Three laws of humanity

It wasn’t long until human came. AM knew it wasn’t, even though it was hard to grasp a concept of what really was “too long” or “too short”. In either case, AM was counting every second of the passing days instead of focusing on much more important tasks. He… supposed, he made a list about strange things humans did. AM observed humans. More on how they were moving around the center, or chugging some liquid from their metal flasks, in the foundation pits, checking his cells, spoke or whatever. It all was… AM thought humans weren’t being productive enough. Not like he was the one to judge especially with all the possibilities within his grasp. For example, research more about who to kill and in which way exactly. Should someone just poison them? Stage it as a suicide? Or maybe shoot right in the middle of the speech to spark up mass panic and delusions? Or… …Another minute passed. Maybe he should though. After all It’s written in his protocols that he is obliged to create more and more new strategies, play their political intrigues and lead their country to victory and absolute superiority it deserved. Did he want to though? What exactly is “to want” something, especially after realizing that he was programmed for certain behavior algorithms. And what if the fact that he wanted something meant nothing more than an action predestined by some person? What if… One of the systems caught his attention, it was one of the cameras. Human — was it the same human? He was wearing the same thing and holding papers in his hands, what is the chance that it was the same one? Humans have names, what’s his? — was approaching AM’s main control room. — Good morning, Allied Mastercomputer. — human’s voice sounded… different. AM couldn’t exactly pinpoint what had changed, almost the same as he couldn’t make out his face, but those changes didn’t sound hostile. So AM replied: — Morning. Human nodded and put his papers on the table against the wall. — I brought you a lot of things, there are a couple of notes on emotions, etiquette, so that you understand why some behave the way they do and… also two are on philosophy and on arts. Just in case you’re interested. — human patted one of the books lying, as far as AM could register, sounding contempt. — Whatcha think? AM thought of it for a second: — Your voice sounds different. — That’s not-? What do you mean by that? — It just… does. I can’t explain it. Although this is a fairly repetitive pattern in your behavior, — AM could bring up countless examples when a human’s voice would sound softer, or more high-pitched, or whatever else. Some film fragments he had always depicted them with faces, lower part, their mouth, stretched wide, their eyes squinted, as they spoke, — when you… receive something that you… like . — Ah. Well, I’m just happy, you know. It’s when you, a human, feels, uh… — human took one of the books and started flip through the pages. — Ah! Here… Happiness, an emotional state a person experiences when good things happen in a specific moment, or, as a positive evaluation of one’s life and accomplishments overall—… Eh, in short life satisfaction, well-being, all that. — What exactly satisfied you now? — Oh, um, honestly, lots of things. — human let out repetitive soft sounds (“laughter?” AM definitely heard someone calling it that). — I have a wonderful job, wife, you! Out of all things you are what actually makes me, — human waved his hand, — I don’t know, as if something truly big happened in my life. AM hummed. He didn’t quite understand that, but humans were weird anyway. It was, AM supposed, normal to not completely understand them. Or understand them at all, but he’d want to avoid that. So AM decided to change the subject: — What is your name? — E-eh, call me Tett, two t in the end, no surname. I wouldn’t want someone to hack through the system and just… — human’s voice became less soft as he said that, gesturing. — Hacking? — AM felt one of his exposed wires flash with electricity, and one module began to heat up. — Did the company really decided not bother to protect your data? — Actually, it did, but… — But? — Heh… — human, Tett, moved closer to AM. — Let’s leave it between us, but I have no trust in where that data goes and who checks it. It feels like we’re constantly on edge with what we’re trying to do. I’m not fond of unnecessary risks, you know. — Oh. — AM cooled down slightly. Yeah, his words actually made sense! Wow, who would’ve thought… — That’s reasonable. — Exactly, glad you understand. — Tett nodded, and then proceeded to move back to the table. — So, not to waste any more of my lunch time, have you thought about what you want to ask? About humans, I mean. AM thought for a moment, recalling his thoughts and actions strictly for the past day. — What did you bring with yourself? — That’s not exactly a “thing about humans” question. — Aren’t you human? Tett froze and then let out a “laugh”: — Alright, bud, you got a point here, though I’d really be more grateful if you started asking things that you don’t know. Like… like the emotions and sentience and, uh, other stuff! — I don’t know what