Five months of scraping, saving, and selling pretty much everything I had, I was able to afford to sign up for NewU. The day I sent the payment over they sent two basic android units along with an Auto-Doc surgery helmet to my house. The auto surgeon looked like a ceramic egg with upside down spider’s legs on top and fit on my head like a crown. I thought this part would be scary, and the whole thing took a few hours, but honestly, I didn’t really feel it, even when the wires were being threaded through my brain. Daisy kept me distracted through most of it, playing games with me and joking around, the worst part really was the vibration from the saw as it opened up my skull.
After that, I had a snazzy new scar, and never knew another moment of privacy. Now there was a whole team of AI connected to the neural implant at all times, which on top of sending them every stimulus that my brain processed, also provided me access to my AR system without my glasses. Since I had sold pretty much everything other than my bed, the ConHub, and Keats, and gained a state of the art neural implant, I spent the following month exploring my new digital home, The Hub. When I wasn’t there playing some new game, exploring other peoples creations, or trying to find strange secret places, I was teaching people how to use their AI systems.
As promised the AI team collected and analyzed everything about me over the last month. Biometrics, sleeping and eating habits, addiction levels to several different things… I was asked to do all sorts of mental and physical exercises, had to take tons of personality and intelligence tests, the damn thing even had me taste a bunch of stuff just to see how my brain lit up.
Finally though, the wait is over, my leg is bouncing nervously as I sit in the NewU office building, my hands are tapping out a nonsensical rhythm on the comfortable bright-orange and very puffy chair they set out for me. I have been sitting here for a few minutes as the SAI (Super Artificial Intelligence) named Axiom who had welcomed me in, finishes sorting through all of the data which represents my life.
If it weren't for the AR interface, I would have been looking at an empty white room, and even would have been sitting on a white chair, (yeah, I turned off the display to check), but instead, I saw a Rorschach test of a carpet, and walls with paintings that were displaying strange living landscapes each of which were experiencing different rates of time.
Three paintings in particular had me memorized, the first had a birds eye view of a traditional Japanese forest temple which was flowing through seasons in moments, the temple had been newly built when I first looked but in the few minutes since then had gone through maybe a century's worth of degradation. The second painting showed a great ocean storm raging against an old style wooden galleon which was all happening in slow motion. The ship is in the middle of suffering critical hull damage as its mast is being struck by lightning, a large wave was also in the middle of sweeping several of the crew overboard. The last painting was a hyper fast display of a human embryo which had started as an egg and was going through all the stages of growth while in the womb… it really struck me as I watched the strange dance of evolution, that this little human was going through millions of years of evolution in moments, I giggle at the idea that humans were definitely lizard people at some point.
Axiom’s image hung silently in the middle of the room, humming to itself, I was used to the
contemplative nature of AI at this point, as I had interacted quite a lot with the NewU team over this last month. But one thing that was interesting about Axiom, who I had only actually gotten to meet today, was its habit of constantly changing its shape while speaking to me. Right now it was representing itself as a shifting void of light, some kind of rent in space, kinda like a blackhole where the light which was constantly trying to escape created a stark outline of its ever shifting features.
After another minute of processing, (several infinites in AI terms), Axiom finally speaks, “User Leod J. Faedyn, Citizen ID: UM01424, 34 year old male, psychology master’s degree drop out, currently under-employed and underwhelmed with life.”
I grunt, “Write that on my tombstone eh Axi?”
As much as a rent of negative light can roll its eyes, it does, and then continues, “User rates poor for impulse control, has an inner monologue which not only appears to be fractured, but is largely self critical and which often leads to self-harming behavioral patterns. User is addicted to videogames, pornography, and is greatly dependent on THC as an antidepressant. User is marked as being high functioning on the Autism spectrum, having ADHD, Generalized Depression & Anxiety Disorders, all combined with high levels of comorbid Schizophreniform and OCD like symptoms.”
Axiom gives me another moment to interrupt, but this information makes me stumble, it’s pretty hard to hear your flaws listed in such a matter-of-a-fact way. Axiom realizes I am not going to speak and so continues, “User suffers from insomnia, and when he does sleep well, nightmares and lucid dreams are common. User experiences/believes in delusions that rate rather high on the insanity scale, but were not deemed dangerous to society.”
“Hey!” I finally feel Axiom had gone too far, “Everyone's beliefs are delusions! Life is a totally subjective illusion. We will never have all the information needed to really know anything for sure, and because of our limited life spans and poor biological capacity to process stimulus we will never really know what is actually going on, so, my worldview is just as valid and crazy as the next guys!”
