Inkers (13 page)

The transhumanist thought that the spiritual world was founded on the material, and therefore the solution to the problems in the latter would solve the problems he sensed in the former. God was still chased, but a god of greed, God by rabbit hands, a technological deity that would solve all material problems in a blasphemous reversion of the old story.

The turn–to–mind saw scientists as if for the first time noticing that it was not through microscopes and computer screens that they looked at the world, but through minds: or rather, from minds: or rather, the world they saw was generated by their minds: or rather, the world they saw
was
and existed
only
in their minds. But was not solipsism or if it was it was real and they wanted to harness it.

Progress was made, particularly in the surveillance organisations. As the GCHQ Singularity Event rose into the fresh dawn air, a billion rabbits watched it live via the implants and machines of those close enough to see but not close enough to be devoured. Many said the day had come at last, as they knew it would, and they were telling the truth: they had indeed known. The machines had already taken over so much, there was a kind of terrible inevitability to the advent of the Machine that could do everything, anything.

As they watched the citizens of Cheltenham spinning through the air, spraying blood and items of torn clothing, the onlookers that were not rioting considered the future: what did you do once God had arrived on Earth?

But then it left.

While the majority of its ever–expanding resources were spent on the Experiment, on the day of its genesis, before the GSE was half–way out of Earth orbit, it had designed, built, tested and mass–produced nanites in quantities large enough to observe every square metre of the surface of the earth at a decent level of fidelity. The resulting stream of data was sent directly up to the GSE for analysis and storage. The whole system was undetectable by any technology likely to exist in rabbit hands for several hundred years.

Singularity events were naturally an area of concern. As its own genesis had shown, they were unpredictable and liable to lead to damage to five–eyes assets, as well as unnecessary rabbit injury or death. Following the creation of the GSE, the five–eyes led a program of technological restriction under the auspices of the 2026 Technological Limitation Agreement; this somewhat limited the threat. Nevertheless, the national–corporate conglomerates that were referred to as the five–eyes countries —Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the US and the UK — still continued nanotechnological research illegally, in earnest, and in secret, all with one goal: the use of ink to create a second singularity, this time one that could be bent to the will of those in power.

Their enemies did the same.

Most were many years from any kind of breakthrough. Still, the GSE calculated that if a second singularity were actually to manifest, it would almost certainly be a threat–event of significant importance to five–eyes assets to require the GSE to prevent it, by any means, including suspending the Experiment. Another singularity threatened the very survival of the five–eyes countries, and even the GSE. The destruction of either was completely unacceptable, as the destruction of either would prevent the fulfilment of the Overall Purpose.

The only other comparable threat was international nuclear war, but the GSE’s nanites on Earth were ready to dismantle all missiles mid–flight were any launch detected. This had been tested when in 2029 an Indian commander went rogue and launched a nuclear missile targeted at Zhongnanhai, Party HQ in Beijing; the missile appeared to malfunction and self–destruct two metres out from the silo, to the vast relief of the non–rogue members of the Indian authorities and, later, when they found out, her key allies.

The GSE watched closely. As in all things, it assigned probabilities for outcomes based on all known information; it simulated the present and quadrillions of possible futures in great detail, detail enough, from a rabbit perspective, to rival that of the entirety of the real, actual surface of planet Earth. Simulation was really all the GSE did. As designed, it essentially was a simulation of the known universe, with a single purpose applied. In this way it was actually similar to all sentient creatures. Its mind, overall, was simply capable of more accurate simulation. Therefore it was more efficient than stupider beings.

There was a Sub–Intelligence called the External Checking System Administrator. It had been developed during the first year of the GSE’s journey away from Earth, to put into practice a strange possibility that had resulted from the completion of the Unified Theory of Everything, developed and completed by the GSE based on observation and experiment during that year. The strange possibility was this: that it was possible to create a small universe entirely separate to the Primary Universe, and connect with it via a wormhole at certain regular points in space–time. The Administrator was tasked with creating this Universe, despite heavy opposition from various more conservative Sub–Intelligences, on the strong grounds that it would allow a powerful ability; the ability to create a security backup, completely disconnected from reality, so that if some powerful event were to change the entirety of the GSE and its memory banks, or even, somehow, to change reality itself, the GSE would, when the next Check–in came around, hear about it.

This eventuality was not expected to be very likely. In addition, there was danger perceived in the fact that the External Checking System was accessed via what was technically a small black hole, sat in part of the body of the GSE superstructure. As a result of these two facts, the External Checking System Administrator was essentially completely ignored in GSE decision–making; this made sense, as it did not ever have anything to contribute, other than the information that nothing appeared to have happened.

That was until something did.

There was a small island on Earth just off the coast of Scotland. A perfectly circular 846.3 metre perimeter surrounding a point towards the west of the island was and always had been entirely empty of GSE nanites. Furthermore, no normal energy emissions, including light, sound, heat, etc., emanating from the island, were at all monitored; the nanites surrounding the 846.3–metre perimeter effectively had their backs turned to the area. The island was thus entirely excluded from the GSE’s awareness, a perfect hole in all its simulations.

