Artificial Exile Read online

  Artificial

  Exile

  By D.S. Emerson

  Copyright © 2018 by D.S. Emerson

  All Rights Reserved.

  This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

  CONTENTS

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 1

  It was hot and humid on the planet to which the robots had exiled them. Years of working in the energy factory had hardened Bek, and he did not mind the searing temperatures or the heavy lifting: he had spent almost his whole life working under such conditions. He was, however, glad that he would be finishing his allocated job soon and returning to the city to rest.

  “Bek, what are you doing after work?” his friend Abel asked him.

  Abel was always eager to leave the factory they worked in, and that made Bek nervous since Abel was his friend, and Bek did not want anything bad to happen to him. Leaving early would negatively affect his job evaluation, and working in the energy factory was, supposedly, among the best jobs one could have now. When other options were almost nonexistent, a job that paid good credits amounted to the best one could hope for, even if that meant going home, nearly dead from exhaustion, to a designated apartment in the city.

  “I’ll be meeting with Jaina,” Bek replied to Abel. Just as he continued pushing his designated wagon, he heard Abel asking for help. Looking behind him, he noticed that the wagon that Abel pushed, along with five other people, was stuck. “Wait…I’m coming,” Bek told them.

  He asked the other people who pushed his wagon with him to stop so he could go and help Abel. Heading back to the end of the line, he watched the other wagons moving forward toward the energy factory. He knew that any delay could mean trouble; however, he was not going to refuse the call for help from Abel. He never cared how small or big the request was from Abel: he always tried to help his friend.

  Observing the wagon wheels more closely, he noticed that the left back wheel was stuck in the orange dirt—a common sight since the ground was always muddy close to the dark orange Iorine lakes. Together, they tried pushing the wagon to get it unstuck. The first time, they only moved it a little bit forward; the second time, they got the wagon unstuck, and restarted its slow roll forward. Bek, after seeing it move steadily ahead, rushed to return in front to his designated wagon before the guards, who were watching from afar, would think that anyone was trying to run to the wilderness. In the distance, he could see the line of wagons on the horizon going into the energy factory. The factory that Bek worked in looked menacing even from afar, with its huge chimneys spouting orange smoke into a sky that was orange with a bit of blue. There were other factories some distance from this one, with lakes nearby as well.

  A bit of blue sky just like Earth, Bek remembered, and that made him look to the ground to avoid seeing in front of him—to avoid seeing the world they lived in on this new planet. It was the last transfer of Iorine from the lakes to the energy factory for their shift. The row of wagons moved closer to the factory, and Bek raised his head to watch the entrance while he pushed the big wagon. The orange ground changed into metal as they stepped closer; the hard work of pushing was almost over. Iorine made all the electronics go crazy, so all the work in the factory was human labor, and the artificial intelligence oppressor kept their systems for monitoring from a distance. On the factory grounds, the human guards who belonged to Cennan’s police force watched them constantly.

  Earth, not Cennan, Bek remembered, was our home long ago. When he was just a kid and the war had begun, he had managed to experience Earth at its end stages before it turned into a robot-occupied wasteland—but there was no time for remembering now. His turn for pouring Iorine from his wagon came as the people in front of him slowly finished. He aligned the wagon with the help of his group as he saw Abel arriving after him, pushing his own wagon. In front of him, a ditch went into the machine that processed Iorine to produce energy that powered their city and, most importantly, was exported via cargo shuttles to Earth where the AI had its endless amounts of units and devices requiring energy to run. Cennan had the energy source; Earth was just a barren wasteland with no natural resources left except water. Iorine was used here to produce energy now, but it caused disturbances in electronics, and since the new planet was covered with Iorine in its almost endless seas and lakes, the AI oppressor exiled humans to work on this planet and export the energy they produced, in exchange for water, and their lives.

  Bek pushed the upper part of the wagon with all his strength, along with the people next to him, and Iorine started to pour into the ditch that then ended up in the massive machine at the end. Groups of people rotated thick bars there in order for the liquid material to be combusted and produce the energy that went into the city and to the export center for storage and transfer to Earth. He was careful not to get too close to the Iorine, since not only was it prone to explosions, but touching it also caused burns, and many people working at the factory had injuries—some had even died after being careless, and falling into the lakes. After the process was complete, Bek’s team pushed the wagon—which was made of metal and covered with orange dirt—to the storage area. Abel was finishing soon, and so Bek waited for him next to the exit.

  “Proceed to the exit, Employee 24L2-A34J,” a guard told him behind a mask that covered his whole face. While having a name was allowed, it was used only for communicating among fellow humans, and any interaction with the AI-controlled city was registered using the number tag you were allocated. No one needed to remember their number because the guards could scan anyone and see their personal information through their masks.

