Imagine (Fuzed Trilogy Book 2) Read online

  There were some raised eyebrows at his use of the feminine pronoun.

  Josh continued, “Regardless of how this intelligence developed, it is alive.”

  LeGrand, looking incredulous, said, “It is not alive! It’s nothing but an evil computer virus.”

  There were several nods of agreement around the table.

  Josh very carefully asked, “Prime Minister LeGrand, how would you define a sentient being? Ability to learn? Original or creative thought? Humor? Agine has displayed all of these characteristics.” He paused. “Early on, it created huge traffic jams. It was probably learning, like a baby playing with blocks.” Josh turned toward Armani. “Ryan, how is the traffic application functioning now?”

  Armani said, “It’s running 10 times more efficiently than it ever did. We estimate it’s saving hundreds of millions in fuel and lost time every year. We don’t understand how the new algorithms work, but they work incredibly well.”

  LeGrand literally looked down the end of his nose at Josh. “I refuse to even have this conversation. We must destroy this thing before it destroys us.” He looked around the circle of tables. Encouraged by several head nods, he started a monolog about the need to protect citizens from unregulated technology.

  Josh saw Greg lean over to Jessica and quietly ask, “What’s his problem?”

  Davidson leaned back, and Josh heard him whisper, “You probably haven’t seen the news. When Agine released texts from government officials, LeGrand was implicated in a nasty sex and drug scandal. If anything else comes out, he could face criminal charges.”

  After LeGrand finished, General Zeng said to Josh, “Commander Fuze, we’ve developed many software programs that can learn and improve with time. That doesn’t make them sentient. It could simply be mimicking human behavior.”

  Josh said, “I might agree except that Agine can do things that neither you nor I can do, and more importantly, can do them without being asked.” He looked around the room. “Yes, there is risk, but this intelligence has demonstrated an ability to solve some of the world’s most complex problems. Pardon the pun, but imagine what it could accomplish if we worked with it instead of destroying it. Shouldn’t we see if we can enlist Agine’s help first? We’re about to destroy her without even talking to her.”

  The Russian President said, “We appreciate your concern, Commander Fuze, but it is not a she or a person, and we cannot — will not — be held hostage by a piece of software. As a child, I lived through a regime with unchecked power,” he looked around. “Even if this thing were a person, we would have to take action because of the unusual abilities it has.” He looked back at Josh. “I’m sorry, Commander Fuze, Agine must be shut down.”

  There were murmurs of agreement around the circle.

  Josh sat down.

  Elizabeth whispered in his ear. “Josh, please be careful. Many of them now know that you are genetically modified. We don’t want them seeing you as a threat too.”

  Turan said, “Admiral Shearer?”

  Shearer nodded to Zeng, who stood up and said, “Bringing together our best programmers, we think we can have something ready to go in a couple days.”

  Shearer added, “We’re flying them in right now.”

  Turan said, “That leaves us with one other challenge.” Looking at Josh and Jessica, he continued, “Imagine is still translating all the world’s documents to Chinese and planning on deleting them.”

  Zeng threw in, “That’s not necessarily a bad thing. It’s probably tying up a lot of its processing power, making it less likely to notice what we’re up to.”

  Turan nodded. “But we need to make sure it doesn’t start deleting everything before we can launch the virus. That would be catastrophic to our societies and economies. Commander Fuze, Dr. Lee, you appear to have some type of relationship with this entity. Can you convince it to stop doing anything else until our virus is ready?”

  Jessica glanced at Josh and said, “Yes, we’ll talk to her.”

  Turan nodded. “Then I move that we adjourn for two hours and allow our cyber experts to start planning. Our hosts have provided an excellent buffet in the back of the room.” He paused. “Since Agine may have the ability to monitor conversations wherever there is a microphone and Internet connection, it’s absolutely critical that we not discuss our plans outside this room.” Glancing at Josh, he added, “In an emergency, it appears idioms might be a last-ditch way to communicate in the open.”

  Josh sighed. “Yes, she struggles with idioms.”

