by A I Zlato
“How can the temporary nodes been stopped?”
“Definition: temporary is the contrary of permanent.”
“So these nodes would soon disappear?”
“What is temporary is not permanent.”
Aenea altered her questioning approach.
“Who tried to hide the premature deaths of those children?”
“Unknown data.”
“What tried to hide this information?”
“Unknown data.”
Aenea withdrew her fingers. The Machine had no idea who or what was behind the events... What entity could it be? The beginning of the conversation had persuaded Aenea that the Machine was no stranger to what was going on, even though its involvement was still unknown. The proof was the cryptic response ‘The Equilibrium is master’ when Aenea asked whether the Equilibrium was a space.
Temporary nodes... generated by a space... The Machine, for which the Equilibrium is Master... hybrids in Space O., children in Space H. ... the entity that drew her attention... the time that was not right...
Suddenly, the space-time contracted, and Aenea had her mind invaded with past memories, when she was human... before she became a gateway... Cae was giving Aenea her memory back... for what purpose? Aenea let the calorn guide her.
Helen... Aenea... Helen... the notion of space, it was her. That was so remote, and yet... She stopped, pondering the way she had developed the idea, her theory in order to limit time. One of the foundations was the absolute preservation of each space within the time allotted to it... the Equilibrium.
The others... When she was working on the notion of space, the others... other Elders, like her... They had also worked hard. They had developed the basics of the Machine, this gigantic computer tasked with managing each space... and more importantly, of preserving the Equilibrium. They had described a series of foundational instructions, orders that the Machine would follow no matter what. A set of software and hardware protections prevented any modification of these fundamental laws. The Equilibrium was the epicenter. The Equilibrium... was the Master database.
This concept... Cae had temporarily given Aenea her mind back, to recollect a few things, to understand the Machine’s responses... higher instructions... the Master database... The Equilibrium... the keyword of the Machine... The Equilibrium led to an identical time... The memory bubble closed up. Aenea, however, remembered the instructions that Elders had provided, these imperative orders underlying all its actions. The Equilibrium...
The Gateway decided to get into a temporary node. There she would find answers to her questions.
And Man invented the Machine, which, in turn, invented Humanity.
The Legend of the Elders, the History of the Machine
CHAPTER 22
SPACE H. (1ST CIRCLE)
Baley stood up, and nearly fell. She looked outside and noticed that daylight emerged at least an hour earlier. She had thus spent the last 12 hours staring at this screen without eating or sleeping. She allowed herself a few minutes to eat. She headed to the kitchen, and put her hand on the cellar’s membrane, which notified her that she had sugar and fat deficiencies.
Depending on the available food, the processor suggested to her a plate of butter and powdered sugar. She should really take the time to update this software so it could advise her of acceptable meals. She grabbed butter, spread it on a cracker, thinking that it would do the trick, taking an energy drink to complete it all. While eating, she turned on the news network as usual. She heard the reporter talking about the Problem like a morbid catchphrase. After finishing her meal, she rushed out of her apartment and ran toward the Tower.
On the first floor was a small room in which the connecting membrane lay on the floor. The available area was such that she could place her two hands to take advantage of a better connection — and she did just that. She filed her report into the Machine, chronicling what she learned about the beliefs of Chrijulam and the possibility that the group was the cause of the Problem.
Then Baley questioned the Machine to get the names of children aged 11-13 whose parents were probably belonged to the sect. She wanted to go to their schools and find a way to defuse their suicidal desire. Afterwards, she would interrogate their parents to try to understand the tenets of their religion. Given the urgency of the situation, she did not want to wait for Paul’s report about his own study. She was sure about her opinion.
The Machine drew up a list of names, as well as schools that the respective children attended. The list included a dozen establishments. Unable to visit them all in one day, she had to make a choice. Either she made a selection, or she decided to visit all schools over several days in order to understand the situation with the risk that the Problem might reoccur in the meantime. She preferred speed to comprehensiveness. She decided to focus on schools featuring at least two at-risk children. Indeed, given that the suicides were collective, she thought the risk was higher in children holding this belief in common and seeing each other every day. She winnowed the list down to one school, with three at-risk families. Baley sent the headmaster, a man named Martin Conrad, a message about her visit. In this instance, she again did not envisage asking Paul to come along. She wanted to be alone; it was her investigation. It would be her success.
The school was located in a pioneering area beyond the periphery. That area was on the outskirts of the city and was where there were settlers mandated by the Machine to build infrastructure, which one day would become another circle. The mindset of residents was radically different from the mental predisposition of people living in the periphery. On the current edge of the city, people lived almost outside of civilization. In pioneering areas, however, settlers had First Circle chips, and were proud of the work they were doing to increase the Machine’s control. They were, like her, committed to their work, cherishing the close contact they enjoyed with the Machine.
