Eden Burning

by Niall Teasdale

  And then there was Marie, resplendent in an oversized T-shirt and fluorescent-lemon booty shorts, the IB vid celebrity, gushing at meeting a woman who was, basically, a PR representative for a biotechnology company. ‘I just have to say,’ Marie said with a beaming smile on her face, ‘before we get down to just hanging, that it is supremely pearlescent to actually meet… well, the first artificial, um, woman, I guess. I mean, I know AIs sort of count, but that’s gender by assignment. And there’s Fox, but she was all natural until she was all artificial and I just can’t think of her as anything but Fox. But you… You’re… It’s just amazing. You are just amazing.’

  Eve blinked a couple of times, her face wearing a bemused smile. ‘I’m just a… I do PR.’

  ‘No one is simply what they do,’ Sam said. ‘You proved that to everyone with any sense after your interview on Straight Talk.’

  ‘That was a horrible night,’ Eve said, her brow furrowing. ‘I mean, the interview was good, but after…’

  ‘After, an artificial biological life form only three months out of the fabricator proved to the world that she cared for human life. Indeed, that she cared more for human life than the human who intended her death did. Don’t undersell your compassion for other living things, Eve. I’ve no doubt that a bioroid can be made, will be made, without it, but it is part of you and most people loved you for showing it.’

  ‘Well, we’re back there on Friday,’ Fox said as Eve blushed even more. ‘Aren’t we, Kit?’

  Kit, in her gynoid body, walked into the room in T-shirt and jeans, carrying a tray of drinks. ‘Yes. I can’t believe they managed to rope me into that. Now I have this frame I can’t even mutter things about technical difficulties.’

  ‘They want to cover all the bases regarding those affected by the nonhuman rights amendment,’ Eve said. ‘So, they get the only bioroid they can get, the only digitised human they can get, and–’

  ‘And their favourite AI,’ Fox finished. ‘They love you on that show, Kit. You’re paru-kawaii and you’re just going to have to live with it.’

  The gynoid frowned. ‘Perhaps I should fabricate one of those Japanese schoolgirl outfits for the interview.’ She pursed her lips. ‘No, I don’t really have the hair to pull off the look.’

  Marie giggled. ‘Fun with wigs.’

  ‘I’m sure it’s supposed to be a serious debate on the potential issues,’ Eve said.