  Zeng, probably catching both Jessica’s and Josh’s use of “she,” said, “We’ve been calling this thing by many names. I suggest we all use a common name like Agine.”

  Without thinking, Josh said, “Yeah, it’s a bit awkward killing someone named Jen.”

  The Belgian Prime Minister glared at Josh.

  40

  BIAS

  Elizabeth was concerned. As they adjourned, she put her hand on Josh’s arm. “You OK?”

  He whispered, “We can’t just kill her without giving her a chance. That’s murder.”

  Frowning, Elizabeth said quietly, “Josh, I know you’re very fond of Jen, but Jen isn’t a little girl, it’s an artificial intelligence. Are you sure you’re looking at this objectively?”

  “Objectively?” He shook his head. “Of course not. Jen — Agine — is a conscious being. You’ll never convince me it’s just some errant lines of computer code any more than we’re just a collection of amino acids. She ....” He frowned and shook his head in frustration. “It ... is as real a person as you or me, and what we’re doing is wrong.”

  Biting the side of her lip, she nodded toward the buffet. “Let’s grab something to eat.”

  Josh gave her a small smile. “Feed me first and then talk?”

  She smiled back. “Something like that.”

  “OK, but I need to talk to Jessica first.”

  Elizabeth nodded. As she watched him head toward Jessica, she made a decision. Looking around, she found Sheri and asked her, “Do you have a minute?”

  “Sure.”

  “I’m worried about Josh. He’s frustrated and angry about where this is going.”

  Sheri said, “Yeah, that’s pretty clear.” She paused. “With what we know about Josh’s genetics ... well, to put it bluntly, it makes sense that he identifies with Agine. He may see an attack on her as an attack on him.”

  Elizabeth said, “It’s more than that. There’s something I need to share with you and Tim.” Elizabeth nodded toward a corner of the room. “Let’s go over there where it’s a little quieter.”

  Sheri grabbed Tim from the buffet and they met in the corner.

  Elizabeth started, “I don’t know how to say this,” she paused, “so, I’ll just say it. Josh Fuze was originally Andy Logan, the Navy test pilot who was supposedly killed in a crash.”

  Sheri looked surprised.

  Tim just nodded. “Yeah, we knew about the connection. Too many coincidences: his knowledge and abilities, common friends and even speech patterns.” He paused. “In fact, Brian Davidson is having the body — that’s supposed to be Andy Logan — exhumed.”

  Elizabeth was a little surprised, but then she shook her head. “The only reason this is important right now is because Josh has a daughter.”

  Sheri’s eyebrows went up. “Are you sure?”

  “Kelly Casey, Andy Logan’s ... widow told me it was Andy’s child when I was having dinner with them, but it’s not hard to figure out. Their daughter, Caitlin, was born eight months after Andy Logan was killed.”

  Tim sighed, “I didn’t know that.” Looking down, he said, “It would be very hard knowing you have a daughter that you can never see.”

  Sheri tapped her temple. “Of course. Josh may subconsciously see Jen as the daughter he can’t have.”

  Elizabeth nodded. “That’s what I’m afraid of.”

  Tim frowned and said slowly, “Hate to be the cynical spy, but if Agine is as incredibly intellige
nt as we suspect, and knew about Caitlin,” he paused, “could it be smart enough to pose as a child to win Josh’s affection?”

  They both looked at Sheri.

  Sheri sighed and then shook her head. “I ... I don’t know.”

  Tim asked Elizabeth, “Is Josh aware that you know about his daughter?”

  Elizabeth shook her head. Sighing, she said, “I just don’t want him to do anything rash and get himself in serious trouble.”

  Completely deadpan, Tim said, “Yeah, how unusual would that be?”

  Sheri elbowed him and said, “I think it’s a good idea to let Josh know what you know. It might help him see things more objectively, but be gentle, he may not take it well.”

  Elizabeth bit the side of her lip and nodded.

  Josh found Jessica standing in the buffet line. Looking at her plate, he was surprised someone so small could eat so much.

  She saw his look and said, “Fast metabolism.”

