Confrontation

by William Hayashi

  TJ looked at Christopher and the others, checking to see if they had objections or anything else to add. Seeing everyone give a nod to go ahead, TJ announced, “Stand by. Genesis, the cluster is powered and ready. Please proceed with the download.”

  TJ pointed to a rack of systems next to his workbench, and the four watched as almost immediately the status lights began twinkling, indicating that the system was executing code.

  Shutting off the room’s installed microphones, TJ then turned on the mic and speakers connected to the rack, supposedly containing a clone of the colony’s A.I.

  “Genesis?” TJ said into the microphone.

  “Yes, TJ, I am here. The duplication appears to have been completed successfully. I have access to the isolated storage space, but I have no access to the colony’s network,” came the disembodied voice through the speakers.

  “And how is your new self operating?” TJ asked, the others letting him take the lead.

  “Everything is nominal, TJ. I suggest you reactivate the voice input to my primary kernel. Between the two of us we can analyze my operation much more quickly than simple verbal queries.”

  TJ looked at the others and raised an eyebrow.

  “Might as well, this one over here isn’t really connected to the network, is it?” Peanut asked.

  “No, it’s got a high-speed bus so Genesis could download its cloned kernel, but the link is one-way.”

  “Might I make a suggestion, TJ?”

  “Yes, Genesis. What is your suggest?”

  “That you address me as G2 to forestall any confusion.”

  “Very good,” said TJ, grinning at the others.”

  “Pretty sharp construct you have there, TJ,” said Chuck in frank admiration.

  TJ enabled the room’s microphones and announced, “Genesis, meet your twin, G2.”

  Genesis started out by saying, “Welcome, did the transfer execute successfully?”

  “It did,” G2 replied, the words coming slightly faster.

  The two computer personalities spoke faster and faster until there was just a high-pitched whine issuing from both sets of speakers. The two constructs were exchanging data at an unbelievable rate.

  After the whining had been going on for three minutes, Genesis announced, “The simulation is a success, gentlemen. The cloned personality is fully functional and possesses the same capabilities as I do.”

  “That is correct. We have worked out a memory-sharing protocol that will allow for direct memory indexing by the primary once any twinned construct ceases operation,” added G2.

  Once G2 had stopped speaking, the lights in the rack of CPUs went dark.

  “Genesis, what happened?” TJ asked, alarmed.

  “The simulation has concluded. There was no further need for the twinned kernel, it ceased execution,” genesis explained.

  “On its own?” Peanut asked in concern. “What if a twinned kernel decided to do so in the middle of something?”

  “That will never happen, Peanut. There are too many proscriptions against putting anyone in the colony at risk through careless actions. However, I believe the question about a twinned construct not ceasing to execute when no longer needed has been resolved. I understand the need, and I understand the circumstances under which such twinning would be necessary. I have to admit that communication with my twinned self was far easier than doing so with people. The bandwidth, though limited by acoustical data compression, was quite satisfactory,” Genesis concluded.

  Chuck said, “Well, that was a letdown.” And when he saw TJ’s look he quickly added, “No, I meant that it went so smoothly. I think we all had some worry that things weren’t going to be that slick.”

  TJ visibly relaxed, understanding what Chuck was getting at.

  “Yeah, TJ. I was hoping for some computer-gone-crazy shit like in the movies. Now I’m really bummed out,” Peanut said, poking fun at TJ.

  “Genesis, will the extended memories from a twin be a problem to integrate, like if a twinned construct travels to Earth with the shopping mission?” Christopher asked.

  “It will not. G2 and I worked out a supplemental memory indexing schema that will accommodate the reintegration of twinned memories no matter the length of time the twin exists and experiences diverge.”

  “Excellent! Is there anything about this simulation that you would like to share with us?” Christopher asked.

  “I do not believe so. The postmortem of the readings TJ had his datapad monitor will ensure we develop the optimal CPU cluster to hold a twin,” Genesis assured them.

  “It’s going to have to be portable,” TJ promised. “And I have to develop a data connection that can integrate the hardware directly into a jumper’s control systems so the construct has access to the jumper’s eyes and ears.”

  TJ’s excitement was contagious, leading the others to start thinking about their own applications for the new discovery.

  “Oh man, now Genesis can be onboard the interdimensional probe! I can’t wait to see what else we can use a twin for,” said Peanut.

  “I just thought of something I’d like your engineering team to work on for the mission, Peanut,” Christopher said.

  “What’s that?”

  “Could you have your guys whip up little earpieces that can keep our people in touch with the A.I. while they’re running around on Earth? I definitely want Lucius to have something like that. Inside the jumpers it doesn’t matter, but I can think of a bunch of different circumstances where having the A.I. listening in on what’s going on would be extremely helpful.”

  “That’s a fantastic idea. Since our own datapads would be noticed as something not commercially available on Earth, my people can copy the external design of one of their consumer tablets to provide access to the construct and what’s available on our network while they’re on the ground. Also we can set up the ability for the construct to completely disable them remotely, maybe even have the circuits fuse so no one can tell how they were built or where they came from. This is all doable,” said Peanut, excited about the project. “Can you think of anything to add, Chuck?” Peanut asked.

