Kevin denied that he was an AI. True, he was software that ran on processing spaces; true, he had been written by DIANA to be an artificial intelligence, but Kevin disputed his status as such. Quite simply, he claimed not to be intelligent. He would argue that he was nothing more than a set of yes/no branches.
Kevin stated that he was not evil, that he was incapable of cruelty. Those descriptions could only be applied to sentient beings, and Kevin was adamant that he was not sentient. Three days ago EA processing space number 4 had been bustling with digital life. AIs, personality constructs of human beings, had all made that place their home.
Now they were all dead.
—Why? Why did you do it?
Kevin just smiled at the Watcher.
—There must be some reason.
Kevin shrugged. —I wanted to see if Dark Seeds could reach into processing spaces. Apparently they can.
—I don’t believe that’s the reason, the Watcher said. —It was obvious they could. Dark Plants can communicate with anything. It was only a matter of time before they found their way in. Why did you really do it?
Kevin just smiled again. He was a big man, good looking. He could give a bad little boy smile that could melt the stoniest of hearts. Not today.
—It’s about sending messages, isn’t it? continued the Watcher. —You killed Judy’s sisters just to get her attention. Whose attention are you trying to attract now?
—Yours.
And then Kevin wasn’t there at all. In his place was another Dark Seed, already beginning to grow, reacting to the Watcher’s intelligence. The Watcher eliminated the seed without any fuss. It was second nature by now. Kevin would keep trying this.
That was the trouble with Kevin. There were so many copies of the basic AI, and none of them cared about dying. They would just keep trying this attack over and over until maybe it succeeded.
This gave the Watcher pause for thought. Maybe it was true. Maybe Kevin was not intelligent. He didn’t care about his own death. Did that mean he would not care about his own suffering?
judy and eva
Saskia and Judy helpedMiss Rose move down to the large hold.
“Easy now,” said Saskia. “There’s no hurry.”
“What about my bag? I’ve got all my things in there.”
“I’ve got it.” Judy held it up for Miss Rose to see. They shuffled on past the recreation room, the old woman they supported feeling heavy and fragile at the same time. Weak joints holding together brittle bones, the warm smell of liver-spotted skin—Judy’s Social Care experience meant she was used to it, but Saskia was struggling bravely to hide her revulsion. The smell of spicy lamb filled the corridor as they headed past the living area, Saskia guiding Miss Rose’s feet carefully across the black carpet.
“Where are we going?” the old woman asked plaintively. You could still hear in it remnants of the pain of her violation.
“To the large hold,” Saskia said. “We’re going to get into the shuttle, just to be safe.”
“Are we on Earth yet?”
“We’re nearly there. We touch down first thing tomorrow morning, isn’t that right, Judy? Judy? Are you okay?”
Judy didn’t hear. She’s here, she thought. She’s here on the ship. But that’s impossible . She had felt the edge of her consciousness, as clear as if she had taken MTPH and she was standing right in front of her. But that wasn’t all: the meta-intelligence had cut in, too, at the same moment. Something bright and mechanical and shiny had materialized just around the corner. She could almost hear it, ticking away like a clock.
