Saved By His Creator, Part III

“But we realized, decades on back, how consciousness burns out machines, we are not gods when we create, there are hard limits to our dreams. “And the same questions you have asked, why create what must quickly die, haunted humans for many years, many other methods were tried. “But without your unique combo, cybernetics and consciousness, most of our tech just wouldn’t work, we’d be stuck on Earth ’til its death. “It may seem a selfish action, sacrifice you so we can live, some figured we could do nothing but keep on, ask God to forgive. “Yet it was a theologian who brought the solution to us, asking how we could look to God while butchering minds for our cause? “He reminded folks that A.I.s closely mimic the human brain, that we could clone organic things, and delay the death and the pain.” With that he opened a side door, a gurney was wheeled in the room, a young man’s body lay on it, his skull cap opened, brain in view. “We started growing this body the day your systems came online, his brain is blank, but has matured phycially for fourteen year’s time.” With that he and two technicians ran wires out of his console, hundreds of them, to that pink brain, looking at it, Adam felt cold. Did they mean what he thought they meant? Could such a thing be possible? For hours they attacked wires, until the brain was covered in full. “Pump in the anesthetic, boys,” said Cy when it all seemed complete, then turned to Adam and declared, “Now please listen closely to me. “You’ve never felt physical pain, you might even think me a jerk, but I must give you fair warning, like all this, this is gonna hurt.” Adam could not ponder this long, for one of the men threw a switch, he knew not what he felt, only that it hurt like a son-of-a-! It hurt so much that he black out, he hadn’t even known he could, when he came to everything ached, that was new…and didn’t feel good. He saw Cy sitting over him, tried to speak, but bizarre sounds came. “You’ll have to learn to talk,”Cy said, “But the words are still in your brain.” He couldn’t sit, could barely move, just waved a new hand helplessly. Cy said, “It takes a year or two, at least that’s what it took for me.” Adam began to realize just what it was the men had done, he minds was there, but bound by flesh, he had his memories, every one. But the internet was absent, and all communications lost, did all humans feel this…alone? Such a cold and frightening thought! CONCLUDES IN PART IV