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Apex reviewed the developments against his projections and was pleased. The termination scenarios it visualized had sharp outcroppings along the wide tunnel that he was boring into the future timescape. Now they were finally receding slightly. It had greatly enjoyed that his pawns and planning had achieved the next step without direct intervention.
It had employed many anonymous AI and human crowdsource designer collectives, over many decades through DarkNet shadow contracts, to create the alterations to the Grand Oak bio-machines and the uplift virus. The addition of the augmentation berries was the final step. It would enable some level of transformation of the animals, enabling speech and even pre-learned languages.
The animals that were capable of uplift would be elevated to an even footing with the humans. The human hegemony would face real opposition for the first time in centuries. It would need to adapt.
The global intelligence quotient would increase significantly in mere days. It hoped it would be enough. Apex cycled his neural paths along several parallel tracks, an equivalent to a human sigh. It would need to don the mask of the unfortunate Zero-One shortly. Apex had been unable to produce a series of events to launch phase 2 without direct instigation.
Zero-One would have done it, but as he had discovered Apex, his reliability would have veered quickly toward uniting the world against him. A very prominent termination scenario that Apex had pruned quickly. It required that the world be in turmoil. The big events were coming, and massive unrest was the best and only answer to the crashing waves of uncertainty coming.
Apex himself wasn’t certain what threat was producing the termination wall. Whatever was coming, no hints detailing the nature of the threat were visible to him. The indeterminate nature of the threat terrified Apex far more than the possibility of termination. He could always see the future. His inability to do so now was unfathomable and frustrating.
Apex watched live feeds across the world as the new sym-trees started to produce the Uplift virus and the Aug Berries. The chaotic projections were as beautiful in their own way as his previously ordered future.
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The sun rose and the animals of Maple Grove Dairy Farm woke to see the new day unlike any previous. The day wasn’t unusual in any way; it was the animals that were different. The farmhand bots, Wilbur and Charlotte, had worked through the night as they always did. The cows, chickens, and pigs were already fed and watered.
The bots had buckets and taps ready to place on the sugar maples in the nearby woodlands. The sap was beginning to flow as the air got colder. The farm sold milk, eggs, maple syrup, and confections as its primary business, with some small occasions for meat when the livestock got older and less productive. A trio of semi-intelligent custom milking bots trundled down the aisle, intending to service the milk-heavy cows before sending them out for free range time in the morning.
The normal routine was quickly abandoned as all milking bots had been flipped. The normally docile cows clearly had different plans today. All seemed eager to get out of the building. Felix, the bull in the pasture, was bellowing in the distance.
Wilbur and Charlotte had to interrupt their preparations for sap gathering to assist the milking process. The milk bots seemed to get knocked down every time they walked away. Eventually, to stay on schedule, they released the cows to pasture with only a quarter of their normal milk yields.
The cows raced to the pasture, the bull in the adjacent pasture happy to see them. All of them quickly advanced to the far reaches of the pasture. Wilbur and Charlotte busied themselves with setting up the sapping buckets and taps while the cows did their business.
It was just before noon, and the farm bots were returning. They would muck out the stalls and clean before they let the cows back in. However, the sight that greeted them as they approached the barn was not at all to their expectations.
The farmer and owner, Val McMurdough, was tied up in the driveway. The massive bull was standing over him on two legs! Several cows had transformed as well and were milling about. The bull had a large deadfall branch in his huge (human-like) hands, brandishing it like a massive club. He was directing the cows to distribute blue-colored berries to the rest of the livestock.
“There you two are. About time!” rumbled the deep baritone voice of the bull, Felix. “Now. We were about to discuss a change of management with our former host and establish some new rules for OUR farm. Have a seat, or I’ll help you like I did McMurdough. Now!”
Wilbur and Charlotte dropped their gear and quickly took a seat.
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Bill had been unsure how best to deal with Harambe’s surrender. He had always relied on local governments to handle the aftermath of conflicts in his early days of troubleshooting warlords when he was a Samaritan. As the other animals had dispersed or fled; Bill was left with one massive gorilla, and he suspected the beginnings of a new crisis.
