Chapter 3: Chapter 3 – Holiday

‘Work and play…we need to do that all day. Until it’s time for a long holiday!’ sang the Engineer to himself.

He was currently looking for essential belongings he needed to pack up for the start of his contract. Firstly, he would have to have all his belongings checked and weighed by a company-mandated employee. He was to bring the minimum of personal possessions and was allowed to bring along the tools of his trade.

It was finally time for the engineer to start a new term of contracted work with a large company. While he looked around his accommodation for items, he needed he took some time to think about what he was now looking forward to.

A new job that promised to last for years, even decades. The upside meant a sort of job stability with a hefty bonus wage each year, that amount could be delayed if you opted out of accepting it per diem and instead accepted a lump sum at the end of the contract period.

The downside that he was told about during the whole recruitment process was that it would be a lonely job. At least that’s what he was told by the personnel in the office when he managed to pass the final interview.

Now that he thought back to that interview it was a lengthy process considering the nature of the job. The job advert asked for a person with a mechanical engineering background.

The only odd thing about it was that it didn’t specify any Artificial Intelligence or Machine Minds. Surely, they would also be applicable for the job. And they wouldn’t need much else in the form of necessities for organics.

After applying for the job and filling in a large number of questions he was happy to receive a response from the company that oversaw the available position.

As the Engineer had a bit of an odd personality, he didn’t usually do that well with online questions. When asked one specific question which was if a customer needs your help to fix a product do you drop what you’re doing and help them or tell them to find another colleague he chose to give the response: ‘I’m busy working.’

That didn’t go down too well for the corporate lifestyle that he had found instead of working in a single job he instead worked on a series of different contracts. His life had also been supplemented through other means which varied on the grey market.

With the shift in the global economy and the introduction of artificial intelligence nice, universal basic income meant that more opportunities had opened up as technology became less expensive and people looked for further opportunities that brought in income.

That had meant that had been introduced to some Scavengers, those people who looked for abandoned military and corporate sites

‘Why did they need to raise so many questions about my personal life as well?’

It so happened that the Engineer was also a bit of a history buff. He loved reading about ancient civilizations, cultures, and the practical technical knowledge of how to survive back then.

‘I recall my favourite book. The one about how to survive in ancient times for at least forty-eight hours before you get killed by disease or bandits who sell you bad water.’

He thought about the time scale and whether it was realistic or not. There was a professor once who was giving a history lecture, he had insisted that a modern-day human would only survive for several days if they went back to ancient times According to the professor ‘what an amazingly short life it would be.’

One of the fundamental issues would be language, culture, and society. Ancient people would be quite accepting of a much heavier amount of violence and shock than existed in current society.

‘What was that guy called who had the decade-long holiday again? Odeus. No wait it was Odysseus. Wow, that guy was sure lucky. He worked so hard in his job and then took a ten-year holiday to get back home. Even got paid for it during a few years in Egypt.’

The man had a tough time though as his kingdom thought that he had died and lots of other minor kings were trying to take over his homeland. And his wife and son had been waiting for him for quite a long time, still, in the end, it worked out quite well. Through the power of violence and the intervention of several gods.

‘Maybe I should be making a note of that. To survive back in time, you need a helpful god-style figure that gives you support through magical powers.’ He pondered to himself. Disguising yourself also helps a great deal so you don’t come across as a threat to others as well.

There was a time travel lecture once which talked about the concept of taking modern-day armaments and going back in time. Could you realistically take over an entire village, town, castle, or kingdom if you were heavily armed? Sounds brilliant. Until you realized everyone would identify you as some random stranger and therefore a target to be beaten up and robbed. Or you fell asleep and got robbed as well. Even arrested and thrown into a dungeon and then robbed.

He recalled some of the questions on the interview form that he had filled in as part of the application process. Rather than asking about how he enjoyed collaborating with his co-workers, he had the following question:

<How will you cope with a situation where you find yourself in relative isolation without any human or AI contact?>

It was such an odd question to ask when you were meant to be working correctly with an electronic system to improve and correct any errors. That would mean further contact with artificial intelligence or another controlling device. Another funny-sounding question was:

<Do you prefer your Machine Overlords to be benevolent or autocratic?>

Now that question was just a joke from someone who worked in a corporate Human Resources and didn’t like humans that much, or if it wasn’t a joke, it was a rather sobering experience. Working as an engineer to ensure the performance and integrity of mechanical systems wouldn’t be much fun with something calling itself a Machine Overlord watching over him. He’d rather cause deliberate damage and jump into an escape vessel than have his actions and freedom limited by it trying to dump him into some cyberspace hellscape setting as a human slave drone.

‘No, no thanks to that’ the Engineer thought. His answer to that particular question was pretty funny though even if it may not be considered so by the human resources person who had to check his answer against the requirements of the offered position.

There was only one way to answer a question that asked about Machine Overlords. His response had been: ‘I prefer them ejected into the heart of the sun. By force if necessary.’

Not that was likely going to happen, he would need enough resources for it to be a reality and it would be tricky to work out if you happened to be working for one at the time. A good thought experiment after all.

At least he hadn’t been asked this time if he preferred working with artificial or organic lifeforms. There was no way to answer that without coming across as damaged in some way, or ignorant of current social norms. People were just people, and sometimes he said just the wrong thing that annoyed them without ill intent,

It would be far better to have a partner that you could work with, human or otherwise, working as part of a team required communication.

