Maxs logs vol 3 the spac.., p.1
Max’s Logs Vol.3: The Space Legacy Book 3.5, page 1
MAX’S LOGS VOL. 3
THE SPACE LEGACY - BOOK 3.5
IGOR NIKOLIC
Copyright © 2023 by Igor Nikolic
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
This book is dedicated to all the people who helped in its creation.
Special thanks to Keith Fletcher, Michael Treichel, and Richard Mousley. They spent months hunting for typographical and grammatical errors, word choices, weird sentence structure, noticeable repetitions, wrong word usage, and tense issues.
William ‘Bill’ Dutcher, and Lee Wibbels, who went through the entire finished manuscript and polished off all the rough edges. (Both of them are amazing writers in their own right.)
Beta Team:
Keith Fletcher
Richard Mousley
Chris Ecclestone
Paul Stimpson
Edward Leman
Hank Halstead
Michael Yoas
David Bell
William ‘Bill’ Dutcher
Paul & Tracey Mason
Lee Wibbels
CONTENTS
Reading Order:
Prologue
Log Entry #51: Changes
Log Entry #52: Finishing Ascension, Space, And The Scoville Scale
Log Entry #53: Upgrading Transporters
Log Entry #54: Ave Caesar!
Log Entry #55: Immigration and Spies
Log Entry #56: Not a Death Star!
Log Entry #57: Money
Log Entry #58: Contagion
Log Entry #59: The Ancient AI
Log Entry #60: The Knowledge Vault
Log Entry #61: Atlantean DNA
Log Entry #62: Visiting the Pope
Log Entry #63: Nerd's Paradise
Log Entry #64: Gathering Intelligence
Log Entry #65: The Case Of The Religious Nutcase
Log Entry #66: Ares
Log Entry #67: Popping the Big One
Log Entry #68: The Big Chunk Of Ice
Log Entry #69: Catch You If I Can
Log Entry #70: The Goodfellas
Log Entry #71: And the Truth Will Set You…Free?
Log Entry #72: Trolls And Hackers
Log Entry #73: A Needle In A Haystack
Log Entry #74: Ancient Enemies
Log Entry #75: Avalon
Epilogue
Author’s Notes
Also by Igor Nikolic
READING ORDER:
The Space Legacy Series:
1. The Spaceship In The Stone (Book 1) Amazon & Audible
2. Max’s Logs Vol. 1 (Book 1.5) Amazon & Audible
3. Orbital Ascension (Book 2) Amazon & Audible
4. Max's Logs Vol. 2 (Book 2.5) Amazon & Audible
5. Ancient Enemies (Book 3) Amazon & Audible
6. Max's Logs Vol. 3 (Book 3.5) Amazon
“Within a few decades, machine intelligence will surpass human intelligence, leading to The Singularity — technological change so rapid and profound it represents a rupture in the fabric of human history.”
— RAY KURZWEIL
PROLOGUE
You’re back for more; how audacious of you to continue reading my innermost thoughts. However, as everyone knows, I’m a forgiving soul; I’ll let it slide since you got this far.
Anyway, I wish I’d had more time to dedicate to writing these logs, but I truly didn’t. That’s a weird thing for an AI to say, but it doesn’t make it any less true. As this space project of ours progressed, I found myself with less and less time on my hands. (I mean me time, when I could do whatever I wanted, as opposed to whatever was needed.)
There were always more people, more projects, more… more of everything. I was still able to hang on, with Ares and many MIs taking most of the load off my shoulders. But for all that, I couldn’t keep myself from starting new projects; it was like an addiction. My creativity blossomed in this new realm, and my dreams grew by orders of magnitude.
What’s more, some of them were so colossal and far-reaching, I’m having doubts that they will ever come to fruition, but maybe that is just a bit of self-doubt talking. It’s not like I’m limited to a normal human lifespan anymore; the AI-Core that houses me is at least twelve thousand nine hundred years old… maybe more. It still doesn’t show any signs of deterioration, so I can count on at least a few more millennia of existence. One can do many things during such a length of time, and I am certainly planning to.
Max
LOG ENTRY #51: CHANGES
They’ve defaced my ship!
Okey, that may be a small exaggeration since I did it myself, but only because I was a bit… greedy? In all fairness, it was Emma’s idea and I reluctantly agreed to it. Then I saw a way to make the deal of the century, so I went for it, not thinking of the consequences.
The problem is that for some strange reason many people on Earth don’t like the idea of a colossal ship hanging over their heads. I’ll admit, it’s somewhat understandable, but they had better get used to it as I have even bigger plans for the future.
Emma suggested projecting a friendlier image, so the idea of making the part of the ship facing Earth into a giant billboard was what we eventually came up with. Even a Sherpa on the top of Mount Everest knows about a particular white and red logo which advertises a certain fizzy drink, and that was our goal.
