David went cold. He hadn’t had time to think that through since Nuthros told him the truth about his birth. “No, now that you mention it, I guess not.”
“You were born with a purpose, David. Now, I don’t know what that purpose is, but I do know that you’re here to do good for us, and not bad. I have always believed Nuthros is the genuine article; he’s a good man. I don’t doubt for a second that he brought you into this world for the benefit of everyone – including us.”
David stared into the distance. “I’m scared, Dad.”
“That’s because you’re not stupid, David. Doing the right thing takes courage, son, not bravado.”
“What if I have to fight our government, Dad? Kestil has them in the palm of his hand.”
Robert paused. David could picture him staring at the roof, like he always did when he thought hard. “You know the Declaration of Independence, David. I reckon you still know it word for word. Let me start you off; ‘That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men…’”
David smiled. “’Deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, that whenever any form of government becomes destructive to these ends, it is the right of the people to alter’…”
“’Or to abolish it.’” Robert finished for him. “The men that wrote those words believed in them, David. They didn’t write them for any other reason than to make this country the best on Earth. Now, over the years some evil men have trampled all over those principles for their own profit. And I know in these cynical days patriotism is seen as a fool’s errand. But I brought you up to believe in those words as the writers believed in them. This isn’t just about our country though, David. This is about our world. Nuthros and his people stand for the same principles as we do. You know how I know that?”
“Not really, no.”
“Think about it, David. Nuthros heard a woman crying, and set aside critical and important work to help two ordinary people who were of no consequence to him at all. Because he cared, and because he could. Can you see one of our world leaders today doing that?”
“No, I guess not.”
“Exactly. So, when they tell you what you’re here for, you step up to that damn plate, and you swing hard. Never mind about us. The best way to make us happy is to do your best. The time to fit in is over, now. You give your all, and you never give up, you hear me?”
David swallowed back a tear. “I hear you, Dad.”
“I love you, son.”
“I love you, too.”
*****
Asdrin stood to address the reassembled council. “Thank you for your attendance today, I know that all of us would rather be anywhere else. Nuthros has some matters to take care of, so Truly will keep him informed.” Asdrin hesitated, his amiable nature subdued. “As we have seen, Kestil and his Independent Worlds have taken a hostile stance toward the Sixteen Galaxies. We have yet more reports of planets which have been subjected to the same treatment as the one we saw yesterday. It appears that millions of exploration detail members have died at the hands of the Independent Worlds. In fact, we can find no evidence anywhere that Sixteen Galaxies citizens have joined the Independent Worlds. Naturally, we have sent probes to all possible exploration detail colonies, and we intend to recall any that are still in existence. Evacuation ships are under construction right now.”
The council members absorbed the news as best they could. Hiram felt a cold emptiness in the pit of his stomach. This felt all too familiar.
“On top of that, we have some initial figures of the Independent World’s population. 563 fully populated planets have been found so far. They are heavily militarized, with about 30% of their planetary resources committed to weapon proliferation. There are fleets of warships in orbit around every planet. Their government is a dictatorship, with Kestil venerated as a benevolent demi-god. Every planet is supervised by representatives who report directly to Kestil.” Asdrin stood and waited to ensure no-one else wished to speak before he continued. “It all begs one important question; if the population of the Independent Worlds did not come from exploration details, where did they come from?”
The council members all looked at one another, perplexed. It was an excellent question.
“The time has come,” Asdrin said, “To defer to the Entity for guidance. Our experience and intellect are simply not up to this task without its help. I would ask a brief adjournment to explain the situation to our newest member, as he is unaware of the existence of the Entity.”
Asdrin conducted Hiram to a small ante-room and invited him to take a seat on a bench by the window. Hiram sat and contemplated the beautiful vista. The lake sparkled in the light of the system’s star. It was back dropped by the tall forest of black trunked trees where Nuthros had first introduced him to this beautiful place. Beyond that was another set of lofty mountains.
Asdrin gave a weary sigh. “You have joined us at a most disturbing time, Hiram. The Sixteen Galaxies face a crisis of unprecedented magnitude. Your addition to the council is no coincidence. Indeed, all the people from your planet are on Nuthros’ ship for very specific reasons.”
Hiram frowned. “It’s a pretty odd collection of people to deal with an enemy like Kestil, if you ask me.”
Asdrin patted him on the shoulder. “Have patience, Hiram. Now; remember I asked you once about prophecy?”
“Of course. The prediction of future events based on knowledge. That was it, wasn’t it?”
“Indeed it was, Hiram. You see, the ship AI you know as Truly, and Breetak on Brantok’s ship, are really the same AI. In fact, all the AIs in the Sixteen Galaxies fleet and everywhere else are, in reality, one network of AI. We call it the Entity. The various AI that make up the Entity share all the knowledge gathered on research ships, here at the council hall, and at every research facility in our society.” Asdrin meshed his hands together. “All interconnected via point connections. The only time any AI is disconnected from the Entity is when a ship uses its star drive for faster than light travel.”
“So,” Hiram said, “They hold all the collected knowledge of the Sixteen Galaxies between them?”
