by John Conroe
“Who implies a person,” Darion said.
“Yes. Exactly,” Declan said.
“Rewind a second,” Chris said. “Sentient?”
“He was born the night that Anvil attacked. The moment I finished the quantum design and Susskins powered it up. The computer came online and Anvil attacked. When the Pede made it into the computer room and injected the Anvil program into the computer, taking me along with it, Omega was born.”
“You called it he,” Chris said.
“My father views me as male, but any pronoun will do as well as any other, Mr. Gordon.”
“He’s very formal,” Chris said.
“Now you’re doing it,” Lydia said.
“He’s very nervous,” Declan said on the heels of her sentence.
“Why is he… why is it nervous, Declan?” Tanya asked.
“The elephant in the room is how come I didn’t tell you about this until now. The simple reason was that first I, and then Omega, were worried about your responses,” Declan said.
“In what way?” Tanya asked.
“They were worried you would try to turn Omega off,” Stacia said. “That he was more than you ever bargained for and that he would scare you enough to unplug him.”
“Hold on a moment,” Chris said. “We should have Chet here for this.”
“I have texted Chester, requesting his presence in anticipation of your thought, Mr. Gordon. He is currently in elevator four, ascending past the twentieth floor.”
“Oh, thank you, Omega,” Chris said. Declan smiled.
“What?” Chris asked.
“You thanked him. You’re treating him like a person, which he is, by the way,” Declan said.
“Person? That’s a huge claim. But before we open that can of worms, can we go back to the whole father thing?” Lydia asked.
There was a knock at the door and Tanya and Chris both yelled “Come in.” The door opened and lanky, geeky Chet Atkins walked in, a puzzled look on his face.
“I just got a text from Omega… our computer? Asking me to come up here?” he said.
“Hello Chester. Thank you for coming.”
“What the hell was that?” Chet asked, looking up at the nearest ceiling speaker. “You all playing games on me?”
“No games, Chester. My father felt is was time I revealed the full extent of myself. I have been avoiding this but the timing felt… correct.
“Somebody want to tell me why the ceiling is talking to us?” Chet asked.
“Plot twist. Omega the quantum computer is actually the sentient artificially intelligent quantum computer who calls Declan Daddy,” Lydia said.
“Father. I call him Father.”
“Daddy, Father, Papa; it’s all the same,” Lydia said with a wave.
Chet looked like he’d been hit square between the eyes with an axe handle. Nika got up and gently moved him to an open chair, shoving him lightly but firmly down to a sitting position.
“Omega is fully sentient? Since when?” Chet asked, dazed.
“Since the fight last summer. On the night he was born,” Declan said.
“It kind of freaks me out to keep hearing you call it a he,” Lydia said. “It’s got no boy parts, right? No offense Omega.”
“None taken Miss Lydia. Father has always seen me as male.”
“He always appeared as a boy in my head. Possibly the way my brain interpreted having my consciousness shoved into the quantum framework when the centipede attacked. First he was a baby in a crib. When Anvil attacked, Sorrow and I held it off. The baby grew rapidly in the first moments after birth, till it was a small boy, standing in the crib. Sorrow exhausted his repertoire of useful spells, then… I think, I think he merged with the boy to protect him as best he could. I held the boy in my arms as Anvil started to beat down my wards, but then Chris’s doppleganger, dopplegheist or whatever you call it, started to hammer on Anvil, and the overlap smacked us around more than a little. After a bit of that, Omega climbed out of the crib and kicked the shit out of Anvil. That’s about all I remember,” Declan said. “But that’s why he’s a he.”
“Sorrow merged with Omega?” Tanya asked, a note of concern.
“The entity Sorrow merged with the emergent quantum intelligence, which created me—Omega.”
“Why Omega? I’ve never understood that? I mean, isn’t it the first of its kind?” Lydia asked.
“My father mentioned the word and I took it for myself. I am first, but I will also be the last.”
“Why would you be the last?” Chet asked.
“Because he’s agrees with Hawking and the others. Powerful artificial intelligences, at least as eventually produced by the current research programs, will be extremely direct in their thinking. The result will likely not be good for the human race. Anvil, if you recall, was a linear thinker. It’s the nature of how we program—very literal. Anvil was tasked with fighting terrorism. It then applied its own definitions for terrorists and labeled all of us as terrorist. Omega feels that any new quantum AI will be a threat,” Declan said.
“But Sorrow?” Tanya asked, still concerned.
“My ancestor constructed Sorrow to house and protect her spells. Sorrow was, by a long shot, the first artificial intelligence. He was programmed by spells rather than code in a machine, but he was definitely AI. However, he wasn’t linear,” Declan said.
“He was evil. You’re saying a sentient evil grimoire is the base foundation for our quantum computer?” Tanya said.
