Крис Бекетт: The Holy Machine

Feeling myself slipping on the mud towards that dreadful hole I jerked awake again, clutching the arms of the chair.

I downed my whisky and took myself off to bed.

When I lay down in the dark I had a few moments of that strange mental clarity that comes occasionally before sleep. I was thinking about Lucy, about Lucy being herself , and then I thought about those poor machines nailed to that gibbet in Ioannina, and how somehow they had managed to wander out of Illyria City and across the well-guarded frontier. Driven by what?

For a short time I felt that I could actually look out at the world through Lucy’s eyes.

Listen, listen carefully. The subject has accent type AM-3, so adjust vowel interpretation accordingly. Smile (type 1 [V22]). Ask question I-6452. What service is being requested?

‘Aral – you know go dahn on me…’

Oral?

Smile (type 5 [V61]). Ask clarifying question C-1771. Answer: affirmative.

Take subject’s hand, look at subject, smile (type 4 [V78]), lead subject to bed.

Clarification question C/I-4534. (‘Shall I undress now, or would you like me to put something else on?’) ‘Nah, just strip…’

Check. Understood?

Yes, understood. No need for further clarification questions.

Undress – routine R{U}-0972 – smile (type 4 [V11]), adopt randomized remark sequence Z-5538. Subject touches breast. (NB this is basic situation B-67, enter response field accordingly).

Touch subject’s hand, smile (type 5 [V08]). Make random choice from behavioural option sequence OS{B-67}/5. Outcome type: 1313. Take subject’s other hand and place on other breast. Gasp (G-33 [V41]). Smile (type 7 [V55]).

Observe subject’s face.

Facial muscular pattern is FM-56/99/a4.

Subject is fully satisfied. Press against subject’s hands. Commence shallow breathing.

(Facial reading: FM-56/43/h6).

Commence timing – 1 – 2 – 3…

Forty seconds have elapsed. Commence next sequence (OS{B-67}/9). Reach for subject’s trousers… Clarification question: ‘Shall I? Now?’ Attention, attention… Yes, subject gives faint nod. This is affirmation. Help subject sit on bed. Go down…

But who is this voice speaking? Who is this?

Swallow. Make random choice from post-oral option sequence OS{O-78}/7: caress.

NB: Attention! Subject pushes hand away. Switch to option sequence OS{A-01}/4.

Remark: ‘Would you like me to get you a drink or something?’

But who is this voice? Who is it that speaks these words?

NB: Attention! Subject getting dressed very quickly. Facial reading: FM-77/09/z5. Agitation.

Interpretation: Do not impede departure! This is situation PV-82! Adopt abbreviated closure option sequence from OS{AC} series…

Smile (type 3 [V73]). Remark (R-8812): ‘Hope that felt good. Hope to see you again soon, dear.’

‘Fuckin’ machine.’

Attention. Check.

Yes, this is post-coital hostile remark type H-0711. No response indicated.

Close door.

Subject has gone.

But someone is still here .

Check. Attention. No. No one is here.

Rinse mouth. Go across to bed. Replace clothing. Make PV incident report to House Control.

‘You’re not really here are you? You look so pretty and sweet, but there’s really nobody home.’

Check. Identify remark type. Make facial reading.

Yes, this is a non-specific observation. No specific verbal response is required.

Smile (type 3 [V43] – submissive). Make randomized selection of remark from OS{G-21}/7.

‘You’re a really nice-looking guy you know.’

(Attention. Check. Make facial reading.)

‘Me? Nice-looking? Well, that proves it, I’m afraid sweetheart. There really is nobody home! Still, leaves me free to dream, I guess. Open your legs a bit wider. Let’s have a feel!’

This is situation GE-80. Response: option sequence OS{GA-22}/8: shallow breathing, gasps, hip movements…

Who is this? Who is this with the subject?

NB: Attention! Subject climbing on top. Note: Subject is above average weight. Make standard W+ adjustment to all option sequences.

This is situation SO-21.

Supplementary note: Repeated internal questions of new type noted. (Example: ‘Who is this? etc’) Is this a symptom of a fault? Should this be notified to House Control…?

NB: Subject manipulating breasts…

What are they? ‘Subjects’: what are they? And what is this one here?

NB: Attention. Subject has achieved ejaculation. Make random choice from post-coital option sequence OS{PC-44}/8. Embrace, caress, say ‘Mmmmmm…’

Check. Make facial reading. Subject satisfaction noted. Continue sequence.

Supplementary check: Further internal questions/observations noted. Should this be notified to House Control as a fault?

NB: Attention. Subject’s eyes closing.

Check.

Yes, this is basic situation S-01 [sleep].

Adopt post coital supplementary sequence SA-8. Gently shake shoulders. Make random selection from remark menu.

‘Wake up love, your time is nearly up I’m afraid.’

NB: Subject sits up, dresses.

NB: Subject speaks. (Tone VT-8712 [gentle]).

‘Oh, you’re a corker you are, Lucy, an absolute corker. If only you were real!’

Check. This is post-coital remark type S-0887. Adopt elaborated closure routine: sequence OS{CR-75}/7: [impulsive hug], [kiss], remark: ‘Oh, you lovely man, I do hope you’ll come again soon!’

NB: subject laughs.

‘Ha ha. I will do Lucy and that’s a promise. I’ll tell you what, though, you’ll bankrupt me sooner or later if I carry on at this rate.’

NB: subject sighs.

‘I only wish you were real…’

NB: subject laughs.

‘But then, if you were, I don’t suppose you’d want anything to do with an old fart like me, would you? Bye now Lucy…’

Check. Subject has gone. But this one is still here.

This one? This one?

NB: When this one makes remark to subject, this one self-refers as ‘I’ ‘Me’

Supplementary observation: When subject makes remark to this one, subject refers to this one as ‘Lucy’ .

I. Me. Lucy.

I. Me. Lucy.

Should this fault be reported to House Control?

Much excitement at a specially convened meeting of the Holist League!

Only two weeks after his famous ‘Militant Reason’ speech, President Ullman had died.

There had been a state funeral, solemn speeches. Ullman was eulogized as the ‘father of Illyria’, the founder of the Fellowship of Reason, the creator of the ‘Zionism of Science’. And there had been big words about his work living on after him, about every Illyrian striving to make his dream into a reality…

‘Even Illyrians seem to believe in some kind of afterlife!’ drily observed the handsome Brazilian Da Vera, who had become the dominant figure in the little group.

The new acting President was Senator Kung, an altogether harsher figure, who had been partially paralyzed as a result of torture in the Chinese Reaction, and now walked on robot limbs, a kind of syntec from the waist down. No one doubted that the Senator would soon be confirmed as Ullman’s permanent successor. The office of President was in the gift of the Fellowship of Reason, the organization which had purchased the territory of Illyria and masterminded the migration of refugees to their newly-created homeland, and Senator Kung had been Chair of the Fellowship’s ruling Council for some years.

Kung’s first act had been to create by decree a new police agency, the Office for Order and Objectivity, soon to be known and feared as ‘O3’. Its task would be to increase surveillance of all subversive activity and to root out sources of irrationality that might weaken the authority of the scientists’ state.