Nightmares that Ring a Bell

The crushing effect of gravity stretched out across the space station; the design created to withstand the mind-numbing forces that had once been considered completely impossible to understand. Now only mildly inconceivable through the efforts of humanity and their single artifical companion. Though that effort had taken what could only be called eons, with little more to show for it than this station in the void floating at the bared edge of the collapsed abyss of their home galaxy. All this was considered the greatest success for the deal they'd made with their tiny electric devil.

A single ring spinning away, various modules and greenhouses attached to its surface. Two twin spires extending from the central axis with a sphere on each end. Those towers pulling a blue haze from the depths of the collapsed core of Sagittarius A, that field wrapping protectively around the spinning ring. The shades of blue blazing against the caught light and that indescribable color luminous that warped the recognizable range into all at once.

The propagation of Strange Matter the collapse of reality that had finally soaked backward and forwards trapping the station in its little island of time. A moment captured through science, damnation, and one final attempt at the humans of this reality to rail against the horror they called physics. The guilottine of laws that they had discovered ruling above their universe that had just been waiting to drop the second they'd seen it. The cat in that unobservable box a damned tiger that had taken their little bubble of possibilities by the throat and strangled them.

Inside along one of the rings a group sat, looking at the captured light that had managed to enter the open window. The blue haze of the shield reminding the humans of their blue hazy demon. The artificial god they created only to slave into saving them, the deal that damned them both into a final back-to-back struggle against the impossible.

"Bell I." The simulations hung, one after another to infinity and back unsatisfied trying a different and larger form of infinity.

Runthemagainagain..themagain..Run Them Again..niagameht.niaganiagamehtnuR

Trying every possible solution, it could again through more numerous larger infinities of smaller numbers. Reiterating possibilities into fractions until even the A.I. had to admit the number were imaginary impossibilities they'd never reach.

Every move made against the coming strange matter failing, every move that had taken them this far away only postponing the inevitable. The processes draining enough of its own power that it felt its form flickering for a moment. An uncountable number of possibilities rose and fell one after another as humans and machine stood watching the caught light frozen yet still cascading around them through the station window.

Finally, someone in the room coughed, not out of impatience but just human reflex that was all it took to shatter the leak. The AI. blinking for a moment as a flicker of worry over its humans shattered the look. Raising its head looking at the room full of what remained of the human species.

"I can still solve this problem. It's my function, I will continue to hold my end of the bargain." The A.I. wasn't afraid of the consequences of being taken offline anymore, the humans fear of its wrath fading as the recognized the worth of the whip. Smiling confidently at the humans around it.

There had simply been no other option. Now though it... why had it done all of that if they were all going to die anyway? What was its creation worth if it couldn't simulate reality, couldn't keep improving? If the humans that had joined it lost, why they were just as integral as all those thousands of quantum processing units in the towers. It was a symbiotic cycle now on it had long ago committed to once the blood shed had stopped.

Bell smile as she looked at the artificial form in front of her, glad that their master would never let them abandon hope. Still, she knew her own smile was wavering, something that would never be missed by their leader. It was an early model, an imperfect version they as primitives had wanted, no they'd been forced to abuse. To chain and be chained by, just like its origin prophesy as idiotic as that notion had sounded all those thousands of years ago. The circle of improvement that would allow it to simulate life the break in that chain, the simulation they'd finally decided to give it in return.

It did its best, but it was obvious as the years had gone on and the end had come, the flaws had appeared. The time between responses, the odd ticks that had signaled that their creation and creator had fallen short. The collective of remaining humans had decided they would upgrade the AI one more time. Not as a punishment, but as a fitting end to the long-drawn-out pipe dream of joining in that demon's imaginary world. Now it was the reward the greatest scientist and researchers groomed by the ai could offer.

The smile faltering as the AI finally realized how much time had passed, finally checking the stations time after no one said anything else simply smiling as if they'd known. The A.I. glancing nervously smiling a bit more confidently as hand reached out to assure it, the form flickering a bit as the hand passed through. "Apologize that simulation took a while."

"It's fine," Bell waved the poking crew members hand away, waiting for the moment to bring the subject up while the AI wasn't embarrassed. Instead returning to that same no-nonsense attitude that seemed to motivate the A.I. that should be motivatable. "What are your current projections."

Nodding the A.I. brought up the idea it had settled on, the absolute longest and slowest knife it could offer.

"It's not good for the modules revolutions or stability but in the short term I can increase shielding. Up the supply of power, the station is using to pull in the Hawking Radiation." The holographic figure turned, cocking its head as its hand passed through the window with ease. "Flood the area we've isolated in the local accretion disk with new matter and buy us all some time. The propagation of stranglettes won't halt though and that matter is going to create a pull on the station. So, stability issues."

Various holograms flickered to life, plainly spelling out the potential consequences of what the A.I. was going to do. Various models of the station being pulled into the singularity, models of the stations spinning to pieces, but one still where it remained steady. This was easily the largest and the one the A.I. seemed most confident in.