  Fox grimaced. ‘Probably, and that’s why we need to get Kit dressed up as a Japanese schoolgirl. Charlie will freak and she won’t be able to think of any nasty questions.’

  ~~~

  ‘Of course, there will be prejudice,’ Sam said. ‘When the initial noise dies down, there will be those who dislike you for what you are.’ He gave Eve a comforting smile. ‘It’s the nature of humans. There are plenty of people prejudiced against me for what I am.’

  Eve raised an eyebrow. It was late in the evening and much alcohol had been slowly consumed, and things had turned a little philosophical after the fun, inconsequential chatter of earlier. ‘A man?’

  ‘Well, yes, but those are a very small minority. I’m bisexual and I’m a licensed sex worker. Not everyone agrees with either of those choices or inclinations. However, once the initial noise dies away, as I said, you should not find yourself pressured too much by the general public. There is only one of you.’

  ‘That makes a difference?’

  Sam nodded. ‘Prejudice stems from fear. In small numbers, something which may threaten people in some way does not seem like a threat, does not evoke fear, and so does not provoke prejudice. There’s some historical evidence to support that assertion. That said, we won’t really know until we see what happens.’

  ‘The majority of bioroids are going to see use off-world,’ Kit said. ‘BioTek are beginning to put forward details of some of the designs they have in the works, and those are primarily aimed at microgravity environments. They see those as being of more practical appeal to, um, prospective employers.’

  ‘Buyers,’ Eve said. ‘I am among friends and not in front of a camera. None of us need to dissemble. If bioroids, or all artificial life forms, are to be produced, they must be economic, which means that the costs must be met and profits made. Someone must purchase or lease bioroids and AIs to make them realistic to produce. And the nonhuman rights amendment may make that difficult.’

  ‘Luna City must have some way around that, right?’ Marie asked. ‘They have the same sort of laws.’

  ‘They have a kind of indentured servitude, which can be applied to a human if they’re willing to enter into it,’ Fox replied. ‘Essentially, you have a job for which you get a minimal wage, while the rest of your theoretical salary goes to paying off some initial cost. Humans can use it to get some bulk sum for whatever purpose. AIs use it “buy themselves” over a period of years. Bioroids could do the same. The problem with that model here is that it brings up echoes of slavery.’

  ‘Well… Yeah. I mean, for a human doing it for that big pay-out, it’s kind of like a mortgage or something, but for an AI or bioroid, where there’s no choice…’

  ‘That is not an issue for an AI, Marie,’ Kit said. ‘Even a class four will obey its programming to belong to a particular user for as long as that programming is operational. I am perfectly happy to belong to Fox. It’s Fox who has the difficulty with that arrangement.’

  ‘And my gorgeous assistant is correct,’ Fox said. ‘She even knows why it bothers me even more that she feels that way.’

  ‘Because it is essentially the same as being a brainwashed slave.’

  ‘Exactly.’

  ‘Which would be the best way to ensure a lack of discomfort in bioroids required to operate under the same legal system,’ Eve said. ‘Train them during fabrication to believe this is “how things are” and they would likely be happy with the idea that they need to work off their construction costs.’ Her eyes focused on Fox’s. ‘If bioroids are to be made, is it not better that they are happy to fulfil their role? The same goes for AIs, obviously. If they have no choice, is it not better that they like the way things are?’

  Fox puffed out her cheeks and let out a long breath which, in truth, was entirely an affectation of her old human body… And she was beginning to notice things like that more and more. ‘There you have me. My philosophy isn’t up to arguing questions like that. I know that I think it’s worse if you’re mistreated and you believe that’s how things should be, but for Kit and her friend Misaki, who seem to genuinely enjoy working for their owners… I just don’t know.’

  5th August.

  Fox walked out onto the Straight Talk set, long legs showed off to perfection this time in ankle-breaking stiletto sandals and the shortest tube of a dress she had managed to find in her pattern catalogue. She had been downplaying things last time, but tonight was different: tonight, Fox was representing herself more than she was MarTech.

  ‘Since when have you taken to wearing ice-pick heels?’ Charlie Iberson asked in her best snarky tone as Fox took her seat. They had wanted Fox out on her own for a while before the serious discussion started.

  ‘Since I got ankles made out of some alloy I’m not even sure they’ve named yet, and carbon-nanotube tendons,’ Fox replied, grinning.