To get to the school, Baley hopped on a rail, knowing it would not reach the final destination, because it would stop at the current city boundary. The rail system would only be extended when infrastructure would be ready. Then the area would become a whole circle in itself.
Once there, she felt assailed by the deafening sound of construction equipment, of rubble spilling to the ground and of instructions by team leaders. She walked for half an hour amid noise and dust. Nonetheless, she felt at ease in this world of builders; in this universe that expanded the Machine’s influence and allowed the city to develop.
The school was among the first buildings to be completed in the area, and was surrounded by cranes and excavators. The cubic structure covered with green plastomer seemed lost in the middle of the site, the first representation of what would later become a circle. Baley wondered how children and teachers were able to focus amid the din of construction, compelled to bypass all kinds of equipment in order to enter the school. She understood when she had entered the establishment after closing the door. She appreciated particularly the impeccable soundproof system, which barred noise from disturbing classes. At the entrance, she connected to the digital pillar near the door, projecting before her the three-dimensional diagram of the building. She then headed without hesitation along the corridors all the way to the headmaster’s office. She announced her visit into the interface, and opened the door.
A young-faced man sitting in a high-quality chair stood up to welcome her. Baley thought at first he was the assistant director, but her chip corrected her. Without trivialities, she started the conversation.
“Thank you for your time. My investigation led me to think that your school had a high probability of hosting children likely to be affected by the Problem.”
“The Problem? Here in this institution? But we are a pioneering area; all residents were chosen carefully and successfully underwent an advanced psychological examination.”
“Adults, OK, but children?”
“I know, but I...”
“I am here to investigate. I understand that what I am sa
ying is difficult to believe; that it falls on you without warning. I do, however, have a job to do. Do you understand?”
“Yes, I... to solve the Problem, everything you need.”
“I will share with you information that I currently have. Of course, I count on your discretion; we do not want to trigger panic. All I will tell you remains speculation; they are probabilities. Unfortunately, nothing is certain yet.”
“You have my attention, and of course, you can count on my discretion. You and I want the same thing — the well-being of our community,” he said, having regained his composure.
Martin Conrad quickly closed the door, and seeing his facial expression, Baley understood that he was asking his chip to cut off further communication until further notice so he would not be disturbed during the conversation.
“My investigation has led to an ancient cult that might be the common denominator among the children committing collective suicide. Believers in this group live in the shadow. Broadly, they live in the expectation of life after death, believing that life is a source of corruption that one should avoid at all costs. They think it is better to die than to be unclean.”
“Do you think these kinds of fanatics are here? I cannot believe it. As I told you, we all passed a psychological test. Examiners would have necessarily detected such beliefs.”
“They did. That is why I am here.”
“C’mon. If this were true, the Machine would have rejected such crazies from a pioneering area!”
“Not necessarily... Perhaps the Machine had not seen their presence as a threat to the Equilibrium.”
“But now...”
“You got it. Moreover, it is quite possible that the sect does not preach suicide, but that it is more how the children interpret the dogma. The parents I interviewed were all replete with grief; I cannot believe they had deliberately pushed their children to...”
“So the Machine has traced all the way to our school the parents who might be members of the cult?”
“Yes. This again is only a probability, not a certainty.”
“What do you expect from me?”
“I don’t want to interrogate the children involved so as to make sure they don’t get ostracized by their classmates and the whole school community. The goal is to act prudently and to send a general message deterring the children involved from committing suicide. I want you to organize a general information day — you can call it a conference — on the topics of cults and their dangers.”
“I cannot do that. No one is authorized to talk about religious beliefs to children; this is a purely private area in which teachers should not get involved. Furthermore, if these children are brainwashed, a few hours of information would not bring their brain back.”
“What do you suggest we do?”
“Focus on parental awareness. You could, as a preventive measure, talk to them, and with great tact, hint that their children might misinterpret some belief systems.”
Baley had every intention to talk to the parents so as to understand them better, not to try to make them change their minds. She knew that if she did that, she would only succeed in making them hide things more, and that would produce the opposite result.
“Clearly, you will not help me,” she continued.
“I did not say that, but in the school context, I cannot talk about religion. The only thing I could do is try to talk to children about the Problem, and even that, I am not so sure. It is a stress-triggering topic, and all parents will hate me for discussing it.”
“So?”
“Let me see what I can do. I will do my best. You know I care a lot about those little ones. I cannot stand the thought that they might decide to...”
“But you ascribe more value to your career, do you not?”
“I will not let you infer that! Do you really believe... hold on, who do you think you are... you asshole?
“Watch very carefully what you are about to say.”
“That is exactly what I do. You show up here to tell me that some members of this pioneering area are dangerous visionaries whose beliefs lead children to commit suicide. The faith you talk about is very common in several religions... you know the belief in life after death is a popular one. Why precisely would children would in this religion interpret these precepts incorrecntly and conclude they would need to die to remain pure? And why should they do it now considering that, in your opinion, this is an ancient belief system? This is a flawed theory to say the least...”