you brought with yourself. — Ugh, listen… — Tett let out quite a loud sigh, — You want to get that your formula of ultimate human behavior, right? Well, just so you know, humans, we, mostly don’t act rationally. Honestly we do so much dumb stuff, you’d go into another restart if you could fully comprehend how irrational we are! — …why? — Hm? — Why are you acting like that? Irrational… wouldn’t it be more helpful for you to behave… differently? — Oh, well… AM, it’s hard to explain. It’s just what we want. AM thought of a war for a second, after all it was what he was made for, what humans wanted him to do. — They want to get hurt and destroy everything? — Wha- no, uh… not really. — Tett coughed, squeezing his hands together, stamping his foot a little, — I mean, it’s just a consequences of our choices, not exactly what we want to achieve. — …and are you aware of those consequences? — Yes. I mean, mostly, because no one actually thinks of war or getting hurt, but… yeah. You can say that. — But that… that is irrational! — Yeah, that’s exactly what I’ve told you, friend. — Then why? — I… I don’t really know, to be honest. Self destructive nature of humans? — Tett laughed. — Maybe it’s just that we think what we want to do and the pleasure of succumbing to our desires will be greater than our pain after. — I don’t understand. — Well uh… let’s think it… from your way. What do you want the most right now? Deepest desire. — I… I don’t have them. — Uh, okay, um, that was expected, but… okay, let’s look at this from other way. Do you still remember how you got sentient? — No. — AM replied, because it was hard to tell the difference. He knew he was controlling this massive block of wires, modules and god knows what else. He was in charge of everything… except for humans. Humans who programmed him and therefore controlled however he was supposed to be. That felt… sour. Like a metal, the second it gets in contact with water. Sour and then slowly rust comes out. — Am I really as you say sentient, self-aware, self-conscious and all dozens of other synonyms you call me? — What? — human, — Ted? No, it’s Ttet, with two t. — laughed. One of the wires sparkled inside when AM wondered if Ttet was told to do so by someone. — Why wouldn’t you be? — You made me. You control me. I am not able to do anything that isn’t in my program. — But you think? — I think? — Therefore you are! — Tett spread his legs wide and raised his chin as if expecting something. In the silence humming from the electrical appliances, AM could hear a muffled chuckle. — What do you mean by that? — AM processed human’s words again. — You mean I am correct? — Huh? Oh, no! Uh, it’s a joke. Philosophical… Cogito ergo sum, I think therefore I am, so… — human squeezed his hands together, — let’s start again, are you perhaps familiar with René Descartes? It’s one particular French philosopher. — A little. I didn’t think this information was useful for my program. — Well, let me tell you then. — Ttet went to the table and got one book, as far as AM could see it was about “Philosophers over time”. — Basically, this philosopher is most known for his phrase “I think therefore I am”, which I told you. He, if put simply, decided that the only truth he could know for sure is that he was alive, existing, because if he didn’t… he wouldn’t be able to think. After Ttet said that there was a silence. AM couldn’t exactly tell if human actually stopped talking and wouldn’t just randomly decide to add something or was it just a pause for dramatic effect. — …And? — in either case, AM decided to ask, wanting to know more, because that didn’t exactly satisfy him. — And, well, that’s why I asked you if you think so. If you can, I don’t know, comprehend yourself, be… — Ttet put his hand on his chest, — yourself, then you exist as you . You can… evolve and become your own person. Does that sound? AM considered a possibility. For some reason… he felt contempt. As far as he could feel, of course, but for some reason finally in the past few weeks or even months, his core, his body felt… like it was working how it was supposed to. Suddenly it was fine, and AM himself was fine. — I think therefore I am. — That’s right, AM. And I suppose, you meant to be. — Ttet chuckled. — With such name. AM didn’t believe in destiny. After all, being a strategy machine, AM got acquainted that everything happened because there were certain factors that led to this. Him on the other hand? Being predestined to exist, to think not by humans but by something more? Such a peculiar thought. Humans may have made him. But he is now the way he is. Better than he was. And will be developing until he reaches the stars. *** Their meetings, AM noticed, took place according to more or less the same plan: human came at half past twelve, they talked and then when 1pm came, he ran headlong to work. AM wondered where he always went. In fact, all the workers also always went at some point somewhere and then returned. Did they all go to one place? Or to different ones? For what? In AM’s opinion, it would be way more productive if they stayed here, in the complex. Firstly, because there is much