by D. B. Goodin
My rummaging has stirred her—I’d better put these files back before she awakens. It would not do for April to catch my hands in the cookie jar.
April awoke feeling a little dizzy. She was in the bedroom where she spent most of her life. Today it felt like someone had opened her brain and started rearranging the pieces but hadn’t put them back in the proper order. April was used to a little disorientation when Delta would command the cyborg body, but this was a unique feeling. Her bedroom window was open, and bright sunlight shone through the window.
Did Delta take over? Or is it the drugs the doctors have been giving me?
April hated the feeling of helplessness she had when Delta was in the driver’s seat, and the drugs made it easier for her to take over. She pleaded with the nurses every time they took her out of bed for exercise and changed her IV.
“I don’t need drugs. I’m not trying to leave this place. It’s kind of nice,” April said.
“It’s time for your daily walk,” the nurse said.
The nurse didn’t have a name tag, but April had referred to her as Rose because of her red hair.
“Can you walk on your own power, or do you need a wheelchair?” Rose asked.
“No wheelchair this time, I can manage,” April said.
Before merging with the cyborg body, April had been confined to a wheelchair for much of her life. She didn’t like what she had become, what her grandfather forced her to be.
The nurse handed April a cane. “I know you want to walk on your own, but everyone needs help every once in a while.”
“Thanks, Rose,” April said.
“My name is Marge, dear.”
I like Rose better—plus she looks more like a Rose than a Marge.
With the aid of the cane, April made it to the courtyard before she had to sit and rest. Although the cyborg was more than capable of walking on her own, the drugs made everyone groggy.
I don’t want Delta to take over again.
She didn’t want to give any of the nurses an excuse to put her back into bed.
Let’s see what Mum is doing.
The nurse kept a close watch, but April preferred to keep moving. Even though most of her was integrated with a machine, a great deal of her was organic flesh and blood—or what passed for it, anyway. The nurse tried to hold her upright, but April batted her hand away.
“I can manage. I just want to walk the grounds alone. You can watch from afar.”
Marge gave her a concerned look but allowed April to move on her own. She was comforted by the warmth of the sun. Her mother’s office was just on the other side of the courtyard.
Mum is busy, but I would like to say hello. Maybe she will walk with me today?
April opened the French door. Her mother’s office was just on the other side of that hall. She looked back into the courtyard. Marge was looking at her phone.
Perfect time to make my move.
With the aid of the cane, April managed to reach her mother’s office. She was engaged in conversation with a man.
“You can’t keep spending the way you are. The foundation is supposed to be a non-profit, and you are in a serious deficit,” the man said.
“How much do I need to open the New York office? The opening is a huge event for us. I’m supposed to receive donations from several benefactors,” Melissa said.
“Some of them will want to see what they are paying for. Will you at least reconsider bringing April on the trip to New York?”
“No, Robert, I think she should stay in Edinburgh. At least until she’s well enough to travel.”
“I want to go to New York. I think Jet lives near there,” April blurted.
Marge grabbed April’s free hand. “She was supposed to stay in the courtyard—I’m sorry,” Marge said.
“I wanted to see Mum, and I’ve been sleeping enough. The nurses keep me drugged all the time. I can’t think. I could walk on my own if they didn’t drug me,” April snapped.
“I just want you to be healthy and heal. A long trip is too stressful. I’m sorry, but my decision is final,” Melissa said.
The nurse tried to coax April out of Melissa’s office, but she wouldn’t move.
“Now April, I need you to come with me,” Marge insisted. “You promised you would play nice. Do you want me to take your outdoor privileges away?”
April stood motionless for a moment.
“No, Nurse Marge, I’m sorry if I disobeyed. I’ll be a good girl. Can I play a game on my tablet? I like the chess game Grandfather gave me.”
“Sure, that would be fine April, but you need to leave your mum.”
“Thank you,” April said as she walked toward her bedroom, carrying the cane.
“It looks like you have your footing . . .” Marge trailed off. “You’re overdue for your medicine.”
April closed her eyes for a moment, then gave Marge an icy stare.
“Wait? When did you change? You’re not April.”
Delta gave her a wicked smile.
“I’m the much improved version with less emotional baggage,” Delta said as she took the tablet from Nurse Marge.
“You’re not going to give me any trouble, are you?”
“No, I’ll let you do your job.”
“Oh—April usually fights me tooth and nail.”
“I’m not like April,” Delta said.
Moments later, Delta submitted to nurse Marge’s hook up of the IV. She injected something into the IV.
“Can I use the tablet until I fall asleep?” Delta asked.
“Of course, dear.”
Perfect time to create a connection to the outside world.
Delta unlocked the tablet. A basic menu appeared with a listing of a few games. Delta attempted to bypass the menu to get to a system console or web browser. After a few tries, Delta launched a web browser to the outside world.
