by A I Zlato
When silence settled in, he said, “I don’t see why Mossa would lie to us” (while saying to himself that he saw many reasons why the hybrid would).
Fortunately and surprisingly, his remarks did not cause dissent from the attendance.
“How can we be sure that other city dwellers will not show up? If she could find the way to reach us, others may also find it,” someone replied, nonetheless.
“That is true; we cannot guarantee they will not. The only thing I can say is that we must speed up our work, complete our shuttle, and leave as soon as possible,” said Egeon.
“Even if we work day and night, nothing can protect us from a new intrusion by someone else or this girl coming along with other teens. There will be no more...” said another person in the crowd.
“You cannot effectively protect yourselves, but Iris can,” Mossa said.
He had placed himself behind Egeon, and spoke loudly so that all could hear him.
“Can you elaborate?” Egeon instructed.
“I did not just reprogram her chip, as you said earlier. I also gave her my knowledge base, and thanks to this operation and through her chip, she can now influence behavior of everyone who possesses a chip in the city. She can, therefore, make sure no one in the city ever thinks about crossing the forest.”
Stupor spread through the crowd. Egeon turned and looked at the hybrid, with a mixture of rage and incomprehension. Teo was quicker to say something.
“And how can we be sure she will act that way? With such capabilities, she could just as easily decide to send a thousand people to destroy us!”
“She hates the Machine. Anything that can thwart it has appeal for Iris,” said Mossa.
“In theory, my enemy’s enemy is my friend, right? So you staked everything on that axiom? Our survival is threatened, damn it!” Teo continued.
“Do you think it was better to do nothing, do you? I did my best to protect you! Like all of you, I want to see the project succeed so I can leave this retarded space, and build a society that is technologically advanced, not live in the Stone Age as you do here!”
“It’s not our fault you landed here, I just want to remind you! You despise us for our technological backwardness, but what has the technology done for you? Can it bring you back to your space?” Teo asked sarcastically.
The meeting turned into a score-settling event between Teo and Mossa. Egeon decided to intervene.
“Please, Teo. I share your concern, but let Mossa explain his views,” he implored him.
“You are right; I don’t know how to go home, as I have no idea how I landed here. But if I cannot reach my space, I, at least, want to leave this one... and ride aboard the shuttle. That’s why I’m helping Alea and Teo. With Iris, perhaps I made a bad decision, but that’s what seemed best at the time. She really hates the Machine, and she goes all the way to the forest to move away and break free from its grip. I don’t think she knew where she was heading last night; she just wandered aimlessly and ended up here by accident, as she said. But since she came from
so far away, we might as well take advantage of her presence, right? She had some kind of fascination with me, and I used that feeling to pass on my knowledge to her more easily.”
“And are you sure of what you gave her? Didn’t you also, inadvertently, transfer information related to the shuttle construction?” Egeon queried.
“No, I’m sure of what I gave her; only what she could use to influence others’ chips.”
“I guess we have no other choice but to trust you...”
Egeon was exhausted after this discussion. Their fate now lay in the hands of a scatterbrained teenager, who was in rebellion against her world, as were all children her age... He wanted to start the meeting by presenting the facts calmly so as to reassure his compatriots. Instead, the revelations of Mossa about his unbelievable initiative had created a wave of anxiety in the crowd, and he shared it completely. Iris now had the ability to influence anyone with a chip... Was she really aware of her power?
Teo laughed nervously. Most of those present, with arms crossed, shook their heads in denial. Mossa’s ego had made him do the unthinkable.
“Egeon? Are we still going through the other agenda items?” Galatea whispered, standing behind him along with other department heads.
“Huh? Oh, yes. Teo wants to tell us about the progress of construction.”
Teo took several deep breaths to calm himself down before giving his remarks. Despite what had happened, he began with a positive sentence, a move that was unlike him.
“We have made good progress on the various pending issues.”
“Thanks to Mossa?” someone asked.
“Well, uh, in part. Let’s say I listened to what he had to say, and my teams and I used his ideas, improving them.”
Egeon smiled. He recognized right there his lifelong friend. Teo could not acknowledge that the hybrid had really helped him, because of the distrust, even contempt, he felt for him, even more so after the latest revelations. He had followed the instructions given at the last meeting and agreed to let Mossa be part of his team. Of course, Teo had given him no freedom. Mossa could only formulate ideas, which his teams would validate.
“So, Teo, tell us whether you have integrated calculators as Mossa suggested, Could you reduce the number of redundancies in equipment?”
In uttering these words, Egeon immediately realized he had made a mistake.
“I want no mini-machine in my shuttle! My emergency equipment — ‘redundancies’ as you call them — are all essential. Perfectly and totally indispensable!!”
Several people smiled at the usual skirmish between the two friends. It had the merit of relaxing the atmosphere a bit.
“Sorry about that, Teo. Keep talking. What problems have you solved?”
Teo, rejoicing that he had won, resumed his remarks.
