Inhuman

1





“WAKE UP!”

Old-timer hadn’t even opened his eyes before the visage of Aldous Gibson appeared before him in his mind’s eye. “What the hell?” he whispered as he opened his eyes, the real world and his darkened bedroom suddenly appearing, with Gibson’s face still overlaid on top.

“Craig, don’t speak. You’ll wake Daniella. I’m waiting for you on your roof. Get dressed and come out. I need to speak with you urgently.”

Old-timer’s eyes were wide; nevertheless, he felt a grogginess that was unfamiliar to him. He’d been woken from the wrong sleep cycle, so his usual refreshed morning demeanor was elusive. He pulled his legs out of the bed, making sure not to wake his wife, then pulled a pair of loose-fitting pants on before heading out the front door of the old-style farmhouse he shared with her.

The night was almost perfectly still. The sky was clear and speckled with stars, and Old-timer had to shake his head to make sure he wasn’t caught in a dream. He checked the time readout on his mind’s eye; it read 3:15 a.m. “What the hell?” he repeated to himself. He looked overhead at the edge of his roof, then let the multitude of appendages unfurl from his torso, dozens of tiny fingers grabbing the tiles like suction cups. Once he had a good grip, he picked himself up, swung over the top, and set himself down on the dark rooftop, just a few meters from the chief of the governing council.

Aldous’s eyes narrowed as he watched Old-timer’s unorthodox entrance. “Very interesting,” he commented. “Sticking with your new enhancements, I see,” he observed as Old-timer’s suctioned wire-like appendages released their hold on the roof. “No pun intended.”

The appendages furled back up into Old-timer’s torso and melded perfectly with his skin, as if by magic, allowing the post-human to again take on his distinct, human appearance. “They’re useful. It’s a good upgrade. What’s going on, Aldous?”

“You didn’t wake Daniella, did you?”

“No. She’s still sleeping, which is what I should be doing. What the heck is so—”

“I’m sorry, old friend,” Aldous replied, his smile returning as he apologized, holding his hands up as if to plead for forgiveness and understanding. “I wouldn’t disturb you unless it was of the utmost importance. There are things happening that…” he trailed off, not sure how to word what needed to be said. “Well, they just can’t happen, Craig. They can’t.”

Old-timer blinked hard, then scratched the back of his head, nearly flummoxed. “Well, Aldous, you’ve certainly got my attention. Mind sharing what’s going on?”

Aldous stepped away from Old-timer and began to pace slowly, almost nervously. He spoke again, folding his arms and bowing his head as he uttered, “Do you remember…do you remember the day I arranged for you to mentor James?”

“Mentor?” Old-timer held his hands up before smiling at the absurdity. “No one can mentor James—maybe the A.I., but certainly no human. I do remember the day you arranged for me to work with him though.”

“Semantics,” Aldous retorted, waving away Old-timer’s point. “That day, I asked you to do something for me. Do you remember what it was?” Aldous asked, his eyes scrutinizing.

Old-timer took in a deep breath and searched his memory. “Yeah. You wanted me to try keep him focused on terraforming, to keep him away from getting too curious about Planck technology.”

“That’s right,” Aldous said, his voice soaked with relief. “I’m glad you remember.”

“But, look, Aldous, don’t you think we’re a little beyond that now?” Old-timer asked. “James and the A.I. are...well, they’re way beyond us. They’ve transcended to a new level. If you’re suggesting that I try to distract a mind like that—”

“No,” Aldous interrupted, “of course not. That would be impossible. But, as for the Planck…well, that knowledge will be new to him. Enhanced or not, James has to know how dangerous it is.”

“The A.I. already knows—”

“No, he really doesn’t,” Aldous interrupted again, waving away Old-timer’s contention. “Besides, he’s bound by a promise to me, just like you are. He has, however, related to me that he won’t prevent James, or this new Trans-human intelligence, from uncovering the true nature of our universe.”

“Because he obviously believes James can handle it,” Old-timer observed.

Aldous’s lips tightened into a grim line. “There’s no room for belief here, Craig. Listen, I’m not asking you to deceive him. What I’m asking you, my friend, is to be the voice of reason he needs. He won’t listen to me. The A.I. is obviously planning to carry out its mandate to transfer power to a more powerful A.I. and believes knowledge can only be good. And James is being carried away by his own enthusiasm and genius. I’m afraid there’s nothing stopping them now, Craig...and that’s something we should be very concerned with.”