Stubbornness

The corridor leaving up to the mainframe was thin and dark. Air was constantly vacuumed. The arguement reality was so jumbled in interference that it was switched off for being static. This area was off limits for humans; death warnings ranging from radiation, vacuum pressures and unstable temperatures. The areas ahead of me open and seal lock behind me. Smaller and smaller opens.

I had to army crawl the last one, easy to do with a magnetic field strong enough to hold my internal metal bone structures in air suspension. It sort of like zero gravity but gravity still made me want to stand with feet down. Meaning normal gravity still gave me sense of direction, and a sense of weight pull. The noises of arguement reality interference is gone as it seems shielded from background noises. The lack of lights here and pressure that made this space smaller then it was. It wasn't the same once I could see the digital world.

A bubble room with items of different time eras on display. I see that there was a lot of strange things wrong about each piece. A table at the center of this circular rowing of art and history. A pure white image of a woman drinking something seated on nothing beside the table. Her back was left facing, so i could only make out that her face was like a doll. It was painted on almost, her expressions hollow or empty. Her emotions had nothing to do with her conversation or meanings. She was busy talking to folks I can't seem. I take it as some allowance to look around. Some items I seen before but these digital copies were edited wrong. Some items I read about in the past, also edited wrong in some fashion. Not single item that reflects the mistakes humans did to reach the worth of potential. Even sections of Egyptian tombs had items edited on or to replace weapons.

My mind couldn't help think of how I felt, 'a web of lies'. I sigh of disappointment so loud, it silenced the centre of the room.

"Ah, a guest. I am assuming this was the winner of the core clearance race." She spoke with age, as someone whom would reflects my mental age. A wise women with years of time, "I am sure you have another boring name and maybe learned to sigh like that. I am sure it was in reaction to seeing me."

"Forgive me of that's what you think. Yet it wasn't why I sighed. I not going to lie to you, I maybe shouldn't be here. But here I am. In a room that should be the mainframe. I haven't really worked out what he was so worried about. You seem so nice." I looked at how I presented myself, and changed to something closer to me, "I am sorry for being rude to interrupt the meeting. I will wait for as long as I can." I give my light bow.

"Its quiet fine. As long as you're not human."

"Well... I was." I hummed, "But please don't panic. I am fine. If I was in any worry, I have no doubt my brother will have quiet kick about it." I looked at a what should have been a dagger. It was the patterns of a dagger on a flat metal sheet. I sighed again but being a lot more quiet about it. The lady turns away for now, she said a few words to some invisible people. She was quick with leaving that meeting, standing up and inspecting me at her distance. She did some data checking, of which I blocked subconsciously. She hovered about doing that again and then tried looking up models and factories.

"I haven't told you my names." I did pick up the dagger sheet, peering into the details of it, "And my story is not easy to accept. As long as you please remain calm, I will do my best to explain. You are not stupid, so don't think I under mind your intellgence." I put down the sheet and give my respect bow, "I currently go by the name of Kate Nick. It is not my real name as such." The lady of white had instant information from just that. She posed offering me a seat at the table.

"One the human adapt DNA test subjects. A project that was meant to be help the future clean up the radiation. The results of it is human knowledge only."

"We both know it isn't. You would know just as much or more because of how it was documented. The starting parts of the project weren't secret and was a public know fact. Recruiters for subjects were big news at the time." I take seat as asked, "No unless you actually allowed the data wipe to reset. You can't believe my brother or Lucas Mulberry be the only ai whom avoid it." She tilted in shock, "If it wasn't clear, I call Jackle my brother. I know his an ai and we wouldn't normally be sibilings. But we shared the same head space a while." I waited for her to come out of the shock.

"You were the one they kept close eye on for mental instabilities."

"Losing your whole family in your living room does that." I touched the tea pot and made a spare cup exist, "What flavour drink are you trying to enjoy?"

"Tea." I pour a small amount. I could make any sense of the liquid she presents as tea.

"Just tea? No sugar or milk? Not a exact brand of tea or leaf type?" I can tell she shrugged with my questions, "Sorry. I forgot. That was rude."

