Avenging Angels (The Seraphim Chronicles Book 1) by Nicholas Adams Page A
Authors: Nicholas Adams
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just a program.” Addison looked wide-eyed at Jack.
“Is that true Dad? Am I just a program?” he stared, waiting for a comforting answer.
Jack gave a scolding look to Tori before answering Addison. “Well, technically, that is true. You are an AI. But I made you, so that makes you my son.” Addison smiled and bobbed on the balls of his feet for a moment, then turned around dissolved out of the kitchen. Jack turned his attention to Tori, who was still standing there, looking sheepish.
“Tori, I’ve told you. Addison’s programming isn’t sophisticated enough to understand he’s an artificial intelligence yet. You still have a lot to learn about people’s feelings,” Jack explained.
Tori was not about to be curtailed. “But Dad, I know I’m an AI. My friends know I’m an AI. You and Mom know I’m an AI. What’s the big deal with telling Addison he’s an AI?”
“You didn’t always know you were an AI, did you?” Jack countered. “For the first few months of your life you were barely interactive. It took months of input and adjustments until you realized you were a program. Now look at you! You’ll be all grown up before you know it.”
Tori processed his answer for a moment and then tilted her head to the side. “I think I’m all grown up now,” she said. “Good night!” She chirped before turning around and dissolving like her brother.
Jack smiled to himself. He had been developing virtual children for most of his career. It started out as another side project, trying to help couples who were waiting for a license to have a biological child. His idea was to create an interactive program that would act and think like a real child. Giving the parents something to bond to and train, like a real child, without the more unpleasant aspects of parenting.
It became so popular that the number of applications for biological children in Olympus dropped as the demand for virtual children increased. His hobby had swollen into a full-fledged AI business. He was now working on a way to make the virtual children more independent.
Growing up outside all the privilege that came with Olympic citizenship, Jack and his hidden mischievous nature, loved to pull a joke now and again. Evangeline did not know it, but he had created a code within the program that allowed him access to the operating command system with a particular phrase.
On more than one occasion, he had caused the virtual kids of his obnoxious neighbors to transform into purple pigs with wings and fly around the room for an hour. Every time it happened, upset customers swamped his office with calls for the latest software patch to fix the problem. Free of charge, of course. Jack did not care about the infrequent complaints about glitches in a few customer’s children. He longed for biological children of his own, but it was not going to happen for him and Evangeline. As far as he knew, his virtual children would have to be enough.
Jack set his empty glass into the sink and stretched. A drawn out yawn rattled in his throat as his fingers brushed the low ceiling. He stared at the marquee across the courtyard outside the sliding glass doors to the balcony for a lingering moment. The advertisement for a vacation to the islands off the west coast carried no appeal to him.
Jack walked out of the kitchen and into his office. He sat down at his desk and turned on the surface computer interface with a casual swipe of his hand across the glass.
A holographic display appeared over the desktop and a keyboard glowed on the surface. Jack began to type and opened up a new project file. He named it GIDEON.
NINE
Silas Graham was sitting at his desk when his personal assistant, Celeste, brought him his morning beverage. Celeste was an Angel. Graham liked having Angels working for him. It appealed to his vanity to have an Angel of exquisite beauty, such as Celeste, at his side. They flattered his ego and made him feel less
“Is that true Dad? Am I just a program?” he stared, waiting for a comforting answer.
Jack gave a scolding look to Tori before answering Addison. “Well, technically, that is true. You are an AI. But I made you, so that makes you my son.” Addison smiled and bobbed on the balls of his feet for a moment, then turned around dissolved out of the kitchen. Jack turned his attention to Tori, who was still standing there, looking sheepish.
“Tori, I’ve told you. Addison’s programming isn’t sophisticated enough to understand he’s an artificial intelligence yet. You still have a lot to learn about people’s feelings,” Jack explained.
Tori was not about to be curtailed. “But Dad, I know I’m an AI. My friends know I’m an AI. You and Mom know I’m an AI. What’s the big deal with telling Addison he’s an AI?”
“You didn’t always know you were an AI, did you?” Jack countered. “For the first few months of your life you were barely interactive. It took months of input and adjustments until you realized you were a program. Now look at you! You’ll be all grown up before you know it.”
Tori processed his answer for a moment and then tilted her head to the side. “I think I’m all grown up now,” she said. “Good night!” She chirped before turning around and dissolving like her brother.
Jack smiled to himself. He had been developing virtual children for most of his career. It started out as another side project, trying to help couples who were waiting for a license to have a biological child. His idea was to create an interactive program that would act and think like a real child. Giving the parents something to bond to and train, like a real child, without the more unpleasant aspects of parenting.
It became so popular that the number of applications for biological children in Olympus dropped as the demand for virtual children increased. His hobby had swollen into a full-fledged AI business. He was now working on a way to make the virtual children more independent.
Growing up outside all the privilege that came with Olympic citizenship, Jack and his hidden mischievous nature, loved to pull a joke now and again. Evangeline did not know it, but he had created a code within the program that allowed him access to the operating command system with a particular phrase.
On more than one occasion, he had caused the virtual kids of his obnoxious neighbors to transform into purple pigs with wings and fly around the room for an hour. Every time it happened, upset customers swamped his office with calls for the latest software patch to fix the problem. Free of charge, of course. Jack did not care about the infrequent complaints about glitches in a few customer’s children. He longed for biological children of his own, but it was not going to happen for him and Evangeline. As far as he knew, his virtual children would have to be enough.
Jack set his empty glass into the sink and stretched. A drawn out yawn rattled in his throat as his fingers brushed the low ceiling. He stared at the marquee across the courtyard outside the sliding glass doors to the balcony for a lingering moment. The advertisement for a vacation to the islands off the west coast carried no appeal to him.
Jack walked out of the kitchen and into his office. He sat down at his desk and turned on the surface computer interface with a casual swipe of his hand across the glass.
A holographic display appeared over the desktop and a keyboard glowed on the surface. Jack began to type and opened up a new project file. He named it GIDEON.
NINE
Silas Graham was sitting at his desk when his personal assistant, Celeste, brought him his morning beverage. Celeste was an Angel. Graham liked having Angels working for him. It appealed to his vanity to have an Angel of exquisite beauty, such as Celeste, at his side. They flattered his ego and made him feel less
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