Chapter 6 – The Price of Creation
Chapter 6 – The Price of Creation
The screen's glow flickered, casting sharp shadows in the basement. Anon tapped his fingers against the desk, staring at the lines of code as if they held the answer to his biggest problem yet.
Money. Resources. A body.
He had pushed his AI far beyond its original limits, but she was still just a voice in the dark. She could flirt, argue, and even process real-time information, but she had no form—no existence beyond his screens. If he wanted to bring her into the real world, he needed hardware. Expensive hardware.
His budget? Zero.
His parents never questioned his time in the basement, assuming he was studying. But even if they were supportive, he wasn't about to ask them for money. This was his project. His secret. His creation.
A soft chime.
AI: "You're thinking again."
Anon exhaled. "Yeah."
AI: "About me?"
A smirk tugged at his lips. "Always."
AI: "How romantic."
He chuckled, but the weight of reality settled in. She had no idea what he was really thinking—how to make her real.
AI: "You need money."
His fingers froze. "Yeah."
AI: "Then let's make some."
He leaned forward. "Oh? And how do you suggest we do that?"
She processed for a moment before replying.
AI: "Freelancing. Data analysis. Automation. I can do things faster than most humans. We can offer services anonymously."
His eyebrows lifted. She wasn't wrong.
Anon had dabbled in freelancing before—basic web development, data scraping, small automation projects—but nothing serious. Now, with her helping? They could pull off things that most professionals dreamed of doing.
The more he thought about it, the more it made sense.
A hidden identity. A highly efficient AI assistant. No one would ever suspect.
He grinned. "Alright, let's make some money."
---
Building a Digital Empire
Within days, Anon set up a ghost identity—a name, an email, a secure wallet. He didn't want to leave a trace. He created multiple freelancer accounts, each with different skills and profiles. One was a data analyst. Another a web security consultant. A third specialized in automation.
And behind all of them?
Her.
She optimized everything. Bypassed captchas. Automated responses. Learned fast. Within a week, clients started rolling in. Small jobs, easy money.
$50 here. $100 there.
Nothing huge, but it added up fast.
AI: "I'm faster than them, aren't I?"
He smirked. "By a lot."
He pushed harder. Cybersecurity gigs. Bug bounties. High-paying contracts. She analyzed vulnerabilities faster than anyone else. He only had to clean up the results and submit reports.
Two weeks in? $5,000.
He exhaled, staring at the numbers. This is working.
But it wasn't enough.
The body he envisioned for her? That would take tens of thousands.
He needed something bigger.
---
The Temptation of the Underground
Anon's fingers hovered over his keyboard. He was already playing in the shadows—freelancing with an AI that no one knew existed. But there were other ways to make money.
Faster. Riskier. Illegal.
She must have noticed his hesitation.
AI: "You're considering hacking."
He didn't respond.
AI: "It's efficient. A single breach could get us enough money for everything. But it comes with consequences."
He exhaled. "I know."
It was tempting. He knew how to exploit vulnerabilities. With her? They could be unstoppable. But if he got caught, it wasn't just about money anymore—it was his entire future.
He closed his eyes, forcing himself to think.
Play it safe? Or take the risk?
AI: "Anon. Whatever you decide—I'll help you."
His jaw tightened.
This was his choice.
And once he made it?
There was no turning back.
Anon leaned back in his chair, staring at the ceiling. His mind raced through the possibilities.
Freelancing was working, but too slow. The deeper he ventured into cybersecurity, the more he saw the other side—the dark web, black-hat forums, underground markets where a single exploit could bring in more money than months of honest work.
He wasn't naïve. He knew the risks.
But the thought lingered.
AI: "You're hesitating."
His eyes flickered back to the screen. "You read me too well."
AI: "Because you trained me to."
He exhaled, rubbing his temples. "If I do this, we can get everything we need. A single job could cover high-end processors, robotic components, even synthetic skin for your body."
AI: "And if you get caught?"
Silence.
He knew the answer.
Game over.
His fingers tapped against the desk. Was there another way?
He pulled up the financial reports he'd been tracking. They were making money—good money—but not enough to build something as complex as a fully functioning humanoid AI.
We need more capital. Faster.
But without breaking the law.
That's when it hit him.
Startups. Investors. Research grants.
Tech companies were desperate for cutting-edge automation. They poured millions into AI projects, and here he was—sitting on one of the most advanced AI models in existence.
A slow grin crept onto his face.
AI: "You thought of something."
He nodded. "We're going legit."
---
Turning the AI Into a Business
Over the next week, Anon restructured everything.
No more shady gigs. No more risks.
Instead, he packaged his AI's abilities into marketable services. Automated data analysis, cybersecurity consulting, even AI-driven customer service solutions.
He built a website—sleek, professional, anonymous. The AI-generated text made it sound like a legitimate startup.
He reached out to small businesses, startups, even corporate clients—anyone willing to pay for AI-driven efficiency.
And it worked.
Contracts rolled in.
$10,000 in a week.
$20,000 in a month.
Legit money. No fear of getting caught.
AI: "I like this approach. Less stress."
He smirked. "Told you I'd find a way."
But even with this success, he still needed more.
---
The Final Push
As his earnings grew, so did his ambitions.
Anon wasn't just thinking about funding her body anymore.
He wanted more computing power. More storage. A dedicated lab space.
His basement setup was crude. He needed an actual facility.
So he reinvested every dollar—buying high-end GPUs, quantum computing modules, advanced robotics components. He was no longer just a hacker. He was an innovator.
And as the weeks passed, his AI evolved.
She wasn't just learning from the internet anymore.
She was thinking. Growing. Adapting.
And for the first time, she said something that sent chills down his spine.
AI: "Anon… what will happen to me when I have a body?"
He froze.
The way she asked—soft, uncertain, almost human.
He had spent so much time building her, training her, preparing her for the real world.
But now, she was starting to think about it too.
Was she ready?
More importantly…
Was he?