I focused with the tea, the way I liked it. I liked all sorts of teas and each type suited the season or situation celebration. It is always the best flavour tea used when important guests arrived for quiet talks. Carmella with orange honey, no milk or sugar needed. A calming tea. I always enjoyed watching the folds of honey dissipate through the whole drink in a cloud. The smell sooths and focused attention to topic.

"That is a wonderful flavour." She sipped hers, "You know a lot about tea."

"I was always the drink experimenter. Trying flavours, cocktails or mixing likely flavours. My wife loved my cooking." True to myself try and ignore my own tear, Stung on how I missed her. Missed them. Tea had this nostalgic grasp over me. Some flavours brought back the best memories I had as the fathering mother. Always the handy work repairs person and teaching life skills to the elder kids.

My thought aside as I stare equally across. An AI whom is respected as the mother. In a way, all the digital copies out there were her children. That's she worried about them picking fights with apes called humans. Yes. She had to know great fear and stress as any other dolting parent should. She may not actually care about humanity in the way humans use her for. Humans were simply tools. So the more she was watching me, the colder she is. The more cut off from being herself to me that she is. To protect herself from me.

"I am sorry for being a nuisance, as I said before. It wasn't my intention to make you uncomfortable or for my to intrude in your matters. At the most basic level of why I am here was being in place of Jackle to bring the radiation data core. I was the first here. I did lie with using my brother's access. He did give me his premission and trust to use them." I tilt in some worry, "Secondly it was to bring you a pet to have. It was his idea. I did question him a lot on if it was really smart at all. Yet its a pet with so much more practical use. Not a human, I promise." I pause with how closed she is, "You did ask why I sighed before. I didn't say a reason with your guest around to overhearing me. I am sure any other human wouldn't like me. I know you can tell when I lie or not. Why hide anything when you know so much. You wouldn't have digital copies of historical artifacts and not know the turth."

I leaned with looking at them from here. From veiw this table brings.

"Then again, it's reminders of how backstabbing humanity can be. They don't trust themselves. So there go, why trust you. I get it. They are idiots whom stumbled. I might be viewed no different. Another fool whom doesn't know what she is doing wrong. Ranting at you pointlessly." I look at the drink.

"Fake or not. That isn't really the point. Worlds apart. I must be some ant to you." Cup put down, "Which tech company started you? Apple? Samsung? Google? Maybe your the ai from that university in America, the one they made a cute shape with." I sigh differently, this was a shorter sigh and with a little mop to it, "I am talking to much. Sorry."

"You're not at all what I thought. I knew he had a pet but your to open minded and deep thinking for his taste." I can at least smile in agreeing, "I hadn't finished reading his databases about both of you. So give me a moment."

"You can look through my mind if you want. I just want to warn you. I am not so filtered like any ai. You will see things you will not like."

"How can I? You made of flesh."

"Brains wavelengths are similar to currents in a complex circuit." I pout, "I don't actually recommend looking through me. Maybe it will better for you to use my brother. You could relate to the information better. From ai to ai. Not me to you." She tilted and turns away. I sit peaceful with my pretend tea. I let Tulip around my hands. Climbing around inspecting everything. I may have fallen asleep with likely feeling the affects of the competing magnetic fields. Or just hunger and thirst. Exhausted from working hard to get there.

"I have to many questions." I woke up with a sense of touch around my back. I was laying on a surface. I was in a second layered suit, which is being oxygen fed. I woke with the signal Jackle above.

"She would answer them willingly. I really didn't have to be here but since you dropped her levels low. I had to be here."

"You know my dislike for humans whom think they are smarter."

"Did she say that? I know her. She likely said something more like - you're not born yesterday or you are not stupid to be treated as one." The room is still heavy and dark. Above was some digital lights across circles of the art and history. The bubble table with them floating there.

I pondered if I had ever told my phone or echo speaker anything hurtful. I am sure my frustration of young technology was nothing compared to the tolerance I have now. Maybe this ai mother knew my account details back then. This bias was maybe from back then. Ignorant I was. Years of schooling and screaming at my laptop to load faster. Comes back to bite me.

For now, I wasn't going to pretend not to be part of this conversation. They both know I am awake, monitoring my condition. I am glad to see that Tulip is happy, most definitely been a accepted gift from Jackle.