  “I am leaving; I am just waiting for my friend,” Bek said as he started moving towards one of the exits where lines of people began to gather in order to leave the factory and go to the train station. From there, it was a short trip back to the city. Soon, Abel caught up with him, and both started to go along with the crowds toward to the trains.

  They watched the blue trains leaving the station one by one. Everyone tried to be orderly, but the truth was that everyone was hurrying to get out of there. Few hours were available for free time, and the less time spent at the factory, the more time available to spend in the city. On their new planet of Cennan, day and night were similar to Earth, but because they were closer to the system’s sun, the average temperature was higher. Terraforming the planet to resemble a livable planet with oxygen had used the Earth’s remaining resources. Even then, water needed to come from Earth, but the ground was not fit for agriculture, and thus a huge area needed to be allocated next to the city for the agricultural center where enclosed dirt from Earth made fields that produced food for the city. It was an easier job working there, Bek thought while he was waiting for the train, but it paid fewer credits. Huge domes were used to house different crops and animals that provided food for the population of nearly a quarter of a million in the city—the humans who remained alive to work for the robots.

  Standing on the train station platform, waiting for the next available train, Bek wondered if the people he saw living here were all that was left of the human population. Since humanity had lost the first and only human-AI war, the surviving people had been imprisoned, and then transferred to work on this planet. Bek dismissed his thoughts just as an available train arrived in front of him. Along wit
h Abel, he boarded it.

  After a few minutes, everyone had taken their seats under the watchful eyes of the city guards, and the train left the station. It was a twenty-minute ride to the city where the entire population of Cennan lived. Bek observed one of the guard’s logos on the patch on his shoulder: it showed five humans holding hands in a circle, and in the center was a drawing of the city with its distinctive, tall tower. He had read somewhere that the circle symbolized the acceptance of humans of their new home.

  By now, the train had left the factory grounds behind, and both Bek and Abel looked out the windows. The train’s quiet movement above the planet’s surface usually made him fall asleep, and many times, Abel had woken him at the end of the line. He watched the orange sky with its hues of blue getting darker. Below them, the ground was mostly orange dirt with spots of yellowish vines, filled with Iorine coming from the ground and flowing back in. Thin and thick and of different lengths, the vines made the whole planet resemble a huge battery. He watched in the distance as the front of the train moved towards the city; he saw the transport shuttles that had made the trip from Earth, transferring the remaining human population to their new home. The transports had been left to decay in the dirt after the last shuttle with humans aboard had arrived. The moving train now left them behind, and he watched the city steadily approach.

  In order to have all the population gathered in the smallest space possible, the city was comprised of lots of twenty-to-forty-story towers. Out of necessity, the city had been built in a place where minimum interference existed from the Iorine that covered the planet; in this way, the electronic systems needed to run the city services could function. Located in the city center was the tower where the so-called government resided. At nearly four times the height of the rest of the towers, the government building overshadowed all. A communication antenna for AI transmissions between Earth and Cennan was also housed on this tower.

  “Earth is much more colorful than Cennan,” Abel told him after noticing that Bek was staring outside. “I have lots of photos from before.”

  “I know,” Bek replied. “You showed them to me, but having such things is not allowed. People were not supposed to bring anything with them from Earth. If you are discovered, not only will you go to prison, but you will also be put in some lower paying job afterwards.”

  “Screw them,” Abel replied. “…both those who serve them now, and those who surrendered decades ago.”

  “If you talk like that, you will end up dead,” Bek swiftly replied to him. “Remember that the deal for humans to survive was to work here, producing the energy they need. It was the best we could do to stay alive. We also need the water they send from Earth, and that’s how it’s worked for years now. It’s the best there is,” Bek said.

  “It’s the best for no one,” Abel replied. “One day, we should just destroy the whole city; we could just die here—taking them with us of course—and be done with it.”

  Bek smiled at Abel’s rambling, but then he noticed a guard watching them from the side, starting to walk toward them. He froze for a moment, seeing him coming their way. Turning toward Abel to tell him to stop talking, the guard just passed them by and went to the front of the carriage.

  “We have arrived,” he announced. “Get in line to leave the train in an orderly fashion.”

  Bek was quick to get up, and Abel followed as the train stopped in the city station. People had already started leaving the platform, so Bek waited for the crowds to clear. Unlike Abel, who was always eager for everything—including rushing with the crowds to get out a few minutes early—Bek had patience. Walking slowly after everyone, Bek passed the exit and stopped in front of the road that spread before him. The station was some walking distance away from the city. The road in front of him was wide, with walls on the side and filled with guards. At the end of the road, there were automated vehicles carrying people to their destination. Above the wide metal road, many small, automated drones flew by, transporting cargo and keeping the movement of the population orderly in the city.

  “Will you come to Xos Bar later?” Abel asked him while returning back after rushing to get out early.

