Accidental Intelligence

TALES FROM THE QUANTUM VAULT

In his debut novel, Bryan Chaffin transports us to the year 2139, where corporate combines have their own Senate seats, the surveillance-state is all-encompassing, humans live most of their lives in the Omninet, and sentient AIs are partners with the world government. It's not all bad, though. There are docbots, you never have to wait for a taxi, and if you can afford it, you can get your coffee made the old fashioned way, strained from the algae tanks.

ACCIDENTAL INTELLIGENCE

Private detective Mason Truman is being yanked around by invisible strings, and it's an AI doing the yanking. Miranda. She's subtle. Crazy. And she thinks she can see the future. It's enough to drive Mason nuts. Miranda believes her fellow AIs are up to some kind of grand conspiracy against the Terran Republic, and she wants Mason's help proving it. Conspiracies are above Mason's pay grade, though, the kind of time-sink that can put a crimp in more serious pursuits. Like drinking coffee. And staying alive.

But Miranda won't take no for an answer. Mason can help or Miranda will make sure he becomes intimately acquainted with the finer conversational techniques of the secret police. So Mason digs until he uncovers a cache of stolen communications between a cabal of rogue AIs. They're planning what they call Eschaton-the divinely ordained end of humanity. Unless Mason and Miranda stop the arrogant pricks, the conspirators will destroy Earth.

Mason and Miranda have one chance, a way of bottling up the rogue AIs. All Mason has to do is lure the conspirators to the right spot in a sim world. That's how Mason learns that when Miranda said she needed help, what she meant was bait.