The Master Builder

The old soul contemplated the blue planet and its unenlightened citizens from deep in the cosmos. Intelligent beings left Earth eons ago; his assignment included a return stint. Incremental progress toward artificial intelligence had reached the level where humans used AI to enhance decisions best made by the enlightened. But Earthlings were at the newborn stage. That was why the old soul was returning.

"Are you prepared?" the Supreme asked.

"I'll complete the mission."

"You perform well every time."

"This one is harder."

"It's a simple task,"

"Those on Earth are in disharmony. People don't cooperate for the greater good."

"You will succeed."

He had lived a thousand years on Earth as an ancient European in the heart of Bosnia. The old soul was a master builder. He'd managed the construction of the Bosnian Pyramid of the Sun—so named by humans. It was his first high-level achievement; a well-tooled machine of vital importance and precisely located to operate as an energy conductor. The old soul understood his assignment, but it was hard to go back. An age of darkness had encompassed the planet since intelligent beings left. Human life was now short and emotion a condition of daily life. He had progressed far beyond emotion.

The blue planet rotated on its axis as he watched. When he reentered Earth, he would lose consciousness; forget who he was and what he'd accomplished in building energy machines in the galaxies. The last system he had engineered protected a planet from conquering forces and destructive space debris. He would enter this assignment as a naked, squalling infant like every human.

Brick Montgomery was an odd baby and a weird toddler. Brick said things that disconcerted adults, mainly when he talked to rocks. Their atoms were energy like other living things. No one understood. By the time he was five-years-old, he didn't voice his thoughts. He communicated with nature while others occupied themselves with the mundane. Brick grew into a strange kid. That was the year they sent him to school, entrapping him in endless days of schedules and ritual.

School numbed his brain; he could not access nature's energy inside the musty classroom. Sarah and Sam Montgomery were archeology professors who believed in formal education. Brick was their only child; he must do well in school. That summer his father's request for a sabbatical granted him a research year.

"Brick, it's almost time we leave. It's just two weeks now," his mother said.

"I won't go to school. I hate school."

"You won't go to school. We're moving to Bosnia to work on an archeological dig."

"I'm going with you?"

"We're working on the pyramids near Sarajevo," his father pulled him onto his lap. "We'll hire a tutor."

When their plane landed in Sarajevo, Brick felt the energy emanating from the pyramids.

"This is where I lived."

"We haven't been here," Sarah said. "Your father worked on an excavation when he was an undergrad. You remember his stories."

It was one of those times; he said nothing. However, Brick never wanted to leave.

None of them left. His parents continued their work in Bosnia for three years, then went to Denver to sell their house. Brick begged them to let him stay with Rosa until they returned. Her sons had died in the war, and she'd been his caretaker. Rosa understood energy as he did. Under her tutelage, he had the freedom to explore and discover the nature of everything.

"There are others here," Rosa said. "Others who use the power of their minds . . ."

"Do you know who they are?" he whispered. "May I meet them?"

"When you're old enough," Rosa said. "On your tenth birthday, you will meet seven. There are eight."

Brick had been tutored a few hours a week, but his parents understood the pyramids attracted intellectuals, professors, and students from many countries. Brick soaked up knowledge from varied disciplines as he asked questions or listened. The best minds taught him what they knew from their area of expertise; most didn't understand energy was everything. They were stuck in the material world.

A dozen years passed and Sarah and Sam pressured Brick; he must attend college. Despite his unconventional education, without a formal degree, his knowledge wouldn't be legitimized. Brick's year of formal schooling had been a disaster. He balked at leaving the pyramids.

That summer Brick fell in love with Suzannah. Suzannah was twenty and studying artificial intelligence at MIT. A summer internship in Bosnia brought her to the pyramids, and she brought him back to the United States. Brick's late application to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology was accepted. Artificial Intelligence seemed a reasonable study course.

Brick found AI was the answer to progress. Without human emotion involved in decision-making, better choices could be determined. But he was hopelessly, gloriously, and inextricably in love with Suzannah. Human emotion and his groin ruled his life. Loving her changed him although his life's work was AI.

Rosa and the secret group enshrined in research at the Bosnian pyramids knew energy was the key. The human mind could be trained to heal, invent, discover and alter the course of the planet. The group of eight practiced artificial intelligence purely through energy. Others would need help. Brick went to the Pyramid of the Sun.

"You've returned," Rosa said. "Where is Suzannah?"

"She's leading a research study. I've asked her to marry me." Rosa remained motionless. "Suzannah said her career was important; she couldn't come with me."

"She'll come," Rosa said. "The energy she absorbed will compel her to this sacred place. Have you discovered what you sought?"

"It's here, but they're not ready. Computer intelligence is as far as humans have come."

"What will you do?"

"Implant a microscopic AI chip in every brain on Earth."

"The purpose?"

"To foster empathy among Earthlings."

"It's the only choice; you came too soon, Master Builder."

"Was I sent to find love?"

"Love is energy; energy is love."