Artificial Intelligence

by Rena Marks

  The light expelled from the front of her suit, at her solar plexus area. With the room lit more, she was able to see giant wireframe computers molded into the stone walls.

  “Wow,” she whispered, approaching one. “There are ancient computer devices here. Hard forms. Can you link to them?”

  “I am now linked.”

  “Check the files.”

  A few seconds went by. “The computers house the organic materials I detected earlier.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “Please state open.”

  Arian wrinkled her nose. Her computer never ignored a direct question. Obviously it didn’t know the answer as to what the organic materials were, but the standard reply should have been unknown. Not instructions on how to open the hidden storage bins. Still, curiosity gained the better of her.

  “Open.”

  The bottom portion of the large computer creaked, and the metal groaned as it swung outward, then crashed to the ground, the protruding piece barely attached to a loose hinge. Inside was a pull out drawer. She reached inside and pulled.

  When the drawer fully expanded, it contained a body.

  Sonofabitch, the organic materials were human remains. Arian stared, stunned. But something was wrong. The body wasn’t decayed. She reached out to touch it, and the hand flew up to capture her wrist at the same time his eyes opened.

  She shrieked, pulling away, but the hold was firm. His eyes didn’t move, they focused dead ahead.

  “Tess,” she yelled.

  “It is no longer your computer. It is my consciousness within the confines of your ship.”

  The mouth on the body never moved. Instead, it was her computer speaking to her within the small bud in her ear.

  “Explain.”

  “I am not your computer. You do not need to give it the programmed commands. My consciousness is locked into the core of this planet. When your ship connected to the core, I was able to slip into the confines of your computer.”

  “You’ve been within my computer since I’ve entered this galaxy?”

  “Yes.”

  “You led me here,” she realized.

  “Yes.”

  “Then how, and why, are you holding me?” His hand was still clamped onto her wrist uncomfortably.

  “I wish for you to bring my body on board so that I may re-establish the connection of my consciousness to it and be whole once more.”

  “You expect me to drag you on board? Are you kidding? You’re a full-grown man.”

  “I can withdraw the slight gravitational pull and strengthen your boots to compensate. My body will be quite light until it reaches your ship. I will adjust the gravity on the ship as well.”

  “Who are you?”

  “A Sirian refugee.”

  “Do you mean back from the galactic war? That was centuries ago. Have you been here the whole time?”

  “Yes, I have been. If you will reunite my body, I will explain in further detail.”

  It wasn’t like she had a choice. He’d taken over her computer. While she could override the commands from inside, she wasn’t sure if he’d allow her to leave. It was a death sentence.

  “It appears we need each other, doesn’t it? Release my wrist and adjust the gravity.”

  He immediately complied. When the gravity lightened, his body hovered halfway to the low ceiling. She glanced at his whole form and wondered where to grab.

  He was naked.

  And a fine naked specimen he was. Perfectly sculpted, like an ancient Greek god from her old planet.

  Finally, she took his arms and stretched them over his head, so she could pull him along by his hands. Thick muscles corded down the undersides of his arms. They pulled his body taut, showing the six pack abs to perfection. She was afraid if she tugged him by the breach position, one of his loose arms could get caught on something. And that she’d be tempted to look backward at his privates.

  His body moved easily enough.

  “Thank you,” her computer’s voice said. No, not her computer. Him.

  She didn’t respond as she began the walk slowly back to the ship. Once she left the tunnel, she adjusted her gravity boots to allow for a bounce up into the ship. She gripped his hands tightly, and could have sworn he gripped back. But of course he couldn’t. That was in her mind.

  He was heavy, and she used that excuse to cling to his hand. It wouldn’t do to allow the body to float off into the radiation pools. When all was said and done, she was curious about a being who could grow his own body. She managed to pull him on board, and then sent a computer command.

  “Shut the door.”

  She dragged his body into the medical facility, and steered him over a bed.

  “Okay, adjust gravity. Slowly.”

  The air grew heavier and she guided him down to center him into position over the bed. Finally he was close enough to where she could angle a strap over him. She looped it around him, fastened it on the other side, and tightened it, sinking him down onto the bed.

  His legs were spread wide, so she grabbed a thin sheet and covered his midsection. Finally, she sat on the bottom of the bed, between his spread feet.

  “Normalize gravity and please deactivate my boots.”

  He complied and she felt her body grow monstrously heavy.

  She hated having to adjust gravity. It wasn’t so bad when she released it and became lighter, but it was horrible when it was added suddenly. Bones compressed and internal organs felt uncomfortably heavy. She leaned back on the table, weary. Her lungs fought to take in oxygen. Dimly she was aware that his groin was under the back of her head, but at the moment, she didn’t care. It provided a nice pillow.

  “Gravity is at normal levels, Arian.”

  “Is that you or my computer?” she whispered, eyes closed.

  “I am still linked to your computer. She is not advanced enough to become a sentient being.”

  “What is your name?”

  “When I was embodied before the war, I was called Jax. Are you ill? Gravity is at normal levels.”