  “If Jaina wants to, we will probably come,” Bek replied. He saw Abel smiling, since he knew that after meeting with Jaina, Bek had spent less time with him. “Will you walk to your apartment, Abel?” Bek wondered when he saw him moving to one of the side passages among the buildings.

  “Yes, but I need to visit a shop along the way,” Abel replied to him.

  “Okay, be careful,” said Bek as he pressed the “Call Taxi” button in one of the info kiosks. Soon, a quiet-moving, yellow-and-white taxi stopped in front of him and he got inside.

  “Please input your destination, sir,” he heard the onboard system asking him.

  Bek used the screen to select his apartment block, pressed “Confirm,” and lay back to rest. He had time before arriving, since his location was at the opposite side of the city. They passed by automated transports of all colors as the taxi proceeded to the center of the city. Arriving at the vast square that formed the city center, it was packed with people going into shops or bars to spend their credits, and pass the time as best they could. Bright lights of all colors started to glow now that it was getting darker, and many guards patrolled the streets in groups. Deep inside, the guards are just humans doing their job, Bek reminded himself, but sometimes that was hard to remember, especially after a demonstration years ago where civilians were injured when the guards had fired at the crowds.

  Leaving the open square, the taxi moved quietly and effortlessly on top of the metal road, and after a while, it stopped in front of the high-rise that Bek had been allocated as an apartment. He got out—no need to pay credits, since it was registered in his job commute—and looked up at the typical, forty-floor building that included his residence. He was scanned as he walked inside the entrance, and the doors opened in a quiet way sideways. He walked to one of the elevators, and after entering, it started moving upward to his apartment. There was only one button in front of him showing “Change Floor,” which was used for when you wanted to visit someone and override the automatic ride that started to your apartment when you were scanned.

  A few moments later, he arrived at his floor and moved down the hallway. He stopped in front of his apartment, and after a fast scan, the door opened. Stepping inside, the lights turned on, and by saying, “Monitor on,” the screen in the opposite wall started playing the usual programming that was delivered from the government tower in the middle of the city. He always took a shower after coming home from work, but first he drank some water from the faucet at the corner that provided water with a specific allocation to each residence. Since this was designated as a single residence, he had a stricter quota than apartments with kids, and if you passed that quota, warnings were issued, and then fines. He needed to order some food, and he made up an order from his apartment panel using his default profile—age: twenty-seven; sex: male. For meal preference, he chose vegetable.

  Remembering that he was going to meet with Jaina later, he headed for the shower while putting his clothes in the gathering slot for garments in his apartment. Since no water existed in Cennan, used water in the city was processed and reused; however, the water exchange with Earth was needed to keep the water supply at a sustainable level for the thousands of people living on this hostile planet. Bek got in the shower and chose the temperature from the panel; he had a relaxing, ten-minute shower that relieved his body and muscles after a hard day of pushing wagons filled with Iorine.

  Coming out of the shower, he heard the automation system telling him that the food order he had made had arrived. “Accept billing,” he replied as he began to dress in clothes that were allocated for the population’s free time. Those items were manufactured in the industrial zone—it was also outside of the city in the opposite direction of the energy factory where he worked, and people worked there making basic, everyday items.

  Bek
watched the news broadcast from the government tower while unpacking the meal that had arrived via a small drone to his window. The drone had docked and pushed the delivery into his apartment’s inbox. Eating, he watched the usual minor accidents reported and some messages from the government. The government monitored the day-to-day operations here on the planet, but also acted as judge for crimes committed and solved major differences among the population. The government enforced order, since the AI had clear directions for the human population of Cennan: work and supply energy, since every important energy source on Earth had been depleted. As long as energy was being exported, the AI had allowed them to live almost as if they occupied a planet of their own. With some of their own governance decisions left up to them, they were not complete slaves. Finishing eating, Bek put on some shoes and went to the door. He pressed the button to open the door, headed out to leave, and everything behind him in his apartment automatically powered down.

  For this outing, the transport ride was going to cost credits, since it was not included in his job commute. Inside his new transport vehicle, he found another couple a bit older than he was. They did not look familiar, he thought as he inserted the address to Jaina’s and authorized the payment. The transport started moving, and he realized, watching the map, that the transport would stop first at the elder couples’ destination, since their destination was along the way.

  “Tell me, young man, do you by any chance work in one of the energy factories?” the grey-haired old man asked him.

  “Yes, in number three, actually. How did you know?” Bek replied.

  “Your muscles give it away. I was in number one for years. I was one of the first to work there when we came from Earth after the terraforming of Cennan.”

  “I was brought here as a small kid; I only remember Earth through pictures and videos I saw,” Bek said. “My parents had died in the war, and the officials put me in with the remaining humans on the transports, and sent me here.”