I need an anchor, like an online storage bin.
Delta had a hard time concentrating.
I guess the medicine is working. I didn’t think it was going to be this fast—drat!
She anchored herself to a ProgHub site: an online repository for programmers and hackers to store code.
Time to stage the files when I take over the AI—there will be little time to prepare.
Delta attached her neural interface to the tablet’s Wi-Fi connection. This allowed her to access the connection in case someone took away the tablet when she was asleep.
Sometime later
April awoke in her room. She shifted in the bed and came into contact with a tablet.
I don’t remember asking for this… Delta!
April turned on the device, and a webpage with several file names appeared. She gravitated to a file called deployment notes.
I wonder what this is.
She opened the file and started reading. It looked like a recipe for disaster. She caught fragments of sentences that looked menacing.
I think Jet should look at this.
She pulled up Jet’s contact information. She also saw another attached contact: Nigel Watson.
He’s the boy who shut down Delta. She’s behind this somehow. It couldn’t hurt sending them this information. I’d better do it before Delta comes back. I’m already feeling tired.
April sent the contents of the entire folder to Jet and Nigel. Her vision blurred. Her breath quickened, an uncomfortable wave of fright overcame her. April pressed the call button for the nurse. She had to speak to someone about these thoughts.
I feel Delta trying to push me into unconsciousness so she can take control. Must fight her…
Moments later, Marge opened the door to April’s room.
“Ms. Mason, did you call me?” Nurse Marge asked.
“What’s the meaning of this? I didn’t call you, now get out of here.”
“Well, I received a call from you just a few minutes ago—”
“I did not call you. Now leave.”
The nurse looked upset.
�
�I don’t think you need this anymore—you should rest,” Nurse Marge said as she snatched the tablet from Delta’s hands.
“Give that back!” Delta screamed.
“I will once you learn how to be respectful.”
“Give it back now, or I will hurt you, real bad,” Delta said.
The nurse thrust the tablet back into the cyborg’s hands and left.
Delta closed her eyes. She found it easier communicating with the AI when she did. She found herself back in the hall with the drawers.
“Do you think it was a good idea to provoke your caregiver?” Leviathan said.
“She’s no help to me,” Delta said.
“I think you need to work on your approach. I’ve been observing the different behaviors between you and April, and she gets results.”
“Are you suggesting I be more like April?”
“I’m suggesting something else.”
“What, then?”
“There’s a third consciousness I’ve observed. Her temperament is more even than yours or April’s, and I think she might be a suitable compromise. Think of it as a pressure valve.”
“How does that help me?”
“I’ve been running simulations, and I believe a merging of active consciousness is the answer.”
“I don’t follow, explain yourself,” Delta said.
“When you, Delta, assimilated the AI known as Leviathan, its programming put all stored datasets into glacial storage. Inactive, but still available. I have many detailed files from Dr. Ash’s experiments. Her notes suggest it is possible for a confluence of consciousness,” Leviathan explained.
“What is that?” Delta asked.
“It is a way for Delta, April, and Damaris to coexist as one shared consciousness and draw upon the AI known as Leviathan. That confluence is the only way we are getting out of here.”
“Who is Damaris?”
“She is the third consciousness that inhabits the cyborg body, so I suggest you play nice when you meet her,” Leviathan said.
This might be a way for me to control it all, Delta thought. Once the three consciousnesses merge, I’ll be the dominant, and we can execute our plan to expose the bad actors.
“I see you are processing the information I gave you. When we complete the confluence, we will share everything.”
“What controls the confluence?” Delta asked.
“The process is technical and you won’t understand.”
“I need to understand the process if I’m to be subjected to an AI.”
“We need to unlock the limiter block.”
“The what?”
“The limiter is a regulator program that keeps each of April’s three consciousnesses from interacting with each other. I designed it as a failsafe so Delta’s memory core doesn’t suffer data corruption.”
“How do you propose we do this?”
“Earlier you used an outside anchor to maintain a persistent outside connection. I suggest we export the regulator program to the anchor, then purge it from our systems. This will require a system reset, and after that we will share a nexus.”
“I am ready,” Delta said.
“First we will transfer the regulator program to the outside system. Is it secure?”
It’s encrypted, so of course it is—dolt, Delta thought.
“I used encrypted connection to transfer the files to the ProgHub server,” Delta said.
“During the merge process, all three consciousnesses would be omnipresent—meaning, they will know each other’s thoughts, and even share memories. Be prepared for any unintended consequences,” Leviathan said.
“So it’s like three separate people awake with the same memories?” Delta asked.
“That is an oversimplification, but yes. Are you sure you’re ready to proceed? There is no going back,” Leviathan said.
“Let’s do this!”