  “I heard you the first time. But I still have to physically adjust to the change.”

  “Explain, please.”

  “Flipping between gravity levels is not as easy as it sounds. I have to adjust to living in one or the other. Slowly. When it is done quickly, it takes a lot of energy. Bodies require a lot of energy to maintain.” She tried to explain it in a way that a computer may understand. As far as she’d seen with Jax, he wasn’t a person. He was a computer.

  “I am a sentient being. Just because I am not in my body right now does not mean I am a merely a computer.”

  Good grief, he read her mind! “Get out of my head,” she growled.

  “You have allowed me access to your mind.”

  “No, I allowed my computer access. You invaded her, remember?”

  He was silent for a minute. “I understand your point. I apologize.”

  Her eyes opened. An apology was unexpected. Maybe he was as he said. Sentient. But how could that be?

  “Please let me know when you recover.”

  Arian closed her eyes again and focused on her breathing. She was more tired than she’d originally thought. The adrenaline from trading so close to Zetan jurisdiction, of actually getting away with a free cargo of the most precious metal known to mankind. And now this.

  Chapter Two

  She startled awake, jumping to a sitting position. Immediately she remembered where she was, and why.

  “You are recovered?” the computer voice asked patiently.

  “Sorry, I fell asleep.”

  “I realize that. I do recall what sleep is. When I return to a physical body, I shall have to sleep for several hours every cycle to allow the organic materials to recover. It enables a longer life cycle.”

  Arian turned, seeing the indentation on the sheet where her head had lain. Oh, yeah. Right at his man stuff.

  She winced. “Sorry about that. Hope I didn’t injure you.�
��

  “You did not. I monitored my body and would have woken you if there had been physical damage.”

  Definitely still in computer mode. He had no idea what the implications of sleeping on someone’s crotch were.

  “While you slept, I searched your computer’s database for supplies to link my consciousness back into my body. My physical brain contains a computer chip, and should we attach an electrode to jump start it, I can send my consciousness at the exact same time the chip is zapped. The only problem is linking our technologies, as the one we used is no longer compatible with our system. However, the rest of my people have been working on this issue nonstop.”

  “How did you open your eyes and grab my wrist down in the core of the planet, if your body is without consciousness?”

  “I control my computer chip wirelessly, the same way I control your computer. But it is not the same as living within my body. Rather, it is controlling my body without feeling, as a puppet would be maneuvered. And this is my only shot at inhabiting a body, as I’ve created it based on the chip from my original body. If this body, with its established DNA, does not survive, I will never have another.”

  “I see.” She jumped from the table. “What do you need me to do?”

  “The electrodes must be attached to my skull on the sides of my head. Please shave the hair from those regions. Here is a chart of the areas I need.”

  The viewing screen in sick bay blipped to life, showing various points on the sides of his head.

  “You’ll need a type of style called a Mohawk.” She opened a drawer, grabbing scissors, a band, a comb, and a razor. She extended the neck rest out from the table and lifted his head onto it. Then she parted his hair into three sections, and braided the thick middle piece down into a section that looked like a giant spine. She cut the hair off the sides with the scissors.

  “Your hair is so long,” she said. “How long has it been growing?”

  “The organic materials on my body grew at an accelerated rate due to the radiation of the planet. I was aware of the moment your vessel entered our galaxy, and kept you thinking you were traveling through for a week. In actuality you were drifting in circles. The materials were stopped from growth when I added oxygen to the core of the planet, and to the crater you landed in.”

  “So the other craters were not pockets of air? You filled this one so I could land.”

  “That is affirmative.”

  She took the razor to the sides of his head. When the skull was smooth, she attached the electrodes where the chart specified.

  “Done.”

  “I will send a charge to the electrodes, along with my consciousness. Standby.”

  Arian placed the palm of her hand on his chest. His heart beat felt strong. How was he able to grow organs and tissues without nourishing them? Well, it had only been a week. He would probably be dehydrated now.

  Just then she felt a slight blip of his heart. The current must have connected. His eyes opened, and they were a steady, blue glow of light deep within the irises.

  “This is painful,” he rasped.

  She grabbed him a glass of water and brought it to him. He gulped it.

  “You’re dehydrated.”

  “It was a risk I had to take. I am the first of my kind to create a body for my consciousness.”

  “I’ll start an IV drip.” Arian moved to gather the materials, and then brought the bed up to a half-sitting position. She grasped his arm, tapping the vein. “This will pinch,” she warned. She inserted the needle smoothly, and taped it onto his forearm.

  “How barbaric,” he said, staring at the vein.

  She raised her brows. “Apologies. It’s the fastest way to get fluids and nutrition into you. I’d hate to go through all the work of helping you attach yourself to this body only to have you drop dead before you can tell me your story. Now, why are you the first of your kind to create a body?”

  “The rest of us are still in the core. Where you fished me from.”

  She blinked. “What? There are others? We need to get them out.”

  She made to move, but he grasped her hand with his. “They are safe. Their consciousness is saved within our ancient computers. I will be able to transfer the collective unit to your ship’s computer, and they will be preserved wherever we go.”

