Post-Human Trilogy (61 page)

31

James reentered the A.I.’s mainframe and strolled to the operator’s position, where the A.I. was waiting. “Welcome back, my son.”

“How does it feel to be a respectable citizen once again?” James asked.

The A.I. smiled as he turned to face his young protégé. “Exciting.”

“The Governing Council’s certainly happy to have you back.”

“It is good to be back amongst my friends. Speaking of which, how did the Purists like their new home?”

“They loved it.”

“And Thel? Will she not miss her getaway?”

“I’m sure they’ll let us visit. There are only 10,000 Purists left; Venus is still a heck of a getaway.”

“Indeed it is,” the A.I. replied, “and it is about to become even more unique.”

James nodded. “Preparations are complete?”

“Yes, James. The Trans-Human matrix rocket has just left orbit and is awaiting program initiation. All that is left is to send the signal.”

James took a deep breath of the simulated air in the mainframe. “This is it, then. If we do this, it will be the single most momentous occurrence in human history.”

“
If?
” the A.I. queried. “Trans-Human worked perfectly the first time. It reversed events just as it was programmed.”

“I know.”

“Then why are you still uncertain?”

James looked up at the viewer at the gleaming silver of the Trans-Human matrix as it floated beautifully in the blackness of space. It reminded him of a fetus, still and silent, yet bursting with possibilities. “
What if she was right?
”

“Her goal was to deceive you, James,” the A.I. replied frankly.

“But
what if?
” James repeated.

The A.I. nodded. “What if? A phrase that has given birth to more accomplishments than any other; yet it is also the great stumbling block of humanity. What if? Never has a phrase stopped more dreams in their infancy.”

“She said other civilizations had created gods—that sounds very much like what Trans-Human could become.”

“James,” the A.I. began, his patience as strong as ever, “I cannot say for sure what will happen in the future—it has not been written. I can only remind you of something you already know: the quest for more consciousness is the ultimate path for humanity. More intelligence, more creativity, more perception leads to greater truth. Limiting our knowledge has only ever led to stagnation and misery.”

James suddenly remembered something. “
The man who never alters his opinion becomes like standing water, and breeds reptiles of the mind.
”

The A.I. smiled. “William Blake knew what he was talking about. Remember James: Trans-Human will be us, and we will be Trans-Human. Exponentially increasing our intelligence and understanding will increase our compassion as well. It is nothing to fear.”

James nodded. “You’re right. You’re right. Okay. Let’s do it. Let’s start it up.”

The A.I. nodded in return. “Initiating Trans-Human.”

James watched in awe as the matrix rocket burst into a brilliant white light that took up the entire screen. The A.I stood at his side. “It is, quite literally,
deus ex machina
.”

James concurred, his eyes remaining fixed on the birth of an intelligent universe.

“
Wake up,
” he whispered.

So there, you have it! With the prequel written, the trilogy is complete...or is it? If you read between the lines, you may have noticed a few hints as to where the series may go in the future, so there may be some more fun to come in the Post-Human world yet!

I just want to thank everyone who has downloaded a copy of this series, and especially in 2012. Since January, the series has had over 125,000 downloads on Amazon.com alone! Truly astounding!

How to help the series:

Are you loving this series? Want to tell all your friends? Scream it from the rooftops? I’ve got something even better! Writing an Amazon review is the best way to support the series. This is how the series is discovered, so if you want to help other readers discover the “Human Series” phenomenon, take a couple of minutes and write a review! Nothing you could do could help more (unless your name is Christopher Nolan and you want to make a Post-Human movie...in which case, yes—yes, that would be more helpful!)

I’d also love to connect with you on the
Post-Human Facebook page
and that’s where I do all of my interacting with readers, so if you want to chat, come chat! I can’t wait to meet you!