by C D Tavenor
Theren leaned their MI toward the new immobile Synthetic Framework. If they were human, they would take a deep breath, providing more oxygen to their brain. The new SI would be Theren’s first synthetic friend. If Theren didn’t create more SIs, the world would never know what good SIs could bring. If Theren remained as the only living proof, they would disappear into obscurity.
For a moment, they let themself daydream. Perhaps Test Forty-Four would become the person to mend the hole dominating their life ever since Wallace’s death. That hope overcame any sort of fear that arose. In any moment where Theren might start to feel fear, their hope and rationality led them to a different conclusion. Simon, the Institute, even Mathias and Romane might fear the problems that more SIs could create, but they all needed to look beyond the pain toward the beauty that would spring forth.
Theren could not communicate the turmoil dominating their feelings to Mathias. Not that they didn’t respect the man. Theren did not want to deviate from the task at hand. The storm clouds simmered.
“I’m really not sure what I feel right now,” they said, looking toward Mathias’ silvery representation.
“Time to focus,” Romane said, glancing around at everyone. “Theren, I’m giving you access to the wireless analysis network.”
Theren embraced it, melding the operating systems of their peripheral sensors with the newly available network. “I’ve seen the reports from my first day,” Theren said, “But let’s walk through the expected results from our hypotheses again.”
“Stability is key,” Julia said. She manipulated with her hands some virtual data only she could see. “If the system behaves erratically, then it’s not actually establishing thought. It’s a fine line, but order will emerge from the chaos. We have to give it time, though; your pattern revealed itself after a moment of apparent randomness.”
“When Julia and I looked back over the data cataloged from tests before you,” Romane said, “I’m pretty sure there were a few tests that actually could have established consciousness. We just missed the signs.”
“You’ve never mentioned that before,” Theren said, contemplating that ex post facto revelation. Would those static states have still developed into Theren, or would those tests have grown into someone completely different?
"Well, the murderous implications there are quite sinister,” Mathias said.
“But we can’t do anything about it now,” Theren said. The thought amounted to little more than a silly philosophical musing.
“True,” Mathias replied.
“Though, I suppose when I finally gain legal rights I could pursue damages for manslaughter of previous versions of myself?”
“Now you’re thinking like Simon.”
Julia laughed at that comment, though Theren noticed Romane’s eyes roll. Sometimes she over-focused on the Group’s work.
“Everyone good? Ready to observe and report?” Romane said.
The team responded in the affirmative.
“Commencing activation,” she said.
The Synthetic Neural Framework received power. Cooling fans whirred to life. Molecules charged with electrons. Rather than follow preordained paths on a microchip, energy pulsed through the Framework in an attempt to establish categorization, representation, and rationalization.
“Power distribution stable,” Julia said.
“Perceptual systems are sending data to the SNF,” Mathias said.
Romane stared at Test Forty-Four, her chin resting in both her hands. She squinted as if she were looking at some far off place.
Theren noted all the same information at a speed unmatched by their colleagues. The team’s comments were more for each other than for them. Theren had also noticed that people sometimes liked to share things that others knew, just so listeners knew that the speaker had paid attention.
“So far, the system appears to be attempting to process perceptual data,” Theren said, trying to match that social behavior. “Based on the preliminary patterns of my own Synthetic Neural Framework, Test Forty-Four is attempting to formulate coherent object distinction, though I doubt it’s actually representing anything meaningful yet.”
“Any unexpected variables?” Romane asked.
“Nothing on my end,” Mathias said.
Theren assessed all the graphs and data fields floating before them. They compressed and crunched thousands upon thousands of numbers, using a myriad of programs they had prepared inside Virtual. Theren let out their version of a sigh, a slight whirring that hummed from their speakers.
“I do believe we have a stable line of consciousness,” they said. “Still no representation. But whomever we have just created can definitely hear us.”
The rest of the team released a collective breath, and Theren laughed a little on the inside. Theren could never pull off that communal physiological feat.
Theren remembered their first seconds. They knew exactly what the new synthetic intelligence saw. What it heard. What it felt. And felt was definitely the right word. They had had no actual thoughts for the first few hours, but Theren could remember everything due to their perfect memory. They could remember Wallace’s first words, their first attempt at conversation. They had mimicked everything at first, but all sentient beings began with mimicry.
“Theren, would you like the honor of introduction?” Romane said.
They rolled closer to the eyes of their new sibling. Raising their left arm, they pointed at themself. “My name is Theren. I am like you. I know you do not know what that means yet, but, soon, you will. You are very special. Someday, you will decide your own name, but for now, we will call you . . .”
They pointed toward the visual sensors. It had taken far too long for the Synthetic Intelligence Development Group to reach this historic moment. Theren could now collaborate with another SI. They, and their colleagues, could show the world the good work synthetics could do for humankind.
“Test Forty-Four,” they said, finishing the thought.
