Episode 7

Something Rather Than Nothing

Refocusing on my training, I quickly finished Level 1 and began reading Level 2, titled “Underlying Theories of Force Projection”.

The process of absorbing new information was effortless. It was a struggle, at first, to throttle back my urge to consume the entire curriculum as fast as possible. But with some practice, I found I could absorb the information at a more methodical pace. This not only ensured that I would burn more time off my sentence, it also allowed me to savor the learning process a bit. It was comforting to feel like I had some control over the new thinking system in my virtual head.

Reading the developmental history of the universal combat consciousness, I learned that combining a copied human consciousness with digital technology, had in effect, created a composite neural network. A hybrid of a human mind and a computer, which provided incredibly fast processing speeds, while still retaining the underlying human logic required to improvise when faced with uncertainty. The human element was critical in combat, since purely digital systems often stalled when confronted with an unfamiliar logical problem.

The resulting human / digital system was both flexible in the face of unpredictability and resistant to physical battle damage. It was the key to the military’s ability to project force throughout the cosmos, in support of humanity’s interstellar expansion.

I paused briefly to digest what I’d just learned. I wondered whether this was the first time I had learned of humanity’s expansionist ambitions, or whether I’d known about it in my previous life. Without any memories, I could only guess. However, I was beginning to feel a profound disgust at my human roots.

My enthusiasm to continue studying suddenly evaporated. I was having second thoughts about participating in the universal expansion of humanity. Although I believed I should feel some kind of allegiance to my species, I felt nothing. What was so special about humans anyway? I certainly didn’t know.

Full of doubts, I felt the need to talk to someone, but who? The only semblance of a connection I had formed so far was with a convicted murderer. Reluctantly, I decided Lucy was my best shot at hearing anything close to the truth. As it was, I’d settle for just feeling a little less hopeless.

I surveyed my HUD menu, trying to remember how Lucy had said to contact him. Thought to text? Yeah, that was it.

I got into the settings and enabled thought to text. I then started thinking out a message, like I was typing an actual text. I addressed him by his handle. “Hey Lucy, I need to speak to you. Can you give me a …” I paused, realizing that I had no clue how this messaging process actually worked.

Before I could start guessing about the ins and outs of troopship communications, a text began streaming across my field of vision. It read; “Hey genius, if you’re looking for your boyfriend, he’s in the sim. Your text is posted on the public message board, so he’ll see it when he wraps up. BTW dumbshit, all ‘thought to text’ is public and audio is only semi-private. Use discretion.”

Stolen novel; please report.

I thought/texted “Got it.” I guessed this was the same annoying prick with the nasally voice. I hoped my handle wouldn’t end up being Genius, or worse, Dumbshit.

I poked around in the training materials, just wasting time, when a new text began scrolling.

“I’ll call you.” I supposed it was from Lucy but wasn’t certain since it didn’t include the sender’s name. With texts being 100% public, it was probably wise to keep them as brief and anonymous as possible.

By blinking on one of the two buttons below the message, I found that even though the text showed in my HUD, it appeared simultaneously on a public message board. I just needed to wait.

Then someone spoke in my audio. “Hey, it’s Lucy. What’s going on?”

I struggled to put my concerns into words. “Listen, I honestly don’t know what’s happening. I’ve just got a bad feeling about the training. It seems like we’re the Stormtroopers for universal human expansion. Am I wrong?” I felt like a whiny child, looking for reassurance.

“Well, for better or worse, we’re the ones pushing out into the cosmos, creating space for humanity’s expansion. So no, you’re not wrong.”

It was unsettling to have my fears confirmed. I had been sentenced to slash and burn across the universe, on behalf of my former species. The more I learned, the more I wanted to disassociate myself from humanity.

“I don’t understand why humans have to constantly expand into space. What the hell is happening? Is the population spiraling out of control or something? How many of us … or them … are there anyway?”

Lucy sighed. “We don’t know the answers to those questions.”

I couldn’t understand why the training didn’t include something about why we’re fighting to support humanity’s continual expansion. So far, the training addressed only the ‘how to’, the nuts and bolts of war. There was nothing about the why.

He continued, “Look, there’s no direct contact between us and any humans. All communication is filtered through the AI interface. We only get told what to do, not why we do it.”

“Hold on! I spoke to a human during my orientation. It was some annoyed woman. She was an employee at the USMC training module.” I must admit, the term ‘module’ seemed to undermine my argument slightly.

“You’re wrong. The AIs are indistinguishable from humans. They sound and act just like us. Many of them are designed to have distinct human personalities, quirks, and all.”

Ignoring the irony of his reference to “us”, as if we were still human, I wondered if the AIs were just some elaborately engineered deception to manipulate us. No contact with humans, no justification for why we were killing on their behalf. In essence, we were doing their dirty work in complete ignorance.

Thinking out loud, I said, “It seems to me like we’re totally relying on faith that the system is legit.” Even as the words left my head, I had a sinking feeling that nothing was as it appeared.

I continued, “I think this UCC system is just too vulnerable to manipulation. It had to have been purposely designed that way. Otherwise, it would have some validations built into it. How do we know if it’s even working properly?”

Lucy argued “Listen, it’s irrelevant whether we’re being manipulated or not. All we have to work with is this system. The only truth is whatever the system tells us is true. If you want to doubt that, go right ahead. But remember, without anything to replace whatever this is, you’re left with nothing. Nothing to believe in, and nothing to condemn. Speaking strictly for myself, I prefer to have something, rather than nothing at all.”

I digested his words carefully. It was a compelling argument for not rocking the boat. After all, this was the only boat we had. Still, I couldn’t imagine myself ignoring my fears and just following orders, like a good little Stormtrooper.

“Listen, I just feel like we need to test whether the system is what it appears to be, or if it’s something else entirely.”

With an edge of irritation in his voice, he cautioned me. “Okay genius, you can try to figure out how to test the system on your own time, but for now, I strongly suggest you learn how to become the best damn soldier you can, because the only value you have to the system is how effective you are on the battlefield. Just focus on your training, or I goddam guarantee, you’ll be the one getting tested.”

It was crystal clear, the not-so-subtle message was, ‘Don’t rock the boat.’