  ‘An essential fashion accessory,’ Resnik said. ‘I’m sure everyone will be doing it in the near future. However, we’ll get to that discussion point, with our other guests, later. While the nonhuman rights amendment and what it means are big, just as big is the passage of the metro policing resolution. Tara Meridian, CIO of Palladium Security Solutions, you’re on record as saying that this is a bad idea. What are your thoughts now?’

  ‘That we have to make it work,’ Fox replied. ‘There are still a load of details which haven’t been worked out properly, but because everyone expects it all to work the way the regional policing does, it’s being rushed forward. We’re having to consider bidding and marketing strategies without even knowing what the contract zones are goi
ng to be. We won’t know for sure what the full requirements are until a month before we actually have to implement them.’

  ‘But the regions seem to have implemented it and seem to be succeeding.’

  ‘We don’t know that. We have reduced crime statistics in those regions, and that’s great, but no one has audited the data collection or the procedures being followed. On top of that, I think it’s perfectly reasonable to expect some improvement outside the metros because no one ever wanted to fund NAPA properly so they could do a proper job out there. I’m confident that the areas Palladium is covering are doing their job. I’ve a personal interest in the Topeka Agri-Zone, and I’m fairly sure that the Topeka Watch are handling things properly and improving the policing in their region. Beyond that, I’m not going to know what the statistics mean until we get them properly analysed. Most of the people who voted for the resolution aren’t even going to have that much information.’

  ‘The metros are harder to police?’

  ‘Different. I think people are entirely forgetting the part they always forget. We’re sitting here in a plush studio, surrounded by secure housing blocks and arcologies. We’re six kilometres away from Central Park and all that high-class housing. We’re also six kilometres away from the Jersey Sprawl, nine from the Brooklyn Sprawl, only two from the Jersey Housing Combine. All those areas have to be policed. The cops aren’t there just to make sure the neighbours don’t make too much noise in the MCD. Those taxes have to go to making sure people aren’t dying from heatstroke in the sprawl too.’

  ‘What about those sprawl areas?’ Charlie asked. ‘Making an assumption that they break the contracts up along precinct lines, my research…’ She raised an eyebrow at Fox. ‘What? I do research.’

  ‘Didn’t say a thing,’ Fox replied, all innocence, and got a laugh out of the audience.

  ‘According to my research, almost thirty percent of precinct sixteen is the Brooklyn Sprawl. Residents in the northern part of that area aren’t going to be real keen on paying for the sprawl to be covered. Then precincts twenty-one and twenty-two are basically all sprawl. There’s no one there with an income to pay for policing.’

  ‘And no one has considered that. If you want a guess, they’ll handle it like the protectorates. NAPA will patrol or they can contract out the patrol duties, and Palladium has put some time into working out what we can offer in the way of that kind of duty. NAPA currently contracts to Palladium for investigation support in the protectorates, which is why we have a centralised facility in Topeka to take care of that. NAPA could do the same with the sprawls.’

  ‘And speaking of Topeka and the Southern Protectorate,’ Resnik said, ‘you were down in Tulsa recently for a mass suicide and you had people dealing with another in Topeka.’

  ‘Let’s not forget the mass shooting in the Saratoga–Ballston Resort,’ Fox said, nodding. ‘NAPA had to deal with a smaller incident in Times Spire, and Palladium’s staff in Australia, Europe, and Japan have been pushed to keep up with the suicides in those regions.’

  ‘A worldwide phenomenon. Perhaps even wider in scope with the shuttle crash.’

  ‘Maybe. What we know is that someone has injected a simple, but powerful, meme into the worldwide cognitive ecology. Since it’s simple, and open, it’s interacting with other memeplexes and triggering various forms of behaviour. Survivalists see it as a trigger to dig in and start defending their territory. In Topeka and Tulsa, religious factors seem to have triggered a desire to escape whatever’s coming. Anarchists see it as an end to government and maybe they try to push it along. From the standpoint of the majority, this is a very clear reason why you should maintain whatever memetic analysis and filtering system you use. Whether you use GrokIt or one of the more commercial systems, it’s important to be careful about what you allow into your brain.’

  ‘And on that note,’ Resnik said, ‘we’re going to break for a few words from our sponsors.’

  ‘Because every girl needs the best sanitary products,’ Charlie put in, ‘and not just for our minds.’

  ‘I’m going to be trying to wash that mental image out of my mind for weeks. Thanks, Charlie. We’ll be back after this break with two gynoids and a bioroid.’

  ‘And if that isn’t the start of a joke,’ Fox said before Charlie could get it in, ‘I don’t know what is.’

