A Brave New World

“Your Ferritin levels are running low, give me the capsule marked IP6 today and I’ll try to help”, whispered Peridot. He sounded a bit worried quite unlike his usual tranquil self.

“Are you eating right? How are you? Call us as soon as you wake up today! We are really worried”, cried Mi rather hysterically.

There stood Daddy near the pick-up point. Bo could not recognize his face in the gleam. Neither did she understand which platform this was. A frisson ran through Bo in anticipation.

The sky dome sang out hearteningly,

You know you can take this story, take your glory, make your own way

I want you to shape this story, take your glory, find your way, make your own way

And I'll be singing you songs of tomorrow & then dawn will follow & our sorrows all undone

With the bright flash, the night sky ripped apart and the room was washed in golden sunlight. Bo loved waking up to this song as it proclaimed that she could get a chance to amend how the day was expected to roll out.

She got out of bed and headed straight to the kitchen garden to feed Peridot as instructed. Peridot, Bo’s apple tree and best friend, swayed at her almost reassuringly. The apples would probably be ready in three days.

As soon as she finished her morning activities and came out of the bathroom, Alex, her automated home assistant, greeted her and presented her favorite breakfast, a mixture of seeds, dried fruits and nuts. But along with that came a shot of the sickly pink health potion. Why did Alex serve the potion this morning? Was she falling sick? Or was the day that was about to unfold needed her to gather all her courage and face what was coming?

A major part of the networking and collaboration infrastructure framework is run from the offshore maintenance hub on Earth which enables sustaining 20,000 interconnected but completely independent Human lives in the new settlement R101. However, the Humans rely on Man only for infrastructural support. They grow their own supplies and share the surplus as Man cannot be trusted at all when it comes to abstinence from adulteration. In return, Humans have successfully been a constant enabler for uplifting the society & imparting virtues of prudence, justice, temperance, courage, faith, hope and charity in Man.

Mi sounded really worried today morning. Bo had to connect with her today but her room was obnoxiously littered and she didn't like Mi rebuke about her standards of cleanliness. Bo helped Alex with the cleanup and then dialed Mi. Her touchable hologram loomed out of midair. After about 20 minutes of the UltraHeptic daily meetup, Bo figured out she was not as much concerned as she had sounded in the dream telepathy. Are Humans getting as good at pretending as Man?

Life on Earth had been much more veridical when the seeds of change were planted with a vision to clothe the ragged, feed the poor and heal the sick, to defend their freedom by infusing modern science and technology into the country's economic life. Man wasn't as vile. With the advancement of technology they used up most of the life-sustaining substances rather ruthlessly. They radically changed in the way they work and live. Socializing deteriorated to slander & maligning others.

The looming threat of annihilation of the most advanced life form led the able to plan an alternate settlement. Standing on the edge of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, as a range of new technologies were fusing the physical, digital and biological worlds impacting all disciplines, economies, and industries, arose the urgent need to reinforce, transmit and commit to put Human values in practice. In this age of mass delusion, arose the Paraclete to eliminate ignorance and misinformation and infuse freedom, humbleness, generosity, justice, tolerance, honesty, loyalty, respect & trust in Man to bring out their best versions. The following era brought in disruptive turmoils and hostile friction as the deserving were chosen and sent to the new settlement to preserve the best of Mankind.

Bo was only 3 years old when she migrated. She had packed all her possessions and waited for Daddy to accompany her till she boarded the craft. But Daddy had decided not to abandon Mankind at such troubled times. He had promised to remain connected to her at all times and meet her before her birthday. Hope and fear had mingled disconcertedly as Bo entered the brave new world with and without Daddy.

"Only you could see yourself, free yourself to be yourself", had reverberated all around while she had walked on.

Years had passed by almost in a radiant blur. Daddy could not manage visiting Bo but never failed to console, amuse or guide her at every stage of her life over the passing years. Finally Daddy was arriving a day before Bo turned 13.

As Bo got dressed, a surge of emotions ran over her. Not much had changed over the years, not a dash of innocence had been lost. Humans do not age, they merely undergo physical changes. She clutched her beads tightly, prayed fervently and headed out to board the sky train to embrace the most awaited day of her life.

Quite like Bo’s Daddy, many able Men had decided to repudiate the opportunity to be actively involved in setting up a new civilization or oversee the functioning of the worlds from one of the 330 million stars. In effect, today, as I lay embedded under a magnificent effigy in one of the major maintenance hubs, I do not regret having chosen to steer Mankind towards an epoch full of new promises of peace, love and virtue. By merging with the machines, we could lay the foundation of a beautiful, symbiotic world where everyone is interconnected but radically independent.

We aim to impart integrity & gratitude throughout the society & pass on the spirit of the age - Progress and Harmony for Mankind. We bestow upon you the courage to realize a dream some of us had nurtured centuries ago - to be aware of our interconnectedness & interneural dependence. Exploring our universe is extending the life of our earth. Understanding our genetic code is extending the life of our body. And now, we are unlocking our neural code to extend the life of our mind. So, what will it mean to live?