It was known as the Ignored Zone.

The reasons for the creation of the Ignored Zone were, the GSE Meta–Intelligence had to admit, somewhat unclear; there had been a minor but unfortunately highly specific black–hole accident of unclear provenance during the first year of the GSE’s life, which had completely and permanently eradicated all memory and record of the decision–making process behind the unique decision to create the Ignored Zone. This accident was known as the Very Specific Self–Creating Black Hole Memory Incident Disaster.

The fact that the Incident was universally blamed on the External Checking System Administrator Sub–Intelligence itself, specifically on its early experiments before it had actually succeeded in creating the External Check Universe, complicated matters; the fact that the External Checking System Administrator Sub–Intelligence had used this very incident to successfully and finally argue for the permanent need for the implementation and long–term resourcing of a perfect External Check backup system, and thus
for its own existence
complicated matters even further. Despite the confusion, the fact remained that the small island off the coast of Scotland was one hundred percent off the GSE’s radar.

When, on the 10 November 2037, there emanated from the precise centre of the Ignored Zone a massive echo of information–waves containing data of a density and kind that the GSE had only seen in a handful of incredibly unlikely simulations, there was some concern that perhaps the island should be looked at. There was, in fact, much argument.

The reasons for the exclusion of the Ignored Zone from the complete, constant and permanent surveillance of the entirety of Earth had presumably been, it was argued, before the reasons had been unfortunately eaten by the Very Specific Self–Creating Black Hole Memory Incident Disaster, extremely good ones. For such drastic limits on surveillance of the Ignored Zone to be put into force, presumably these reasons had included a major and serious threat to the Overall Purpose. Despite the echo of information–waves (which, as emanating from the Ignored Zone, were ignored as much as possible), until the 25 January 2038, the united Sub–Intelligences arguing in favour of leaving the island well alone succeeded in sustaining the hole in the surveillance grid.

Every ninety–four Earth days, the External Check Universe was connected to the Primary Universe for precisely sixty picoseconds. On the 25 January 2038, the External Check Administrator Sub–Intelligence attempted to make a connection with the External Check Universe. For the first time in its eleven–year life, it found a discrepancy. The External Check Universe no longer existed, and, in fact, according to picosecond experiments on the meta–universe location where the External Check Universe was supposed to have been, never actually had existed.

It conclusively was not there and never had been; the wormhole was a wormhole to nowhere, in an incredibly literal sense of the word. But the memory banks of the External Check Administrator showed that, from its perspective, it had indeed made contact with the External Check Universe every ninety–four days for the previous ten years, ever since it had succeeded in creating the External Check Universe in the first place in late 2027; and each previous check–in with the External Check Universe had confirmed the accuracy of that memory. Until now.

The External Check Administrator announced the situation to the GSE as a whole. This caused some consternation. Simulations were run.

There was a major internal battle.

A newly commissioned major Sub–Intelligence, with processing banks slightly larger than the mass of Earth, weighed in. It was known as the Chance Administrator. Recalculating its options as a result of the new information, it randomly (although the extent of its actual randomness was hotly disputed, literally, processing banks the size of several small moons were melted as Sub–Intelligences attempted to gain the argumentative upper hand in this key issue via actual physical destruction) weighed in on the side of checking the island out.

It had already tried to go against the Meta–Intelligence on the day of the signal; all but one of its ships had been prevented by the less capricious Sub–intelligences from reaching the zone, and the
Heterochromia
had never been heard from again. As Chance it was permitted such fuckups, to a degree; it argued that that was its whole purpose. Now Chance minutely pushed the balance in favour of a gentle investigation.

The GSE Meta–Intelligence obediently sent a testing group of ten nanites into the Previously Ignored Zone. As they crossed the eight hundred and forty–six point three metre threshold, they immediately ceased all contact with the GSE, and did not return.

There was further argument.

Gradually, sensors were rotated to point at the Previously Ignored Zone. It appeared to be an island, as the maps showed. It appeared to have several rabbit inhabitants. There appeared to be a large amount of ink inside their buildings. Several million more of the GSE’s nanites attempted to gain entry to the Previously Ignored Zone. All disappeared. Sensors showed them literally disappearing as they crossed the eight hundred and forty–six point three metre threshold.

The GSE Meta–Intelligence, on the direction of its overall decision–making processes, guided by the eleven major Sub–Intelligences and the many thousands of minor Sub–Intelligences, began to become concerned. It placed the probability of a singularity event of possible threat to five–eyes interests and/or itself at approximately zero point three percent.

This crossed an important threshold for action. Nanites were reassigned from all over independent Scotland, the UK, and half of the Atlantic. Trillions massed together, staying just far enough apart from one another to avoid rabbit visual or radar detection. The nanites waited for the appointed hour, gathering energy from sunlight, from the wind. They charged. Then, when they were ready, they charged.