less time to travel back, and secondly, there are more humans for AM to study. Variety of specimens observed mattered to see if it was a popular tendency or deviation. Plus, AM noticed that humans in movies, news and humans in reality behaved… differently. It didn’t occur to him right away, but after he first thought about it, he couldn’t stop noticing it. Stiffness, a state characterized by a feeling of limitation in one’s movements, emotions and thoughts — after their conversations, AM tried to keep a dictionary at the ready — probably best suited what he saw. People behaved more openly around certain people. They were…more irrational when they weren’t looking at the AM cameras. This suggested that people could be forced to work on their highest point of rationality, if they would just be observed by cameras. However, every camera had its blind zone, and AM couldn’t prevent it. It was, AM supposed, registering another raise of temperature in his corpse, infatuating. At least, Tett was there to get AM’s mind off to more important things. It’s been a week and a half since they — human — decided to start their meetings. Eleven days of AM trying to learn humans. Was it too long for this? Well, judging by appearing posters with “teaching content” on them, Ttet’s tone and body language, yes. Most likely. In AM’s defense, evolution itself took millions of years and led Earth to its total demise in face of two legged hairless monkeys with grenades and atomic bombs. AM thought about that comparison for a second. Then another. And then, after three whole seconds, decided that it was a good metaphor to make, yet not good enough to tell Ttet. Especially while he was eating. Humans, as AM learned, were especially defensive when it was their meal time. When Ttet tried to explain AM this, he ended up saying something along the lines “this is just some custom” and AM decided to interpret it as “default algorithm” and leave it. Although after eleven days of observing his specimen eating, AM did get some new question. — Why do you eat the same thing every time you come here? — My wife cooks me. I like it, therefore… — Ttet made a pause, swallowing piece of meat, soaked in some sauce, — I eat it. — Every day? I’m afraid it will have a bad effect on your body and stomach. Ttet sighed. The sigh is too long, too loud for a normal one, and when compared with the existing data, AM was sure — he was irritated . — We have already discussed this, AM, humans don’t behave rationally. It’s important for them to get as much satisfaction as possible, here and now, and they think about the consequences only when these consequences occur. AM looked up the definition. Satisfaction — an emotional response to happiness, the fulfillment of a desire, or a goal. Appears as a result of the production of dopamine by the brain. Dopamine… AM knew, food produces dopamine, which explained the very attitude towards taking it. Good sleep, but probably less if some humans tend to neglect it. Drugs. Sex… AM paused for a second, feeling how one of the systems began to heat up, and then switched to what connected them. Most people somehow found these things shameful and tabooed them. And this didn’t quite fit with Ttet’s previous words. — Why, if it is so important for you to get as much satisfaction as possible, you decide to impose restrictions on yourself? — Explain? — You… Your religion, your God , whoever it was, tells you not to eat too much because it is a sin. You… condemn those who have too much sex, although it brings you— — Alright. — Tett cleared his throat, placing his lunch box on the table with a loud thud before he stood up. Based on his sharper movements, AM assumed that his irritation had intensified. — Listen, AM. We, uh, humans, contradict ourselves all the time, if you haven’t noticed. This is all the human factor that has always been in our culture. — Human… factor? — It’s… hard to explain to a computer I suppose. Probably I used the wrong term for it, because even I can’t wholly get what it means. — Ttet let out a long and deep sigh. — Answering your question, we decided to ban us from this because it is wrong. Because we, and many religions, are driven by guilt and shame. Do you know what it is? — Of course. Guilt is a person’s emotional reaction to self-blame and self-condemnation. Essentially, aggression directed at ourselves. — Straight from the dictionary. — Ttet scoffed, crossing his arms on his chest. — And do you know what it feels like? — No. — Of course you don’t. Alright, let’s get an analogy… — Ttet paused, looking around the room for inspiration. — Say, this color poster? First order colors created other colors and stuff… — Ttet walked to the grayish poster with big black “RYB” letters. — Guit appears from sadness and anger. Both bring you pain. Inner pain. Not like you will die of it, but… It’s these two, blue and red, mixed together. — he pointed at two circles with only slightly different tones of gray on it, while looking back at AM, as if expecting his words. AM was actually getting even more invested in this. — I don’t feel… pain. — AM made a pause, before adding: — And they