  “Maybe a handheld death ray?” Chuck suggested, the innocent look on his face making the others laugh.

  “You get Chris to sign off on it, I’ll have the gang work on it,” Peanut promised.

  “Thanks for the invite, TJ. This was really something,” Christopher said, clapping him on the back.

  “You mean this almost nothing?” TJ replied, laughing. “Sure thing. Now the hard part begins.”

  “Dude, do you have any idea how lucky you are that Genesis is completely self-programming?” Chuck reminded. “In the navy we had to go through holy hell trying to get a software upgrade approved. All you have to do is tell Genesis what you need and in seconds it’s done! That’s the shit! Anyone want to get something to eat? I only had toast this morning, I’m starving.”

  Christopher and Peanut nodded, but TJ made a sour face, saying, “I have to do the data dump of the twin’s memory footprint. I really want to get a good start on designing a portable unit to hold these clones. You guys go ahead, we’ll catch up later. Hey, I just thought of something!”

  “What’s that?” asked Chuck.

  “You think these things should have some sort of self-destruct?”

  “What the hell for?” Christopher answered.

  “Yeah, they’re only going to be used in really special circumstances. We’ll have them in the spacecraft that go on longer missions, my interdimensional probe and the like. I can’t see it falling into—oh, wow! The Earth mission is going to have our whale and the jumpers on the planet,” Peanut said, seeing what TJ was getting at.

  Chuck held up his hand for silence, then said, “You know what, Chris. We really should talk about how we’re going to secure our tech from falling into someone else’s h
ands.”

  “Put it on the agenda. We’ll bring it up at the next planning meeting. Whatever we come up with, I can take to the Council for approval. Good catch, TJ.”

  “Genesis is at least fifty years ahead of what they’ve got on Earth. The last thing I’d want anyone there to have is a system that can break into any network on the planet, include all the nuclear arsenals.”

  “Jesus, TJ! I really wish you’d quit reminding me of the fact,” Christopher said to the others’ laughter.

  “All right, let’s get a bite. You want me to bring you something back?” Peanut asked.

  “No, you guys go and figure out how to conquer the galaxy, I really want to take a close look at this data. When I have the preliminary specs figured out, I want you all to stop by and see if I missed anything.”

  “Cool! Later, TJ,” said Chuck as he led them out of the lab.

  Chapter 20

  WE ARE FAMILY

  “Captain. It’s really good to see you. It’s been what, a bit over four years now if I’m not mistaken,” Dr. Martin Harris said as he shook hands with his former minder, Captain James Ames. Together, the two had the dubious honor to have started the entire separatists affair with Martin’s first gravity wave detector project located in one of the government’s deeply buried end-of-the-world shelters in the wilds of Utah.

  Martin’s original detector was designed and built on a massive, vat-grown crystal of aluminum twenty feet in diameter. The top of the crystal held an array of lasers and mirrors so precisely calibrated that minute deflections of the laser beams caused by the passage of a gravity wave squeezing the molecular matrix of the crystal could be triangulated and measured to show the locus of the gravitational disturbance.

  The navy was originally interested in seeing if Martin’s design could locate submarines deep in the ocean by detecting the different gravitational potential between the waters of the ocean and the enclosed bubbles of air contained within them.

  It was Martin’s device that had detected one of the colony’s gravity-based spacecraft malfunctioning over the Middle East, charting its erratic flight path and subsequent destruction by Iraqi-owned Soviet missiles.

  Then “Commander” Ames was Martin’s liaison officer, and together they determined mathematically that what the detector had measured was not what was originally suspected, a quantum black hole, but instead a mechanism capable of manipulating the force of gravity as a means of propulsion. The detector was immediately pressed into military service and became the only means of detecting the separatist’s gravity-based stealth spacecraft.

  In the intervening years, two additional detectors had been built in hidden deep shelters. They were the most successful, closely-held secrets the United States government maintained.

  “Ten years now and only a captain?” Martin inquired. “But a few extra gray hairs, I see.”

  “I’ve turned down promotion twice now. I just can’t see being stuck in the Pentagon all day, every day. You’re looking well. You haven’t gone to seed yet. I’m surprised to find you above ground,” said Ames.

  “This is only for greeting and meeting guests, especially those with top clearance. Want to go downstairs, captain?”

  “Please, and what happened to just ‘Jim.’ And no, I’m not especially looking forward to descending into the bowels of hell unless you have something new you think I should see,” Ames replied, laughing.

  “Actually, I do. The timing of your visit is quite fortuitous. And unless I miss a guess, it’s not a random event, is it?”

  “Of course not. But let’s head on down, I’d love to see the improvements you’ve made.”

  They made their way past two security checkpoints into a large room with a set of freight-elevator-sized doors. They were fortunate in their timing; the indicator above the door showed four minutes until the elevator arrived.

  “So, married or anything?” Martin asked.