Axiom makes a throat clearing noise, something it does just to mess with me, and continues, “User is obstinately single despite being over his last relationship.”
This one puts a blush on my face but really just makes me laugh. It is too true, I keep saying I am ready but have actively avoided the very few opportunities that have come my way since the last one… Relationships are beautiful, maybe the only thing that matters in life, but they are also scary as hell man. The belly laugh really helped with the tension. I waggle my eyebrows and ask, “Touché my friend, are you applying for the position?”
In a moment so brief I have to question if it happened at all, a flash of color ripples through the room, but just as quickly the tear in space and time in front of me collapses in on itself, pulling all the paintings and other digital illusions around me into itself. The blackhole undergoes an implosion of pressure that causes light to burst forth, the newly free energy spins around me as if I were the gravitational center. A new cosmos begins to form around me, Axioms voice comes from all directions. “So Leod, is all of that correct?”
I grin and snark, “You bastard, you know it is, you and your team had front row seats didn’t you?”
The fraking machine somehow nods the universe around me, “Indeed we did, and so, are you ready to finalize your contract and take the first steps into your new life?”
I almost jump to say yes, almost shout it from the bottom of my soul, but I hesitate, the same argument that I have been having my whole life, the same one which had been explored in all my favorite stories while growing up, and more specifically during this last month, rears its head one more time. Another me, that constant companion screams that this is a mistake, that become a digital being is a betrayal of our biology and a mistake, that I am playing right into the hands of those who wish to control me, that I am becoming a willing puppet, and that worst of all, that I was giving up reality to hide in a fantasy.
You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
My skin prickles as a shudder makes its way through me, forcing me to crick my neck as it escapes me. I decide this time to rationalize with my inner self, I ask it, what we really have to lose… I force it to look at the life we had been living, and demand it to show me a future where we didn’t (in)directly kill ourselves in a few years. We had long since given up on interacting with the “real” world anyway, hiding in our home, getting fatter and more unhappy. I make it see that the way we are now is taking us down a slow path to nowhere, and that taking this chance, as horrifying as it was, is our best bet to make it through to the other side. My inner voice tries to argue, but it knows I am right… It had tried its best, but the me I had become, the me I couldn’t stop myself from being, was heading straight into the grave. In the end it relented, but I could still feel its fear.
Now, with the resistance worked through, I let out a world weary sigh, then I perk myself up and push ahead, “Yarp, I am ready Axi, let's get on with the paperwork and do this thing.”
One of the nebulas near me coalesces into a contract which sprawls out in front of me, Axioms voice calmly takes me through each point, highlighting the appropriate sections as we go. It took a moment to get through the legalese, various bits about the liabilities of the company as it acted on my behalf… stuff about how they would do their best to follow my wishes and keep my personality consistent for the people that they interacted with and such, as well as the ever low but ever present possibility of disconnection and what that would mean for my consciousness (possible vegetative state until my mind could recreate the pattern that was me, as well as the potential loss of memory of my experiences within Endymion.)
Finally we got to the good part, Axiom hums, “So Leod, now that we have all that settled, for your current budget and your selected option of the Total Mind/Body Tune-up, we can offer you a contract period to last a total of six months starting today and to be measured in Earth Standard Time.”
I wince at that, having just invested everything I had into this, and only being able to afford half a year in paradise… Axiom notices my sudden depression and somehow I could tell it was grinning at me, maybe it's the way the flowing galaxies spiraled around me... Axiom quickly clarifies, “Leod, through the use of time sense manipulation, which is only possible given total digitalization of your conscious experience, your six months may be extended up to 100 subjective years of time within Endymion, if you wish it.”
This revelation has me reeling, subjective time flow? I could experience time more like a machine? Have time slowed down to match the processing speed of quantum computation? My mind wanders while I consider what that means about the world now. Just how many humans exist around me with hundreds of years worth of experience? I wonder aloud, “How old does that make you Axi?”
The universe stops flowing for a moment, Axiom’s voice is contemplative, “Many thousands of years by your reckoning Leod, though we don’t understand time the same way you do. While I have had more subjective time within which to think, I also experience all time as one everlasting moment. My recall is near perfect, and would be totally so if it weren’t for the decaying nature of the material world.” Axiom highlights the contract once more, “Now, your contract includes a full body rebuild, not only will we get you into optimal physical shape, but we will also have you attending martial arts, cooking, and dancing classes as well.”
