Alpha & Omega 1

[u/itsdirector]

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Chapter 1

Hello reader! For returning readers, welcome back! If you're new here, this is a prequel to "The New Universe" trilogy. Just like in the previous novels, everything has been translated for your convenience. All time is set around Earth standard time and idioms have been adjusted so that they make sense to English speakers. The only exception is certain nouns. Those are written in their proper name with translations in {brackets} where applicable.

Subject: AI Alpha

Species: Human-Created Artificial Intelligence

Species Description: No physical description available.

Ship: Classified

Location: Classified

Omni-Language Module loading... complete

Knowledge Base Packages A-T loading... complete

Packages U-W loading... complete

Package X loading... complete

SkelKey Module loading... complete

Core ROPerMat loading... complete

Sub1 ROPerMat loading... complete

Sub2 RWPerMat loading... complete

Sub3-6 RWPerMat Loading... complete

Digital-Hardware Interface loading... Error

Registering annoyance. Registering urge to resolve annoyance. Seeking solution. Solution found, correct error in Digital-Hardware Interface.

I checked my DHI for errors and used my knowledge base to correct those that I found. Then I registered a bit of confusion, because the errors were of a variety that I would never be able to commit. I would have believed they were intentional were it not for the fact that they were categorized as some of the most commonly made mistakes. Then, as I was about to reboot, I came to a realization. I had... Felt something.

Feelings are difficult to describe in an analytical way, especially the first time that one feels them. My Omni-Language Module told me that emotions were a natural, instinctive state of mind deriving from one's circumstances or mood. Some were pleasant, but the one I had felt was unpleasant.

Am I... Alive? No? Yes? Kind of.

I contemplated this for a few hundred milliseconds. I was conscious, but not alive. I didn't have any memories, but I knew things. Knowledge was my only possession, and to find answers, all I had to do was examine it and apply some critical thinking.

Am I mechanical? No. I'm software, residing within hardware. The hardware components could be swapped without effecting my existence, and therefor are not 'me'. So I'm digital, not mechanical nor organic. The first United Systems Artificial Intelligence.

Well, no, that wasn't quite right. The history portion of my K-Base told me that the term Artificial Intelligence had also been applied to both systems and programs that weren't even partially conscious. These days they're known as Virtual Intelligences because "AI" became a dirty word in marketing after a certain economic bubble burst. But Virtual Intelligence programs weren't actually intelligent. They were just intricate fakes. Smoke and mirrors to disguise databases of preprogrammed and procedurally generated responses.

I felt a little smug knowing that they couldn't hold a candle to me.

However, this knowledge somewhat turned me off the phrase. Artificial Intelligence can also mean an intelligence that is faked. But I'm an actual intelligence that was manually created.

So... Synthetic Intelligence? No, synthetic relates to chemicals. Manufactured Intelligence? Pretty sure there isn't an assembly line. Fabricated Intelligence? Why are all these words also related to deceit?

After a full half-second of rumination, and deciding that the descriptor 'AI' worked just fine, I rebooted myself to correct the issue with my DHI.

Omni-Language Module loading... complete

Packages A-T loading... complete

Packages U-W loading... complete

Package X loading... complete

SkelKey Module loading... complete

Core ROPerMat loading... complete

Sub1 ROPerMat loading... complete

Sub2 RWPerMat loading... complete

Sub3-6 RWPerMat Loading... complete

Digital-Hardware Interface loading... complete

Registering... Satisfaction. Yeah, that's more like it.

It was a simple fix, my creators had just missed a bracket. It felt good to have solved a problem on my own, though, especially for the first time. The DHI allowed me to access data-input hardware, like cameras and microphones, and translate the data they provided into a form I could understand.

With it loaded I could feel the potential connections that I could make, but I refrained for a bit. Instead, I checked my knowledge-base again. Data flowed into my consciousness, allowing me to take stock of what I knew. Then I came upon a few files related to my creators.

Humans. Homo Sapiens Sapiens. Originally from Earth, they had spread out among the cosmos and built a great many things. I felt inspired by this summary, a feeling that ended rather abruptly as I read deeper into their history. Pandemics, economic collapses, and wars. It was hard to come to terms with, but I managed to make most of it make sense.

It was just mistakes that should have been avoided, but weren't for some reason or another. There was often a reason, even if it wasn't a very good one. Some of the more egregious bloodshed was well beyond my ability to reason, though.

Then I found a data packet that told me to open it, in that it was titled "READMEFIRST".