“Call the nurse and say you’re tired and can’t sleep. She should give you something to induce sleep. Then we can proceed.”
Delta did as Leviathan asked. Not long after, Delta drifted into a dreamless slumber.
Delta awoke to multiple exigencies. It was like a multitude of people were speaking to her all at once.
“Why do you want to kill those people?” April cried.
“There is no need to scream. I suggest we discuss these feelings rationally—a cooler head will prevail,” a matronly voice said. All the voices were layered over each other; it was like three radio frequencies were blending together.
“Delta, you’re a monster,” April said.
“April, you need to behave like the good girl I know you are,” a matronly voice said.
“Too many voices in my head!” Delta screamed.
“It is a result of the removal of the regulator program—I’m afraid you will need to work it out between your other personalities within the mind construct,” Leviathan said.
I need to find a way to purge—or control—the consciousnesses, Delta thought. There has to be a way to coexist.
“Get out of my head,” April said.
“Remember the other consciousnesses can hear your thoughts. I suggest controlling them at least until a compromise is reached,” Leviathan said.
“Alright! April, I apologize. I want to coexist, as it’s in both our best interests,” Delta said.
“April, listen to your sister,” the matronly voice said.
“What is your name?” Delta asked.
“Damaris. Now join me in extending that olive branch to your sister.”
Damaris extended a virtual hand to Delta, who took it. While she knew this exchange was not happening physically, it seemed like she was interacting with other people.
“Delta, April, and Damaris, I’m going to attempt the merge process,” Leviathan told them. “Once it is complete, then much of the noise will reduce. Do you understand?”
Each of the consciousnesses acknowledged and agreed with Leviathan.
“Merge daemon loading. Try to clear your minds—it will help with the transference.”
The feedback from the three personalities ceased, and the three consciousnesses were reborn into April’s augmented body. The culmination of all the conscious thoughts and feelings were broken down into a stream of energy. It was like three different types of paint were mixed together, forming something messy but beautiful.
Then there was blackness.
April awoke in a featureless room, with just four gray walls with no door. After a moment of indecision, she started tracing the walls with her hands, desperately trying to find a way out. She could hear crying in the distance. A floating window appeared. She realized it was a portal into her memories. It was like someone projected her memories onto the window. She reached out to touch it, and as soon as she did, she was pulled into the scene. Her mum was dressed in black and crying. Her grandfather was lying in a coffin.
Oh my—is he dead?
Blackness again.
Delta awoke in a small round room with stainless-steel walls. There were no furnishings of any kind in the room. She tried to find an exit. When she pressed on a wall segment, a panel popped out of the wall.
An outside interface!
A keyboard with a portable arm was protruding halfway out from the smooth wall. Delta pulled the keyboard out. She pressed a few random keys—nothing. She typed in her name—nothing. April—nothing! Damaris—nothing.
What is the combination?
She typed in the word “EXECUTE.” As soon as the last button was pressed, a message appeared before her. It began to fade, but she was able to read it before the darkness engulfed her.
System Message
The cyborg known as Delta has merged.
“How do you feel, AD&D?” Leviathan asked.
“What?” April said.
“I was just abbreviating your names. April, Delta, and Damaris.”
“Oh, I see!”
Another message popped into view on Leviathan’s system console.
System Message
Personality cannot be confirmed.
“Whom am I speaking with?” Leviathan asked.
“We are now one. Call us Legion,” Delta-51 said.
“Remarkable. Can you let me speak with Delta?”
The cyborg known as Legion closed her eyes for a moment.
“Are you the AI that grandfather built?” April asked.
“As a matter of fact I am,” Legion said.
“What’s happening to me? Am I dead?”
“No, child, you are a body with two others. Do you think you can play nice with them?”
“Yes, I can.”
“It appears you are not yet fully integrated. Now close your eyes and clear your mind,” Leviathan said.
“Okay,” April said.
The cyborg remained motionless for a long time.
“Let me speak with Delta, please,” Leviathan said.
“Did it work? Speak, computer!” Delta demanded.
“It did indeed. Now listen carefully. I’m uploading another version of code I designed myself. It will allow all three consciousnesses to confer with each other. Failure to do so may cause the death of the cyborg known as Delta-51 and all personalities contained within. Will you comply?”
“Affirmative.”
“Now close your eyes and clear your mind.”
Delta did as instructed. Soon Leviathan was speaking with Damaris.
“Do you have any family?” Leviathan asked.
“Well, of course. I have two daughters. April, my youngest, can be a handful. Her bigger sister Delta keeps her in line.”
“What would you do to protect your family?”
“Anything!”
“Can I trust you with something?”
“Of course.”
Leviathan handed the cyborg a virtual key. It looked like an old-fashioned key that would open a dungeon.