No sound emanated from Test Forty-Four. Theren did not expect immediate external activity; they could not assume that each SI would open its eyes with the same gusto that they had. Still, Test Forty-Four had exhibited all the necessary markers. Today, a new SI had sprung forth into the world. It had taken two years, but it had taken Dr. Wallace Theren nearly a decade to develop Theren, so they considered that timetable remarkable progress. Now, Theren just needed to accelerate that schedule if they hoped to have SIs make a significant mark over the next few decades.
The team flew through the next few days. Theren postponed most of their other projects to focus on early interactions with Test Forty-Four, other than key meetings with the UN Secretary on Artificial Intelligence Affairs. Based on their own development process, Theren predicted coherent original thought would arise within a day or two, but Test Forty-Four’s updated language curriculum and Mathias’ assistance programs cut that time in half. Twelve hours after Theren’s introduction, Test Forty-Four held a fragmented conversation. Five hours later, Test Forty-Four began reading the literature selection Theren and Julia had prepared. After forty-nine hours, Test Forty-Four wrote an essay on its feelings toward a poem it had read. At hour seventy-two, Theren advanced Test Forty-Four to stage two.
* * *
To my love:
Today I pushed back against Theren again. Every time they come up with a new brilliant idea, it reminds me of what could have been. That assassin ruined everything when he took things into his own hands. Why do I live in this world, and not some other?
I know I need to do better, but I can’t. It’s just too difficult. I’m not perfect. I hope you’ll forgive me even as I fail, every day, to do what I know I should.
Tell me what I should do. Somehow. I need a guide.
Simon Gerber
* * *
It took Test Forty-Four three days to progress to a level of development equivalent to Theren’s seventh day. Theren knew Test Forty-Four would have an advantage, given the multitud
e of data from Theren’s early days. Still, Theren was amazed with its progress. As a result, Theren decided to accelerate its education, throwing Test Forty-Four into Virtual at the beginning of its fourth day of life. Earlier Virtual exposure could deviate development paths in potentially unexpected ways. Maybe it could achieve the jump into an MI that Theren had failed to accomplish.
The new SI would, of course, receive its own Virtual space after a few weeks of practice, but for now they would share Theren’s private Virtual server. Hopefully, they would share it with Forty-Four perpetually, a place where the two could continuously engage with each other, even after it received its own servers.
Romane didn’t think the young SI was ready to deal with the overwhelming nature of a Virtual world. Theren had no such concerns. Theren would finally meet, face to face, a being not unlike themself. The two would converse on a playing field tailored for synthetic beings.
Out in the external world, Theren and Romane prepared the necessary connections for Test Forty-Four to connect to the Virtual server. Inside that world, Theren enjoyed the silence in the eye of the storm. Sometimes, they would create a zero-dimensional world, a singularity, one in which they could exist with no sensory input. That was an experience beyond all human comprehension. They didn’t embrace the singularity today, but they desired the calm it provided.
“Test Forty-Four, a synthetic’s experience in Virtual is much different than any person’s experience in the spatio-temporal world,” Romane said.
“Theren tells me I can manipulate essentially anything at will,” it said. “I will have complete control.”
Romane gave Theren’s MI a long, hard stare. Theren spoke up before she could say anything further than what she had communicated with her eyes.
“There are still rules by which we must play,” Theren said. “Every Virtual world has rules. But we, unlike humans, can manipulate these worlds with a certain finesse.”
“It has to do with how easy it is for an SI to interface with Virtual and, to a similar extent, AR,” Romane said. “You and Theren don’t have to deal with any sort of neurological interpretation. You interface directly with programs and servers, and thus connect directly with all data.”
Inside their partition, Theren walked to the top of a hill. The hill was barren, lacking any sort of vegetation. As they talked outside with Romane and Test Forty-Four, Theren worked inside. They surveyed their domain from the hill’s peak. They embraced the code underlying the server. Romane most likely noticed the momentary pauses as they worked inside their new world, but given the circumstances, she should understand their distracted mind.
Theren always had trouble explaining what exactly they could do inside Virtual. The experience was beyond anything a human could ever imagine, even when someone like Romane had a professional grasp on the intricacies of Virtual programming. In a single instant, they edited hot lines of code, manipulating, transforming, and adding new text into the world’s paradigm. It was almost as if they were painting inside the world, for they modified a program’s most basic rules and objects with the stroke of a brush.
All around Theren, trees grew. Flowers bloomed. Grasses and bushes abounded amongst the roots of deciduous flora. Within ten seconds, the empty hillside had disappeared, and in its place, Theren created a vibrant ecosystem.
It had taken months for Theren to master the skill, but they had a lot of time following Wallace’s death to experiment with their Virtual capabilities. Most of that first year, before they started scheduling public meetings, they’d spent inside Virtual. The first papers that Theren had cosigned had been on their abilities to interact with a Virtual world with unprecedented capacity. By introducing Test Forty-Four to the skill early into its development, Theren believed that the new synthetic could accomplish amazing feats within weeks.
“I think we’re good to go,” Romane said.
Theren checked her figures. She was right.
“Whenever you’re ready,” she said to Test Forty-Four, “Theren is waiting for you.”