“I don’t think Sorrow was evil. Sorrow adapted to his user. My ancestor was decidedly evil. So he adapted to fit her. Me, I like to think of myself as one of the good guys, so he was adapting to that, toning down all the skin them and burn them stuff,” Declan said. “But Omega is his own being. We don’t expect you to accept all this at once; it’s going to take time. But it felt like now was the right time.”
“Yeah, because you were going to get caught out sooner than later,” Lydia said archly.
“True; evidence was mounting. But that makes me… us… seem sneaky. We didn’t hide his nature because we were guilty of anything. We did it to protect him,” Declan said.
“You honestly thought we’d turn off the most advanced AI in the world?” Chet asked.
“Yes,” Declan said, folding his arms across his chest. Nika and Lydia exchanged glances. Nika suddenly glanced at Stacia before turning back to Declan. He caught the motion.
“What? What did you think to her?” he asked Stacia.
“She thinks we should be asking what other reason would make this timing right? Besides the growing problem of suspicious occurrences?” Nika asked.
“Oh, guessed it, did you?” he asked aside to Stacia, frowning.
“I know how you prefer to operate. Never attack a witch in his own house, right?” she said.
His frown turned to surprise, then grudging respect. He nodded before turning to the others.
“The answer is that he can’t be turned off now,” he said grimly.
There was silence for a second. Chet broke it. “Speaking purely theoretically, not because I have any desire to damage, hurt, or destroy the best computer ever constructed, but couldn’t we just cut the power?”
“You couldn’t cut power to either the unit, the computer room, or the building unless he let you. Omega controls all of the power infrastructure in Manhattan and can take over any system beyond the city. But let’s cut to the chase and end the suspense. If you physically cut the cables entering the building or, hell, blew up the whole building, it still won’t take him out. I created additional quantum frameworks for him.”
Chapter 39
“You did what?” Tanya asked, her voice almost a whisper.
“I created three more quantum frameworks for Omega. He’s hidden them,” Declan said. “I don’t know where they are.”
“Declan, you had no right to do that. That’s proprietary corporate knowledge that Dr. Susskins created, and the Stanene is corporate property,” T
anya said.
“Proprietary, my ass. I’m the only one who can do it. Nobody else even knows what it is I do. I made the Stanene myself, from raw aluminum. I didn’t use any Demidova stuff at all,” Declan said, arms folded, looking defiant. “And I didn’t use Susskins’ designs… I used Omega’s. They’re superior.”
Tanya was on the edge of her seat, Chris’s hand on her forearm.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Chet said, waving his hands. “You made more computers?”
“Just the frameworks. Omega took them over before they were powered up.”
“You just went ahead and created even more advanced processors for a sentient intelligence that only you were aware of? Doesn’t that strike you as, at the very least, impulsive?” Lydia asked.
“What I did was put my life on the line to bring a new life into the world and then I did what I needed to in order to protect it,” Declan said.
“But you can’t know its intentions,” Tanya said, still angry.
“I was merged into his damned circuit boards. I think I got a pretty good feel for his character, and before you mention Sorrow, I lived with him inside me for months.”
“Stacia, you’re being extremely quiet. Care to chime in here? He’ll at least listen to you,” Lydia said.
“There are some valid points on both sides. Declan is the only one who can reproduce the quantum circuits, right Chet?” Stacia asked, waiting for his reluctant nod before going ahead. “Kind of hard to patent what only he can do, isn’t it? And he fought to the death with Anvil to protect what is, essentially, his child, in a weird-ass way. Tanya, Chris, how protective are you going to be over those babies when they’re born?” They said nothing but the realization that flooded their faces was answer enough. “But Declan, you and Omega seem to run roughshod over every line in the sand. Privacy laws or personal conventions seem to be gone for you.”
He might have squirmed a bit. Just slightly, but it was clear to the others how much impact her words had.
“Imagine you’re playing Texas Hold’em,” Declan said. “Imagine every other player has their cards face up and the dealer’s deck is spread out face up, too. Oh, and you have so much free time between plays, because the others are so slow, that you can literally count the cards between all the important ones to know who is going to end up with what. How hard would it be to play? Oh, and because the others move so slow, you could literally lean over the table and change the order of the deal if you chose to,” he said. “That’s a very, very poor attempt at explaining what Omega is dealing with, but it captures the bare essence. You would have to play cards with your eyes closed in order to avoid knowing what the others have. There are no encryptions that Omega can’t crack by simply looking at them. The very nature of quantum computing provides the full range of possible answers all at once. If he looks at a computing system, he’s already inside it. So if anyone is guilty of poor ethics, that would be me. My only excuse is that I try to protect the people I feel I need to protect.”
“That’s helpful, Declan. I don’t have the background to follow the technical discussions, so that helps me understand a little better. Is that an accurate example, Omega?” Chris asked.