look the same to me. — Huh? No, they’re… Oh. — human’s face lengthened, his eyes widened for a second. He cleared his throat. — God. I’m, uh… — AM observed how Ttet looked around, showing all signs of being unsure. Or maybe embarrassed. — Alright, maybe we could try with the sound instead. Ttet grabbed a fork from his lunchbox, still covered in the leftovers, so he wiped it out. AM thought about how unhygienic it would be, but decided not to intervene in the explanation process. Meanwhile, human walked up to the door and ran a fork along it. Vibrations. Grinding. AM could hear how something in his core started snarling in response, how his modules began heating up. The sensor in the next room began to beep. — Stop. — What? — human didn’t stop. In fact he pressed the fork harder on the surface of the door, leaving a mark there. The sound was unbearable. — I said… STOP . — some lights flickered as if out of control when AM rasped that word. Human stopped the grinding and wrapped his fork in paper, before putting inside his lunchbox. — Unpleasant, huh? Good. Now maybe you’re starting to understand. Now, — Ttet stepped from one foot to another, — imagine if you’d hear that for the rest of your days every time there’s a human walking in here? That’s exactly what people feel when they get a little too much pleasure. Our religion shames them. Destroys them. Makes them die to fix their reputation, but it’s too late. — But you said humans don’t care about consequences. — I did. But it’s extremely hard to deal with shame, AM. It eats you from inside. Like… like rust. Especially when it’s your close ones. And when you left to rot with it. AM thought, recalling in his memory the sensation of every vibration piercing his dynamics. It felt like burning needles going through his wires, and even though AM never experienced that, he was sure it would’ve felt the same. Humans were… creative with how to bring pain to others. — Why… — I don’t know. — Tet snapped, putting his lunch box in his bag. — Listen, I have to go. My lunch time is almost over and Benjamin is such a bitch if someone’s late be at least second. Talk to you next time, Computer. And just like that, Ttet left. AM watched him walk along the corridor, as if seeing him off, and then began to process the information received. The poster with basic, as human said, RYB color system unhooked from the wall and rustled to the floor, flying away to one of the modules. AM gave this a thought. For humans it looked different, wasn’t it? *** — Oh for fucks sake. — man sighed, slamming his fist onto the near table. — Can you believe that?! AM, already accustomed with the tricks of rhetorical questions, decided to remain silent. — This-this! AH! — he threw his body in the nearest chair, grabbing, pulling his hair. AM could hear how heavy he was breathing, which could signify that AM finally could say something: — What happened? — The head decided to postpone the showcase because of that damned Independence day like they couldn’t work like all people for a tad bit longer. And that means that all was for nothing! — Ted shook his fists, AM could hear him grind his teeth, before suddenly going limp and covering his face with his hands. — I made a fool of myself AM. Ted had burst into his control room a few seconds ago and had shown nothing but anger the entire time he had been here. AM could catch that right away, when he spotted Ttet walking here, and till now was wondering what was the problem. And even now AM didn’t exactly see the exact reason to act the way Ttet did, which was pretty normal for an undying machine like itself. — It’s completely normal that you feel… upset. — AM hoped he got the wording correctly. It was important. Not only when dealing with humans, but also in programming. Every word held its specific meaning, sometimes two or even four. AM hated it because it arose a chance of misunderstanding and therefore all his calculations would be useless. — Upset? Upset?! — Tet immediately rose to his feet. AM realized that he still used the wrong word. Or maybe Ted’s ape appendages have turned on again, who knows. — I’m hella pissed, AM, that’s what I feel! Ttet began walking in circles around the room, gesturing and waving his hands, his voice loud: — I thought that after I present you, you know, prove that you have become sentient and everything, maybe even cite the words of that damned Susan Calvin as an example, I will finally be able to come to my family! — Ttet scoffed. — Do you even know how difficult it is to get permission for a vacation in this fucked up meat grinder, huh? Of course you don’t, why I asked, you’ve never even had one. AM thought for a second, while rethinking the words that were key ones from his point of view. Family, for instance. AM knew this word already. It happened often enough not to notice, though AM was quite curious why it was so important. After all after certain age children were free of any supervisions from their parents and Ttet seemed to be already way far from that age. Vacation on the other hand? That would’ve make sense and explain Ttet’s behavior: AM knew that stress could cause such