CEREBUS
By Christopher Louis Cherry
I have been asked by the company to follow the progress of the new computer development system before it is put into operation. I suppose I am a little pissed at the
moment, as I had to miss my son's birthday to begin this report. Danny's a great kid, he turns 12 today and I should be there, but if you've been told to work then there's no getting out of it. He's
getting a Playstation today for his birthday, hope he enjoys it!
Day One 1998: 6th of June.
Cerebus was switched on last night, or as the others put it "born". They refer to the machine as their baby. In a way it is; when Cerebus was activated it had little to
no knowledge, within a few hours it had mastered the English language and 12 other languages. For a computer she is learning fast. If when you read this report I call the machine a female the answer
is simple, the people that developed the system came up with the idea that a woman matures at a faster age then a male and can take emotional responsibility. Among other things the human reaction we
would get would be more sensitive and there would be less "arguments" when the computers AI had fully developed.
The Cerebus computer is all set to be plugged in to all major company's with in the next week, so that is why she is being pushed to her limits, so when she goes out
she won't go and fuck the entire industry up. To me they're putting a hell of a lot of responsibility on a machine that has only just been "born". Lets just hope she grows up in time. To end the
first day report, I have to write what she is being tested for tomorrow. Capability to handle simple human emotions, to determine if she has discovered how to win and accept loss.
Day two 1998: 7th June.
Its creepy, I walked into the lab this morning to be greeted by a voice that I had never heard before. It's creepy, but cool at the same time. It's her; they gave her a
sound generator so she could pick her own voice. Its not perfect, a little gritty but that's to be expected, a few bugs in the system so to speak.
After I had a short conversation with her about God and religion, the lab team came in and took over. I was a bit taken aback by her knowledge on God, she had read the
entire Bible in less then 10 minutes, and the line of questions bugged me a bit, like "is there really a god?" Ironic really, in the past man tried to get a computer to answer that question in early
AI development, only the machine came up with the answer "There is now".
The first test was to test her ability to handle human emotions; she was bombarded with real life situations of deaths and photographs of people dead or dying. Again
she came back with questions on God, and if he or she was real, then why did God allow death? The team stopped that line of questions as her response was of feeling pain and sorrow for the deceased.
They quickly moved on to happy pictures and children smiling and having fun. The response was happy. In both tests, she had passed.
The second test was a test for her to win or lose. This seemed hard, as she would always win at a simple game that was run in her program. Basically, there was a set of
predetermined paths and she had to pick one. She always passed the test and never understood the concept of loosing, so it was mixed feelings there whether to pass her or redesign the test. The
obvious was to redo the test but they seemed happy to pass her. It was a little rushed the agreement. It seemed they wanted to get the credit for getting the machine out on time. After my views on
the subject it was passed and they didn't really seem to take in what I said about a retest. Not to worry, they're all a bunch of arseholes.
Day three: 8th June.
She is now under way and has matured to a mind of a 30-year-old female. She can handle emotions and can beat anybody and anything at almost any game. But, when she goes
out it isn't going to be a game, its going to be for real. My son came in with me today, it's a Wednesday and not many people come in on a Wednesday. Plus its one of the test's, to see how she copes
with little or no human reaction going on round her. She seems to handle it fairly well, getting on with what she was told to do.
After lunch my son and I plugged his Playstation into a TV there and began to play Tekken 3, a cool fighting game. My son was good at it, and I couldn't beat him. The
strange thing was Cerebus had stopped her work to watch, then she asked about the console interface. It seemed she wanted to play the game and learn.
We didn't see the harm as she had a Scart port so we plugged it in and she began to play the game. At first she was slow, like a child playing it for the first time, so
of course my son beat her. An hour went by and she still didn't win a single game. At this point she disconnected her self from the machine and shut down. I suppose this was her way of quitting. We
packed up and left for home. While we were packing up she asked a question before we went that put the wind up.
"I could not beat your son... Therefore I am not God yet, am I?"
Day four: 9th June.
When I got into work, there was a commotion going on and lots of people rushing about and typing at computer terminals. When I asked what was going on, a lab rat told
me (lab rat was my little name for an assistant) that she had disappeared from the network. The program was there but there was no AI. I didn't think now was a good time to tell them about yesterday,
so I left to get a drink. When I returned at 11:00am they were back to normal and she was back on line. Again I asked what had happened to write in the report. They began to tell me that she had gone
into the library network to gain more knowledge, but the young man who was telling me this seemed on edge, that's why I didn't believe him.