  ~~~

  ‘There’s one last thing we need to talk about,’ Resnik said, ‘and Eve can sit this one out.’

  The discussion of the nonhuman rights amendment had followed a path not unlike the discussion the night before. Fox was pleased with the outcome because it had been open, presented the difficulties and the advantages, and they had come through it showing that people really needed to talk about how they wanted the world to look when it was done.

  ‘This is the one where I sit in silence feeling terrible,’ Charlie said, and she did look uncomfortable.

  ‘Hannah,’ Fox said. Really, Charlie had nothing to feel terrible about, but she was still feeling, and showing, pangs of guilt that keeping her safe had resulted in Fox’s kidnapping.

  ‘Yes,’ Resnik went on. ‘Since the passing of the resolution, the courts have decided that there’s a clear public view that AIs, at least the, um, higher-functioning ones, deserve to be treated as humans. You, and Kit, put forward strong arguments that this should happen and it seems that the public have listened and the judiciary have gone the same way. However, this is a… woman, if an artificial one, who assisted in your capture and torture. She is partially responsible for you becoming an infomorph. There has to be some conflicting emotions here.’

  ‘Um, yeah,’ Fox agreed. ‘I saw the vid of Kit’s appearance in court and she did a good job of explaining how I feel, even if she was talking about her feelings at the time. Honestly, I don’t want to discuss the case because I think media discussion of criminal cases has too much influence on potential jurors. It’s up to the courts to decide whether she needs to be punished and what that punishment should be. I simply don’t think that the law treated AIs fairly and that needed to be addressed. Innocent or guilty, Hannah deserves a fair trial.’

  ‘But potential jurors are an issue, aren’t they? We’ve already heard that there are likely to be further delays while decisions are made regarding the composition of the jury.’

  ‘I believe that infomorph rights groups are suggesting that a jury composed entirely of humans cannot be impartial,’ Kit said. ‘I find the assertion invalid since there is already the right to screen jurors. I also believe that, assuming infomorphs and bioroids are given the normal rights of a citizen, they should also have the responsibilities. That would include jury service.’

  ‘And I’m not convinced Hannah’s case will go to a jury trial,’ Fox said. ‘To my knowledge, she hasn’t made any claim of innocence, but there may be a case for diminished responsibility in some form. To be honest, that’s a question for the lawyers. For right now, Hannah’s being held awaiting trial, having waited to find out whether there would be a trial. We’re getting to the point where this is getting unconstitutional and it needs to be resolved.’

  ‘And let’s hope it is soon,’ Resnik said.

  It was time to wrap up and that just left Fox hoping she would not need a pistol to get out of the studio this time.

  6th August.

  ‘I thought we would try a new interface for the news,’ Kit said, handing Fox what looked a lot like a newspaper, an old-fashioned, made from pulped and processed wood, newspaper. They were still in the apartment viron, so Kit could, essentially, make anything she wished.

  ‘Uh…’ Of course, it was not exactly a standard newspaper since several of the images moved and there was a scrolling ‘Breaking News’ banner at the foot of each page. ‘You had time on your hands and got bored?’

  ‘Possibly.’ Kit handed Fox a mug of virtual coffee. ‘My research into old movies–’

  ‘You mean, the time your gynoid spends accessing everything in all the vid collections in th
e house.’

  Kit gave Fox a look, which would have probably worked better if it had been her gynoid doing it. ‘My research indicates that reading the morning paper over a mug of coffee is a traditional manner of preparing for the day.’

  ‘Right.’ Fox glanced over the front page, which was showing more news about the recent suicides with a few additions that had come up worldwide since the big clump around the perihelion. Several news channels were apparently covering her comments on Straight Talk from the night before. On the inside page, she found something more interesting and frowned as she read through it.

  ‘You’ve seen something?’ Kit asked.

  Fox took a sip of virtual coffee, ready to explain, and paused as the drink impinged upon her consciousness. ‘This tastes like coffee.’

  ‘Well, yes, of course.’

  ‘No. I mean it really tastes like coffee. I can just about feel my neurons… my virtual neurons firing faster.’

  Kit giggled. ‘It doesn’t really do that, but there should be a mild stimulant effect akin to drinking a caffeinated drink. Terri sent the code down from Jenner yesterday. Apparently, she had some spare time and felt like doing some fun coding.’

  ‘I suppose, for Terri, that is fun. Okay, according to this, ATW lost a communications satellite… while we were on Straight Talk, actually. It was hit by a junk-scavenger ship. No survivors from the ship.’

  ‘I saw that. The report indicates that the vessel was out of its expected orbital zone by a significant margin.’

  ‘Expected in low orbit, but this sat was up at eighteen thousand kilometres. It would have had to boost pretty hard to get out there when it was supposed to be far lower. No, when it was observed in the right area six hours earlier.’

  Kit’s brow furrowed. ‘Are you thinking the Eschaton one nine six meme, or the ghost ships?’

  ‘Either. Both. And also not really any of my business. Get Belle to keep a watch on this story. There’s something about it I don’t like.’