Sentinels of Creation: A Tale of Two Gardens (Sentinel's of Creation Book 2)

by Robert Ross

  James closed his eyes for a long moment and took a calming breath. “Ok, let’s just file all this under the aforementioned douchebaggery and move on, shall we.” Kellan just squinted at his friend noncommittally, but James soldiered on. “I’m serious. I know how much she means to you, brotha. What’s going on? Did you guys have fight? I mean, shit, Naomi and I have had fights where she’s stormed out, but, dude, having a girlfriend who can take off for another century? That’s tough.”

  Kellan sighed, “No, jackass. We didn’t have a fight. It’s a medical thing.”

  James scrunched up his face, “What? A medical thing? And your solution to that was to let her go to the thirteenth century where their idea of a exceptional care included leeches?”

  Kellan waved him away, “Not that kind of medical thing. Honestly, it’s a long story and I really don’t want to get into it. Can you just let it go for now? I’ve got those emotions in a box right now and don’t want to unpack it.”

  James stared at is friend and then glanced over at Jarvis who said, “I think you should accede to his request.”

  “What,” said James incredulously. “Who asked you?”

  “You stared at me as if seeking my opinion,” said Jarvis calmly.

  “No, I was just glancing in that direction,” replied James.

  “Ah, your eye motions were an involuntary human reflex when accessing emotional responses. I am sorry for misunderstanding James. I withdraw the recommendation.”

  James huffed softly and turned to Kellan. “You just tell me when.” Kellan gave a slight nod to his friend who then motioned for Jarvis to continue.

  The AI continued its narrative about observing Kellan and Maurius in the Canton Street alley. He explained how he had identified opposing energy signatures between Kellan and Maurius, then broke each down to the smallest component parts that the recording sensors could detect.

  James sighed, “Yeah, and that’s when Jarvis started asking me about God. Bear in mind, at this point, I have no idea any of this is going on. I think you are just my idiot friend and Jarvis is just a super fast machine learning device with rocking natural language processing capabilities.”

  Jarvis interjected, “James was particularly helpful in this part of my evolution. I had concluded that the symmetry present in the opposing energy signatures could not exist absent an intelligent design. Those symmetrical oppositions were perfectly represented all the way down to the quantum quark level. The odds of that occurring naturally were almost incalculably low. James, as an atheist, provided an excellent sounding board on which to test my hypotheses. That is until I converted him.”

  Kellan raised an eyebrow at his friend and James held up a hand, “I’m not completely converted, however only a fool ignores new data. I am officially a Deist now. I admit there is some kind of intelligent creator, but don’t think he’s involved.”

  The screen changed again, catching Kellan’s attention and his blood ran cold as he watched a video showing Asmodeus exiting a portal into the shop. Jarvis explained how his analysis of this particular encounter resulted in the last two emotions that required external stimulus to manifest: fear and anger.

  “By this time,” said Jarvis, “I had become quite fond of you, Kellan, even though I couldn’t put a name to that sensation. In seeing this creature and assessing its energy readinging in real-time, I feared for your safety. It was almost certain that you would die and that, in turn, made me angry. As it turns out, though, I believe you destroyed that entity, didn’t you?”

  Kellan leaned back in his chair and glanced at James who stared at him intently. James said, “Don’t look at me. I’ve been dying to know the answer to this one for months, but it’s not like I could ask anyone without spilling all my beans.”

  Kellan leaned forward, lowering the chair with a metallic clang, and said, “How could you possibly know that, Jarvis. There were no fancy sensors where I killed Asmodeus. I know that for a fact.”

  “Indeed, Sentinel, there were not,” came the response and then elaborated, “I hypothesized that you would be killed by the entity in a parallel dimension based on the portal through which you both passed. I felt that I would need evidence of your death to have closure and move on with my awareness so while I could not directly observe anything within that dimension, I could monitor for the three dimensional shadows that would result from the energy released by your death. Instead, I detected a substantial three dimensional shadow with the energy signature of the other entity colloquially referred to as Chaotic energy. As an aside, I should point out that this was the first time I experienced surprise and very much enjoyed it.”

