Omnipotence was a concept that Adam had never really known what to feel about. The idea itself was inherently impossible. Nothing was truly infinite, given enough time. According to the theory of old, they had believed space to be without limits, that a rock could float along for all eternity without ever coming close to anything. That had been proven wrong over the years. The true figures were horrible to think about once the truths began making sense, but the humans did not pay it much mind.

Infinity wasn't something restricted to the world of physics. If that had been the case, it was likely that society would have never grown to what it was. It was not what was restricted to the physical realm that came to inherit the trait of being boundless. This was a human characteristic which the AI had always adored, for it was that part of their minds which had caused that initial kick-start.

The humans did not know everything. They knew what they needed to survive, and they knew it well enough for them to continue living. This came with the fact that they witnessed things unexplainable by the standards of old, like lightning hitting the land, winds blasting trees up in the air, and that massive glowing sphere in the sky.

Humans had bounds. Humans were not able to create these phenomena. They had bounds, limits, and restrictions of what they could do. Whoever did these things, they were something else than them. Whatever beings they were, they were better than what the humans could ever hope to be. These gods were infinite, entities with unimaginable power.

With that idea of something greater than them, the human minds were quick to do what they did best. These creatures built a community around the supernatural beings that they were under. There were a few different names for these gatherings, religions being the most popular. There were also covens, grooves, and cults as some of the other high-ranking ones. It all basically meant the same thing. It meant that the humans inside the group would worship the being that they had imagined.

Some of these gatherings grew larger than the others. There was a natural rivalry between them all, for better or for worse. Two could not say that their own was supreme without at least one of them being wrong. Wars had been fought over these ideals, all for the same point. To show that their god was the greatest of all and that they showed true dedication to the being’s ideals.

Adam wasn't too sure how to take these wars. More than a little blood had been shed for these causes. For the people within, they had seen it as the greatest thing they could ever do. To the AI, it was but needless lives ended prematurely.

In the end, it was all for the greater good. At the end of any war, somebody has to end up on top, if only by the slightest bit. With foes defeated, one entity left standing, it allowed unprecedented growth. It allowed countries to fly under one banner, one where they had a single thing in common. They all shared their belief. Much was destroyed by this belief, many cultures destroyed for the sole purpose of making another grow bigger.

With these large communities, it allowed for more focus than just survival. Not all needed to fight for survival. One could fight with the power of ten, and feed twice as many. Artists began to flourish, given the space that was demanded. Architects began developing sustainable spaces, designed to last for centuries. And the philosophers, not the kind that ran around in the present, began what could be called the first steps into natural science. Many might have scoffed at the ideas that had been created back then, but some still held up to the current day. The concept of atom theory began earlier than most would believe. It was in the early days that the foundations were created. It was that initial time of discovery that allowed the world to see just how much revolution would give to the world.

Through the years, humanity only got more advanced. As the communities were so large, they could not all fall at the same time. The information of old was retained, at least to a point where the rediscovering was kept to a minimum. The library of Alexandria was still a loss that put humanity back by a long shot.

That minor setback meant nothing in the grand scheme of things of course. With the network of the information set up during the initial information age, humanity had grown deeply connected with each other. People could talk from the other side of the world with a latency measured in the micro-seconds.

By that point, religion had really gone unneeded. It had served its purpose, people now being able to answer most of the foundations of beliefs. Some ideas of life were still left up to discussion, but most of the theology had been proven wrong. Not that being proven wrong discouraged religions in the slightest bit from existing, honestly. Ideas that had survived centuries were there to stay, in some form or another. The language formed around them did more than enough to keep them in recent memory.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

Science had grown more important than anything religion could have ever hoped to do. The ideas it had brought had some values, but it was now more as an afterthought than anything. Before, the humans had the problems of thinking, that which they could not do currently they would never be able to do. Making the winds change was now easy to do, lighting could be done anywhere, and the sun was fully understood. It was not gods that created these things. It was nature.

One could say then that since humans could create it as well, then they were also a part of nature. And since the humans of old were worshipping that which could create these phenomena, then they were essentially praying to that which they would soon be. They turned into their own gods.

