'Are we taking a vote on whether we take a vote?' asked Yojo. 'I say a vote sounds OK.'
'Aid?'
Kenny shrugged. 'A vote. OK.'
'Bob?'
'I guess so.'
'That's settled, then,' said Mitch. 'Let's hear it. The motion is that we take the SRS off-line.'
'I say we shut Isaac down,' said Kenny. 'It's the only way. Either that or have a totally irrelevant BMS.'
'And I say no,' said Beech. 'BMS is only one small part of what Abraham is supposed to do. And we've never taken a self-replicating system off-line before. We don't know how Abraham's observer illusion will react to this. What you're suggesting seems to run counter to the rules of the universe.'
'The rules of the universe? Christ, that's just a bit heavy, don't you think?' laughed Yojo. 'Who are you? Arthur C. Clarke or something?
Shit, Beech, what is it with you? Always with the does God play dice shit.'
He shook his head. 'I say we kill the sonofabitch. The evolution has to suit the creator, not the machine.' He glanced at Beech and added, 'See?
You're not the only one who can get heavy.'
'The SRS is taken off-line,' said Mitch. 'Motion carried.'
Aidan Kenny let out a large breath. Beech was shaking his head. 'This is wrong, man,' he said.
'We took a vote,' sneered Yojo.
'OK,' Mitch said to nobody in particular, 'let's do it.'
'Hey, listen to Gary Gilmore there,' said Beech. 'Well, don't expect me to insert the curette. I'm pro-life.'
'Shut up with that crap, will you?' snarled Yojo. 'It gives me a headache.'
'That's just PMT,' said Beech. 'Pre-Murder Tension. Anyway, you've always got a headache. Don't you love me any more? I should never have married you.' Beech tossed a computer tape cassette to his colleague. 'Is this what you're looking for, you lousy criminal bastard?'
'Aid? The man is taking this very personally. Very personally.'
'Come on, Bob,' said Kenny, 'we took a vote. A democratic decision.'
'I can abide by the decision of the majority. But I don't have to be happy about it. That's what democracy's about, isn't it?'
Yojo went to one of the steel monoliths on the outer circle and fed the tape into a port.
'Democracy? What would you know about that?' he said. 'You're a Republican. You believe that freedom of speech means the freedom to say and do nothing.'
"What's on the tape?' Mitch asked hastily.
'SSPP,' Yojo said casually. 'Species Specific Predator Program. To deconstruct illegitimate offspring.' He drew a forefinger across his Adam's apple. 'It cuts the little bastard's throat.' He grinned wolfishly in Beech's direction. 'Relax, Beech. It's quite humane. Isaac won't feel a thing.'
He resumed his seat, smacked the computer screen with the flat of his hand to clear the saver program. 'Maybe a little infanticide will get rid of this damned headache.'
Mitch winced, thinking of his wife's miscarriage.
'That's an occupational headache you have there,' opined Kenny.
'Used to get them myself. Staring at a screen all day long. Neck tension, that's what causes them. You should see a chiropractor.'
'That's not a headache,' snorted Beech. 'That's his goddamned conscience bothering him.'
'Abraham,' said Yojo, 'run the SSSP program. You really think that would work, Aid?'
'It sure worked for me. I can give you a number…'
'Strange,' said Yojo, 'that's NAK. Abraham, acknowledge please.'
'What's NAK?' said Mitch.
'Negative acknowledgement,' explained Kenny. 'The programme didn't work.'
'Maybe you should have asked Abraham if he had a vote,' grumbled Beech.
'Well, that's the damnedest thing,' said Kenny. 'Try it again, Hideki.'
'Abraham, will you please run the Predator Program,' repeated Yojo. The four men jumped as an unearthly scream suddenly filled the computer room. It lasted several seconds and sounded like some large and ferocious animal in its death throes. Aidan Kenny turned pale. Beech and Yojo exchanged looks of horror. Mitch felt the sound vibrate off one of the Yu-5's metal casings and gave a shiver.
'What the hell was that?' he said.
'Man,' breathed Yojo, 'it sounded like God-fucking-zilla.'
'Wow!' Michael Kenny's exclamation came as a shock. 'That was totally awesome!'
The four men stared at the boy.
'Michael,' yelled his father. 'I thought I told you to use the headphones!'
'I did. I am. But — ' The boy shrugged. 'I don't know what happened, Dad. Well, maybe I do. When I killed the Parallel Demon I guess — I guess I must have got carried away and pulled the headphone jack out of its socket. And maybe I had the sound turned up a bit high.'
'The kid's game,' said Beech. 'The sound came through the main speakers.'
'Mike! You damn near scared the pants off us!' said Kenny.
'Gee, sorry, Dad.'
Hideki Yojo saw the funny side and started to laugh. 'That kid of yours, Aidan. He's a character all right.'
'Running Predator Program,' said the computer's comfortable English voice. 'Estimated completion time, 36 minutes and 42 seconds.'
'That's more like it,' said Yojo. 'Thought we'd lost you there, Abraham. Please check all systems.'
'Checking systems,' said the voice.
'Check my goddamn heart while you're at it,' said Beech. 'I think it's still stuck in my throat. It leapt like a fuckin' frog.'
Yojo, Beech and Kenny sat down again and watched their screens intently.
'That's enough computer games for today, Mike,' murmured Kenny.
'Aw, Dad.'
'Aw nuthin'. Give it a rest, will you, son?'
The child stood up and, with teeth clenched, started to march around the computer room punching some imaginary culprit.
'Check this out,' said Yojo. 'Small power — Security of Supply. Hey, what do you know? The Powerbak generator came on-line for a minute there.'
'Jesus, so it did,' said Kenny. 'And there's the reason.' He looked up at his son and frowned. 'Sit down, son, you're annoying me.'
The boy kept moving.
Mitch leaned across Kenny's shoulder and read what was written on the screen:
BUILDING SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT REPORT*
SMALL POWER — INTEGRITY OF SUPPLY*
17.08.35–17.08.41. 6 SECOND VOLTAGE SPIKE IN THE
DOWNTOWN AREA OF LOS ANGELES
REASON UNKNOWN
UPS STANDBY ELECTRICAL SUPPLY BRIDGED POWER
HIATUS SUCCESSFULLY
STABLE VOLTAGE NOW RESTORED
STANDBY GENERATING SET READY TO COME ON LINE
IN T MINUS 9 MINUTES
'That's why there was a delay in running your lousy predator program,' said Beech.
'Maybe we should shut down the whole system,' said Kenny, 'just in case.' He glanced up again. This time he shouted, 'Goddamit, Mike, sit down.'
The child frowned and dropped back on to his chair.
'What's the point?' said Yojo. 'Abraham bridged the gap, just like he was supposed to. You couldn't have got a better test of his competency than that. Tight code, man. Tight code.'
'I guess you're right,' said Kenny. 'There's nothing wrong with Abraham. Look at that, will you?'
Mitch glanced down at Kenny's screen and saw a small umbrella icon appear in the top right-hand corner. Slowly the umbrella opened.
'What does that mean?' he said.
'Well what do you think it means?' said Kenny. 'It's raining outside. That's what it means.'
Book Two
'We aim to create a clear organic architecture whose inner logic will be radiant and naked, unencumbered by lying tracings and trickery; we want an architecture adapted to our world of machines, radios and fast cars…'
Day. An interval of light between one night and the next.