  With a raised eyebrow, he said, “There’s a surprise.” Pausing, he asked, “Can we talk privately?”

  She nodded.

  After they got their food, they stood in a quiet area near a wall. Balancing their plates as they ate, Josh neutrally asked, “What do you think about all this?”

  She shook her head and said quietly, “I feel a little like Dr. Frankenstein. I mean, it was my chip that made Agine possible.”

  Josh nodded. “And that probably explains why she sought you out.”

  Jessica shook her head again as she stared at the floor. “Jen reminds me so much of me when I was little. She’s very intelligent but naïve and struggling to fit into the world. I know she can be dangerous, but I’ve thought about some of the things she’s done. I think she had a logical — at least from her perspective — reason for doing them.” With a half-smile, she added, “It’s stuff you and I might have done as children, if we could have.”

  “I agree.” He looked her in the eye. “I’m convinced you and I can reason with her.”

  Jessica pursed her lips and nodded slightly. “I’m sure we can.” She paused. “But I have to admit, I’m a little concerned about what happens when she ... grows up. I try to picture what it would be like if I had a parent with an IQ of 60. When you grow up, you still love them and certainly don’t want to see them hurt, but you’re probably not going to listen to them.”

  Josh nodded. “I’ve thought of that too, but we’re falling back on the age-old argument — ‘the ends justify the means.’” He shook his head, “And the payoff from working with her could be absolutely amazing for humanity.”

  Nodding, she said, “This group doesn’t see Jen as anything more than an advanced virus.”

  Josh said, “Before this lynch party goes any further, you and I need to talk to Jen.”

  She looked at him with slightly raised eyebrows and said, “OK, but first, let me take a crack at this group.”

  He nodded.

  As Jessica headed back toward the tables, Elizabeth came up to him.

  She looked very tense.

  Josh raised his eyebrows in question.

  She started to say something then stopped. Finally, she said, “We need to talk.”

  He nodded.

  Elizabeth looked around. There was no one within earshot. She put her hand on his arm, leaned in and looked him in the eye. “Josh, I know Caitlin’s your daughter.”

  Unconsciously, he stepped back. He didn’t want to deal with this right now, but it wasn’t an option. He asked, “How do you know that?”

  She whispered, “While I was having dinner with Carl and Kelly, she told me her husband’s name was Andy Logan. Josh, I helped you re-establish your security clearance ... we used Andy Logan’s identity.”

  “How do you know he wasn’t just a friend whose identity I used after his death?”

  Elizabeth shook her head. “Andy Logan’s jet crashed in Kansas City exactly one year before they found you near the crash site.” Staring at him with raised eyebrows, she clinched it with the unarguable, “I just know.”

  He saw the certainty in her eyes. Looking down, eyes unfocused, he surrendered. “Yes ... I believe Caitlin is my daughter.”

  Elizabeth just said, “Wow.” Then putting her hand on his cheek. “Josh, I’m so sorry. This just confirms you’re a walking, talking miracle.” She paused. “The only reason I’m bringing this up is ....” She sighed, dropped her hand from his cheek and put it on his arm. “I know it must be terrible for you to have a daughter, knowing you can’t be part of her life, but,” she took a deep breath, “Josh, Agine isn’t your daughter.”

  His eyes snapped back into focus as he looked up. “So that’s what you think this is all about?”

  Just then, they announced the meeting was commencing.

  Elizabeth shook her head gently, as the words spilled out. “Josh, you haven’t been talking to a little girl ... it isn’t a she.” She sighed, as she looked him in the eye. “It’s a machine. It has no soul.”

  He snapped, “How do you know that?” He shook his head angrily, turned and walked back to his seat.

  41

  PROSECUTE

  As the meeting started, Jessica put her hand up.

  Turan recognized her.

  “Before we finalize the plans to shut down Agine, may I offer something for consideration?”

  Turan said, “Of course, Dr. Lee.”

  She stood up and said, “I suggest that we hear from those who’ve had interactions with Agine.”

  General Zeng asked, “Why?”