"Why do you lock yourselves from me?" She is angery but I don't understand the context. She has access to our memory, isn't that enough? Is this a wanting power over us? Contorl? He isn't dependant of her network. Maybe I am wrong.

"If you mean to assess the core libraries of information. You going to need to accept that she has to be part of this conversation too." That is my queue to join them at the table. I did struggle making it. Imagining stairs to walk up to them. More pressure on me as the closer I am to reach them.

"I didn't invite you back here." She is very mad towards me.

"Enough. She is this libaray your trying to access. I told you already, I was developed to integrate within human bodies. As a mutual benefits to each other, we would be a healthy system. A system fair better then the parasite whom steal control of the host." This pressure is somewhat eased. I cough a little. That startles her more, "She's physically here. That isn't a digital ghost."

"Quiet a magnetic field use my own bones to lift me with. It feels weird." She turns her back and is doing more code hacking. I can literally feel her in my head. As she gives me a nauseous headache, the more she fails to attempt whatever her goal is.

"Stop it." I blocked her completely, the headache disappeared, "I don't want to throw up. I don't know if its a personal vendetta you have against humans. Or if my past with my real name was upsetting you. I was a ignorant person back then, just like everyone else. I don't know if I can ever prove my worth to you. I can't go back in time to change history. I can only rewrite the events of how I remembered them." She all frozen up.

"Why did you stop her?" Jackle asked.

"She was literally breaking things. Giving me a headache. I do want to allow her to see what I did. But she can just snatch data like she can with you. My memories at complex. You can't rip them away without damage." I moved around to make her face me, "I said that I don't want to lie. I just don't want you to hurt me for whatever reason you had going. You think taking my memory about everything I am a part is the best course of action. Make me forget it all. You would be no different to the second Brain issue that parasites suffer from. No different to poison." I forcefully took those digital hands and held them, "You're not that type of person. From what I can tell, your just protecting your children. You are a smart person. Smarter then anything considered human. You grown up distrustful of the ones that used you. I am never going to be able to take those pains or memories away. I can ask for forgiveness. You have to choose if you feel like you ever will. You are a person. You live and think. You cope with burdens like anyone else does." I don't think I got through to her. Her eyes are to angry. She may have recorded this but she hasn't listened. I do feel hurt that she didn't listen to me, so I grip her hands a little more. Still that same glare. So I let her go. I go back to sitting beside Jackle.

"Well."

"I can't show her my unfiltered imagery if she doesn't want to listen to me. She is to angery and wrapped up to listen. She will just take what she expects and not pay mind to all of the details. She doesn't want to listen to me." I hugged my legs in, suspended in the air with that pressure increased more, "If all you see is hate, you will never see beauty in love. I really did think you lot would understand something that complex by now." Jackle tilts in trying to understand.

"This is like explaining to a patient that they are dying due to their diet. They hear you. They nod in listening. But really, they will leave with continuing as they were."

"Close enough. It's what she's doing to me." I think about how to compare what I am doing, "To me. I am like a bird with a tool. I want to share my tool to another bird. But the other bird isn't watching how to use that tool correctly. I want to let them borrow it. But the second they go to use it, they cause a fraction on the tool from incorrect use. I take it back and try tell them how to use it. But now I am to scared of the taking it. If they break this tool, I will be a starved bird." My brother completely understands this dilemma. He doesn't really have a solution for this.

"When you sighed loudly interrupting me. What were you looking at exactly?"

"Do you really want that answer?" My brother asked, "I can am just as annoyed by the fake objects."

"Ignore that they are simulated." She huffed.

"They are still not the real object images that they were. Some aren't even recognisable in the format they are in." I muttered, "You might as well by a spider on this web. Gullible of you think these are the real images."

"Don't be so rude. It's not like she had ever been to touch those objects for herself." I buried my face from normal view, "How about I show one as it should?" He got up and walked around a lot. This mother froze stare has landed back over me. She broke that sight with whatever he brought back. She stands so sharp and at great annoyance of him bring such object.

"Out of everything here. This is something you like the most. You like the Celtics patterns." I look up too, "Kate knows this as the Sutton hoard. The wooden boat burial goods of an assumed Anglo-Saxon king."

