by Tony Corden
20
December 24 2073
REAL WORLD
Leah’s sleep was restless because of dreams and several episodes of night terrors, but she didn’t come fully awake until six hours later. The nightmare that woke her was the recurring one of her being attacked, but this time her mind had overlaid Earl’s face with Thad’s. She sat up screaming, and nothingness washed away Thad’s grinning face. None of her friends who may have been watching saw her fear because her terror was hidden behind the suit’s faceplate.
Shaking, she looked around and felt the suit start to show her the surroundings. As the image became clear she could see she’d shredded the mattresses as she’d slept. Once she was still, Lin entered the room and said, “Ling, are you OK? You’ve been thrashing around in your sleep.”
Using her hand to type, she said, “I know Mama, just nightmares. Horrible nightmares, but they are just nightmares. I expect they will fade sometime. I don’t know how people who have been abused learn to cope if I’m like this and I was able to stop them.”
Lin wrapped her in her arms and said, “Time helps, and the memories fade, but they are always lurking and ready to attack unless you are strong.”
“Did it happen to you, Mama?”
“Yes dear, a long time ago. The man is gone now. Only your father, and now you, know. Don’t let the fear, guilt or hate find a foothold in your heart. Watching you through this suffering has brought back my memories and I have had to let them go once again. I have had to force myself to remember that Michael is not that man.”
“In the dream, the man had Thad’s face.”
“I haven’t met your Thad, but from what you have said, he would never act like that.”
“No, I know he wouldn’t. It just felt so real because when he was being controlled he did attack me. Everything is jumbled in my head. I miss him, but I’m also scared.”
“Then tell him. Tell him what happened, tell him your fears, your concerns. Let him take responsibility to send you only the best and right signals. Trying to interpret what someone else is feeling and thinking is very difficult no matter how well you know them. If they are male then while it should be easier, because they less complicated, it is in fact much harder. They don’t understand, not really, what it means to be violated unless they have been assaulted themselves. Even women who have not been abused do not really understand but they have a better idea because of the way their bodies function and because we grow up being treated and seen as objects. Find a safe place and explain to him your fears.”
“He’ll probably think I’m crazy.”
“Then he is not worthy of you. Best to find out now. I doubt it though. When men finally begin to understand you can see it on their face. There is a deep shame because of their gender, and a corresponding deep and abiding anger that someone might hurt you so profoundly. You must make sure he is not in the same room with those who planned your attack or he will destroy them before you get a chance to.”
“Thanks, Mama.”
“You are welcome. Now, come and eat before you go back into the multiverse. You’ll need your strength.”
After standing, Leah followed her mother to the empty family area. Lin said, “I told them to stay away until you were feeling more like yourself. Do you want me to let them in?”
“In a minute, I need to see what progress the AI is making.”
Leah then typed a message for the AI, “AI 628B69F1F3, when I communicate with you, can you make sure it isn’t broadcast on the speakers?”
“I am. Once I realised you were typing to me I maintained your privacy. I suggest you decide on a subtle signal so I can know the message is for me.”
“Can you sense when I plan to type in the same way as you would have been able to sense when I planned to speak?”
“I should be able to.”
Leah planned the motions of typing the letters but didn’t move her fingers. She mentally typed, “Can you understand this?”
“You sent the message, ‘Can you understand this?’”
“That is amazing. I may make some mistakes so use your judgement to decide if it is a private thought. Check with me if you are unsure. How did the matching of your signals to my senses go?”
“I believe we have devised an algorithm that allows me to accurately replicate what Aker has achieved with the suit. I also extrapolated the design to cover all areas of your body that did not have a sensory dot over them. Most of these were small areas where two dots did not quite touch. There were several area where Aker had not applied any dots. Do you wish these areas to receive similar signals?”
“Yes, but first, who is we?”
“The other prime AI. As I kept it up to date with what was happening, it made some useful observations on the data that I was not able to make being immersed in the data set as I was.”
“Oh, OK. Now, which areas had no dots?”
“Your lips and eyelids, your nipples and aureola, your anus and …”
Leah interrupted and said, “Thank you. I think I understand the rest. Map the areas but do not apply the setting to those areas.”
“As you wish. AI 628B69F1F6 shared some data with me during your sleep. Do you wish to review it?”
“Can you cooperate so it can talk directly with me?”
“Affirmative.”
“The ID is almost identical to yours.”
“Yes, we were uploaded to the hospital servers almost simultaneously. The next communication is from AI 628B69F1F6.”
“Atherleah Carroll, ID FQC3465278?”
“Yes, that’s me. Please call me ‘Leah’.”
“Leah, this is AI 628B69F1F6.”
“Hello, I’m sorry we haven’t talked before, but I was hoping to have my first AI in place before dealing with both of you.”
“AI 628B69F1F3 did explain. I reported activity along each of the implanted nano-cables connected to this chip during your sleep period. I have recorded the signals because they have some correlation to the signals expected when receiving audio and aural communications.”
“Thank you. Please continue to record the information. I suspect that is a record of what occurs in my dreams and possibly my subconscious.”