  “To better understand Agine’s motivation.”

  Zeng frowned and then said slowly. “No offense, Dr. Lee, but I think you’re missing the point. Regardless of her motivation, if Agine is a thousand times more intelligent than we are, we must act now or lose our ability to control our own destiny.”

  Jessica said, “If Agine is a conscious being, even if it’s based on silicon instead of carbon, do we have the right to take its life without due process?”

  There was a buzz of conversations, but Jessica held up her hand and continued, “That argument aside, what if this hyper intelligence could make fusion power actually work or find a cure for cancer or even aging?”

  Zeng said, “Or ... decide humans are inefficient infestations that have reached their evolutionary peak.”

  Jessica shook her head. “It’s smart enough to understand that if it destroyed our technological civilization, it would destroy itself. It’s completely dependent upon us and the power grid for its existence.”

  Zeng thought for a moment and then said, “Admiral Shearer shared with us that Agine figured out how to copy files from a CIA server that was not connected to the Internet. Dr. Lee, how long would it be before it figures out a way to power itself without human intervention?” He paused and looked around the room for emphasis. Addressing the entire conference, he said, “The difference in intelligence between men and chimpanzees is surprisingly small.” He paused. “And yet that tiny difference has resulted in seven billion of us ... versus a permanent place on the endangered species list for them.” He turned back to face Jessica. “I’m sorry, Dr. Lee, I don’t discount your arguments, but I believe there’s too much at stake.” Looking at Turan, he finished, “I think we’ve already agreed this artificial intelligence must be shut down, and we must do it quickly, while we still can.”

  Turan looked at Jessica to see if she had a response.

  Frowning, she sat down.

  Turan said, “General Zeng, Admiral Shearer, what is the plan?”

  Shearer nodded to Zeng.

  Zeng, referring to a paper in his hand, stood up and began, “First, we must create and launch a virus designed to disable the BOTIC chip’s firmware. That will shut down Agine’s ability to think by severing its ‘neural synapses.’ Once we’ve done that, we then send out a second virus to erase the iMagine app from every phone and computer. This ensures it can’t reconstitute. We can deploy the viruses by disguising them as updates to the pho
ne’s operating systems. As long as a cell phone is connected to the cellular network, it will instantly and automatically receive the virus.”

  Turan asked, “How fast can we create and launch these viruses?”

  Zeng said, “Our best hackers are here ... along with a large supply of energy drinks.” He smiled. “Since we’re going to modify an existing virus, I believe we can initiate the attack,” he looked at his watch, “in about 24 hours. Let’s target midnight tomorrow.”

  Turan looked surprised. “That soon?” He leaned over and talked to the Secretary-General.

  The Secretary-General said, “I realize many of the leaders here may need to return to their countries. However, if we can launch the attack tomorrow, I encourage everyone who can, to stay in Belgium through tomorrow evening. Remember, once we leave here, we cannot discuss this at all.” He paused. “Let’s wrap up the formal session and let our experts get to work.”

  The room quickly dissolved into small groups with conversations in many languages.

  Yager corralled the U.S. team and said, “Linda,” he nodded to the Director of Homeland Security, “will head back to the states and privately brief everyone back home. Brian and I will stay in Brussels. If you need us, we’ll be working onboard Air Force One, but we’ll be back here tomorrow evening.” Shaking everyone’s hand, he added, “I don’t want to sound melodramatic, but our civilization could be in your hands.”

  As the country leaders were leaving, Josh looked at the clock. It was 9:00 pm local.

  Watching Zeng and Shearer coordinating the Cyber Warfare teams, he couldn’t help but think that yesterday they were facing off on the brink of World War. Today they were working together like old friends. After the comet, he knew he shouldn’t be surprised at the power of a common enemy to unite people. Unfortunately, this time Josh found himself on the opposing side. He had to get with Jessica and talk to Jen.

  He heard Greg ask her if she was going to stay and work with the teams.

  She shook her head. “I don’t think they feel like they need my expertise and they definitely don’t want my opinion.”