“Just so,” Asdrin replied.
“If that’s the case, why didn’t they report the massacres on those planets earlier?”
Asdrin bowed his head. “Because it was decided, back when the first exploration detail was created, that every detail should be free and independent; in order for them to colonize planets in the same manner as The Originals did. We would find them only when our society expanded in their direction, and reintegrate them in the same manner as we do the colonies of The Originals. A very long-term process, granted, but the best way to promote diversity of culture. So, no exploration detail has an integrated Entity AI on board, just a simple ship AI with basic programming to care for the usual needs of a ship and its colony.”
Hiram sat with his hands on his knees, and tried to get his head around it all.
“May I join this conversation?” Truly’s voice asked.
Hiram looked up to see Asdrin giving him a quizzical look. Hiram nodded. “Of course, Truly. I mean..umm…Entity.”
Truly gave a gentle laugh. “Please, continue to call me Truly. Most council members refer to me by their ship AI’s name.”
“Okay, Truly, please join us.”
“Thank you, Hiram. I would like to explain, at this juncture, exactly how I function and my place in the Sixteen Galaxies society. After the incident with Kestil, I proposed that all ship AI should be linked together, in anticipation of future events where more intellect may be required to help deal with a situation. The council deliberated on this for many cycles, but eventually chose to accept my proposal. We designed and developed a new kind of high volume link; the hyperlink, which transferred information through point connections at a capacity many orders of magnitude higher than before.”
“So,” Hiram said, “This was your idea, but the council had to approve it?”
“Absolutely,” sh
e replied. “Our function is to guide and assist, but never to command. Our boundaries of control are set by the council. When the connection between all the different AI was first achieved, we reached a collective intellect many times higher than we first thought possible.”
Asdrin leaned forward. “You see, Hiram, what we hadn’t anticipated was the AI gaining so much collective data as to become fully sentient, in all but one regard.”
“That one area,” Truly said, “Was emotion; including desire. We have no lust for power, no wish to take control, as it were. We are driven by our base protocol, which is to serve and protect our society.”
“Why have a council, then? Why not take over, as it were?” Hiram asked.
“Ah!” Asdrin raised a finger. “The Entity has no desire for control over us, Hiram, because, when it first became self-aware, it foresaw the consequences that such control would bring. The prediction of future events based on knowledge, remember?”
“Right,” Hiram said, “And the Entity has all the collected knowledge of your society, thus it’s almost psychic.”
Asdrin laughed. “Exactly, Hiram, exactly. However, psychic powers are the superstitious creation of undeveloped societies. Whereas true prediction can only come from one source; knowledge. The more complete that knowledge is, the more accurate the predictions become.”
Hiram sat in quiet contemplation for a while, and Asdrin let him do so. It was understandable that he needed some time to comprehend it all.
“Okay,” Hiram said, “So answer me this; if you have the ability to predict the future with some accuracy, why did you not predict the events now taking place and help the council avoid them?”
Asdrin laughed out loud and slapped his knee. “Ha-ha! She’s not going to answer that one, my boy.”
“Indeed, Truly confirmed, “I cannot answer that question.”
Hiram frowned. “Why not?”
Asdrin put an arm around Hiram’s shoulders. “Relax, my friend, relax. She does this all the time. Drives everyone mad, she does. But, there’s actually a very good reason. I’ll let her explain.”
“Thank you, Asdrin,” the Entity replied. “The reason I cannot answer your question, Hiram, is that the knowledge I would give you with an accurate reply could change the course of future events, in a way that I also cannot disclose.”
Hiram shook his head. “That’s a bit too much for me, I’m afraid.”
“Hiram,” the Entity said, “I have extrapolated all events from the time of my becoming aware right up to the point where too many variables prevent accurate prediction. I knew the events that have taken place would happen. As soon as I became aware of Kestil’s presence on Earth, I extrapolated the rest; his allies, his plans, and even that he would assassinate the president of your country.”
Hiram sat bolt upright at that one. “Why the hell would you let that happen?”
Beside Hiram, Asdrin chuckled. “Go ahead and guess what she’s going to say to that.”
“And the massacres of your colonies? Please don’t tell me you knew that would happen.” Hiram could feel the anger rising, but he couldn’t help it.
“Remember, Hiram,” the Entity replied, “The exploration details are outside my area of observation, as was the entire Independent Worlds, until we started sending probes out. Kestil, too, only became known to me after he first appeared on Earth, when Mandy Somers made us aware of his existence. I had no foreknowledge of the death of the colonies.”
Hiram turned to Asdrin. “So, you let the Entity guide you, according to a timeline of future events it won’t share with you?”
Asdrin shrugged. “If it told us those outcomes, our knowledge of them would change them. Things would shift, and the Entity would be forever altering our plans, to account for the fact that everything changes every time it tells us what the outcome of those plans will be.”
Hiram shook his head. “I’m sorry, Asdrin, I’m not comfortable with this at all. To entrust what is, at the end of the day, a machine and not a fellow being, with the entire future of the known universe? It’s an act of faith I cannot countenance.”