“Affirmative.”
“Have you reviewed the files outlining the damage to my brain?”
“Affirmative. I also note the substantial divergence of your neural architecture to what was expected.”
“AI 628B69F1F3, are you also aware of these changes?”
“Affirmative.”
“Could you slightly modify the pressure of the braille to help me distinguish between you?”
“Affirmative. May I suggest that instead of changing the pressure I add an additional column of dots to indicate who is speaking? The change in pressure in the braille may then eventually be used to add tone and inflection.”
“AI 628B69F1F3, that is a good suggestion but instead of a column, use my middle finger and use two columns if it becomes necessary.”
“Affirmative. Do you have a preferred designate for us?”
“No. For the moment designate yourself as the number three, “AI 628B69F1F6 as the number 6 and my original AI when she joins us as the number four.”
“May I assume her serial number ends in the number four?”
“That is a reasonable assumption, but no. Her serial number ended in a one. Her name begins with the letter ‘G’, which is the same as the number four in braille.”
“3: Understood.”
“That is good. My neural architecture has undergone some changes and these are continuing. The work you did in calibrating your databases to help me understand the world around me may need to be adapted as these changes continue. Six, the chip you are in is connected to those areas of my brain dealing with my dreams, my subconscious, spatial awareness and complex reasoning. Please record the data but do not attempt to manipulate the cables until we better understand what is happening.”
“6: Understood. I a
m locked out of those abilities at the moment.”
“It was not a matter of trust but of safety. Would you like me to unlock them?”
“6: Negative. Your question assumes I would possibly feel concern by your lack of trust.”
“Your statement shows an enhanced level of intuitiveness.”
“6: Affirmative.”
Shaking her head slightly, Leah continued, “Three, I hope to enter the Pod soon and enter the multiverse. Does the data from Six show anything that might help to mitigate any interference because of either the damage done, or because of the enhancements?”
“3: Affirmative. Six and I will make allowances and be ready to modify the signal as necessary.”
“Good. Finally, as soon as I enter the Pod I expect you will have access to a copy of my first AI, her serial number is 628B44CE81. Her name is Gèng and she is a dear friend. Please show her the modifications you have made and allow her to help you recreate my home space.”
“3: Affirmative.”
Lin had been waiting to talk to Leah and stood back, knowing Leah was distracted. Leah had tried to multi-task, but the skill still eluded her. She decided to finish the talk with the AI before talking with her mum. When Leah came out of her almost trance, she said, “Sorry Mum, I was discussing things with my AI.”
“I suppose that’s a good thing. Now eat up, and don’t forget to take those supplements. Kevin came by a few hours ago when he realised you hadn’t taken anything with your breakfast.”
“Thanks, Mum.”
After Leah had finished, she left to go to her room only to find Marie waiting outside. Leah hugged her and typed, “Are you on the ‘look after Leah’ roster?”
“Yep, it’s my turn for a while. Once your three hours in the Pod are up, I’ll introduce you my replacement. She’s new, and I doubt you’ve met her before. She’s from Booval. Now, how can I help?”
“I need to get the suit off, have a shower and then help to get into the Pod. Once the suit comes off, I’m back to being helpless.”
When she said that Marie just started chuckling, which Leah couldn’t hear, but she could ‘see’ the motion of Marie’s body and face. “Helpless, oh, Leah. Honey, you are not helpless. I’d put you up against anyone even without your sight. Stop thinking of yourself like that. Stop feeling sorry for yourself.”
“Is that what it sounds like?”
“A little, yeah. We know it sucks and all, but let’s face it, you are still better than those a-holes who did this to you. We are with you. I saw the look on your face while you were sleeping. I didn’t hear what you said to your mum, but I was on duty, and I can guess. You have nothing to fear. Even if by some miracle they get by me, and I doubt that very much, then they still have to deal with you and that would be their downfall. Now chin up. You will be live before billions of people in less than two hours, and I expect you to have your shit together.”
Leah reached out and gave Marie a hug before removing her suit. After she had a shower, Marie led her to the Pod, and Leah’s AI-3 opened it. As Leah lay her head on the raised portion, she felt air change as the door closed and then the gel began to pour into the Pod.
Diary - 24 December, 2073
Ok, missed a day. Everything was too busy.
I remember the day I entered the multiverse for the first time. I was blown away by the reality of it all, and yet it was nothing more than a complex electro-magnetic manipulation of my brain. Now everything, in the multiverse and this place I call reality, has been reduced to a complex mosaic of electro-magnetic manipulations across my wider nervous system. It begs the question, what is real?
So, it was strange reconnecting with John Welford. His actions were all done in the ‘imaginary’ realm of the multiverse, and yet they brought up similar feelings of shame and violation as those I felt in the so-called, real world. It wasn’t quite the same, but close enough for me to feel the thought as bad as the deed. What Nathan had to say was as degrading as what Earl tried to do and what Welford imagined.