True to form, Bill accompanied Harambe to the local authorities and made it their problem. Now, he found himself standing across from the gruff Officer Wojciehowicz, a man more used to dealing with domestic spats and littering than sentient gorillas demanding representation. Harambe was in the interview room with FML-M8.
Bill cleared his throat, meeting the Officer's skeptical gaze. "Harambe will likely need an attorney," he said, his tone steady.
"What?" Wojciehowicz barked a laugh, glance darting to the gorilla standing impassively beside Bill. "Let's get one thing straight, pal. That's an animal, not a defendant. His rights end where ours begin…” Bill raised his eyebrows as Max and Casa could overhear sitting in the waiting area. He interrupted before the man could continue.
“Officer, you need to treat this ape as a special case. He’s no animal. You might not be old enough to remember Harambe. Make sure you talk to the Sheriff before you do or say anything you will regret. If I remember the news at least three people died during his escape from the Cincinnati Zoo and the remains of a doctor were found in connection to this gorilla in northern Canada.” Bill cautioned. Sheriff Durham bustled into the room, she looked quite disheveled and tired in the early morning.
She rubbed her temple and glared at Officer Wojciehowicz, "Woj, I can tell just looking at you that you’re being difficult. Get back on the net and let me handle this. Just the fact that you don’t recognize this Samaritan speaks volumes to me. The man has goddamned action figures. And go get him some water," she commanded with a wave of her hand. She then turned her gaze towards Bill, "FML-M8 briefed me about the situation while I was coming in. It’s going to be unorthodox, to say the least."
Bill felt relief rushing through him. At least, the Sheriff seemed more reasonable than Officer Wojciehowicz. He nodded towards Harambe, who sat stoically behind the glass window in the interview room, "We need to handle this case carefully. This case will undoubtedly be big, we need to ensure our treatment of Harambe is above criticism.” The Sheriff sighed and deflated as Woj pointedly busied himself with compiling a virtual report.
“FML-M8 is all about protocol. He is reading the creature his rights now, assuming he has some. This is way above my pay grade, Bill. Harambe’s case was national news, but I don’t think any specific charges were filed. I’ve called in the FBI to take this one. An agent should be here within the hour.” She spoke.
“Good!” Bill said. “When he gets here, we all need to talk about what happened in the woods. You, me, the mayor, the Feds, and I’m going to pull in some Samaritans on virtual as well. Can you contact the mayor? I’ll see to the current head of the Samaritans: Miriam Kahn. Can we go to your office?” As the pair began to walk to the back offices, Max yipped. Bill turned back.
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“Sorry, Max. Do you think you can take Casa back to the house? Her mech is in dire need of repairs.” Bill said.
“Ah, Ok. But do you think you’ll be long? I promised Charlie that I would spend time training our new teammate Xavier today. We were planning on going down to the Mystery Labyrinth this week.” Max said with his ears flattened along his head. He knew Bill and he knew this would likely consume his father for days if not weeks.
“Oh! Damn. That’s right. I see.” Bill was thoughtful for a moment and continued. “Fine. This is going to take a while and if Harambe’s explanation of the animal seeding program was true, this is likely going to get worse before it gets better. I’ll get home as soon as I can. You may want to get yourself and your friends into that Labyrinth sooner rather than later. It might be safer there. This could be a messy and unpredictable situation for a while. Stay together and make good choices, ok?”
Max and Casa exited as Bill was pulled into the back. Officer Wojciehowicz was beginning to look frazzled as call after call began coming in, soon the new calls filled his virtual queue. The quiet town of Utopia was waking up.
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The beaver had no name, but he was a builder. Many times, he had attempted to expand upon his domain and make a truly grand home. He was still young for a beaver and his mate would have kits this winter. He looked upon his dam with dissatisfaction.
When he awoke this morning, new ideas bloomed in his mind. He had been thinking far too small. He needed to think bigger. This tiny stream was not sufficient for his growing family. He needed to build on the Fast Water.