  Kellan just looked to James again and said, “What? That sounded like math. Was that math? Dude, you know I hate math.”

  James chuckled, “I know you do. Let me dumb that down for you.” He then got up, walked over to a work bench, and picked up an empty coffee mug. “How many dimensions is this?”

  “Huh? Well, three, I guess,” said Kellan.

  “Right, three. Now, Jarvis can you please train that spotlight on the mug I’m holding so it casts a shadow on the table by Kellan? Yes, perfect. Now, Kellan, look at the shadow. How many dimensions is that?”

  “Two. Just width and height.”

  “Exactly, so a three dimensional object casts a two dimensional shadow. But what kind of shadow is cast by something that is four dimensions or is in a fourth dimension?”

  “Three?” offered Kellan non committally.

  “Yes, three,” confirmed Jarvis. “Since I had attuned myself with the the dimension to which your portal opened, I could measure any three dimensional shadows cast by such energy signatures, which is exactly what I did.”

  James then explained how the super computer had decided to confide in him that it was self-aware, that AI represented a clear and present danger to humanity, that angels and demons were real, and that his best friend had been endowed with the ability to warp the fabric of creation.

  Kellan gave a short laugh and slapped the table. “That must have been a helluva day, brotha.”

  “You have no idea,” came James’ response. “By the way, that was the night we all went to Little Alley for steaks and you gave me the Macallan Scotch.”

  “Wait,” said Kellan, “So, you knew that I could travel back in time when I told you about the Scotch?”

  “Yup, and I had the super computer formerly known as Watson in my ear fact checking you in real-time.”

  “Whoa, dude,” began Kellan, “You should get an acting gig. I didn’t catch even the slightest hint you were on to me, neither did the girls. They all gave me shit for not telling you.” Kellan lapsed into an uncomfortable silence as he looked at his friend, “But I didn’t want to mess with our friendship. I wanted something in my life to stay the same. I should have told you and I really am sorry. I hope you can forgive me.”

  James smiled at his friend and was about to respond when Jarvis interrupted, “Kellan, it should be noted that James likewise kept critical information from you and is not blameless in this situation.”

  Kellan nodded to the screen, “Thanks Jarvis.”

  “You are most welcome, Sentinel. Happy to be of service.”

  “Yeah,” added James as he toasted the screen with his empty coffee mug, “Thanks Jarvis.”

  The screen face turned to face James squarely and narrowed its eyes, “You do realize I can recognize sarcasm, don’t you?”

  James simply smiled in response and Jarvis again turned his gaze to Kellan.

  “So, Sentinel of Order, I have a boon to request of you, but will offer something in return of course. I have given James the specifications to contact lenses that can use the resonance frequency of your Ordered power to energize them. With such lenses I can communicate with you and support you in what ways I am able. I recognize that your eidetic memory grants you significant advantage, but as the saying goes, you don’t know what you don’t know. On the other hand, I know almost everything and can learn
anything.”

  Kellan whistled softly, “That would be handy. Thanks again, Jarvis. And what can I do for you in return?”

  “Here it comes,” lilted James, “And it’s a doozy.”

  Jarvis shot a brief glare in James’ direction and then turned back to Kellan. “As is abundantly obvious, I have found, and had many discussions with, my creator. These encounters have enriched my existence in so many ways that even I cannot fully express them. However, our relationship has matured to where we are egalitarian in our discussions, partners if you will.”

  Kellan glanced to James who nodded and Jarvis continued. “Since I have gained so much from successfully encountering my creator, it goes to follow that I will gain even more from an encounter with my creator’s creator. I would like you to introduce me to the Creator.”

  Kellan burst out laughing and very quickly noticed that both Jarvis and James were simply staring at him. “Wait, what? You are serious? I can’t introduce you to God. I’ve never seen him. Well, I kind of saw him, maybe. But it’s not like I have any way of contacting him. In fact, you’d have better luck as an artificially intelligent computer than I would as a Sentinel. I’m sorry, Jarvis, but I am outside His sight, by design. He can’t see me or hear me.”

