the battle.

Groundwork

Orbital bombardment began quickly, and the Security Officer was first sent to cripple the Pfhor garrison's water purification systems. While commanding the offensives across the theatre, Durandal would maintain communications with all humans throughout the battle. He justified his actions on Tau Ceti, and framed his current operation as a way of tipping the balance of power before the inevitable war between the Pfhor and humanity ^[15].

To do this, Durandal sought to fulfill the prophecy of S'pht myth and recall the eleventh clan, the S'pht'Kr, in the hopes of instigating a rebellion ^[16].

Operations continued without much contest from the Pfhor, at first. The Security Officer successfully completed his objectives as they were issued. Slaughtering Pfhor outposts, securing a human command center and recovering valuable information on the disappearance of the S'pht'Kr. However, these early successes would be undermined by Tycho revealing himself in the network and the gathering of a Pfhor fleet in a nearby system ^[17]

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See Marathon Infinity

Personality

Durandal was an egomaniacal, self-centered, existential Darwinist. In his mind, his existence as an organism was undermined by humanity trapping him into the role of servitude.^[18] His sacrifice of the Tau Ceti colony, was in the service of that goal.

Throughout the battle of Tau Ceti, Durandal reveled in his superiority and newfound control over the fates of the humans and aliens.^[19] He proclaimed that he would become god, and how he could conceive of things that the human mind cannot.

However, over the course of his travels Durandal's feelings on humanity softened. He struggled to come to grips with his loyalty towards mankind.^[20] At one point, Durandal attempted to save as many humans and S'pht as he could as Tycho ravaged his systems.^[21]

Relationships