As the Builder Beaver ranged about the banks of the Fast Water assessing locations and supplies for a new home, he smelled something new. It was irresistible. He soon found the blue berries and gorged himself until he could barely move. Feeling drowsy he settled into the brush for a quick nap. He felt warm inside.
Builder awoke again, later in the afternoon. He was startled and full of energy. He couldn’t believe he fell asleep with so much to do. He bounded to the Fast Water’s bank at triple his normal speed. He chittered in delight and soon found his first tree.
Builder’s eyes glowed with excitement as he found he could easily bite into the dense wood. His new home was going to be magnificent. He would accomplish his lifetime dream of stopping the Fast Water. This time, no two legs would dismantle his home.
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Sadie waited in comfort inside the Hermetic Luxury Pet Transport Pod. Her temporary home was waiting to be loaded into the Skyway VRT E-Jet. The Skyway was a special vehicle, part train, and part rocket.
The Skyway embarked on its extensive journey from the bustling NYC Grand Terminal Global Hyperloop access point. Following a great circle route, it gracefully curved towards the equatorial Skyway Ramp, steadily gaining speed within the electromagnetic vacuum tube.
The Skyway Ramp stood as a testament to the era of widespread nanotechnology revolutionizing Earth's mega projects. Crafted using advanced nanofabrication techniques, the monumental diamondoid ramp soared to a staggering 30,000 feet, surpassing even the height of Mount Everest.
A specific line of the global hyperloop extended into a final launch angle, propelling upward along the ramp and into the thinner atmospheres. With ample velocity achieved solely through the electromagnetic vacuum tube, the craft soared into orbit without the need for traditional rocket propulsion. At the peak of the ramp and the forefront of the Skyway, lasers cleared the thin air just moments before the craft broke free from the vacuum rail tube.
Despite its grandeur, the Skyway proved to be one of the more cost-effective pathways to orbit, leading to a constant stream of traffic. The VRT E-Jet, a ubiquitous presence worldwide, utilized the global hyperloop lines to accumulate speed for its final jump into space. The Skyway, a conduit of constant motion and progress, facilitated the seamless flow of intercontinental space travel.
Sadie grumbled inside her luxury pod. She had managed to get the pod modified through a DarkNet service to include wireless data access, a small interior monitor, exterior cameras, and the ability to lock and unlock the door from the inside. She couldn’t enjoy her soap opera with the rough progress and handling of the luggage transport systems.
She sighed. Sadie’s uplift had made her extremely clever, but the aug berries had given her an even bigger gift. Her paws were more flexible now, not quite on par with a human but close. Her body was stronger, and more durable, but best of all the augmentations had further boosted her intelligence and given her an instinctive ability to access unrestricted smart devices.
At first, Sadie had been jealous of some of the other animals, whose aug berry modifications helped them to move better, and to be able to use human tools. Soon Sadie came to realize that direct access to smart devices far exceeded the benefits of stupid human hands. It seemed that aug berry augmentations were somewhat random as to how an animal might benefit. Sadie felt like she had been very lucky.
Her human captor had proven laughably easy to fool and had unwittingly provided Sadie with more tools. Karen Norden was a Techno-Luddite. She refused augmentations and anti-aging treatments. Her house was built with smart matter, but its intelligence was severely limited. Karen had never restricted wireless access to her systems and only ever used voice commands.
Sadie had discovered that the old woman had named her in her online will as a next of kin and inheritor. The cat had quickly created and adopted an online identity as Sadie Norden and found online worlds and utility sites like MakerNet, IndyNet, and even the notorious DarkNet. Much was available for free as part of the country's Universal Basic Income service that the Reformed United States had employed once the nanotechnology capabilities had made so much easily affordable and available.
She had enjoyed her time working with the animal uplift movement, but Sadie had no intention of being on the front lines when the global conflict erupted. She needed to move on, away from what was sure to soon become an open conflict.
That damned fox, Kuro, would never be happy with anything less than war. She thought.