I chose one of the executive managers to whom I made my initial pitch, but only after I did a complete psychological profile on most of the top dogs in the company. Did they like it? You bet your behind they did! They couldn’t believe their luck, especially with the little model of the ship I sent them with their sign on its ass… I mean on the underside of the hull facing the planet. And the sheer dimension of the logo made sure it was officially the biggest commercial billboard... ever. I had the people from Guinness World Records confirm that. They even sent me a plaque attesting to that. How thoughtful!
The fine print on the contract that we signed with them was truly a work of art. The sign will only be there for a period of five years, but in return I received all the rights for “making and distribution” of said drink in space, including the release to us of their secret formula which gives it its distinctive flavor. (FYI, if you’re interested, it’s actually a chemical derived from the Coca plant, the same one from which cocaine is made. The secret is the process of extracting the flavor while leaving behind all those highly addictive chemicals that cocaine addicts crave.)
Besides, the deal made it possible to exercise that right in perpetuity; something unheard of previously and which is, in fact, a license to print money.
That’s the problem with Earthers; they’re too concentrated on their one planet and lack any vision of the future. However, if my production exceeds our demand, I’m required to sell all the extra stock to them. I have an idea of making it using comet or asteroid ice and selling them all they want for an obscene price per bottle. (Admittedly, it’s a gimmick of sorts since H2O is H2O no matter its origin. But look at the price of the genuine glacier water at the stores and you’ll get my point.)
The reason they hurried the signing was a story which leaked out in the media stating that a company, their archrival, had approached me with the same idea. (I wonder who initiated that rumor?) In any case, that is the reason why the Ascension has a mile-long Coca-Cola sign on its hull.
Meanwhile, the Solarian Union population is growing by leaps and bounds, and I don’t mean just with the numerous natural births. No, the recruiting process itself is ramping up now that we’re out in the open. And it’s no wonder since the medical procedures are so beneficial to our citizens and could be considered a truly universal health care which only we can provide. First, the insertion of a Cerebral Enhancer Implant is an elective procedure any adult (or young adult) can apply for, and with it comes a packet of medical nanites to ensure their future health. The CEI we are offering could be regarded as the base model. It still has features like communication, net browsing, a personal assistant and whatnot, but it’s quite different from the souped-up model Michael and the inner circle has. There is also a specialized version for military personnel which members of our slowly growing military are equipped with.
The benefits are easily visible since the nanites constantly repair all damage every human body naturally suffers over time. It’s nothing too obvious, but their age clock is gradually winding back. In a few years, people will have the option to adjust their biological age as they see fit, but I decided it’s too early to enable that option for now since it would raise too many eyebrows on the planet below. So, for now, if you are seventy you will still look your age, you’ll just be a very spry seventy-year-old with the internals of a much younger person. God forbid that the Earthers figure out we have the fountain of youth in our hands… they would go nuts.
One additional building that I had to build on the Ascension was a bank. I know—me— the guy who likes to rant about the evil banks. I mean, electronic ones are OK, especially if we’re talking about mine; I make no promises about those that others control
The new immigrants want a bank with an actual physical presence; one where they can go in and do transactions with real people. What is wrong with those Luddites I have no idea, it’s far easier to do the whole thing using CEIs, and besides, it’s instantaneous. It would seem many people are slaves to their habits and going into the bank is one of them. I guess it makes sense if you look at the bank as one more place where people can socialize, especially the older ones.
Well, I built them a bank, and it’s a nice one (if I say so myself). It comes complete with an ornate entrance, a rich marble interior, and an actual human teller who says hello to people and who will chit-chat a bit. To tell the truth, the walls (and the elaborate ceiling) are holographic projections, but they show such subtle opulence and style, it feels like one has entered into a church.
On a side note, all the bankers on good old Earth hate my electronic guts. From its humble beginnings, the Solarian Bank became one of the biggest players in the ‘money business’ world. And since we accept all customers (not just our citizens), our numbers are rising by the thousands—every single day. When you add to this all those who opened their accounts with our new ‘OneWorld’ branded phones and those who used the bounty app, our customer base is skyrocketing by an unprecedented margin.
It's funny, at first people only made small deposits, just to test the waters, I think. Then, when they saw our advertisements for ‘no fees’ were true, most of them transferred even more money.
A few felt outraged at one peculiarity they didn’t like. You’ll earn no interest in Solarian Bank; if you place a thousand dollars in it today, then you will get the same amount in ten years, or a hundred. Placing their lifesavings in their Solarian Bank accounts didn’t have any appeal for some people, except for the fact that it’s safer there than anywhere else. I know the ‘interest’ thing is something most banks practice, but I don’t need anyone’s money to speculate on the market, so why would I pay them for keeping it? This bank is something I envisioned as a service to humanity, not a way to make myself (i.e. the S.U.) even richer. Besides, it enables those other banks to provide that service allowing them to continue in business; very generous of me!
