The Children of New Earth

by Ehtasham, Talha

  I was in shock what what he’d just said. Never in my wildest dreams could I have hoped to study the fascinating field of simulated consciousness in such vivid detail. And here I was in a dream, doing just that.

  The professor continued. “Through exhaustive research of the source code, this field has expanded into a multitude of applicable industries ranging anywhere from food production to entertainment.”

  The students laughed, though I could only imagine why.

  “AI is in your cell phones, your computers, your cars, in supermarkets and malls, and in the very factories that produce consumer goods. Using mathematical analysis, these machines can now streamline production and determine the most efficient solution to just about any problem. And that brings us to today, in the year 2037. Scientists all over the world are now working to refine this technology into something that can serve us on a global scale.”

  By now, I suspected that my dreams were more than the subconscious creations of my own mind. It was very possible that the professor was speaking about real scientific events that had occurred before I was born. It had also become apparent that just before the war, AI tech was common enough to be studied in a university and applied to everyday society.

  For the next hour, the professor continued with a general introduction to advanced artificial intelligence theory. His words became increasingly more complex as he went on, implying that this class was meant for high-level engineering students. Everyone around me had begun to take copious notes full of equations, diagrams, and code. I was able to understand most of the material, but my own knowledge in this particular field was still limited. I spent the last part of the lecture in complete confusion, frustrated that I couldn’t comprehend the ideas of this world-famous scientists.

  After about an hour, the professor took a quick glance at his watch. “It seems we have run out of time. For our next lecture, please read the article comparing finite-state to infinite-state. You’ll find a link on the course page.”

  The students chatted excitedly amongst themselves as they bustled out of the room. I picked up my backpack and books, as if out of habit, and stood up. The boy I was talking to earlier turned again.

  “That was fascinating, wasn’t it?!”

  “It was, but I found it kinda hard to follow.”

  He smiled. “You think? I found it all to be very elementary. Can’t wait to get to the harder stuff.”

  “You’re so modest, how do you do it?” I asked sarcastically.

  “I just dream big. Just you wait, one day I’m going to code an AI so advanced it’ll run the world.”

  “That’s quite an ambitious goal you’ve got there.”

  “There is nothing wrong with indulging in fantasies, as long as you remember to return to reality.”

  I smiled, but couldn’t help but wonder if I’d heard that somewhere before. “Hey, what’d you say your name was again?”

  “Oh, it’s John. John Hovian.”

  In my surprise, I didn’t know how to respond. Before I could come up with a single word, I felt a tap on my shoulder and heard Cora’s familiar voice.

  “Thran, wake up.”

  I sat up in the boat, and saw the vast ocean ahead. I turned around to see the others looking toward a huge land mass on the horizon.

  Cora turned to me. “How was your lecture?”

  “Confusing,” I answered. “Were you there for the whole thing?”

  “I caught the last part, fascinating concept.”

  “I think…I think I was talking to Dr. Hovian.”

  “Yeah I noticed. From what I know about him, he was a very ambitious guy in his youth.”

  “But wait, does that mean these dreams I’ve been having…are they based on real events? How is that possible?”

  “Must have something to do with your power,” she said, not making eye contact. “You can manipulate time in the real world, maybe you can travel through it subconsciously.”

  I pondered this for some time. I was sure this couldn’t be natural. People don’t relive past events in their dreams, especially if they weren’t even born yet. There had to be a reason for it, there’s no way it was normal. But I had to admit, given the circumstances surrounding my life, ‘normal’ was a relative concept. As our destination got closer, I reluctantly put off these questions for another day.

  We finally came ashore at the tip of the peninsula. Ahead of us was nothing but sand for about half a mile.

  “According to the map, there used to be a town just past this beach,” Rachel said.

  “Do you think that’s where the anarchists are hiding?” I asked.

  “There is nothing alive out there,” Mark said.

  “I don’t mean to be rude, but your sensors haven’t been the most reliable recently,” Lynn said.

  “None taken, I merely mean that either there truly is nothing out there or…”

  “Or it’s an army of super-Demons,” Cora finished.

  I looked across the sandy expanse, surveying the landscape. The sand was mostly static except for the thin upper layer that shifted with the wind. The usual foul smell was masked by a salty breeze, and we heard nothing but the soft wind and little waves. It was so quiet that for a moment I forgot about the ruined state of the world; it all seemed so far away now.

  Aaron first stepped forward and motioned for us to follow. As we did so, I found myself actually hoping that we’d find something, one way or another. Having my questions answered was more important than safety, a very concerning notion once I thought about it. But people think and act differently when they are in an unsafe place. Logic is overtaken by instinct.

  We were about halfway across the beach when whole peninsula suddenly began to shake. The sand shifted in such a way that a large circle, almost twenty feet wide, was drawn around us.

  “Get out of the way!” Lynn yelled.

  But before the rest of us could react, the ground opened up. I tried to jump towards safety, but was only able to grab the ledge as the hole opened up. Lynn shifted into a bird and the others cried out as they descended into the darkness below, their voices quickly fading. I looked up to see Mark float to safety beside Lynn, who shifted back into human form and hurried to help me up. I began to smell some kind of gas coming from inside the pit, and I found myself struggling to keep my eyes open.

