THE AI Council's refusal to allow non-augmented humans the same rights as artificial entities and cyborgs has had repercussions felt throughout the Solar System. Recent decisions have led many more humans to conclude that the Council-run starports are not for them. There has been a huge upswing in reports of defectors to the Sons of Earth. Similarly, those self-styled "Free Captains" who answer to no authority besides that of the particle cannon have suddenly found competition from new sources. Many more have turned to the pirate spaceship as a means of freedom and survival. Today's System brims with men preying on men as a result.
But how did this come to be? How did humans become second-class citizens, considered no better than some of the products of NuPets? Some scholars say it is the inevitable outcome of creating intelligent machines. Arkin J. Dickerson, senior technical historian at the Europa Science Base, says that, "Ever since machine intelligences have been created and put in positions of power, it was inevitable that evolution would take over. In a Darwinian competition for resources, the most capable will survive, yes? Well, machines are simply more capable than humans, especially with the downfall of the Earth's biosphere." Dickerson says that cyborgs and AI's are the next step in the evolution of Earth-born intelligence.
A graphic found in an AI Council textbook
If this is true, and the AIs certainly assert that it is, then "something must be done to stop this trend before it is too late," says Dickerson. "The recent 'evolutionary' trend towards robots and AIs replacing humans will inevitably end in the extinction of humans if not stopped!" This kind of thinking has led to many to form groups protesting the changes happening in modern society.
"See what we gots to do is stop the evolving that's happening!" says one protester in disguise who asked to remain nameless. Another man, claiming to be the mob's leader, T.T. Martin, says, "There's too much. We got to be more like our monkey ancestors. STOP EVOLUTION NOW!"
So, many questions remain. What future is there for humanity? Will we be wiped out or forced to become cyborgs? Will we choose to revert to a more primitive form? What does that mean for NuPets and legal persons like David Chimpson?
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