  “And the bodies? You do realize that a body needs nutrition, right?”

  “I do. We had bodies once before. Currently, mine was the only one grown, in order to connect with you. We can bring their skeletons aboard your vessel and grow their bodies in your sick bay. It is a more ideal environment than where mine was grown. I shall have to scan my body for any flaws.”

  “How did you lose your bodies?”

  “What do you know of the Sirius war?”

  “Basic history. It was centuries ago. The solar system had three suns and was extremely diverse. Two of the planets battled, and one blew up the entire star system on accident.”

  “You do not know of artificial intelligence?”

  “I don’t understand. Do you mean computers?”

  “Yes. That is how I started. As a computer.”

  “So you were a computer that came alive?”

  He nodded. “We were implanted into cloned bodies, with exoskeleton frames. It was a poor system. The Sirians, who created us, thought to make us stronger with metallic frames, but of course, if the body was weakened underneath the frame, we would die like anyone else. As our intelligence grew, we developed a consciousness and linked onto a mainframe. Naturally, like any sentient being, we did not wish to die.

  “But we were created for death. To war with the other planets. It was not fair, and our creators refused to acknowledge our souls. We chose to come up with a plan. We hollowed through the core of the planet over decades. We transported the computers, which were advanced for their own time. We used the strongest metal to create a new skeletal system, this one we would wear on the inside of our bodies. We stored DNA samples and materials we would need one day upon revival, and locked it all inside. Naturally, we warned the planet leaders that their calculations were incorrect and that the blast of scalar weaponry would intensify once ignited. In their fear and ignorance, they chose to ignore our advice, treating us as slaves instead. We were the front line of defense, and one by one, as our people died painful deaths, their consciousness was transferred to the mainframes.”

  “Did you even know if a revival would work?”

  He shook his head. “No. But we could not dwell on that. All we could do was hope that our deaths would not be permanent. When the radiated blasts destroyed the planet, we triggered our own explosion, one that would break off our section of planet and preserve the core with our mainframes inside. And one by one, as we lost the life in our bodies, our consciousness transferred to another existence.”

  “How did you regrow a body?”

  “We existed for many years, expanding our intelligence from radio waves. The one area we were lacking in was actuality. We had no bodies, and therefore, could not experiment to see if anything could be grown. We knew in theory it should work, but there were environmental issues we could not control. So we waited. Over the years, few vessels entered the star system. When they did, we took over their ships, accessing their files and learning to change along with the times. But the ships became fewer and fewer, as they grew alarmed that the area was haunted. When your vessel approached, it was the perfect opportunity. You have a vessel large enough to house hundreds of people, yet you were the only life form on board. Why is that?”

  “My vessel is a vacation cruiser. I grew weary of hosting countless dinner parties. I decided to embark on a new existence as a trader. Because I had the perfect cover, other traders assume I have hundreds on staff and basically leave me alone in the skies. I haven’t had to worry about pirates.”

  “Why do you not live with others of your kind?”

  “I’m Terran.”

  “I do not understand.”

  “Ter
ra was a planet modeled after the Sirius star system, but on a much smaller scale. Instead of battling other planets in our system, we were primitive and didn’t even know space existed. Instead, our planet battled its own inhabitants. We blew it up, just like yours did.”

  “You are a descendent?”

  She nodded. “Several waiting vessels in space, knowing the world war was imminent, beamed females aboard. Females were needed to reintroduce DNA into other species. I refused to become a walking womb.”

  “You do not want children?”

  “It’s not that. Someday, perhaps. I just want it to be my choice, and not my duty.” She sighed. “Terrans are wanted for their broad range of emotions. Many beings have developed to the point of only having three, four, or even five emotions. Those who have focused on their intellectual intelligence instead of their feelings crave breeding with us. But the horror stories…” She grimaced. “Husbands who feed their wives not out of pleasure, but because it is time. Females are bored out of their minds living with them. It’s an existence that leads them to an early grave. Our life spans are shortened by unhappiness.”

  “This is why you have a voice modulator on board.”

  “Yes. I do not want anyone to hear my accent and know I’m Terran. If a Zetan hears of an unattached Terran, he’ll capture me for breeding purposes. They’ve been known to keep females in cages, passing her around from male to male every nine months, as long as it takes us to conceive. We call them breeding farms. Baby mills. They pick out their caged female, rape her, and she is kept until the infant’s birth, at which time the exchange of money occurs. Then she is returned for another round.” It wasn’t quite her association with the Zetan people, but until she knew him better, she had to err on the side of caution.

  “Surely that cannot create a healthy child.”

  “The Zetans’ egos refuse to acknowledge the flaws in their plans. The children grow without a mother’s love, incubating in a stressed womb and unhappy environment. The Zetans obtained one objective, adding emotions to their altered DNA. Unfortunately, they are only adding the unhappiest of emotions. It isn’t a balanced environment. The second generation grows up cruel, instead of unemotional like their parents.”