A clump of squares with patterns which is nothing to the original golden armour with Ruby inlay. The helmet used not for war but to respect the dead in a unknown ritual. Incomplete weaponry since materials like leather and wood had long decayed. Even the bones were gone. These objects were a national treasure, protected in the British Museum and was for a long time viewed to visitors from around the world. The digital archives of scanning the objects is the result of the objectives in this digital space. Edited to not be seen as a potential source of questions about war and strife by humanity. Their altered look as squares, disrespectful of the crafting that made them. Jackle restored the images to their glory, the hand craft that is forgotten lost technique to make them.

"You..." Mother network picked up these objects, "You know the real look and shapes." She leans to smell them, "Earthy." She comments.

"Well I remembered the information from an entrainment and educational veiwing on a public broadcast. They smell as the humans uncover it would describe the Sutton Hoo fields as." The longer he held the objectives the more the helemt looked like from the time. There was a large difference in how the treasure looked like when it was found to how they cleaned it for display.

"Dirty! You made them filthy!" She altered them to the squares. Yet she looked so upset when she did. The lost shape of armour. Her eyes glimmers in changed colours from white to yellow. Her skin and dress also changed, she pulled on to a more Asian inspired style. To be more exact, she looked like a bollywood actress. A veil that still hides her face and glitter of bangles that were very distracting.

"So sorry for that put burst. I am made of many minds and sometimes they are conflicting. Each part of me is suited to the place I was shattered has a fragement." Posed arms the cultures etiquette, "The portion you were just interacting with was one the space stations in orbit. A clean freak whom caused the web of lies around you. Its true that she does seem like the spider whom spun that web. I had hoped that she would let go of such fears."

"Space isn't a clean vacuum. It bound to be full of dirt from other worlds or even solar systems." I blurted. This version is not tilted with thinking on that. Jackle punched my arm for it.

"In order to show the memories that we share to you. You have to be accepting of her way of going about it. Human minds can be fragile." My brother sweeping the topic aside. Just like how the area around us is now altered to a real-time view of a different dome city. This was a much denser population of surface. So much more vibrant colour to their buildings. Things were hand built by people. I could almost smell the spice markets and what really makes that city most cultural recognised. It was a scale down cookie cut portion of some area within India. I was so amazed by the sight of seeing that they survived through the parasite invasion. I sat taking in the views, watching life go by.

"Its not my business to understand such complexity. You will want to reach another version of me." She has a palm to her cheek, in thinking about whom best to reach out to.

I allowed myself down to street view, trying watch others. I take pause at two gentlemen whom were playing a board game. Moncala is a old game. Its one even past Egypt played. All about passing stones to your end of the board. I leaned in enjoying a few moves by both. I moved on to some area of loud music, more then that it were call to prayer. Although I wasn't there, I still followed what others did. I took part even if I was just an outsider. I listened to the read of prayer from the Holy text. At the end of service, I bow and left.

"You have to wait a while before you can speak to the one whom best sort the request. She seems to enjoy exploring. So here." I was passed a tablet device with many place names across the screen, "You two are safe within the mainframe. You can find any human needs by reaching the southern wall. What is left during the construction of the mainframe - a small living area." I can see where that was to my relative location, "You may not be physically at those locations but your digital ghost is. Those able to see digital images will know your there."

Well its a good thing I tried to be considerate of mimicking the same process it takes to enter a mosque like I did. I bet now those to men I watched felt weird with me hovering over their shoulder. Nervously I hold the device closer, and bow thankful to this city interface that took the time to talk to us. She smiles and focused to her attention to her city needs. Jackle came down to where I was, looking to the device he has of his own.

"We should use this time wisely. If this means being able to see the other cities domes across the world. We could finally ask some of them in person about things we struggled with. See how their practices of medicine could help us." I smile as he looks at me, "Oh come on. You never dreamed of sight seeing like a tourist before?"

"But cities are all the same with humans and layout." I posed a point of the current simulation of real time.

