16 Aug

Posted at 12:05h in Stories

Eyes of Ego By Christopher Keast Dawning sunlight beamed in through the kitchen window, stinging Ego’s eyes. At least, he thought it was from the sun. News came in on his tablet that morning. “Something’s happening in Australia,” he said, giving his wife a concerned look. “AMTAID?” Eleka asked. He nodded. “Merregos are revolting.” “Play it on the big screen.” Ego tapped into the wall monitor. The reporter spoke: “… a Qδ7 colony began protesting before they were to undergo a cooperation enhancement. Uprisings have spread to other colonies. Sources say they’ve gained access to a gene-file edit, granting themselves upgrades not intended for several years. World Alliance is amassing Special Forces on the outside perimeter, as a precaution. Stay tuned.” Their jaws dropped. “Are Merregos like merry-go-rounds?” their daughter Cassie, asked. Eleka said, “Something like that.” Ego leaned in toward Cassie. “More like a clever name given to robots who need to learn to get along with us humans.” “Where do they live?” “Very far away, in Australia,” Eleka said. “Where’s that?” “It’s a big island in the middle of an ocean, far away like Mommy said. It’s where Daddy was born.” “You lived with the Merregos?” Eleka beamed at Ego, who grinned and shook his head. “No, honey. I moved away right before they arrived. When I...

15 Aug

Posted at 12:01h in Stories

Sparks of Selma By Christopher Keast Jed laid in bed half-awake, thinking about the words he was missing from his latest writings. That was part of the trouble these days. The other side of his bed, where Selma used to lay, was empty. His lover for so many years, gone for more days than he could count. He sat up and grabbed his IMoovOns from the bedside table, putting the large metal frames with tinted lenses over his eyes and attaching the sticky pads to his head. His therapist told him to reserve it for certain occasions, when needed most, as part of his healing process. Jed knew it wouldn’t last forever. Today it was deserved. He pushed the GO button on the left arm of the frames. Selma appeared next to him as though a television screen had been turned on, transmitting through thin air. A translucent pigment of light cast down from Heaven, he thought.   'You’re so beautiful,' he said to her. 'Enough already, you know I’m not really here.' Part of her programming was to boldly motivate him. Hard encouragement mode. Her holographic image was a depiction taken from several years before she died. Her appearance was still bright then. The programme let her speak as...

12 Aug

Posted at 16:19h in Stories

Viralpocalypse by Christopher Keast Sasha and I snap selfies after school. “Let’s post one to Defame,” she says. I haven’t used the new app much. It was the latest thing. “How does it work again?” “You make a post, then find someone to flick. The app transfers their face onto yours. Then everyone thinks it’s them.” “But they’ll know it’s not.” Sasha shrugs and nods, holding up her smartphone. I admire her grace as she poses for each picture. Her eyelashes flutter over her hazel eyes. The breeze blows her strawberry blonde hair. Her curves seem in perfect alignment. I try to follow along, letting her flair complement my blandness. She grabs me and pulls my lips to hers. Snap. We giggle in front of the camera, lip-locked. “Now we flick.” I raise an eyebrow. “How does it alter your face?” “Some auto-deepfake thing. It’s easy.” She shows me the flick reel of little, bright, dancing squares with people’s profiles overlaid. I stare unfocused into the screen. It’s mesmerizing. “Do you have Brit on there?” “Not yet. You can only flick your followers. I do have Luke and Preston.” Sasha taps my face on the screen and selects Luke as a flick, then selects Preston for hers. “Flicked!” My heart skips a beat watching Luke...

28 Dec

Posted at 01:01h in Stories

A cut from my new novel, Deepfake – the sequel to Datapocalypse. Felt a little essay-ish. Something I was trying to avoid after so much of it in Book I. Makes for an interesting blog post though, with the right context. This scene describes Kicis Orion, an historian (and protagonist in the novel), in one of his rants about how the demon-AI is destroying things in the physical world and how big tech and technology addiction are the catalysts. I won't give too much more of the story away. Here you go...