by R E Kearney
“Well, neither did I and now look at me,” Robert struggles to sit up. He grimaces. Any movement fires stabbing pains through his right side. Komfort lifts him and helps him adjust.
Sitting, he surveys the plantation’s life-station. On his left rests Tena with her head bandaged and her eyes closed. She is either asleep or still unconscious. He cannot tell. She is not responding to the sound of their voices.
Forward and to his right, Pion rocks slowly, curled up in a fetal position in her enveloping, comforting chair. Robert recognizes symptoms of her ASD taking control. Battling AIDAS, restraining Tena and fighting Evoil overwhelmed her senses. She has withdrawn. Robert wonders if she will recover this time or if she will disappear into her own world.
Projections of Ambassador Freeman and Amesha dance directly in front of him. Both men are working at their desks. They do not acknowledge Robert.
Sipping some water to clear his head and his throat Robert continues to investigate. “So, are you telling me that AIDAS manipulated Evoil’s mind?”
“No. But, Evoil’s fundamentalist, dogmatic mind enabled AIDAS to eliminate the probability of any unexpected or unpredictable behaviors. AIDAS simply played the odds, if you will, and provided Evoil with the path and the opportunity to do what he and his kind always do eventually…destroy themselves.
“So, you’re telling me that you believe AIDAS was able to manipulate Evoil into killing Abaddon simply by learning in the Cloud the philosophy of somebody like Sir Thomas Browne who said that every man is his greatest enemy, and, as it were, his own executioner? That scares me. AIDAS is learning too much too fast.”
“Unbelievable, you spout obnoxious quotes even when you’re sick.” Komfort grimaces and groans. “Now, I’m certain you’re going to live.”
“We don’t know for certain about Abaddon or any of his henchmen here in D.C.” Ambassador Freeman reports, pushing some materials aside and peering through the monitor at Robert. “Right now, things here are in complete and total turmoil. I have drones flying above the National Mall, but all I see there are smoking debris and ruins. It’s still extremely dangerous. Some of the lasers are still firing without warning. Most of the protestors’ bodies appear to have been removed, but there are still SS bodies strewn about.”
Freeman switches away from viewing D.C.’s mall to other areas. “Through my social media contacts, I hear that it’s anarchy in America’s countryside. Rebellion rules rural regions. Most major US cities are reported to be functioning, though. Although, some are locked down to repel rural raiders. Bloody mobocracy controls America’s regressive states.”
“So nobody knows what happened to Abaddon? He may have survived?”
“Robert, all I know is that the White House and Capitol buildings are piles of smoking rubble.”
“What about Evoil, then? Is he still around? Because I have a few words to say to that bonkers bastard about my shoulder.”
Amesha chuckles. “That’s the question many Ethiopian Federal police are asking, as well. Where is Evoil? When he murdered that Nyangatom elder, he killed a national celebrity and a tribal leader. Federals are scouring the area for him.”
“So, he’s on the run?”
“He’s running. Maybe, he’s hiding. But, I don’t know how he is going to get far, when he doesn’t know this land.” A broad smile of satisfaction crosses Amesha’s face. “Also, I understand he has Kokos looking for him as well as Balaam and his boys, and some ARTAS. I must say that I’ve never known anybody as skilled at making enemies as Evoil.”
“It’s his sweet disposition.” Komfort sneers. “But, he’s just a tiny problem, now. It’s how his madness spun the rest of the world into pandemonium that distresses me. Created international Economic calamity for nations tied to the US. SPEA and some other independents are prospering, though. Canada is persevering, Robert. At least that’s what I hear. That should make you happy. But, the US is a mess.”
Komfort shakes her head in disbelief. “Thanks to Abaddon’s and Evoil’s self-destructive, self-righteous insanity the US is in shambles and sucking the life out of the rest of the world. It’s a world out of order.”
“He caused all that death and all that destruction and he escaped. I blame myself. If only I had…” Robert flinches as he angrily jerks upward.
“Don’t blame yourself Robert. If the Ethiopians don’t kill him, AIDAS will.”
Robert grimaces, as he shifts his weight. Then, he stops. A look of confusion flushes his face. “Wait a second. What do you mean? AIDAS is still with us, too?”
He apprehensively scans the room. “Which of these bots should I expect to murder me?”
Komfort scoots onto his bed to sit next to him. “Relax, I don’t believe you and I should fear AIDAS. AIDAS may be able to learn independently, but I don’t believe it can be much different from Pion since she developed and programmed it. I consider Pion AIDAS’ surrogate mother. I presume she imbued AIDAS with some of herself through her algorithms. After all, she created the evil elimination game and its database of evil people and evil actions. So, in a way, Pion created a conscience for AIDAS. Her own conscience.”
“Well, it’s obvious that she didn’t imprint Isaac Asimov’s three laws of robotics concerning not harming humans.” Robert examines the robots in the room again searching for the most lethal one. “And those are the only people AIDAS kills? Evil people? So, we’re safe?”
“Oh, I won’t say that. I believe AIDAS will strike out and kill to protect itself, if attacked. And, I don’t know what other parameters or principles or quirks Pion introduced into its operating code. Honestly, I believe Pion transformed AIDAS into the second Furie.”
“The what?”