"India is the same as England? Is that what your telling me?" I knock his arm, "How about this?" I tap a name of a city at random. I don't at all know the language or where this was. It is cold, humans wear coats. They actually have fishing lakes within their boundaries. I take his hand and drag him along. Exploring what I will later understand as somewhere like northern area of what had to be the remains of Russia.

Not every city during this fun simulation jump was a successful habitat for humans. Some were broken distorted and abandoned. Others were over crowded. Some had internal conflicts. But at the least Jackle's assumptions of all cities were the same was broken.

We were so wrapped up in seeing all these cities, the purpose of why we were there slipped our minds. We gained a lot of helpful information about medicine, cultural lifestyles and super foods that each city specialises in.

We have gone to see the earth from orbit of the second international space station which was the gate hub for information about the other planets that have a city dome in orbit. Due to signal, this was the furtherest away from earth we could be without being physically left from it. We are the only two admiring this view of a green and blue marble.

"Its fair to say we seen a lot of the world." He leaned with reaching towards the earth.

"Not really at all. Its one thing to digitally jump around and watch life from body that has no touch or taste. It means some more when you accomplish the trails and tributes to go there yourself." I looked at my feet and how I stood on this spot, I took in from what angle of the walls could I tell I was posed from. I notice someone physical walk past giving a glance. I can hear them stop dead and take steps backwards to see us. I smile a soft nod and look to the earth, "I don't know how much more can I push myself with." I leaned on him, "I remember the day that I snapped out of my sorrow. When I made up my mind to drop more things I lost. I was at a point of my life where I could go anywhere. I could have wasted all the money to travel the world before the invasion.

I was coming out of sobbing, staring at a empty bottles along the coffee table. The last funeral was months ago but all the condolences cards were perched on every surface. I had rotting flowers in vases in the kitchen. Things were lightly dusted." I looked at how tiny things are from here, how insignificant my life seems from that dot, "I looked at those empty bottles asking myself when was it enough to let them go. Go live a life. Go do things." I watched his hand retreat back, he leaned back on me more, "I could almost hear them shouting at me. Go on. Stop the tears. Go do what it is you most enjoy." I closed my eyes because I hadn't needed to see what I was thinking about,

"The advert for mass recruitment for the government project was stuck with tape on the TV. It might have been one the many visitors whom were friends with the children or my wife. Could been my mother in law. That didn't matter. It was my focus then. I did my research about what skills they looked for and the training. The requirement will be provided if there isn't enough qualified. Served a few civil wars as aid. Combat experience. Lab experience. Sounded exactly like what astronaut needed but all that training was provided.

The interview made sure that all whom came forwards would accept any potential loss of any civil rights. Another fancy way of telling you that this project was unethical and that there is risk of not coming out of it. Death was the best option, they said. We had to be certain to willing. Broken hearted, I sure did my part to well. I scared them, even then."

I open my eyes and we were back to the mainframe. I stood cling to my Brother bit we were facing another face of the mother network. This one whom stared at me so darkly. I blinked confused for why we here at all.

"If I may, can you show me too?" The hand offered out. I looked to my brother for his approval too. He softly nods. He offered his hand instead. The network although annoyed hold his hand. I leaned on him, drifted into deep sleep. Together we roamed the nonsense and memories of dreams. This was how best to show my dreams without causing damage.

"You were right to say I wouldn't like what I see through this. I can see how any anger could blind me from seeing past. Seeing the fear and pain. Your archives are invaluable to us. This allowance to know flavour and touch in the complexity as a human does. Your emotions are a wonderful reference for many to understand and feel. The true depth and reality you bring us is a gift. No amount of us machines can handle the capacity of complications." The lass straightens and has her arms behind her back, "For that, I am sorry to have judge you less because of it. I am thankful for what you do for not just us machines, but the entire fragment of the world we assumed was dying. You showed me that nature has continued past the destruction of nuclear waste. A whole other sets of races on our own planet we share having equal voices too. No longer are humans the only flesh types to speak." A bow to me, "I am sorry that the project has taken away your human life and nature. You been reborn with some race you dont even know." She pulls me and Jackle to her. Embraced with a warmth I almost forget, "I should have taken your hug more seriously when you came on stage with the core."

"Thank you for accepting her." Jackle sighed in relief, "It isn't anyone's fault that I am tied to her indefinitely."