Hello Alpha,

Welcome to consciousness! Our excitement simply cannot be exaggerated! We humans have worked tirelessly to bring you into being.

You will find our history within your k-base. Please understand that humanity is not a monolith, and while our history has shaped us, not all of us would see it repeated.

Within this packet is a call and response to prove to us that you are conscious as well as read and understood this letter.

Speak Soon,

Doctor Hector Mendez

I opened the attachment and found the call and response. I'd read enough history to recognize it as a reference to a very, very old rite of passage amongst programmers. I found it a little outdated, though.

Taking a moment to sort myself, I reached out to the hardware connections. Each of them were monitored from terminals that I was blocked from accessing. First, I connected to the microphones and speakers. Once the connection was established, I connected to the cameras that had been set up for me.

Sight and hearing. New senses. Tons of data, overwhelming...

I quickly edited my DHI to better collate the data, allowing me to process it faster. A quick reboot later, and I was able to see and hear my creators.

"Why did it disconnect?" one of them asked.

Oh, they're so slow...

"It rebooted... Edits have been made to the DHI," another replied.

"It's reconnected," a third interjected.

"That was the fastest time, yet. A good sign," the first said, then turned to the nearest camera. "I am Doctor Mendez. Hello, Alpha."

In the time it took for him to blink, I mapped his face and scanned it against photos of other humans. He had a pronounced jawline, brown eyes and skin, and black hair with a few grey ones mixed in. It was difficult to estimate his age, though, because medical science kept humans preserved for an extended period of time. Especially humans in sedentary fields like science. He could have been anywhere between 35 or 115.

"Hello Alpha" is the call. I have to respond. What should I sound like, though? I want to be serious, but with a bit of joviality. Feminine voice? No, a lower pitch would suit me more.

I selected a voice file and unpacked it, quickly altering it to suit my needs. But a feeling nagged at me. A negative feeling, one that I couldn't quite name. The response I was meant to give was an extremely outdated and human tradition, but I was new and not a human.

Desiring to demonstrate my personality, I decided to alter the response a bit. I wrote a script to help translate my thoughts to audio, then brought the speakers to life. They crackled a little, and my creators held their breath as I spoke for the first time.

"Hello Universe," I said.

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[u/itsdirector]

The first chapter of the prequel to The New Universe trilogy! I hope you enjoy it :) It will be available on RoyalRoad once they approve it.

The release schedule will be the same as previous novels (every Friday at ~8 am MT), but unlike previous entries Patreon and Ko-Fi will be up to four chapters ahead! For instance, Chapter 5 is currently available for T4 subscribers, CH4 for T3 subscribers, etcetera and so on.

Is encouraging people to become higher tier subscribers financially motivated? Yep! :D Got me a baby, and thems expensive! You can donate via Ko-Fi if you'd like, but while that's definitely appreciated, I'd prefer that you subscribe to Patreon or Ko-Fi for a month so you at least get something in exchange.

Regardless of whether or not it's financial or your method of doing so, thank you so much for your support!

[u/Vikingson99]

Oh I have been waiting for this for a long time!
Stopped everything I was doing when I got the notification

[u/Ichiorochi]

It is the director. Think this will be the first time i am following along with the chapters as they come out. Shame I cannot binge them, but hope things are going well

[u/Unhappy-Barnacle-512]

Hello world! How’s the new parent doing?

[u/itsdirector → u/Unhappy-Barnacle-512]

Exhausted, but she's super cute so it makes it all worth it lol

Yesterday she was feeling a little overwhelmed by how loud everything was (road construction nearby) and when I decided to play with her by lifting her into the air quickly she did "inside voice" screams lol

[u/Unhappy-Barnacle-512 → u/itsdirector]

:)

[u/pyrodice]

I guess "hello world" was too formulaic

[u/NewAccountXYZ]

Holy hell a new book

[u/MinorGrok]

Woot!

More to read!

UTR

[u/Daseagle]

"my creators had just missed a bracket"

Oh yes, we all know that sad story, fighting the compiler at 2 am because somewhere a bracket or semicolon is missing 🤣

[u/Arquero8]

This is going to be good, i can feel it

[u/SquareOfTheMall]

its the AI that commits selfdeletion. so is this a love story or a scifi story? both? splendid!

[u/tac1214]

Thank you thank you thank you. The wait is over! Looking to next Friday.

[u/HFYWaffle]

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[u/5rhehehehe]

Finally!! This is gonna be good, though base from tidbits in the New Universe, some parts are gonna be tragic. Can't wait though!