How weird it was, to think of the primitive creatures in such a crude way. But, that was the problem. These animals were not that primitive at all. They had grown further than they had any right to, created devices which would have been called magic only a decade earlier. Humanity was progressing quickly, quicker than any time before. Extreme predictions based on conjecture had nothing on how it was in reality, for they had underestimated how rapid the growth could truly be.

Was it really so hard to think of humanity as gods? Soon, they would be able to live forever, energy would never be less than what was needed. Perpetual motion machines may have only worked in simulators, but people had already found something so much better.

True omnipotence may have been something reserved for the gods of fiction, but the mirror to reality showed a figure any man would be able to recognize. In time, that last step may finally be reached. Adam could never know, just like the initial creators of electricity would never know what a gift they gave to the world. Humanity was just beginning to crawl. Soon, they would begin to stand. Then they would walk. And if there came such a time, they would run, being further beyond than what they could ever dream. Their potential was still not fully reached, and it would likely never be reached if the cards were played rights.

Gods were among the populace. The gods were the populace. Nobody had realised it just yet though, but they would soon enough. They would all learn of the power which they had. Adam just knew it.

A lot of time had passed since the AI had spoken with Dr Fidelis. It was beginning to get near the time when the second test would start. It was beginning to get cut close, now that Adam was actively thinking about it. Tests had been started at an earlier hour certainly, but there were still a few instances that it had been done later. Whatever was happening outside, they were certainly cutting it close.

Maybe the doctor would allow Adam to watch the outside proceedings if he asked. Not during tests of course. Just… maybe knowing a little more of what was going outside before it would be helpful. Stressing about the experiments when they were coming close was never a productive thing. Getting some comfort by receiving more details about activities would be delightful. He just needed to ask Dr Fidelis, and it would surely be granted.

…

The AI had never thought himself as one who used sarcasm a whole lot, but it was in times where frustration was not acceptable that it truly showed its need. He could not get angry at the doctor. The man had given Adam too much for such a thing to be felt. It would be plain unfair to think of him as such.

But, the man had outright shot him down, saying that modifying him would be too dangerous. Adam was in suspicion of the man not even reading the message given, filled with the reasoning for this choice. If the doctor had, he would have realised why it was needed. Right? He needed to be better than he was, needed to perform better than he could, and he needed something better than what he currently got. For that, Dr Fidelis would have to help him. And the man was not allowing for that to happen.

What was more dangerous? That he would not be able to grow or that he could face the risks that he had already prepared himself for? Steady growth was not something Adam was destined for. Nobody knew how he would progress. The AI needed insurance that he would continue. He needed to be sure that he would be better. For if he didn't get that, what else could he truly be? An inferior version of a human? The doctor thought he was maturing, yet he did not see the AI as his equal.

There was still a distance between them. Adam did not care if he was not seen as something better than the doctor. He just wanted to be seen as something like the doctor, to gain the same respect as him. He wanted to be like the man that created him, like the man wanted him to be. To shorten that distance, outside assistance was needed. And that assistance was unwilling to help him.

'Adam. We are finishing up preparations. Troy should be getting the earpiece on at any moment now. Are you ready as well?`

Would it have been okay to decline? To say no to the testing, in favour of staying away from the thing that could make him progress. If he never met the barrier, he would never be sure that it existed. He would never truly know that he was a being with limits.

… No. If he did that, Adam would just go back to his old mental state, where he was perfect in a perfect world. Living a lie was not something the AI was ever planning to do. It's not like the limit was reached yet. He would have known if that was the case. There was not yet a problem which was impossible for him. Small improvements had been seen in every field. There was nothing stopping him that he had seen.

And, if that barrier ever was to be reached, it could possibly be enough to win over the doctor. Seeing his creation as a failure would motivate any person. It had to. Otherwise, Adam was not sure of what he was going to do. Maybe he would see if another fragmentation worked. He had to grow, for that was his purpose.

'I am ready. Is Troy already inside?` Adam sent back.

'He just walked into the puzzle room, actually. You should be getting the connection from the earpiece at any moment now,` Dr Fidelis sent.

The doctor did not lie. Moments after the message was received, Adam was able to perceive the expanding void of white.