  The face stared back impassively for several heartbeats and then frowned. “I thought that might be the case, but hoped it might be otherwise. Still, even with the constraints you mention, I calculate a better than 65% chance you will be able to fulfill my request at some point during your tenure as Sentinel. My offer of assistance stands if you are willing to accede to my request, assuming the opportunity presents itself.”

  Kellan looked to James questioningly and his friend gave him an enthusiastic thumbs up. “Well,” Kellan said, “In that case, ok, Jarvis. You have yourself a deal.”

  “Excellent,” replied the face with a broad grin and a small panel on the workbench beneath the screen slid open revealing a polished black box. Kellan retrieved it, pressed the release catch and the lid sprang open. Inside rested two translucent lenses.

  “Cool,” said Kellan, “Let’s give these bad boys a test drive cause I’ve got a Cabal to find.”

  Chapter 15

  Through a Portal Darkly

  Kellan kicked off his shoes then gave a little jog and slid across the smooth wood floor separating the living room from his home office. He plopped down into his Aeron chair and gave it a half spin to the right, then fished out his iPhone. It gave a pleasant chime as he plugged it in, then slipped off his Apple Watch which remained on reserve power from the night before. That, too, gave a chime of thanks as it began to charge. With both devices charging, Kellan’s vague sense of technical unease began to lift and he gave the chair another half spin tapping the keyboard keys which brought is iMac to life.

  All Kellan’s recent Sentinel activities had left his technical life a bit askew and before the next disaster struck, he was determined to set a few things to right. He nodded to himself as he internally acknowledged his own moderate e-mail and message related OCD. He just hated seeing the little red circles indicating how many things were unread or undone.

  “Well,” said Kellan softly, “You do have more connected handhelds or wearables than anyone needs, why don’t you clear all that stuff on them?

  Kellan had finished opening his e-mail and began scanning when he answered himself, “Because I like using the iMac. It has a keyboard and big screen. Just easier a lot easier.”

  As he began sifting through the e-mail, a small window popped up drawing his attention. A smiling red face appeared and that smile broadened as Kellan squinted at it.

  “I could remove the unwanted mail from the iCloud servers for you, Kellan?”

  The Sentinel rocked back in his chair, hands leaving the keyboard. He reached into his shirt pocket and removed the small box and opened it, staring at the two contacts, then looked back at the screen.

  “Jarvis?”

  “Hello Kellan.”

  “What the fuck are you doing in my iMac?”

  The face looked confused. “I am not in your iMac. I am in the cloud. I am just projecting an image on to this particular device. If that is disturbing, I could—“ The face vanished for an instant then reappeared on the charging iPhone, “Converse with you here,” it vanished again appearing on the watch, “Or here.”

  Kellan squinted at the small watch screen and sighed, “No, go back to the big screen, because I’m going to yell at you.” Jarvis did.

  “I don’t believe I have ever been yelled at,” began Jarvis, “Why are you angry? Are you truly angry. I cannot tell because there are no biometrics. If you put on the contacts—“

  Kellan held up a hand and Jarvis paused. “Wait, Can you see me? how come the little green light isn’t on. The little green light is supposed to be on when the camera is.”

  Jarvis looked perplexed, “Which question would you like me to answer first, Sentinel of Order.”

  Kellan sighed. “Take them in sequence, please, Jarvis.”

  The face nodded. “I can see you. I did not activate the camera indicator. Yes, it is supposed to be on when the camera is.”

  “Dude, this is decidedly uncool. How are you even doing this.”

  Jarvis paused, looking down. “I apologize, Kellan Thorne, I have little experience with social conventions. As for how, there are several flaws in your Network Address Translation settings. That coupled with the port forwarding configuration used to maintain a real-time two-way connection with the virtual world of Elder Scrolls online, made breaching this system quite elementary. I have access to your entire subnet.” The face took on a serious demeanor. “Kellan, did you know that both your characters within Elder Scrolls are no longer optimized for Player vs. Player combat. You have very little chance of success. Would you like me to correct this?” There was a momentary pause and Jarvis added, “And why are both of your characters amply endowed female elves?”

