Synthetics Read Online Free PDF Page A

but Sasha just kept waiting. Finally he caved.
    “Death,” he said simply.
    “Really?” said Sasha, raising an eyebrow. Stuart started fidgeting and gripping the cushions. “Could you perhaps be more specific?”
    Stuart shook his head. “No, just death,” he said, his voice trailing off.
    “Well yes,” said Sasha, “I would tend to agree.”
    I was lost. There was a whole extra level to this little exchange that I was missing. 
    “Now what do the murderer, the extortionist, the rapist, and the thief all have in common?”
    I was getting bored of questions.
    Sasha proceeded to answer the question. “They all fear death. This life is all they have so when something is denied from them, they go to whatever lengths necessary to attain it. Life is too short and you only live once. Death drives men to commit atrocious acts.”
    “What was that thing?” I asked, cutting off his lecture. I felt a bit bad but I needed to know.
    “That thing is a person, and his name is Frederick,” replied Sasha.
    “So you created a robot with a personality?” I asked, hopeful that this was the case.
    “No,” said Sasha, “We have created a shell. Frederick merely inhabits that shell as you inhabit your own body. They are called Synthetics, the merging of man and machine.”
    Synthetics? I stopped asking questions. I no longer wanted to know. I was out of my depth and wanted to go home. What the hell was going on?
    “So he used to be like us?” asked Kate.
    Stuart was in his own little world and didn’t seem to care about the conversation.
    “He is still like us; a central and peripheral nervous system controlling a body. His body is just… different.”
    “Why?” I asked. “What is the point of creating Mr Frankenstein?”
    Sasha winced and I automatically felt bad.
    “Frederick is an old friend of mine Fletcher. I would appreciate it if you refrained from such flippant remarks.”
    I shrank back. “I’m sorry.”
    “You give a man a gun,” Sasha continued, “and he can defend himself. You make a man bulletproof and he no longer needs to defend himself. It is time for humanity to take control of their own development. Natural selection only produces selfish animals. We can make something better. Sentient beings with no need, nor desire to exploit one another.”
    “Synthetics?” I asked.
    Sasha nodded, “Exactly.”
    I closed my eyes as I realized that my life had just gotten incredibly complicated. I swore under my breath.
    “I know that this is a lot to process, so you have all been given the rest of the day off. You may go.” As an afterthought he added, “And remember, you are free to leave this internship for whatever reason, whenever you so wish. We will not stop you. It is completely up to you.”
    Kate stood up to leave the room and said, “You are assuming that when we lack the ability to exploit one another, we will lose the desire to exploit one another.”
    Sasha nodded. “I doubt anyone would be stupid enough to try exploit Frederick. This project will liberate billions Kate. It will be a global emancipation. I thought you, of all people, would agree.”
    You, of all people? What was that supposed to mean. Who was Kate?
    “Maybe I do,” she said, “I just need time to think.”
    “Same,” I said, and followed her out of the office, leaving Stuart behind with Sasha and Cole. Cole hadn’t said a word the entire meeting, but had been scribbling furiously in a notepad for most of it. I wondered why Stuart hadn’t followed us out. Odd kid, that one.
     
    ***
     
    I was kept awake that night by a single question- why show us interns something like that? We’re just interns. Aren’t we? After tossing and turning in my bed for an hour I decided to head up to the roof for a swim. I needed a distraction. As I crept down the hall I noticed that Sasha’s office door was slightly ajar and a light was on inside. As I limped by, I glanced in and noticed three figures engaged in a heated discussion.