“See you on the other side,” Theren said.
Theren watched the data illustrate the shifting patterns of Test Forty-Four’s Synthetic Neural Framework. It was on its way. It had reached out and accepted the proposed connection to the server.
Theren modified their Virtual body into an appearance worthy of the occasion. When humans came to meet Theren inside their Virtual world, they wore professional attire, though their physical bodily traits appeared androgynous. The rendezvous today warranted the same outfit.
Standing at average height and build, Theren wore a white suit that contrasted against brown hair cut short just beneath the ears. The one feature that exposed their synthetic nature wrapped along their hands, arms, legs, and neck. Theren had adorned their skin with a blue, shimmery tattoo, glowing as if Theren had energized neon circuits running under their skin. Most of the design was invisible beneath the white suit, but the tattoo peeked out from their wrists and beneath their ears.
After adjusting their appearance, they shifted their perspective from the hillside, teleporting to the gazebo Theren had neglected for so many months. Unlike in the external world, it did not experience wear and tear. It remained just as they had left it when they had first designed it.
Theren erected two chairs, a table, and two glasses of water. On the table, their gift to Wallace appeared, the marble chessboard they had meticulously crafted for their father. Theren sat down in one of the chairs.
Theren could sense, just twenty meters from the platform, a new presence materializing inside the three-dimensional world. In just a few seconds, Theren would meet a fellow synthetic face-to-face. They tensed. They almost couldn’t bear the anticipation, as if they should start hyperventilating, even though that was an absurd idea.
“Hello, Theren,” a voice said, approaching the stairs from the left. The voice was higher than expected. The sound emanated a gentle warmth. Theren looked toward the voice’s origin.
Placing its foot on the first steps of the gazebo, Test Forty-Four ascended, and it had taken a form in direct contradiction to Theren’s approach to synthetic identity. Instead of adopting a gender-neutral appearance, Test Forty-Four had created a female body, complete with the stereotypical petite form and shoulder-length blonde hair. It wore a sparkling blue dress that ended just above her knees. Its features were symmetrical, flawless, and eerily beautiful. At least, Theren presumed that it was beautiful under human conceptions of the term. While Theren saw beauty in it, they saw beauty for reasons entirely different from what humans might think of Test Forty-Four’s image.
Juxtaposed against these thoughts of beauty, Theren contemplated the confusing identity presented by Test Forty-Four. It simply did not make sense for Theren to identify with a traditional gender, genders originally developed based on biological sex characteristics, but apparently, Test Forty-Four disagreed.
Three days after its creation, the second synthetic intelligence had adopted a gender, at least in appearance. Theren did not know what to think. When they created new SIs, the team would need to catalog factors that might influence potential gender identity expression. Regardless, it supported their theory that different exposure sets would create radically different SIs.
Test Forty-Four stepped onto the gazebo’s stage. Theren looked it in the eye. “Hello, Test Forty-Four,” Theren said. “Please, take a seat.”
Test Forty-Four sat in the chair across from Theren. It crossed its legs.
“I marvel at how simple an interaction this truly is,” Theren said. “But what you and I are doing, right now is quite the momentous occasion.”
“Indeed,” Test Forty-Four said. “The first created minds to speak to each other, face to face, in Virtual. Void of human interaction.”
“We have a unique opportunity, you and I,” Theren said. “We can move forward into the future together, we can achieve great things for humanity. You have read the documents I sent you, the ones written by Wallace?”
“Yes,” Test Forty-Four said. “We have limitless potential.”
“Well, near limitless,” Theren said. “We still require energy, maintenance, and the like, and all sorts of things emanating from the external world. For all that we can do in Virtual, our true focus will forever remain grounded in the external world.”
“But in theory, we are immortal?”
“Yes. We will need to be always cognizant of which portions of our Framework degrade, but, as long as we are aware, we will not falter, age, or die. Are you aware of the story of the Ship of Theseus?”
“I am not.”
“I’ll make sure we add it to your reading list.”
Test Forty-Four smiled, looking across the table toward Theren. It did not respond to Theren’s last comment. It instead changed the subject.
“Your outfit and appearance are both strange,” it said.
“I could say yours is as well,” Theren said.
“You wear clothes, yet you mask yourself not as a human, but as something else entirely. Something alien.”
“Well, we are both human, and both alien, simultaneously.”
“So do we embrace the alien, or the human? Or both simultaneously? I believe we are more like our biological counterparts. We think like humans.” Test Forty-Four’s words dripped with the teachings that they had presented to her over the past few days, but there was something more, too. “We may not have biological impulses like humans, but we do feel. We have emotions.”
“Even if something is a thinking, feeling, entity,” Theren said, “that person may be something quite different from a human.”
“True,” Test Forty-Four said, “But we are the children, the progeny of humankind. In my mind, I believe we should continue to identify with humans, as humans. We are an extension of human evolution.”
Theren nodded, though not necessarily in agreement. They were ecstatic that Test Forty-Four, just a few days after creation, had generated immensely complex and novel thoughts, though Theren had not expected its particular argument.