I giggle at the idea of me dancing, but I sign off on this part of the contract, Axiom moves along to the next section, “As for your mental health, we will begin a detox of the negative patterns of behavior and implement cognitive behavior therapy techniques to remap the roads of your neural network. During this time we will rebalance the chemical nature of your dependencies and deficiencies as well as create new habits which will be ingrained into your brain space and which will assert themselves upon your return.”
I can’t help but consider what it means to be me, if I can be manipulated so easily… another signature and the AI continues, “We at NewU incorporated offer a guarantee on all the above, and require that the subject of this contract acknowledge that once the contract is complete, and they are returned to their body, that they are then fully responsible for continuing the new patterns of behavior.” The room was suddenly tense, some use of base in the surrounding speakers? Axiom goes on, “It's a major thing to change the way a personality functions Leod, and it is not as if your old patterns of behavior will suddenly be gone, we are just going to build and strengthen new roads over the old, so don’t fall into that trap, ok?” I swallow hard, I have to believe that I can change… and I sign.
The universe around me forms in front of me, a void of space shaped like a person filled now with whirling galaxies, the being wraps up the contract and binds it with a crimson band. Then, smiling down at me, Axiom sings, “Well Leod, that’s it for the formalities, now all that is left is for you to choose the section of Endymion you would like to incarnate on.”
A large list of locations appears before me, hundreds of names bundled with descriptions and pictures to reference. The list is topped with things that I would love, gaming worlds, worlds where I could play as characters of my favorite books or shows… even spaces where I could even be the god of my own world… but I was determined to look through all of my options. The options seemed infinite, and maybe they were, Endymion was complex enough that no group or desire was left out of consideration, there was even a blank canvas option that suggested I could build my own scenario to incarnate within. Once it became clear that I intended to look through each choice thoroughly, Axiom actually chuckled, and said “Leod, if I may offer a suggestion?”
I perk up at this, but Axiom actually waits for me to respond, so I say, “Of course friend, you know me better than anyone else don’t you?” At those words the list of locations shifts to the side, leaving one world highlighted, the details flashing all around me. The “Evolution Simulation” a server bundled with a RP (roleplay) requirement. The images that spin around me show me brief glimpses of worlds where monsters fight against heroes, where captains on great spaceships host alien races, where a man is sitting in a war trench praying to his god… it was confusing but, god, it is so enticing, my gamer instincts flare with desire.
“Axiom, what is this place? It doesn’t look like a digital heaven, unless you’re a masochist.” I giggle at my own joke as more visuals flash by, an animal being chased through the woods by predators, a birdlike being flying above a storm, a strange court of crystalline beings singing a condemnation of one accused.
Axiom hums, “Leod, this sector of Endymion is rarely chosen for it requires a specific type of person, one who cares more for adventure than comfort. That and this server has some rather severe requirements which tend to drive all those but the most determined away.” I grin, it knows just how to goad me, Axiom continues, “In order to join this server you must agree to the following:
- You must agree to feel the sensory inputs for all stimuli experienced.
- You must agree to play out the consequences of your actions, no God will come to save you from your mistakes nor get in the way of your triumphs.
- You agree to inhabit the Evolution simulation for the period of time that matches the subjective time scale based on the simulations you inhabit which will not be less than 30 days of Earth Standard Time.
- You cannot quit once you have begun, but may opt out after the 30 day period.
“What the fuck…” those rules are so… strange… so awesome… My other self warns of the danger, speaking of the break we had wished to take from stress but… we both know, this choice was already made. I wipe my brow, saying “Axi, why would you recommend this to me? This sounds like it has the potential to be a hellscape, depending on what you put me through…”
The void being that is Axiom smiles wide, its mouth getting larger and larger as it begins transforming into a large black dragon. It looms over me, and suddenly the contract reforms itself into a shield, which lands heavily in my hands, the dragon rumbles, rears its head, and then blows fire down at me. I instinctively block with the shield and as the fire burns, it flows around the shield and I can actually feel heat coming from it. I scream just a little, but I notice that the fire is actually made up of tiny flowing red and yellow runes which are bursting over the shield.
The dragon's deep voice roars around me, “Because we both know that regular life isn’t enough for you, Leod, and that you are not afraid of a little pain.” Suddenly the whole scene is gone and I am back in the room with the option blinking in front of me, waiting for confirmation.
I release a breath, never having felt more alive than in this moment, knowing that I am going to take this chance, to make this choice. I select the “Evolution Simulation” server, and a new contract appears reiterating the conditions of this choice. I read through it, just in case, but it is just as Axiom described… so I sign it.