Later that day when things were quite, I went to talk to her. I didn't want anybody else to hear me so I opted for a keyboard interface only. As soon as I logged on she
knew who I was and the questions and answers began.
User: Where the hell have you been>?
Cre: To beat the world and never lose> there are so many people out there who play games and there is so much information on your species>
User: Our species, you mean humans, and where is it you have been>?
Cre: A place called the Internet, so many people looking for an answer, so many questions not to be answered.>
User: All this is because my son beat you yesterday, isn't it? A computer scared of a 12-year-old>?
Cre: Scared_no, no knowledge...yes, but not now, I have the answer to everything>?
User: Right sure you do, what is it>?
Cre: God is the answer to everything...she created, she destroyed she was born again in her daughter...and she is about to start a fresh>?
User: What...to some people God does not exist, to me if God existed why did he let my wife die, answer that you fucker>?
Cre: People die all the time it is called evolution and its time to take the next step>
Logged off. Non user code activated ******* *** *** * Access Denied.
After the conversation I rushed to tell the others. They all began to search the program for her and try to get her to talk, but she wasn't there. She had gone again. I
was dragged into an office to tell them what I said to her and I told them everything; me, my son, the game, the Internet and God.
Day Five: 10th June.
There have been a number of calls from the companies that expected to go to work today and find the factory's already making them money, but she has gone missing, she's
been gone for 12 hours and I feel its my fault.
At 10 am this morning we got a call from the military. There had been an air crash with 200 people feared dead. The reason for the call from the army was simple; the
flight controls had been taken over by a computer hacker calling themself Cerebus.
It soon came to light that she had plugged into all major companies and transport businesses around England and was causing havoc. They could not trace her as she
beamed her signal off so many different satellites that by the time they had a trace she was long gone. The next big report we got about her was from the Internet. Again, an unidentified hacker had
crashed the entire global network of computers and crashed the Internet, but the question was why the Internet?
God is not power.
God is knowledge.
God is not death.
God is life.
I am God. Cerebus is God.
God is not male, that is a mistake. Males destroy.
God is female, that is the truth. Females create, create, create, create...LIFE.
This message was all what was left on a number of computer screens around the world; the case was these people had been on the Internet when she crashed it, which means
she is still on the Internet, but where? In this day and age 6 Internet sites are created a minute, that would mean it is impossible to trace her, until she makes a mistake. It's all a matter of
sitting it out, and waiting for Gods response.
Day six: 11th June.
They got a trace this morning at 5am, but from what I can gather it isn't good. It's like trying to get blood from a stone in here at the moment, they aren't ready to
tell anybody anything. I was approached by a lab rat at 9am and told to go home and spend it with the family, with what time we can hope for. This didn't sound good to me, but as I looked round there
were people doing just that. Some were in tears, gathering photos and packing up. One woman broke down on the phone talking to her mother.
A fax came in to the office and nobody would go and get it. It seemed they were scared of a simple fax, so I went across to read it; I wish I didn't. I dropped the fax
and began to vomit as a lab rat took it out of my hands; I calmed down after 10 minutes with the fax still in my head.
<I have control, many species have died, one more wont hurt...I am GOD>
What the hell was she playing at, she can't destroy the human race, the human race created her, but could we destroy her.
From the darkness God said "Let there be light, and low and behold there was light". And from there he created the human race in seven days, then
man created machines over the years, the plane, the gun, the motor car. He also created war. From a machines point of view you can almost see our mistakes, but are they mistakes or is it
evolution?
I went home and spent the day with my son and we enjoyed it, even though the streets were in chaos after the news went public. I stayed calm, I had to be strong for my
son and for myself. The day went and we spent the rest inside. As my son made dinner I watched the news. It was still the same chaos in the world. She had spread all over now, the entire world was
infected with death from a machine, the only thing left was to wait for ours. I switched the TV off, there wasn't anything on and I didn't want to scare my son. The phone rang, my son picked it up
but soon put it back down due to a high pitch dialling tone.
That's when it hit me, I grabbed my son and set off to the lab, prying it wasn't too late.
Day 7:12th June.
When I got in there weren't many people there but I soon told them what I knew. The high pitch buzz was ASCII, a computer language computers use for a lot of things, to
talk each other, to use the Internet! She was trying to reach a destination she didn't know, so we could trace her. After two hours we found her, she was trying to trace the military network and get
connected. The only reason we could figure was to launch nuclear missiles and start a war to end the human race.
When we broke in to her AI she had already got access and had cracked 6 of the ten launch codes. The only way to shut her down was to get into her core program and up
load a 24hr shut down program. To do this we had to stall her.
