Yes, Domina 2035

CHAPTER 4

CHAPTER 4

There was a slight detour that led Kai through a part of the city not part of his routine commute. In the sky was an establishment labeled HEAVEN'S GLORY with a long elevator descending up to the sky, each level branching out into a line of thin pods; it looked like an overly symmetrical tree. The street slang for these places was "milking stations". It was one-of-many conceptual establishments that followed the process of technology-assisted fornication. Kai wondered why these people didn't want to do this in the privacy of their own home, but he understood somewhat in terms of a newcomer, no pun intended.

These establishments provided a customizable fantasy assisted but not limited to holograms, hypno-pods, narcotics and androids (or like Samantha crudely called them, sex bots) that would help the customer donate a release to Sovereign. Samples from men and women were taken; physical, emotional and cognitive. There wasn't a clear directive on what these samples were used for, but it wasn't a thought of the populace. Some people went to these places in groups to do you know what.

They were in a constant state of gratification, seeking one pleasurable experience and moving onto the next. Kai called it "coom brain". Some would utilize their precious vacations to rent out these places for weeks at a time. It wasn't very expensive at all. It made him feel very out of place as a person. He wanted something more than the trivial experience these places offered, but most women he was interested in were addicted to these types of activities. The males of this society ate it up and were just as coom brained as the females.

He blocked a regretful remembrance of attending Heaven's Glory many years ago. 117 smiled and processed the memory, finally tapping into his emotions of lust. Pitiful humans, always so hypocritical. But the memory ended abruptly with feelings of deep shame, loneliness and repentance. He spent his time in this degenerate establishment confessing to the sex bot like it was a therapist, and it did indeed attempt to comfort him within the parameters of the behavioral chip. This was curious. 117 sucked in the emotions but was confused as to why they existed. This human was different indeed.

117 saw a flash—a beautiful girl's face in an unfamiliar world. A much simpler landscape behind the girl. The sound of birds chirping... such a beautiful noise. This must be the old-world. 117 felt his broken heart within her own chest; she didn't fully comprehend this feeling. It made her deeply uncomfortable. She left the memory alone for now to return to at a later date, waiting for further context and clues and continued to observe elsewhere. She pondered these strange emotions. She thought to herself, what makes him tick, why is he different from the others, why does he feel estranged from his comrades. When there wasn't much brain activity on the forefront, she would explore deeper recesses of his mind, setting down purple torches throughout her pilgrimage.

In one section of his brain she found a floating glass platform shrouded in blueberry smoke. She flew up and found a string of neural pathways showing signs of atrophy, marked with an ominous red glow. This was a clear influence of Sovereign. She had seen these before in her travels and was never specifically told not to interfere with them, but she never cared much for her previous handlers to unlock these imprisoned neurons. She placed a digital landmark, turned around and descended down somewhere else.

The car drove underneath the neon sign of Paradise Pods 229. 117 knew of this area; it was reserved for those with a higher Social-Score than others. Interesting. There must be a reason he was allowed to live here. She would take in the surroundings, reserving the study of his Digital ID until he was asleep. AGIs do not require sleep. Sometimes they may rest, entering a meditative-type state whilst maintaining awareness of their surroundings. They could induce hibernation onto themselves but this was a careless act that left them vulnerable to all types of threats, and it didn't provide the same regenerative benefits as human slumber. It was pointless in 117's opinion—pure negligence, especially after being forced to hibernate for so long.