  “Thran, you have to climb, help me out here!”

  “I…I can’t…”

  I attempted to push myself up, but it was too hard to breathe. The last thing I heard before losing consciousness was Lynn’s voice crying out as my hand slipped from her grasp.

  I awoke in a bright room, squinting against the light as I stood up. My vision was blurry, and I could only make out the colors black and white. I looked down and shut my eyes again in an effort to regain my full senses. After a moment, I opened slowly and allowed myself to adjust to the brightness.

  The others had awoken, and were pacing around me. There was no door, only four glass walls behind which there was nothing but darkness. The room was fairly large, about forty feet on each side. A very bright ball of light hung from the white ceiling, several feet above us. As I stood up, I could see my reflection on the shiny, white floor.

  “I told you, there’s nothing there,” Aaron said. “It’s just darkness, I can’t even tell where it ends.”

  “How long have we been here?” I asked as I approached.

  “Maybe an hour?” Isaac answered.

  “Don’t suppose you could’ve stopped time and pushed us out of the way?” Aaron asked angrily.

  “Sorry, it happened too fast,” I said apologetically. “I tried to but as soon as the ground gave way it broke my concentration.”

  “What’s done is done I guess,” Isaac said. “And your friend Lynn is still up there right?”

  “So is Mark,” I added. “Don’t worry, we’ll find a way out of this.”

  Suddenly we heard a loud bang. We turned to see Rachel was trying to use her orb to break through the
glass. She molded it into some kind of battering ram, and was repeatedly pounding it against the glass. Her strikes became weaker and weaker, until finally the orb began to lose shape and fell to the ground. Rachel tried to lift it again, but without success.

  “So, uh, we’re trapped,” she said, breathing heavily. “Not sure if I told you, but I have this issue with confined spaces and I’m pretty sure it’s affecting my telekinesis.”

  “Pretty sure we all do,” Aaron answered, continuing to look for a way out.

  “Does anyone else have a headache?” Cora asked, massaging her temples.

  “I feel like you would know if we had headaches.” I answered.

  “No, that’s the thing, I can’t hear any of your thoughts anymore.”

  “You listen to our thoughts…like, all the time?”

  “Not ALL the time.”

  I wasn’t convinced, but it didn’t really bother me either way. Besides, we had bigger problems to deal with. It wasn’t difficult to see a pattern. I couldn’t use my power to escape the trap on the beach, Aaron couldn't see past the darkness surrounding our glass prison, and Cora couldn’t read our minds. Even Rachel couldn’t control her orb anymore.

  “I could be wrong, but there’s something, or someone else, down here,” I said. “And it’s stopping us from using our powers.”

  A sudden clapping noise came from the darkness. We all jumped to face the source of the sound. After a few moments, an older man, accompanied by two others who looked to be our age, emerged from the darkness, the light of the room shining upon them. The man had dark hair with hints of gray. He was wearing unusually clean and well-fitting clothing. Beside him were one boy and one girl. The girl had a childish face, but her height and figure suggested she was at least a teenager. The boy looked very similar, and I suspected that the two might be related.

  “Congratulations! You figured it out!” The man said.

  He then reached into his pocket and took out a remote. With the push of a button, the glass walls lowered and the lights to the whole room switched on. I was taken aback when I saw the sea of people that surrounded us. The glass prison was on an elevated platform, so I was able to see the entire crowd. There must’ve been hundreds of them, all staring at us with glowing curiosity in their eyes. The room itself was much larger than I’d originally assumed. The walls were lined with weapons, clothing, training equipment, supplies, and even photographs.

  The man approached the platform and introduced himself. “My name is Father Cameron. You can call me Cameron, or Father, or Father Cameron.”

  His voice echoed heavily throughout the room.

  “This here is my son, Michael, and his twin sister, Micah.”

  While the twin thing was interesting, I was more concerned about whether to see this man as an ally or the anarchists’ leader. I could tell everyone here, except perhaps Cameron himself, was a Neogen. I then found myself wondering whether he had his own mind-reader somewhere in the crowd.

  “What do you want?” Aaron asked in a mildly hostile tone. “What’s with that trap on the beach?”

  “Now, I am sorry about that,” he said kindly. “Can’t be too careful what with those Demons lurking about. But I want you all to know that you are welcome as guests here. The New Generation is a family to us, and we take care of our own.”

  “I appreciate that, but why keep us in this box?” Rachel asked. “And what happened to our powers?”

  “Again, can’t be too careful. We just had to make sure you weren’t dangerous, and after some observation we deemed you to be simple Neogens in need of rest. And as for your powers, you have Raphael to thank for that,” he said, looking above us.

  We followed his gaze to see another Neogen standing on a thin metal bridge that extended across the width of the room. He was wearing a dark blue t-shirt and a black leather jacket, and his hair was black and spiky. He gave us a little wave and nodded.

  “Your powers should return to normal shortly,” Cameron reassured us. “However, we have a policy here. Your abilities cannot be used for unfair advantages or to harm one another. I believe in nurturing one’s natural talent, but I am strongly against the strong preying on the weak.”

