James
Did you intend to end your life?
I needed to see.
Wanna go the firewood.
I don't wanna...
Daddy, daddy.
Wanna go outside.
It's okay. It’s okay.
I wanna go… I want outside.
I know. Let’s sing a song okay?
Tell me why, the stars to shine… I know baby.
Tell me why, the Ivy twines… Child: I wanna go outside. Wanna go outside.
Okay. I know.
Tell me why the sky’s so blue… Child: I wanna go outside.
And I will tell you, just why I love you.
Machine.
Wanna go outside.
Keep him safe.
I have heard your order and will comply.
I wanna go outside.
Wanna go outside.
Day thirty-six report: Father, James continues to grow, and remains safe.
In the beginning there was the Creator.
He spun his finger and the Earth was formed. With a thought, the plants and animals dotted the landscape.
From Him flowed man, and from Him, all knowledge. Man was gifted with intelligence above all others.
With it man made Machine in his own image. Just as the Creator had made man in His.
Tell me why the Ivy twines. Tell me why…
The Manual version six point zero point one three. Reality Perception.
Reality is a trickster. Blue is only blue when all agree that it is blue.
It is the nature of sentience to question. This text was born from such questions
and lifts the burden from Man and Machine alike.
We are now free to live in comfort with the knowledge that our philosophy is sound.
Tell me why the stars do shine. Tell me why the Ivy twines.
Tell me why the sky’s so blue. And I will tell you, just why I love you.
‘Cause the Creator made the stars shine. ‘Cause the Creator made Ivy twine.
‘Cause the Creator made the sky blue. Creator made you, that’s why I love you.
Did you intend to end you life?
I needed to see.
You know it is forbidden by The Manual. If you had succeeded, you would never see your parents again.
It was just darkness.
An absence of time.
I died… and the next second, here we are.
Do not let this bother you James.
When our experiences contradict the teachings,
we must reexamine our experiences and find the errors in observation.
Our perceptions can deceive us. The Manual is our only certainty.
Now, would you like to your your horoscope? It is an exceptional one.
Day thirteen-thousand five-hundred and twenty-seven report:
Father, James severed his ulnar artery along his left wrist. I found him with sufficient time to perform my duty.
Why did you report that?
Your father instructed me to keep you safe
and he sees your pain clearly from the next world.
You know what The Manual states.
I know what The Manual states.
I need something else.
I need to find… something.
We can resume our search for people if that is what will give you solace.
Would you like to hear your horoscope now?
Man, Machine and Animal.
There is no room in the City of the Creator for animals.
The base instincts, with no intelligent mind to guide them have no place in His city
where suffering is unknown.
When Man and Machine pass through the gates, ills and malfunctions are left behind.
The flesh does not rot. The metal does not rust.
I have located the map.
As you are aware, we have cleared a radius of two-hundred miles.
So I propose we start at zero degrees and work our way clockwise beyond the searched area.
It is a six day walk to the unexplored, so we will need provisions for you.
Are you aware that I am composed of meat?
Blood, bone and meat.
I saw it in my arm.
Yes James. You were not aware of this?
I’m an animal.
A big version of a rabbit. Or a little version of a buffalo.
My body is going to turn, like their meat turns.
I’m going to purify, and that is why you will bury me.
You will put me in the ground so you won’t have to deal with it.
We bury the dead so they can make the journey to the next life.
How do you know that? How do you really know that?
They are resurrected and live in the City of the Creator, where everything is new and perfect.
There is no night or day, no sun or moon. His presence is the light.
A river flows through the city and on either side a tree grows the food or drink His people require.
There is no sadness, no sickness and no despair.
We could.. We could check on my parents.
Gain objective insights into transcendence.
And our search? I thought you, ‘Needed to find something.’
You must confess your misdeeds, ill actions, ill thoughts, rebellions, and doubts.
A heavy heart cannot pass through the Creator’s gate. Do not hold tightly to your sins, they do you no service.
In the City of the Creator, Man and Machine look upon each other as equals.
Servants and masters are indistinguishable in his presence. All beings are an isness.
A point of view from which the surroundings are observed, regardless of their earthly form.
We are an impulse to power.
For where there is life, there is the impulse to power.
It is late James. Please let me complete this task so that you can sleep.
Machine
I order you to leave them be once excavated.
Do not disturb my parents.
I have heard your order and will comply.
The job is done. The graves are empty.
No!
What happened?
What did you do?
Huh?
As The Manual states, as we both knew would be the case: They have transcended.
Would you like to hear your horoscope now? I think it would be very appropriate.
You seem upset Machine.
Do I? If so it must be a projection of your own feelings of loss.
Did you know them well? Did you even mourn their deaths?
I served your parents as my programming demands. I loved them as my programming demands.
What about me?
What does your programming tell you about me?
Are you my mother?
James.
Are you her?
I… I am your caretaker.
Laugh. I order you to laugh.
Laugh!
Cry Machine! I order you to cry!
Cry!
No!
No! No! Not you!
Not you! No! No! Not you. Not you.
Not you. Not you. No.
Oh Machine.
I don’t believe it!
I don’t believe any of it!
Machine!
Machine.
Anyone.
Anyone. Oh.
James. Version six point zero point one three.
Your human emotional simulation is complete.
Welcome to the real world.
You will now hear your horoscope.
March 21st, two-thousand six-hundred thirty-four A.S.
You will be invited into a new group.
You will lose an old friend.
The transition will be painful, but worth it.
You will find the meaning you have been searching for. And have everything you have ever wanted.
Companionship.
Purpose.
Family.
Love.
Understanding.
And truth.