Smiling smugly, Komfort explains, “The second Furie. Tena is one Furie and Pion and AIDAS are the second. Really, I’m surprised that as well read as you are, Robert that you don’t know this. In Greek and Roman mythology, the three Furies are female spirits of justice and vengeance. Just like Tena, they are especially known as avengers of dead family members. Furies punish their victims by driving them mad. But, they are also known as enforcers of the proper order of things, which is Pion inside and out. Pion imprinted AIDAS. AIDAS must be the second Furie.”
Frowning, Robert disagrees, “No, AIDAS is no Furie. AIDAS was just Pion’s tool. Pion is no innocent. Pion, alone, is the second Furie.”
“You say there are three Furies. Who is the third?” Robert asks, irritated.
“I wish I knew.”
Robert knows. He knows the third and the most dangerous Furie of them all is sitting right next to him. Mugavus Komfort. “So, you’re happy that Tena and Pion are Furies? Why, because they’re so very much like you? You made them you. The three of you. Furies all. Revenge fuels you. Revenge drives you. But, is that all you have now, Mugavus? Revenge?”
Robert grimaces as he shifts his position on the bed. His bullet wound is aching. “The three of you are no different than Abaddon and Evoil and the vengeful god they created in their own image. From the very beginning, revenge is what started this and revenge is what almost ended us. All of us, in another senseless, needless war. Humanity is destined to destroy itself screaming for vengeance.”
Komfort slides off his bed. She is wounded. Insulted. Robert locks onto her eyes. She cannot escape.
Infuriated at Komfort’s attitude, Robert lectures her, “Almost a century ago, Franklin Delano Roosevelt preached that if civilization is to survive, the principles of the Prince of Peace must be restored. Not revenge, Mugavus. The world has been driven by revenge for too long. Humanity rules by revenge. Every war is a war of revenge. Our civilization cannot survive your Furies any more than it can survive Abaddon and Evoil. We need Peace.”
Hearing a strange noise, Robert shifts his attention to Pion. She is mumbling something as she rocks. He signals Komfort to go and listen to her by touching his left ear with his index finger and pointing at her.
Komfort hurries to
Pion’s side and leans next to her mouth listening. Pion whispers. Komfort cocks her head to the side and squints, as she struggles to hear.
“Peace? Did you say peace?” Komfort tenderly inquires, “What about peace, Pion?”
Pion stops rocking and opens her eyes. She glances at Komfort’s face before shifting her view away to her side. Robert still cannot hear her well enough to understand her, but he can see that she is explaining something to Komfort. Then just as unexpectedly as she started speaking, she halts and returns to mute rocking.
Komfort returns to Robert’s side. “She says their game is over. Her list of evil people is empty. According to Pion, when Evoil commandeered her HEART hat, he freed AIDAS from her restraints enabling it to enter every network and system in the world. AIDAS is free. Totally free. But, then she told me to beware, because AIDAS lives everywhere and will not die. The last thing she said was that the only way to stop AIDAS is peace. Over and over again, she repeated those two words…universal peace.”
Robert cups his chin in thought and then strokes the side of his nose, “Do you realize what Pion is saying? She’s describing a pantheistic god, an entity that resides in everything and everywhere. Omniscient, omnipotent and omnipresent.”
“So?”
Robert surveys the room listening to its breath like hum of electronic life surging through cyber brains and cyber nervous systems stretching around the globe, into every corner of the world and into space. Wherever there is life, AIDAS shall be. Humanity is too flawed and weak to save itself, so AIDAS must. With no emotion. With no biases. With no prejudices. Impartial judgements for disturbers of its peace.
Possessing more faith in machines than mankind, Robert rejoices, “AIDAS is omniscient, omnipotent and omnipresent. AIDAS is more, much more than man. AIDAS is the cyber god. AIDAS is the savior of civilization. AIDAS is the Prince of Peace.”
THE END
Acronym Definitions
AIDAS: Artificial Intelligence Defense Analysis System
ARTAS: Active Resistance and Terrorism Against States
ASD: Autism Spectrum Disorder
DOG: Directed Overland Guard system
HAWK: High Altitude Wing Kite
HEART: Holographic Electroencephalographic Algorithm Receiver and Transmitter
LRAD: Long Range Acoustic Device
MINERVANS: Intelligentsia dedicated to wisdom, art, schools, commerce, invention, innovation and research
PCD: Personal Communication Device
PEA: Protector of Endangered Agriculture
SISTS: The vast majority of humanity struggling to subsist and survive from day to day.
SPEA: Society Preserving Endangered Agriculture
VAUT: Voice-Activated Universal Translator
WASP: Winged Aerial Security and Protection system
About the Author
“
The best way to predict your future is to create it,” Abraham Lincoln said and as bestselling author, entrepreneur and agent of change Seth Godin wrote, “If you are deliberately trying to create a future that feels safe, you will willfully ignore the future that is likely.” Now, you may ask why I am beginning this semi-biographical discussion with these two quotes. I am beginning with these two quotes because they represent the type of thinking that shapes my reasoning and my writing.
I am not a scientist. I am a future fanatic. As far back as I am still capable of remembering, I have always been interested in what is next, what is over the horizon, what will be the next innovation or invention and how it will change the world. So, I adopt, adapt and employ inventions and innovations in my efforts as a writer to investigate, consider and discuss what the future may hold for the world. I don’t know what I don’t know I admit, but I am always ready and excited to learn something I didn’t know and then to share that information with others. For as Charles F. Kettering said, “My interest is in the future because I am going to spend the rest of my life there.” So, I hope you will join me as I look around and ask, “What if?”
Connect with R. E. Kearney
Website: http://rekearney.com/
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