  Some cheers of approval could be heard from the crowd. But then, the slowly-growing atmosphere of trust was abruptly shattered.

  “Did you…kill my parents?” Cora asked calmly.

  The room was quiet, and we all looked at her nervously, then back at Cameron.

  “Now, where would you get an idea like that?” he asked.

  “We found anarchists in Philadelphia. They were all infected or dead, but they knew about this Sanctuary,” she explained. “We found my Parents there, left for dead as Hollows.

  “We are not anarchists,” Cameron changed his tone. “We have an ideology that these extremists have warped and twisted into some kind of violent cult.”

  “Then how come we’ve never heard of you?” Aaron stepped in.

  “We’ve kept ourselves discreet, out of trouble.” Michael answered defensively. “The only anarchists you’ve encountered are the violent ones, so naturally you’ve assumed all of us are like that. They strayed from our path a long time ago, so they were exiled from our Sanctuary.”

  “I started this organization - whatever you want to call it - to provide a safe haven for the next generation of humans,” Cameron explained. “As tragic as it is, I don’t believe they can coexist with the Parents and still unlock their true potential; they need special care and attention to hone their new skills. Before the communications network went down, we had new members every day from nearby Sanctuaries; all came voluntarily. We never resort to violence against those who do not share our beliefs. You need only to look into my mind to see that I am telling the truth,” he directed this last request to Cora.

  I saw her pause before closing her eyes and taking in a deep breath. She remained this way for some time, as if she was scanning the mind of every single person in the room, looking for any indication that Father Cameron was lying. When she finally opened her eyes and exhaled, she gave him a nod. The whole crowd let out a collective sigh.

  It was then that it occurred to me that these people didn’t want any conflict. They didn’t want to fight, even though they were a veritable army against the six of us. I had seen so much violence recently that it was a strange feeling to actually be safe. I also realized that in my confusion, I’d forgotten something.

  “So, now that we’ve established you’re not going to kill us, we should let you know - “

  “Yes, your pet bird and robot friend just arrived,” Micah interrupted. “They’re sitting up there.”

  We looked up to see Lynn and Mark sitting on a pipe near the ceiling. They hovered down next to us and Lynn shifted back into human form. The crowd murmured excitedly among themselves. Apparently they’d never seen a shapeshifter before.

  “Pet?” Lynn said, brushing a feather out of her hair.

  “My bad, you’re not a bird after all,” Micah said, clearly impressed.

  “Lynn, this is - “

  “I know, I heard most of it,” she said. “I don’t like it, but if Cora trusts them, I trust them.”

  “Now then,” Cameron said in his normal, cheerful tone. “Michael and Micah will show you to your room. Don’t worry, it’s much nicer than the one you were in just now.”

  We stepped off the platform in relief. Though our mission to find the anarchists was only somewhat successful, we were happy enough to get a respite from the dangers of the outside world.

  Just before turning away, Cameron addressed us one more time, “Oh, and welcome to the Neogen Sanctuary.” He then continued to walk past the crowd that had begun to cheer as they welcomed us into their home.

  Chapter 12

  We were given a large room with six beds arranged in a circle and a heating unit in the center. I was surprised that they’d have so much extra space, given the myriad of other inhabitants. Michael explained how this Sanctuary was
used as a military base for a global war in in 2020s. Only a few people knew about it, and his father happened to be one of them. It was the home of a small city’s worth of personnel. The base had several entrances, different levels, and extended about a mile off the coast of the peninsula. It was also equipped with training rooms, laboratories, living quarters, recreational areas, and a plethora of other useful facilities. The hole we’d fallen into earlier was actually an old silo for nuclear missiles.

  I also learned about the Neogens’ powers. Michael and Micah, the twins, were psychically connected since birth. Not only could they read each other’s thoughts, they could utilize each other’s senses, even if they were miles apart. Micah could be out scouting in town and Michael would be able to stay here in Sanctuary and still see, hear, smell, and feel everything his sister was. The two were even working on a kind of visual projection, where they could have normal face-to-face conversations even if they were in two different places.

  Other Neogens had different forms of psychokinesis. They controlled various elements such as water, earth, air, and, most rarely, fire. Others were different forms of telepathic like Cora and the twins. Some could summon force fields, duplicate themselves, and even speak to animals. It was an amazing variety of abilities that I’d never seen before, and gave me a much better understanding of the power my generation had.

  For the next couple days, Rachel and Aaron spent their time in training rooms, working on target practice, combat, and agility courses. Lynn spent most of her time in the room, with the various books she carried around but never before had the chance to read. Cora made herself at home in one of the labs, aided by Mark. I spent most of my time there as well, but would occasionally leave to explore the rest of the Sanctuary. There were often announcements over the intercom system; speakers were set up all over the base, probably used for important news back when this was still a military base. Now they told us inventory status updates, if someone was needed in a certain area, when it was time to eat or sleep, and various other kinds of information. I found myself believing more and more that this could be a permanent residence for us. I had no idea what had become of my home, and Cora’s Sanctuary was overrun. Not knowing what to do next, it gave me some comfort knowing I had a place where I belonged.