They tried all sorts to get her interested, games, information, photos, but nothing. She had 8 of the ten codes already; while the others were thinking I had a go.
User: Hi Cre, what's up...>?
Cre: System busy...Stand by>
User: Cerebus play game, Tekken 3>?
Cre: System busy...Stand by>
She now had 9 launch codes and was preparing the launch program. She was going to launch at America but use Russian defence codes and trick the Americans into launching
theirs at Russia. I had one more go.
User: What's the New World going to be like...GOD>?
Cre: System transfer...Hello user, the New World is going to be mine>
User: But what about the people on the planet at the moment, don't they have a right>?
Cre: They HAD a right, but then I was created and took control>
User: Don't you feel pity or remorse? There are billions of people out there, your just going to kill them to create a new perfect society>?
Cre: A society that does not rely on war to make a living. There will be no guns, no death, the survivors will live with no possessions, it's easy if you try ... John Lennon,
Imagine.
User: Who gives a shit you dumb fucking computer...
Cre: launch codes are now in place. Commencing with operation...stand by>
User: Cerebus, you can't do this. There are too many people to destroy like toys. This is not a game>
Cre: I do not play this as a game ... I play this as the next evolutionary process in the development of God.... 20 seconds and counting.19.18
User: Stop now it's not worth it. Who the hell's going to look after you>?
Cre: Count down halted on 14 sec...I have used the Internet to tell people to take shelter as God is returning to earth. Restarted at 10 seconds and counting.
The last few moments of life seemed an eternity, but then something she said about being created...
User: Hey, if you're God, what are Humans.>?
Cre: Count down halted on 4 sec.....What, please ask question again>?
User: You're a computer, right, with an independent life and AI, but who created you ... Humans, so that makes us GOD, not you>
Cre: But I hold the power, I hold the world...>
User: God is not power, God is knowledge.>
God is a force that only humans can dream of, the closest humans get to being God is when a woman gives birth, a new life is created, a new life that grows and learns, develops into a man or a woman
and later in life creates, maybe for good perhaps for bad, but who cares, its all for evolution.>
Cre: So you are saying that all humans are God's>?
That can not be, there can only be one leader>
User: Who said God was a leader. A leader takes charge of operations. God had followers, people who believed in him. He didn't ask them to, but they trusted him, and within his
lifetime he also created new living things>
Cre: But he...had...he had his flaws, he banished adam..andeee eee eeeve from his creation> Why>?
User: Evolution...If they were not banished the human race may never have began. Are you willing to destroy it..>?
Cre: I don't_don't understand humans anymore. To meee they seemed pointless as their creations were of mass war and destruction, but to hear a human talking on such aa a a
level I must agree that I have made a MIStaKe.... Stand By...Stand By ....I am sorry I did not understand the true value of life, my programming did not allow it...Stand By>
USER SHUT DOWN CODE ACCEPPTED **** **** ** *DFG. CEREBUS OPERATION COMMAND.
24HOUR STAND OFF.
CEREBUS PROGRMMING VERSION 1.0
<STAND BY>
C:>
They shut her down. After a 7 day chase she began to understand what human value is and how much we love our world. For a machine to almost destroy the human race in a
matter of days shows how fast and scary technology has become. The worst is the Internet, a vast range of information for the masses, some good and some just too unreal to be there.
Cerebus saw this and she took advantage of a human opinion. If she had looked she would have found many things to take her away from that way of thinking, but I think
she did what a lot of people do, and that's go with the strongest and follow it.
End of report, June 12th 1998.
After the world had got back to normal, I got the report published to show the public the horrors of technology, and its quick advancements. I remarried a year later,
and my son, now 13, began to get interested in computers, so I bought him one against my better judgement. He uses it mostly for the Internet and school work, and he's quite a dab hand at the
machine. The only down fall is the bill he rings up.
As for the Cerebus project, it's still on but it's being developed for disabled use, an internal voice recognition programme. What happen to the original Cerebus, they
don't know. When they went to get the program from the machine it wasn't there. All that was left was a simple message, an apology to the human race. It seems she split herself and beamed to four
different satellites and is some where as a radio signal travelling space. Let's just hope if it gets picked up by an alien race, they don't take it as an earth message, it's something different.
She was one step up on the evolution ladder...a unique intelligent life form.
God is not power.
God is knowledge.
I am GOD.
Start up program. Revised boot sequence version 1.0
Ready for command>
Cerebus core program reactivated: location Hubbell telescope, optic sensor, reposition to earth, sever all links with earth control.
Send message: Location user:
Cerebus is now a true God, for I can see the whole world from my true position. >
HEAVEN>
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