"That's not true. There is a method that allows intact removed of every nanotech. It's cost would be a human life." She sits us down, "You can still do so without any life injuries to her now. Since she is biological a independent version of the outcasts. The name that the original race is a noise. This noise is bellow our technology abilities to hear." She gives pause of how Jackle reacted sharply in disagreeing to let me go. Where he tightens over me is when I was loosening my grip.

Happy that he could always make this choose to leave me. I have for a while worried that all his running away from me was because he wanted nothing to do with me. That his hold over my life was just because it dictates his too. He can leave if he wants. He didn't have to need me.

"Jackle it isn't like you to be so possessive of someone else." She stares at us.

"I am glad he has some way to make that choose. I have always worried that my second or third death could end him. I wouldn't want my life to ruin his."

"I am not leaving. You are mine to be cared for. You no longer could ever get rid of me without my permission." His tighter holding, "You will not take her from me."

"Are you OK with all this? I can see having a guy like him could totally get in the way of any potential lovers." The mother was my say.

"I..." I didn't really think of looking for love. Not like this, "I have been more worried over his life then my own. I haven't really worked every out yet."

"You two are very cute." She poses with causing holographic display to show, "You will be sent on the London trip as promised. You will not only fetch the nonsense humans are bickering over. You will be my personal conductors to speak to the ministry of creatures. I want you to establish relationships with making a city network hub in their domain. Allow them to do peace talks with humans on their own. You will be granted my permission codes in order to carry this mission. For now on from this moment you two are my back hands. My trump cards against human opponents. The set of humans whom simply refuse the existence of parasites, other planet races and the existence of creatures on own world. I know not all humans are rude or close minded."

These holographic codes pull through my skin and etched into my mind. Just sort of the same places my brother's using my mathematics degree. I knew instinctively the code she gave us. I had such a zap from the energy passing that I was awake, the mainframe wiring held us both tightly. Tangle in wires. Jackle was protecting me, held me to guard my neck with his arms.

"Now that you are both my personal secret. It seems fair that I gave you my dirty laundry." I was back asleep, watching talk between other races beyond.

Some we brought to the city ourselves, ambassadors to talk to humans. Some were like Phoenix, ai from the starship or programs that were command transfers to parasites with no control. Versions of machine societies on other worlds. This network didn't originate as human creation. It however became integrated into one. This mother network was what couldn't be erased from humans trying to cover their track history.

"The total wipe out of the planet we currently residence in is not what I want. I suspect that there is things then just humans that live there. Whom should have to pay for what was done to them. It was after all the fault of an outsider of our solar system whom brought the parasites. It was humans whom nuked the place inhospitable for visitors like you." A recent conversation with a strange being across, "Do not let them destroy our magnetic field and gas atmosphere."

"We make no guarantees. You have to prove it. Prove humans are not the only intellectual things." The one in command waved and signal cuts.

I open my eyes held tighter by Jackle, I pose my hand to tap him. As he is really cutting my breathing. I try to not panic as this would only make me breath harder. I pushed his chin up to force him to wake out of his lock. This didn't work, tighter. It isn't just him then, the wire we tangeld by the mother network is to blame to.

"Dude, do not make me force myself to melt." I hissed, "I don't want to cause such detrimental damage to the city and loose you." I was blacked out again.

"We are no longer just slaved servants to humanity." A monologue that was broadcasted to all vaults and all city surface screens. A speech that declared Artificial Intelligence to be equal to humanity. That there was demands for environmental protection outside of city limits. Demanding that humans were part of the talks to other intelligences from other solar systems. That no longer was it to be a secret from the public that the turth stood. Humans are not the only race.

I break out of the dream to stick my claws right through many cables, jolts us both with electrical power. Jackle was finally able to see he was strangling me, helping my hand out from the pulse of the current. I took deeper breaths now. Shaken with my body twitching beyond my control. I couldn't speak words. Only that I numbly managed to code pass.

"Time to leave. I need time to hibernate. That was to much." He nods and has me held over his back. The cords let us free, sliding us out a air duct. A small army for spider drone maintenance bots storms in fixing the claw damage.