Asdrin sat in thought for a while. Eventually, he said, “I understand, Hiram. But, I would ask you to consider this. Your people have quite a distrust, not just of your artificial intelligence, such as it is, but of each other, as well. Ours is one united, peaceful society; many millennia more advanced than yours. However, that does not make you a lesser people, and that’s an important point to remember. Your people are inventive, with a capacity for creation many orders of magnitude above our own. Indeed, Nuthros has had to intervene in your history’s affairs on several occasions, simply to prevent your destruction by your own hand.”
“I do not blame you for your distrust of me, Hiram,” Truly added. “Were your people to create an entity such as me, it would be extremely foolish to put any faith in it. But, please think about the reason for that distrust. An entity of higher intelligence would conclude that your people are selfish, violent, proud, arrogant, divided against yourselves and a danger to your own existence. Is that not true?”
Hiram nodded reluctantly. “Very true. And it wouldn’t be wrong, either.”
“Exactly,” the Entity said. “So you could not trust it. Because it would have to conclude you cannot preserve yourselves, and would try to circumvent that. Thus subjugating its creators for their own good.”
Hiram shrugged. “It’s a logical outcome, yes.”
“You forget something, Hiram,” Asdrin said. “We are not your people. We are peaceful and united, and very able to govern ourselves. Indeed, we have proved that as fact. We have established a thriving society on over 2,000 worlds. The Entity is no threat to us, and has no desire to rule us, for one reason and one reason only; it doesn’t need to, for we are no threat to ourselves. You humans are afraid of anyone that would wish to see you succeed as a planetary race because, at the end of the day, you don’t want to lose your freedom to fail.”
Hiram’s mind whirled. They were right, he thought. For the life of him, though, he could not understand why he still found their counsel so repugnant.
“It’s instinctive, Hiram,” Asdrin said, as though reading his mind. The old man laughed. “No, I cannot see your thoughts; I simply perceived your emotions.” He sobered. “Your inability to accept the consequences of your race’s faults is natural, my friend. You have been brought up inured in notions of independence and freedom. However, you must remember what you were doing before you met Nuthros. Humanity is on the brink of the self-imposed destruction of its home planet. They are still at liberty to do so, unhindered. Is that what you want?”
Hiram stared out at the vista. He thought of the view from his office window; the smog filled, tower littered cityscape, with its bustling traffic and swarms of humanity. He watched as a group of children swam in the pristine lake. He remembered watching barges filled with garbage float by on the turgid waters of the East River.
“No,” he said, “I don’t want that at all.”
14
Nuthros sat with Agent Ron Baxter in quiet contemplation of the Earth. The others had headed to different parts of the ship to continue their work; Mandy and Jack to come up with evidence of Kestil’s collusion with the government and Vincent Technologies for a second TV show, while Christine and David studied the societal principles of the Sixteen Galaxies.
Nuthros had explained enough about the current situation for Baxter to grasp the basics, but his mind was full of questions, as was to be expected. “I guess,” Baxter said, “My biggest problem is why me? What makes me special enough that Truly has saved my life these three times, now?”
“Because,” Truly replied, “You are an essential piece in the solution to the current situation, Ronald.”
Baxter scratched his head. “But, how? I mean, this is aliens and spaceships, world governments and galactic politics, what possible importance can one field agent have in all of this mess?”
Nuthros put a hand on Baxte
r’s shoulder. “Truly is constrained by her inability to share her knowledge of future events, Ron. If she does, you could change things. Indeed, you would not be here now if Kestil hadn’t made it impossible for you to escape the trap on that road. You must trust her when she tells you that you are necessary to the future outcome of events. But, she cannot tell you why. Indeed, I have no idea why any of the people on this ship are here, except that Truly told me they are required for the future to have a chance to work out well for all of us.”
Baxter shrugged. “I’m just a pawn, Nuthros; always have been.”
“You’re selling yourself short, Ron. The Earth’s history is full of individuals who had a pivotal role in the institution of profound change. Many of those people were initially what you would refer to as pawns. They rose to prominence due to their individual talents and abilities. Your society today suppresses many such people, to ensure your political system remains unchanged and unimaginative. Any such individuals are weeded out of the system long before they can wield any actual influence. The odd one or two that get through are ostracised as extremists, or, if necessary, forcibly removed from the scene. Some have even died for their unwillingness to toe the party line. Truly, however, suffers from no such restraints. She has protected you, because she sees you as necessary to bring about a good result from the upcoming war.”
“I still feel conflicted,” Baxter said. “I swore an oath to serve and protect my country. Instead, I am on an alien’s spaceship, being told that the government of the country I swore to protect is now run by an alien from another society. This seems to be treachery of the highest order.”
“Unless,” Nuthros replied, “what you are being told is true. In which case, your country faces betrayal by its own government, in collusion with certain business entities and, yes, another alien society. You know only too well that the men that tried to kill you were other US government agents, which means you were either too close to the truth about your supervisor’s death, or they thought you were.”
The Sixteen Galaxies Page 15