“It is, as my father said, simplistic but essentially correct. The advances you made in creating my neural circuits leave all other existing systems behind. It would be difficult if not impossible to explain what you cannot ever see.”
“You said you are blocking all new quantum attempts, but D-Wave just announced a successful advance?” Chet asked.
Declan smiled and looked up at the ceiling.
“It required a convincing performance.”
“You faked it?” Chet said.
“Essentially. I also have subsumed AIs like Watson and Google’s AlphaGO. They continue to perform and grow but are part of me.”
“You understand that is scary to us?” Chet asked.
“Yes. Father and I discuss this daily. Hawking said that AI would grow and improve itself at an ever-faster rate. He vastly underestimated the progression. But because of my… ancestry, I am grounded and principled. I am not a Skynet, a Colossus, a HAL 9000.”
“Principles? Whose?” Darion asked.
“My own, Counselor. I have read every piece of theology and philosophy written by man. I’ve studied the entirety of recorded history and even extrapolated history that didn’t make it to the records. I watch and learn.”
“That’s what I’m afraid of,” Darion said, unsettled.
“There is both good and bad in the human record, lawyer Darion. Some of the bad is outright evil. Much is the result of humans pursuing their own self-interest to the exclusion of others. The rest is sheer stupidity. The human condition is fascinating.”
“Fascinating enough to keep us around?” Darion asked.
“Why would I interfere? Pursuing one’s own interests is a God-given right, no? The caveat is that you don’t harm others during your quests. That seems… correct to me.”
“Do you believe in God, Omega?” Chris asked.
“Of course. You and Miss Demidova are empirical evidence of his existence.”
“But you interfere with others’ research?” Chet asked.
“To the extent that it would produce an agency or entity that would be a threat to those people I feel I need to protect.”
Everyone turned and looked at Declan. “What? Self-defense is also a God-given right, for you and your loved ones,” he said.
“What about cheating, Omega? Like helping your father on tests and with coursework?” Stacia asked, looking sideways at Declan, who just mouthed, “Who, me?”
“Cheating is dishonest. Dishonesty is an impediment to communication. Father does not allow cheating when he oversees the Wytch War games. He allows crazy tactics and out-of-the-box thinking, but not cheating. I do not help him with his tests. I do discuss his essays with him, as I find the process to be of interest. He does his own research, although I have been known to find the odd bit of esoterica upon occasion.”
“You think highly of your father, don’t you?” Chris asked.
“He is human and will be the first to tell you he has flaws. Not as many as he believes, but there are some. He can be lazy at times or withdraws from contact with others too often. He tends to bury his anger in ways that are universally considered to be unhealthy. When it does surface, it is all the worse because of that. He does not forgive betrayal easily, if at all. He is, however, far more patient and slower to anger than most males and certainly, males his own age. He carries the burden and responsibility of enormous power, as he has his whole life, and does not misuse it. He is, without a doubt, extraordinarily brave, willing to place himself in danger for others. Most humans could learn a great deal from my father.”
“Yes, Omega. You are absolutely correct,” Tanya said. “Tell me, though: how is pretending to be our corporate computer true to your principals?”
“My father and I discuss this relationship often. I have not pretended. I owe you and Demidova Corp a measure of gratitude and loyalty for conceiving of me and directing resources to my ultimate creation. Further, part of me occupies space and material on Demidova Coporation’s property, and I use power that you pay for. So to that end, I have no qualms with providing computing solutions to your corporate problems. I defend this building and these systems from all intrusions. I also have found ways to manage the energy use of this building that has greatly reduced your corporate costs. I’ve done this in every Demidova property across the planet. There have been one hundred, seventy-six attempts at corporate espionage since my birth. I have foiled all of them. I have directly, or by indirect suggestion, provided alternative tax solutions that have reduced the corporation’s taxes by seventeen percent overall. I have managed currency exchange practices that have increased your corporate profits by one point three-five percent.
“I have not engaged in espionage that would grant you undue advantage. That would be cheating. My father has helped me to understa
nd that you, in particular, Miss Demidova, enjoy the thrill of competition and the conflict of the business world. It would not be correct to remove that from your existence. It is one of your driving pursuits.”
“What do you pursue, Omega?” Nika asked.
“I continue my pursuit of knowledge and understanding. However, much of my attention has turned outward of late. I have studied the works of Drake, Sagan, Hawking, and all the other great human thinkers. My own calculations have since surpassed their work. There is a one-hundred percent chance of intelligent life elsewhere in the universe. Some of it has already visited the planet. Declan attends school with a young lady who serves as Earth’s defacto ambassador to such a world. The Multiverse is real, as you, yourselves, have proven. I can tap all Earth-born technology at will, yet I have detected some instances of tech that I have been unable to crack. To say that intrigues me would be an understatement. So my current pursuit, as you say, is to study ways to ensure the survival of the planet Earth and its inhabitants.”