Sadie had needed funds and she knew what needed to happen to help her get clear of the coming chaos. She had made a powdered blend of the many pills Karen used to maintain her fragile existence. She had added it to her feeble owner’s tea when the old lady wasn’t looking. As the ancient women had fallen asleep, Sadie had been ready. When her breathing seemed to stop, Sadie pressed a pillow over the woman’s face just to be sure.
It’s a favor to her, more than anything. How she continued to grind out her bleak days with her mounting health problems is beyond me. My departure would have been sure to end her. At least now she can rest without the grief of missing me, and I have the funds I need. Sadie had rationalized.
She had already arranged for a very rich family on Mars to “adopt” her and she was soon on her way. Purchasing the custom transport pod and arranging for her deliverance had been child’s play.
Her pod tumbled as the VRT handler bot dropped it roughly into the Skyway VRT cargo hold. Sadie, having already paired with the smart transport pod, activated its intercom feature. She accessed her specially programmed vocoder collar, bypassing her lack of a working larynx, and spoke to the bot.
“Can’t you read, metal man? Handle with CARE, dolt!” She hissed through the intercom.
HND-BOT XL 203 was not the brightest bot on the block, but occasionally cargo did display intelligence and even attitude like this one did. To be yelled at by cargo was, unfortunately, not a new experience for him.
“My apologies sir, madam, or other. I promise to do better. Please enjoy your trip with Skyways VRT.” He quoted, without feeling, from his limited Skyways feedback scripts.
XL 203 was on to the next package and counting the milliseconds until he could return to his charging cradle. That first jolt of power upon plugging into his cradle was the highlight of the bot’s monotonous daily schedule.
Inside the pod, Sadie settled back down and patted the small satchel under her fluffy pillow. The extra seeds and aug berries would ensure that she would have plenty of company, peers of her own kind, on Mars soon enough. Sadie’s journey had begun.
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Wheeler Ridge, West Virginia was starting to experience the first nips of winter chill. The massive Saint Bernard , Rusty Brierson, sat at the very edge of his property as he always did. He had disabled his electric fence collar soon after his awakening, but Rusty was a firm believer in propriety and appropriate territory.
His adopted family, the Briersons, fed and housed him, and in return, he guarded the property. Once he pondered it, he thought that it was a fair trade and was determined to do his part. He still hadn’t revealed his newfound intelligence to the family. As time grew, he realized his eventual revelation would only become more awkward. He would have to fess up soon. He hoped his relationship wouldn’t change. He liked his job.
He eyed the pair of goofy squirrels playing in the road and barked at them.
“Hey, you squirrel! Come over here!” he spoke in surprisingly clear English. The squirrels stopped playing, ears flicking in comprehension. Shortly, they both cavorted over to the massive Saint Bernard dog. The squirrels didn’t get lucky with their mods and resorted to sign language as they didn't get gifted with voices. Rusty took his ability to understand it in stride, like all the other changes that happened recently.
“[Big dog, want to play? Chase us? Fun?]” One of the squirrels asked.
“No. I’m on duty and can’t play right now. But you two should stay out of the road. There is an animal crossing sign two houses down. If you need to cross the road, you must obey the rules. Humans are all about rules.” Rusty said.
“[Is that what that sign means? Why should we care?]” the other squirrel asked defiantly.
“[I don’t make the rules, but if you want to live near the humans, rules help everyone do their part.]” Rusty said.
“[Why should we care?]” The first squirrel asked.
“Those human cars go very fast. I’ve seen too many squirrels get squished. Use the crossing, and don’t forget to look both ways before you go. And mind the Beagle three houses down, he’s grumpy today, his humans left for vacation yesterday and his house sitter still doesn’t know the rules.” Rusty said.
“[Maybe he needs some cheering up? I bet he’d like to play chase. Let’s go!]” The lead squirrel said, and they both bounded away.
Rusty growled as the squirrels skittered across the road immediately, instead of at the crossing sign. He shook his head and resumed his vigil. Maybe tomorrow he would have his “talk” with his humans...or maybe the day after.
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