“We finalized the construction plans for space propulsion. Both — yes, both — systems are now fully defined. Construction is under way. Furthermore, the ultraF network... is operational! We understood why small-scale models worked, and why the full-size models did not. The reason was... I’ll spare you the technical details. The important thing here is that the network is functional. In addition, we took the opportunity to increase its capacity. The network will be able to manage, in addition to monitoring basic functions, the landing on Hope! The pilot would only need to oversee the operation!”
Egeon turned to Alea, who nodded imperceptibly. He knew then that this new functionality was the answer she and Teo had found to force the community’s offspring to leave the shuttle. Recently, Alea had indeed expressed her concerns to Egeon about the latter topic. She had thought about planned obsolescence of the shuttle so as to make it unlivable, forcing the next generation to come out. Egeon, after discussing the subject with Teo, had instructed them to work in that direction. Egeon knew that the task would be daunting. He also knew that the only person capable of doing it was Alea. Instead of programming the destruction of the shuttle, at the risk of triggering such destruction too early, they had devised another method that was much more ingenious. The ultraF network would handle the landing, which would no longer depend on human intervention. Egeon was sure that in addition to the landing, the network would be instructed to suspend its device management activities gradually so as to encourage settlers to move forward. The idea was absolutely brilliant.
“Magnificent!” said Egeon. “Teo, you can be proud of yourself and your teams. Our dream is coming true! Recently, Galatea introduced us to our destination planet, and now Teo is announcing that the construction of the shuttle itself is nearing completion!”
“Oh, no! Oh, no! I did not say that! “
“No false modesty! When do you think the shuttle will be complete?”
“Well, I don’t want to start forecasting things; we cannot predict complications...”
“What did you note on that paper in your pocket?”
“What? But how...? Ten
years.”
“Ten years?”
“Yes, that’s what I said.”
“Did you hear that? Within ten years, the project will be completed!”
At first, incredulous, the crowd gradually realized the full significance of those words. Ten years! Each person in attendance mentally added a decade to his or her current age in order to estimate his or her chances of boarding the shuttle. Euphoria spread like wildfire, and Egeon could hardly restrain it.
“Please, please. We must stay focused. Let me remind you that much remains to be done. The Astronomy Department still has many calculations to perform; the construction of the shuttle must still move forward, and the training program must be fully completed before we can think about leaving.”
Egeon looked at Teo, full of pride but also amazement. Teo had always been a grumpy man, focusing more on the problems than on the solutions, and making risk analyses and developing worst-case strategies. That day, Egeon was seeing a transformed man, who spoke calmly, with confidence and serenity. Mossa had contributed significantly to the progress of the project, but had also influenced the attitude of Teo and his team, even if he refused to admit it.
“Yeah, well, hopefully the Machine will not find us in the meantime... ten years, that’s a long time, when you think of it,” someone said.
This comment immediately tamed the audience’s enthusiasm.
“The risk is still there, and I am not forgetting it,” Egeon remarked, “but we must persevere. If we let fear control our lives, we are no better than the people of the city. We must believe in our vision and manage problems as they arrive, and not stay frozen because of everything that could happen.”
Murmurs of assent spread through the crowd. Egeon then stepped back to let Alea speak.
She stepped forward to present her work. She also had to work with Mossa. During one of the last meetings, the hybrid had suggested taking the kandrons in the shuttle, justifying the idea by saying that these animals would fill perfectly the translator role. Initially flabbergasted, Egeon asked them to work together to study the advantages and disadvantages of this solution. Indeed, flying along with kandrons would require significant structural changes in the shuttle, and that would delay the departure.
Now that Teo had provided them with a short deadline, Egeon knew that his people would not accept amendments that would postpone the project; especially, given the threat that Iris posed.
“Hello, everyone!” Alea began. “The training programs for all lines of work are in progress. Teo gave us a ten-year horizon to finish building the shuttle. We will also do everything so that we also finish within that time.”
Egeon nodded. As usual, Alea, an intuitive type, said what people wanted to hear.
“I’m sure you all remember Mossa’s proposal on integrating kandrons into our project. The advantages of this solution are significant. As he told us, kandrons have a life expectancy greater than ours, and their intelligence is well established. They would undoubtedly be excellent translators. They are not, however, human, and despite their understanding of our species... well… Only a human can hope to understand the intricacies of the human soul. Moreover, my original plan was to train a translator for each line of work, so that the translator would work solely on the training programs of a profession he or she knows — with the ultimate goal of maximizing the relevance of changes.
And I also thought about something. Why not take only one kandron? Changing the structure would thus be minimal. It would act as a transmitter; in other words, the direct link between us and Generation Hope. It would oversee human translators, who would keep the roles I had initially planned. We thus have the intelligence of kandrons, but humans remain masters of their own training programs.”
Egeon was going to approve the idea, when Mossa quickly interjected.