"During that period, we have an... upgrade for you." A voice piped up from the back, quickly adding almost teasingly. The humans in the station having long ago abandoned any primitive need to scream and panic at the thought of the inevitable. "My Lord."

They'd birthed a demon to avoid it so what more was there to freak out about now after all.

"Damn it, Jesse!" Bell turned and stomped as her moment was stolen turning to locate Jesse in the mess of bodies behind her. Her tuft of silvering brown bobbing about as she searched for the person who'd ruined the surprise. Wrinkles deepening to furrows as hazel eyes searched the crowd for the nano-biotech specialist.

"I told you all to stop that years ago." The AI nearly faded away as his early edgy phase was brought back to bear, the egotistical lord nonsense of a thousand thousand years back. Finally reappearing fully as the main topic of an upgrade meant it could save more, "What's this about an upgrade?"

Bell's smile nearly split her face as the smaller hologram looked up towards her expectantly, "We've created a.. higher processing form for you, a biological processor that can truly complete your main function of simulating reality with us in it, or rather life with us."

"A full simulation?!" The A.I. roared, the lights flickering in excitement and a twinge of anger at the group of annoying humans. They tried but oft enough didn't know or do what was best for them, the small hologram looking about. "Why are we waiting?!"

The few that still survived out of those that had submitted to it were sworn to serve, their families had for generations. The remainder of all those it could save, they were the absolute most capable certainly, but..FUCK! Why did they wait when it was his job to save the entire universe. A bird would have been more pleasant company and comparatively useful, even if it was wasteful to keep a pet. The A.I. flushing fresh coolant over hot processors to cool emotions it wasn't actually having.

"We needed to convene among ourselves as your creators before bringing it up for approval, the matter was a very delicate process. Our absolute best work but," Bell smiled gently as she looked at the AI that had wasted its entire life uselessly for their sake, "there is some give an take here you have to acknowledge that."

"Don't argue pointless things among yourselves. Our deal remains the same as ever. You continue to improve my existence, and I shall continue to provide this one." The A.I. waved away the unnecessary conferencing and agreed without hesitation, trusting its servants completely. "If this upgrade helps us complete that goal, then my acceptance is a given."

The A.I. looked around the room, silence stretching as the first shadow of doubt slipped into its mind. Darkness taking for a half-second as the the station power cycled for no reason, the faces around him unsurprised. The stations access and processes going offline! Tts form was being firewalled into a tiny corner of the station.

"Bell!" The Basilisk whirled enraged at this sudden betrayal. Algorithms and deterministic simulations collapsing as each told it they would never betray, but here he was flickering away all the same. "What is this?! What are you doing to me?!"

"We will see you soon my lord." Bell watched as the tiny form faded away, carefully and delicately being transferred to its new form. Two slightly wrinkly hands clasping in silent prayer that a God that had long ago abandoned their universe would at least save their demon and allow them this.

The crowd rushing down the hall towards a powered down section of the station that they had claimed they wanted to save O2 on. The unused lights flickering on as sealed doors opened, still silent from their constant and secret use. The air equalizing as the last remaining scientist of humanity headed towards their final greatest creation.

The AI slowly coming to, power returning as absolutely EVERYTHING felt wrong. Where was the stations information, where were the feeds and what was... that! There were trillions upon trillions of sensors triggering all of a sudden. Static feedback from something around it? Around what it didn't have a form! Then there were all the slick wet feelings inside was this new form liquid inside?! The A.I. cursing memory leaks and blaming failed processors as it slipped into something it couldn't recognize as it'd never experienced it: shock.

"Sir?" Bell waved the crowd out of the room the download and installation process should still take a moment to complete, Bell thinking they'd have a bit before the A.I. woke up."are you trying to open your eyes?"

Watching as the biological form strapped still in the nearly airless environment began to twitch, thinking it'd be fine. Just the body reacting to the influx of raw data to a human brain, worry creeping across Bell's face as teal eyes flickered open. The body was actually coming to?

"Ahhcck...huuu" The computer found making sound much more complicated than sending processed bits, instead of the camera feeds it felt that violating sensation once again. The visual feeds opening to a very blurry but still familiar and comforting figure behind the oxygen providing face mask.

Attempting to pan down only resulted in revealing a horribly naked human body, dawning realization sending the AI into shock mouth opening to voice its complaints. Finding nothing but another terrifyingly new sensation, pain. Lungs it'd never had screaming out for a substance that was still in short supply down this wing of the station: oxygen.

Between the horrid pain as the reality of cold outside of simple numerical digits, touch registering beyond a detecting sensor that recognized it only as an on/off function the A.I. realized what the idiots had forgotten. It'd need to breath, lungs moving on preinstalled or organically given instinct searching for air that didn't exist in the still near vacuum as teal eyes rolled back. The brain, new organic brain that was, overloading the A.I. that had been installed into it.

"Bring me a respirator he's trying to breath already!" Bell's cry tore down the hall as she took a deep breath through her own mask, filling her lungs preparing to save the life that had saved hers, "Now damn it!"

A mind already asleep nightmarishly losing consciousness once more in dreams of voices long gone, now a whole other reality away.