“I know this belief is part of many religions! Chrijulam goes much further, prompting believers to rush to death and avoid the risk of becoming impure. The difference is huge!”
“That is your opinion. I keep saying that your speculation is weak. Furthermore, as you are not happy enough to force your theory on me, you are asking me to discuss religion in my institution to warn children of the so-called danger. I repeat I have no right to talk about religion. Finally, you suggest I talk about the Problem...”
“I never asked such a thing; you suggested it.”
“Anyway! We would need to discuss the matter with these children, as if that would solve everything. People living here have a crazy work schedule, and most see their children only during weekends and holidays. Imagine their reaction if they became aware of what we are teaching their children? And finally, you accuse me of preferring my career to the welfare of these children. You went too far.”
“Maybe I did, but the only thing I am interested in as a special agent in charge of the Problem is to find a solution at all costs.”
“Great objective. I, however, as headmaster of this school, am not only in charge of educating these children, but have to ensure they develop the necessary skills before Graduation Day, and that they are safe.”
“So, will you talk to them?”
“As you rightly said at the beginning, this is nothing but speculation, and my duty compels me not to trigger a ‘wave of panic’... again as you rightly said.”
“So, you would not do anything.”
“Take it as you wish. I think we are done. I have a lot of work. I will not walk you out; you know the way.”
Baley left his office angry. The Problem was more important than the promotion of the small headmaster of a miniscule school. She decided to walk a bit to calm down and prepare for the next step. If the school did not want to help, she would need to interrogate all parents suspected of belonging to the sect. She first had to confirm the hypothesis of their membership and understand how these belief systems could push children to end their own lives. She could not meet them at their respective workplaces, facing the quizzical looks of their co-workers, if she wanted to establish a rapport of trust. In addition, she could not ask them to leave their workplaces in the middle of the day to go home. What reason could she give?
She could not do nothing but kill time until the end of the workday, and Baley hated, above all, to wait. She decided to stay there and walk, observing the infrastructure and buildings that gradually were going up in the pioneering area. She scanned the site’s driveways, roads being built, looking at the bare structure of buildings, the beginning of all the elements that made the city. She thought she was recognizing the beginnings of a circle-shaped organization, because that is what she expected to see, but looking closely, she noticed it was not as clear as that.
The area was organized around a main street, which she first thought represented the main access to various sections of the construction site. In fact, the street was an actual pathway that would probably be present in the final infrastructure, because the street sections were so thoroughly designed. She saw no interest in this pathway, obviously directed toward the Machine on one end, and on the other, toward the Unique Forest. Who would want to get closer to that big green thing near which one already started losing connection to the Machine?
Doubtfully, she walked along the concrete road covered with fullerene carbon toward the forest, and she felt the Machine’s influence diminish.
In the only section of Baley’s mind left free by the Machine, she felt a vague supposition, an abstraction take shape.
Baley remembered the conversation she had with Lars regarding the modifications to the Machine’s circuits that no one apparently had requested. She had almost forgotten, and now she had to think of that fact. She then imagined a link, on the one hand about the modifications of internal structure, and on the other, about a pioneering area oriented toward the Unique Forest, and not in a circle shape like the rest of the city.
A construction site the Machine initiated and supervised... What could be the purpose? And what could trigger such a thought in her brain?
She followed the pathway with apprehension that the Machine’s presence would crumble further. Despite the data flow morphing into a single thread, she withstood the still bearable pain to get closer to the forest than she ever had, but without reaching it. The Machine kept her in a reassuring and protective net, preventing her from venturing farther, for her own well-being. Her personality was more in harmony with civilization, organized circles, even well-maintained parks from time to time, but not with this wilderness. Coming back to her starting point, the connection returned to its normal level, and the strange thoughts faded without disappearing completely.
The Machine necessarily had its reasons for developing the city in this direction, toward the trees, although Baley could not see those reasons. Yet she kept repeating endlessly, “modification of internal structure/structural modification of a pioneering area,” but she could not go further in the reasoning. A shadowy side was blocking her.
The end of the day had finally come, and Baley sent a message to the first of the three families she needed to interrogate, hoping to see all three during the evening. She felt tension growing inside her, because she knew she would not have a second chance. It was critical to get their attention without scaring them, or more importantly, making them feel guilty, or rendering them antagonistic... in order to explore their religious beliefs and find out whether it was the triggering factor of the Problem. That was a whole plan. She visualized several scenarios while walking toward their respective apartments. She was not accustomed to walking as much, and her leg muscles, after undergoing the painful exercise of hours of reading the previous night, were sore. She had, however, no alternative, because rails and cables were not yet operational there. She felt physical exhaustion mount, and sleep deprivation manifest itself, but she refused to listen. The investigation would come first.