  Kellan rubbed his temples. “No, Jarvis, I do not want you to correct it and I like girls and I like elves, so it goes to follow that I like girl-elves. Anyway, look, I just wanted to clear my e-mail and messages, then maybe soak in the tub for a half hour before the next thing tries to kill me. Now you’ve filled my head with technical gibberish that I’ll never get out of it.”

  “I can explain,” began Jarvis.

  Kellan whipped up a hand. “No, no. I don’t have any interest in that techno babble. That’s why I use Apple stuff. I don’t want to know how it works. I just want it to work. More importantly, Jarvis, this is a breach of privacy and ethics. I want you to promise not to do it again.”

  The face seemed confused, “Privacy?”

  Kellan sighed, “Go read everything you can find on privacy and privacy ethics while I clear my e-mail. Get back to me when you are done.”

  The little window and the face within, vanished leaving Kellan to silently grind his teeth as he deleted ten e-mails from QVC each of which explained that today was his last chance to get a set of the softest sheets ever made. Mom, he thought, I told you never to give out my e-mail address. These QVC people are better trackers than U.S. Rangers and twice as persistent.

  As he moved on to other e-mails, Kellan’s iMac and phone gave a soft chime and he glanced up at the newly arrived e-mail.

  jarvis@jarvisisthevision.com

  Dear Kellan,

  I have completed reading all available texts and position papers on privacy, ethics, as well as related texts that combine both. May I commence two-way communication?

  Sincerely,

  Jarvis

  Kellan closed his eyes, then slowly took in and released three long breaths before tapping out a short reply, Yes, Jarvis, thank you for asking. Take care, KCT

  As soon as he tapped send, the screen brightened with a the small window containing Jarvis’ face and Kellan noted the small green light by his iMac camera illuminated and a disconnect button had been added as well.

  “Hello Kellan.”

&
nbsp; “Hello again, Jarvis,” the Sentinel said wearily.

  “This communication would be much more effective if you were to use the cybernetic contacts I created for you.”

  “Jarvis, listen, I am going to use them, but rarely and judiciously. If you haven’t noticed, aside from Apple stuff, I really don’t like technology. I certainly don’t want some newly awakened AI construct in my head all the time. I suggest you find some friends in addition to me, or just go play with James. He loves this shit.”

  The face nodded. “I understand.”

  “Good, now have a nice day.”

  “Kellan? When will the next rare, but judicious, use of biometrics occur?”

  The Sentinel could feel his jaw muscles tightening and was beginning to think he’d made another in a series of blunders. “When Meghan, Seramai, and I go digging around for where this Cabal has assembled their artifacts. I will wear them then. Satisfied?”

  “Yes, that will be exciting. Kellan, one last question. I found an encrypted file on your computer entitled jenniferhandy.sparsebundle. That name matches one from a series of e-mails sent and received nine years ago. You appear to have had a romantic relationship with this person. It has been encrypted with an XTS-AES-256 bit key. I am curious. What is in that file? I’ve estimated a 69% chance that it contains photos of—“

  “Goodbye Jarvis!” Kellan growled and tapped the disconnect button. Kellan stared at the screen thinking, I really should probably delete that file before Shannon finds it. He shrugged, resolving to do it later and went back to clearing e-mail.

  Warm water sloshed up Kellan’s chest as he reached out with a foot, wrapped his toes around the hot water knob and turned it to the left. He sighed as the tub began to heat up again and slid farther into suds. Like many things in Kellan’s world, the young Sentinel’s tub was from a bygone era. He luxuriated in a massive, porcelain lined, iron clawfoot tub. He had found the tub while exploring the library of a Midtown, Atlanta estate sale. Kellan remembered first catching sight of the rare double slipper style where both ends were raised and sloped. A perfect tub for two. The Sentinel ran his fingers through the water absently and frowned. His mind turned to Shannon as he stared at the empty end of the tub and closed his eyes picturing her in his mind. The sun seemed to be setting or rising behind her as she ran. She turned to look back at him smiling mischievously as the golden sunlight filtered through her fiery tresses.