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‘How are you meant to do routine maintenance for an AI integrated into a Space Station in coordination with necessary systems if you couldn’t have a basic conversation at least?’ the Engineer considered.

It would mean fixing everything manually through a slower and outdated method. Searching for issues that had to be fixed, making a list and a schedule, and looking at immediate priorities such as power and life-support systems. He would have to work out his work and be self-motivated.

’Well,’ thought the Engineer. ‘No human contact?’ That was quite understandable. I mean it was going to be a position in a hostile environment. One of the worst. Outer earth orbit. That meant that there were a lot of different dangers to a human. On a space station. Above a planet. Surrounded by mechanical parts and an AI whom he had never met and had former contact with. They had better not be a weirdo or a control freaks.

‘Better not be another fussy AI like that Contract AI 290. Surely, a corporation was meant to hand out multiple copies of a contract. In different formats. And materials. How were you meant to read and understand it thoroughly when only a single copy was kept on-site, and a time limit was provided?’

Not that you couldn’t have other people around but due to budget constraints, at least according to the corporation responsible for the project, there was only enough capacity for one person at a time to be on the space platform. More likely they didn’t want to increase spare costs for the life support system.

‘Why do companies always look to make more savings rather than take better care of their contract employees?’

The Engineer gave it a moment’s thought before returning to packing his few belongings in his secure portable luggage. That along with his fabrication equipment and tools were his immediate essentials.

He had paid for, designed, and built all the various tools by himself to make sure that he had all the tools that he would need in a given situation. Having a personal fabrication kit didn’t mean that he could make a cup of tea appear in the air though. That level of technology was far above his level of ability. He wasn’t quite sure if it even existed yet. They were close to living in a post-scarcity society for some but others, even having a huge amount of energy and resources still meant scarcity existed as the needs of people were never fully realized.

Considering his luggage weight limitations, he found that he couldn’t bring much with him. The limited company AI that was checking his packing process in his current accommodation was keeping a close eye on his weight allowance and the specific items.

[Do you need more socks? Surely five pairs are enough?] said Weight Allowance and Packing Artificial Intelligence 34.

+Warning, total weight allowance will be exceeded shortly+ came the electronic voice from the machine that was checking his luggage and personal bag in the room.

‘Shut it.’ Thought the Engineer. Given the current situation with artificial beings in the global economy, he had to be careful how he responded. There was no way that he was going to be ticketed and pay out money just for the convenience of being a little bit rude. At least with a simple machine, it couldn’t be insulted. Destroyed and time and money spent making a new one sure, but in no way, it would become annoyed as his behaviour. Thankfully, sentience wasn’t afforded for weight machines yet.

[Excuse me, Sir, I would like to remind you that you are reaching the weight limit per our company travel regulations. Although in theory, we can increase the amount necessary we believe that having less clutter and personal items makes for a better working environment. A tidy room leads to a tidy mind. Will you be finished presently?].

‘You can call me the Engineer and I’m keeping a close eye on the total allowance. It takes me a bit of time to sort out my personal belongings and tools that will be useful for the job. Some of my stuff does both jobs.’ The Engineer said.

[Good, I am paid to both evaluate and support your choices. Please be aware of your contract time constraints as well. As you are currently under contract with XXX Company you are within working hours. We cannot take a large amount of time for you to keep picking and choosing as you wish. No rush.]

‘Destroy. All. Machines.’ Considered the Engineer in his mind. ‘Maybe just the bossy and annoying ones….’

He had to hurry up with his packing if only to get on with this specific job contract. It was one thing to do the actual mechanical work, he certainly enjoyed working with his hands and his mind to find solutions. But he lacked patience with the minor aspects of jobs.

Maybe, working without any AI or human interaction for such a prolonged period suited his nature. Or he was just an anti-social person who shouldn’t be around other beings too much. Hard to tell really. He became further lost in meaningless thoughts when a voice echoed out again and made him jump a bit in surprise.

[Excuse me, Engineer. XXX Time Units have now passed. We do need to stick to our specific work schedule.] Said weight and allowance AI 34.

‘Yeah, ok. I’m getting a move on alright?’ Said the Engineer in a tone that held more than a trace of frustration. He was running out of patience for this machine mind telling him what to do. But surely, it was better to make sure everything was ready before his contract officially began and the cool-down period ended right?

‘Just let me give another once-over check to make sure that everything I’ll need for both my professional and personal status is there. And that it’s just under the weight limit so no further charges are being added to my account. Sound good?’

+Engineer. XXX Time units are almost reaching completion. Further time units will be charged to your credit score account according to article XX of the contract as you have previously agreed with the corporation. Do you wish to pay for additional time?+

[We’ve had an automated warning now. Will all of your luggage be prepared yet? I need to work according to your strict schedule.]

Has that sounded ridiculous, he had spent a large part of his time thinking and needed to focus more on preparing but having to spend money before you even started getting paid? He surely wasn’t running a charity of one on behalf of a company.

They were supposed to be paying for his time after all. Rather than pay, he decided to ask a question.

‘If the delay is due to a company employee and not the contractor then who would become responsible for the cost?’

[That would be the fault of the employee who worked at the company who made the decision essentially.]

‘Let’s say that I forgot to pack any underwear because I wasn’t reminded to do so and then it would take me a little bit more time to find some. Humans need to wear clean boxer shorts daily, it’s essential to our physical well-being.’

[You…you…! I’m not a manual of company policy. I need to check with the head office first.]

‘Sounds good to me. And in that time, I’ll finish off my packing, shall I?’

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