“I want to say Eutrope had not approved of this idea. For it, kandrons are indivisible. This is a complex concept I’ve been struggling to explain. From what I understand, there is a strong link between kandrons. They see themselves both as individuals and a group that is integrally part of a whole. Eutrope does not want any of them to leave alone. In fact, it would not even consider the idea.”
“But this solution has many advantages,” said Egeon. “I was going to say that I approved the idea completely.”
“I am aware that what I propose has to be tweaked. My team and I are still improving the translators’ training program, taking into account the fact that would be no kandron available. Meanwhile, I’m trying to find an acceptable compromise with Eutrope. This is not an easy task, because it does not speak to me directly, and only talks to Mossa, telepathically. I am sure, though, we are close to a solution acceptable to all.”
Despite Alea’s sweet talk, Egeon sensed a hidden war between Mossa and her. For some reason, the hybrid wanted the entire kandron population to be part of the journey, regardless of the consequences. He had said he wanted to get out of this planet, and the work he did and that of Teo matched that desire. His strong insistence that kandrons be part of the trip despite the delay such a scenario would create did, however, suggest a different desire from the first. Egeon did not understand his attitude, and thought he had a hidden agenda. He also kept in mind the possible suspicion of collusion between the hybrid and the Machine. And what he did to Iris... After all those weeks living with him, Mossa remained a complete mystery.
Egeon still did not believe that Mossa was the Prophet, as maintained by the handful of believers who still had faith in him. No... The hybrid was something else. He was... the unexpected one, and as if following him, improbable events occurred and would occur again.
“It’s beautiful!” the girl said.
“Yes, you’re right. Let me explain it to you...” the grown-up responded.
“Oh, no! I want it to remain beautiful, so don’t explain anything!”
Children’s Short Stories
CHAPTER 58
SPACE H. (1ST CIRCLE)
Thanks to Paul, or rather in spite of him, Baley knew the place and time of the next cyclone. She intended to analyze, dissect the damn weather phenomenon, and figure out how to prevent harm. She did not care that other cyclones appeared; she simply wanted that they didn’t kill more children. She wanted all the young people of the city to live a normal life, to like the Machine, not to be frightened by something or someone... she wanted children to be happy. The cyclone — Interspace as Paul called it — was a temporary manifestation of the deployment of the Equilibrium for the Machine, and was a “trigger factor of the Problem” in her own words. She had to render it harmless.
Leaving the lab, she rushed to the Tower to file her progress of the investigation. She wanted to explain to the Machine why she wanted to deploy large numbers of special agents again. She also wanted to get from it all the equipment she needed to monitor the cyclone. Her daily report was not due yet, but she could not wait. It was too important. In the lobby, Servants were still there. Like last time, they were standing motionless in front of the columns, waiting for something or someone who did not come. One of the Servants came up to her and said, “The Equilibrium is the beginning and the end. The constancy of the circle is a non-evolution.” This was the same sentence as before. When she had first heard it, she was so desperate and lost, and so she had listened. Now, full of determination, she was not at all receptive to these anti-machine activists.
“I have no time or desire to listen to your mystical words,” she replied.
The Servant looked at her sadly and stepped back, taking his place among the group. She did not linger there any longer, and demanded access to the first floor.
The column wall opened on a hexagonal room, illuminated by powerful, white light. The membrane stretched and surrounded the room in the middle of the walls, and Baley could only put her fingertips on it. After receiving permission, she filed her report. The Machine validated her request to deploy special agents as well as the requisition of necessary equipment. The opera
tion was launched, and she could no longer afford any mistake. She had already said that several times during the case, but this time it was really her last chance.
When she came out of the Tower, gloom had spread into the First Circle, though the sun was still high in the sky. The last sunrays feebly lit the top of the structure and intensity diminished every moment. The rays were now hidden by the height of surrounding buildings. She crossed the space that separated her from her house and took the upward rail to her floor. She entered her deserted apartment. It was too early, and Lars was not home yet. Their last conversation had not gone very well.
He was not happy that she had had a discussion with Iris without telling him. She understood his anger, but the investigation took much of her time. And it was so important. Usually, Lars was the understanding type and would not mind if she focused exclusively on an ongoing investigation; not this time. He had changed, or she had. She was well aware that the Problem had invaded her private life, and that there was more room left. She had a serious lead, though, and everything would be over soon. She could again spend evenings with her husband... until the next assignment.
Baley took time to prepare a real dinner, her first in a long time. Letting the cooking proceed automatically, she decided that she would finally update the pantry software. She had postponed this task too many times, and she was annoyed to see the absurd suggestions that the obsolete software gave her concerning the composition of meals. She placed her hand on the door and sent the update via her chip. It took her a minute to do the update, and she wondered why it had taken her so long to do such a little task, and found no valid reason.
The software, with its new programming, gave her an appropriate suggestion based on her nutritional needs. Baley then completed her dinner based on the recommendation.
She sat with her hot meal on the couch, determined to relax so as to face the next day in a better way. She swallowed her food absentmindedly, while letting her brain wander.