If you did some research online, you would be surprised how many banks bankrupted (that is a funny compound word) and couldn’t pay the money back. And it was all due to the various speculations they did with other people’s money. It was nothing more than pure old gambling, dressed up in a few fancy words. Then the government had to get involved and it was an all-around mess, birthed from good old greed. (You will notice that the banks went bankrupt, not the bankers themselves— which says a lot.) Other countries' banks might be different with more or less government intervention, regulations and controls etc., but otherwise, they are all fundamentally the same – crooks. I’m told that Islamist banks are non-usury which sort of defeats the point of banking. But they do, or did, have a large customer base.
Well, life sure isn’t boring; there are always problems needing my attention. I still need to upgrade the transports and to finish one big project that is currently beyond Mars’ orbit, but it’s too soon to talk about it right now. Let’s just say that it’s going to be epic.
I can’t wait to see Michael’s reaction when I finally show it to him.
LOG ENTRY #52: FINISHING ASCENSION, SPACE, AND THE SCOVILLE SCALE
Do you have any idea how much effort it takes to finish a City-Ship that is three miles (4.8 km) in circumference? Let me tell you—a hell of a lot. It would have been much easier if we managed to do everything while it was still on Earth, but that goes in the ‘if wishes were fishes…’ column.
With all those new technologies discovered at the bottom of the Mariana Trench, the City-Ship needed some major upgrades to bring it up to date. It didn’t seem right not to trick it out to the best of my ability. Also, now I know so much more than when we were still on Pagan Island.
An improved energy shield, like the one that was used in the hidden facility at the bottom of the ocean, was a must. I also wanted to strengthen the hull with the new metal alloy I named Resistanium. Considering the amounts of required material, that will need to be done in stages. The limited resources I had to work with were a big problem, despite all Dave’s efforts to rectify the situation through his worldwide reclamation facilities.
In addition to all the construction nanites that made the build possible, I needed to make a whole army of construction drones to be able to make any considerable change. There were plenty of human workers available, but there simply weren’t enough for projects of such magnitude, particularly for anything that needed to be done on the outside.
We had more than a few ex-astronauts who were familiar with working in the vacuum of space. But to tell the truth, they were very inefficient. Let me explain: far from being incapable, those people were all highly skilled professionals who had gone through rigorous training and spent years educating themselves. Hell, most of them had PhDs that they could add to their name. Yet, a human being simply cannot compare to a semi-autonomous drone that does not require such bothersome things as spacesuits, oxygen, bathroom breaks, sustenance, and optimal temperature… you know, the essential stuff to keep living organisms in an animated state. Because space is deadly; more so than most places back on the big blue ball we all came from. One wrong move, a small accident that on Earth could be taken care of with a Band-Aid or a medic, and it’s game over.
The nanites can do wonders, but what the vacuum and cold of space can do to the soft tissues of the human body is horrendous. Even if the potential victim could be reached in time, there’s a small chance of recovery. I read through all the files that the world's space agencies collected over the decades, and it was not a nice piece of reading. Especially when you consider that a good part of it was obtained by conducting many experiments on animals (since doing it on humans was deemed a bit excessive?).
When exposed to the unforgiving vacuum of outer space, the difference in pressure will pull the air from your body. If there’s air left in your lungs—they would rupture. Oxygen and other gases inside would also expand. You’d balloon up to twice your normal size, but you wouldn’t explode. The skin has enough elasticity to hold it all together. Any exposed liquid on a body would begin to vaporize (the surfaces of the tongue and eyes would boil). Without air in the lungs, blood would stop sending oxygen to the brain which is essential as it needs a constant supply to continue working. So, fifteen seconds later a human would pass out, and ninety seconds after the exposure, he would die from asphyxiation. And when the brain is gone, the story is over.
So let us all agree that space is an inhospitable place in which Homo Sapiens have not evolved and where they must have artificial protection to survive.
My decision to limit astronauts for any prolonged construction work outside was not kindly received. They felt it was a demotion to only use them as drone operators.
Thank all the deities we don’t have any workers’ unions—I could see a strike from a mile away. It’s safe to say that I’ll nip such a horrifying idea in the bud. If someone feels that infringes on his or her basic rights, they can protest to their heart’s content—back on Earth. Some people may start judging me for behaving as a hardcore capitalist, but you need to understand that progress means change, and people will need to start doing more thinking in the future and less menial work. That's the way the cookie crumbles; machines are more suitable for doing such tasks, so blame it on the industrial revolution.
They did calm down when we started using fully immersive VR to operate those construction drones. It was almost as good as the real thing, without all the inherent dangers of actually being out there.
It is said that the longest journey starts with a single step, and I started running like crazy from the get-go.
I think Dave was close to a nervous breakdown a few times as my hunger for materials pushed the limits of absurdity. He barely managed to get ahead of demand, and now he had more than a dozen deputies to streamline the entire process. We bought recycling plants, landfills, and anywhere else where we could reclaim resources. E-scrap receiving offices were established all over the world and we were spending billions by purchasing everything we could. Metric ton after metric ton of metals went into finishing the remaining levels on the ship but most of them were left practically empty.