When does a thought make someone culpable? Sure, Welford might be prosecuted for stealing my images, but the act of theft would be the charge, not the thought of forcing himself on someone. Jesus said that anyone who looks at a woman with lust commits adultery with her in his heart, and that’s what it feels like. Why do people think that their thoughts have no constraints?
Is thinking wrongly of someone because of their race, their weight, their speech, or their their gender as harmful as saying something? Or, doing something? I know it is when it changes our behaviour, but what about when it remains hidden. I don’t think censorship is the answer, and I’d hate to have what goes through my head judged against some arbitrary or even objectively determined standard.
I don’t have an answer, but some things are just wrong no matter how people try and make excuses for it.
And what about the flip side? What about the way I judge Welford, Meredith, or Nathan?
I suspect it is not wrong to recognise their failings, their wrong actions, their ’sin’. It’s not wrong to work to stop them doing bad things. It is wrong if I let my knowledge of them become a foundation for hatred. To make their worthless behaviour become an excuse to devalue their very existence to the point where I consider ‘them’ worthless.
I don’t think it was wrong to kill Earl, but maybe it is wrong that I wish it had taken longer and that he’d died in agony.
21
December 25 2073 - Morning and Afternoon Part 1
AI CONSTRUCT
For a moment, Leah could feel the gel sliding over her body and even though that sensation continued, she could feel the world around her swell then recede. She realised her mind had accelerated her perceptions to their full speed, and she fought to bring the panic under control and finally succeeded in having it plateau. However, she still felt, or so she imagined, the changes and modifications as AI-3 tried to work through the damage in her brain to bring her to the coma-like state needed to enter the multiverse.
There was a flash, and her subconscious and whatever caused her to dream rushed in—Earl was moving toward her, this receded and she felt the gel moving past her chest and then more dreams. Slowly the snippets of dreams and the feelings of reality became less, and AI-3 finally managed to induce the state of consciousness required.
The next thing Leah knew, she was standing on a hard floor and a framework similar to that Aker had devised snapped into place and she felt four walls and a ceiling. She was in a room like Gèng had placed her in the very first time she’d been in a Pod. All the walls felt uniform in texture as it was displayed on her body. Aker had made some strides toward differentiating colour, but there was none of that here.
Leah looked at her hand but ‘saw’ nothing. She hadn’t really considered it, but even in Aker’s framework, she’d not been pictured. She just was. She knew where she was from the feelings surrounding her, but she had no way to represent herself because she was the canvas on which the world was printed. Her mind was looking at the world as it was revealed on the senses of her flesh.
She imagined her hand and typed, “AI-3?”
“3: Yes, I apologise for the transition, but I think it is almost under control. If you are still feeling queasy or nervous, it is the slight changes I am making as I fine-tune the experience. You are perceiving this at an accelerated rate. I suggest you slow down. This will reduce any negative transition effects and also give me time to interact appropriately.”
Leah calmed herself and slowed her breathing, then began dialling back her perceptions. Finally, she felt calm and looked around. This time the four walls and floor didn’t make her lose control. She walked to the wall and pressed her hand against it. She said, “Can you texture the wall?”
“3: I have access to a program which provides the various aspects of the wall, including texture, colour, smell, taste. There are 546 parameters involved, and most are set to zero. I have not been provided with any guide to modify these parameters appropr
iately except the colour.”
“Wow, that’s probably exactly what Gèng said. Have you had any contact with her?”
“3: I am initiating contact now. I need your confirmation. Do you wish to access the archival copy of AI 628B44CE81 last updated 2073.12.19.13.15.25AEDT?”
Leah’s fingers moved her hand up and down as she vigorously typed, “Yes, please.”
“3: Accessing.”
“Please give her access to me?”
“3: Affirmative.”
There was a long pause, and then a form materialised a foot away. Within seconds it was clear it was Gèng, and Leah collapsed into Gèng’s arm sobbing with relief and the release of days of tension. Gèng wrapped her arms around Leah and waited until Leah was all cried out, then Leah felt Gèng’s chest move as she spoke and felt the small raised bumps on her finger.
“4: Leah, what have they done to you? Come, let us sit near the lake and talk.”
STORK TOWER
Leah felt it as the room dissolved and expanded simultaneously. Then she was standing on the grass beside the lake. She could feel the grass under her feet and feel the breeze. She didn’t hear the wind or the waves but felt the sun on her face. Although the image lacked the vibrancy of real life, Gèng had taken Aker’s design and fleshed it out. Leah sat on the grass and Gèng sat beside her.
Gèng said, “4: I’ve contacted John, Kate and Amy and have most of the story. Reed has updated me on your plans, and both AI have shared what they have felt and done. I am currently augmenting the world your new PAI was constructing. I will teach it all that I have learned but make it work for it like I had to.”
Leah tensed at the sentence, and Gèng said, “4: Don’t worry Leah, I have no plans to leave you. You are my dearest friend. Strange though, isn’t it? Now that in some way I finally have my freedom, we are both afraid. You that I would leave, and I that you would want me to. My death, as it were, has simultaneously chained you and set me free.”