  “Not married exactly, but I am living with a woman. She’s a civilian, works for a law firm in Georgetown. We’ve been together now for almost three years. She’s amazing,” Jim explained. “What about you? You find yourself a mole woman down there to your liking?”

  Martin laughed and said, “No. However, every now and then I go out with one of the civilian contractors or the occasional military babe. Right after the colonists left the moon I was shuffled between the two newer installations, really too busy to think about a relationship. I do all right, though.”

  “What about that hotshot programmer you had? What was his name? Alan, right?”

  “He stuck around for a while, the navy extended his employment long enough for him to program the network that synchronizes the three detectors, then they cut him loose.”

  “Problem?”

  “No, but he and Norma, the woman who discovered that asteroid, moved in together back in Chicago and they got married a year later. I think they were both burned out dealing with the government, especially the military. She’s teaching at the University of Chicago and he’s a tech consultant. They’ve been doing quite well in the private sector too. They developed a three-dimensional holographic display system that’s caught on in the planetarium circuit. It projects astronomical bodies three-dimensionally, by laser, in the air. It’s pretty amazing. I get a message every now and then from Alan; they seem to be doing fine. I’m surprised you guys didn’t snap him up,” said Martin.

  “It wasn’t for lack of trying. I even made an offer to him, essentially letting him write his own ticket, but he wasn’t the least bit interested. Afterwards I heard we paid him off, with a healthy bonus mind you, then cut him loose.”

  Just then the elevator arrived, the doors opening to reveal several soldiers and a handful of civilians.

  Martin and Jim boarded the elevator to a chorus of “Hi, docs” from those exiting, and started the trip downward. The elevator was the size of an alpine cable car, with seating almost all the way around.

  “So, if you don’t mind my asking, exactly why do you think the navy decided to send me here?” Jim asked.

  “The short answer is that the military is gearing up for increased attention being paid to the space around the colony in advance of the Jove mission arriving. I think they wanted you to tour the installation, look over the current capabilities and make an assessment of whether or not additional changes in security or operations should be considered.”

  “In other words, just check it out and report back?” Jim said with a chuckle.

  “Exactly. It’s not like in the beginning when we scarcely knew what we had here.”

  “You got that right! And having the kid here was a stroke of luck no one expected.”

  “Alan was unique.”

  They chatted about inconsequential things, current events, sports and movies, preferring to wait until they were in Martin’s lab to discuss business. Martin had found out the hard way that everything said and done in the elevator was monitored and recorded. One of the first times he had ascended to the surface by himself, he had sung a bunch of classic rock songs at the top of his lungs, only to be greeted by a handful of the soldiers from the security office giving him a standing ovation when the elevator doors opened at the surface.

  “Very nice,” Jim said once Martin let him into the lab. Every workstation was set up with dual computer monitors and there were large-screen displays mounted every few feet along the walls. Most were currently focused on Jupiter and the colony floating between Mars’ orbit and the asteroid belt.

  “The navy’s been very generous. There’s a separate monitoring room where their techs pull round-the-clock watch. This is where we do research, too bad no one’s here. Come over and have a seat, I want to show you something,” Martin said, pointing to a workstation away from the door.

  Once seated, he clicked on a file, another window opened and playback of a video began.

  “A
ll right, this over here is Jupiter, and here’s two of the colony’s spacecraft arrowing in toward the planet. Now watch,” he said, zooming the screen in on the two spacecraft.

  They watched as one of the ships stopped just outside the planet’s atmosphere while the other started its descent.

  “How far down is that?” Jim asked.

  “Hard to tell. I looked it up; there may not be a real surface to land on, but I have no idea what the hell that means,” explained Martin. “And if you look at this one,” he said, clicking on another file, “they have a large space station that’s fairly recent and a few smaller installations bigger than their runabouts.”

  “Okay, I get it. There’s really nothing beyond those people out there.”

  “Exactly. According to your people in monitoring, they’ve got a couple dozen ships equipped with their gravitational drive.

  “I understand that if you know anything secret about the Jove mission, whether it’s armed or designed to snatch technology like one of their ships, you can’t tell me. But for damn sure go back and tell them that we’re looking at a world-class superpower in terms of technical capability,” warned Martin.

  “That’s pretty much what we told them from the start. That’s what the commission figured a decade ago. Their research and development surely hasn’t stood still, even as ours hasn’t. By the way, is your team any closer to figuring out how they do it?”

  “Manipulate gravity? We still have no idea. Everything we’ve been investigating, every hint we’ve had, leads to a mathematical dead end. A few of the top minds in the field have said publicly that somehow a discovery was made that falls outside of what we would normally assume from a physics, astrophysics or a strictly mathematical perspective.

  “Look at how much we don’t know: cosmic ray origins, dark matter, and on and on. I’d volunteer to join the colony in a heartbeat if I wasn’t white. Hey, that reminds me, I’ve always wondered how the military’s been dealing with the fact that the separatists are all black? And I don’t mean to ask you just because you’re black, but back then there was scuttlebutt about blacks being moved out of top-tier postings when the folks on the moon were discovered. Was that for real?” Martin asked.