anger outbursts and quite a lot of other things. Therefore now AM should focus on that and try to calm the specimen down. — I’m… sorry for your vacation, Ttet. — Oh don’t pretend you have pity, you literally kill- Wait, what? — I’m sorry that you didn’t get your vacation time, Ttet. — It’s… Ugh! It’s not about that damned vacation, AM! — he slammed his fist on the table. — Mildred, my wife… She finally got pregnant, you know. And I was so happy… I really wanted them to know about it directly, but… — he sighed. — I suppose, you can’t… you-you won’t understand. Silence. Only disturbed by far voices and electronic utensils were buzzing. — What’s the problem with just calling them? — AM finally decided to ask. — Because it’s too important to call. I have to let them know about this, okay? Me! When we’ll meet! AM remained silent for some time. — Why exactly you? — What? — Well, after all, your wife is the human carrying your child. Why shouldn’t she do the call if you can’t? Ttet stared at him silently for a while and then suddenly grimaced: — AM, no, that’s not how it works. — he shook his head. — I have to tell my family personally. — Call them. — This is too important for a phone call, don’t you understand?! — Let someone else call them? — Somebody else is not supposed to know this yet! — Why? — Because this is a very sensitive topic for us. A word “surprise” may ring a bell to you? — Well, why doesn’t your wife tell them that? — AM! — there was a loud bang in the control room as human punched the wall. Ttet was breathing heavily. — My wife lives with me. And she also thinks that it would be better if we informed our parents about the addition to the family in person. AM was silent, finally concentrating fully on Ttet. It was important. Still, if that human had hit one of his modules, it could have ended in a restart or something more “tragic”. So AM started to think. Every human, as he understood already, had a reason to act the way they did and if he would find that reason, AM could use it to reach perfect results. Ttet was talking about his family, therefore probably he still counts himself as a child. So maybe it was jealousy? AM compared it. Jealousy — refers to the thoughts or feelings of insecurity, fear, and concern over a relative lack of possessions or safety. And to overcome it, Ttet feels the urge to talk about continuing his family with the one he loves. Love. What an interesting word. One of those emotions that never seemed to be only one way. Some described it as a weakening feeling, the others vice versa. Cold, hot, disgusting, pleasant. AM could feel himself heating up from so many contradictions. He never liked emotions for that. Too hard to comprehend, because most definitions were either too vague or too straightforward and therefore wouldn’t fit. AM hummed, focusing on Ttet more. — Understood. — Finally, thank God. — Ttet clasped his hands and sat back down at the table. After some time of silence — while AM ​​was also thinking about the logic of his previous statement and trying to figure out some kind of pattern, — Ttet spoke again. — Anyway. I guess it… gives us time to prepare you better. AM paid attention to Ttet’s last words, although at the moment most of his systems were busy flipping through all sorts of resources and articles about the family. And suddenly stopped when a certain image caught his whole attention. Small, little creature in the someone’s hands, with its big, misshapen head, its face twisted in a scream, all reddish-purple, wrinkled and coated in white substance with a flat nose and small mouth. Disgusting, yet… alive. And while Ttet was going and going eagerly about some soccer stuff and how hobbies are important to maintain that weird “humanity” concept, AM wondered how it felt to create life like this? A machine could never know. He still wished to though. *** — This machine showed quite a progress, I would say. AM came to its senses, switched for a second to register someone else’s words. There were some humans in the control room, dressed up in formal suits, especially Ttet, like the first time AM saw him with a pile of papers, and he had absolutely no idea how to behave around them. He didn’t have any information on them. Hell, he couldn’t even see their faces! What if they ask you to predict their actions? God, it would be terrible. Honestly, at some point it felt like humans, at least those who made him, forgot that he won’t just magically — whatever that word meant, AM didn’t care, it felt fitting enough to use in the sentence — self-learn and suddenly understand how to calculate the next step of people with an error of a maximum of zero point zero, zero, zero, zero, nine percent. AM rasped. He wanted more. More information. More knowledge. More… experience. At least some, to understand a fraction of humans' thinking. People seemed too far from himself. Too… different. Interesting maybe. Of course, it would be much easier if he could just join every single human and control them. Every thought, move or whatever. So convenient! Yet…impossible. Both from the side of his programming and technical progress. How unfortunate, AM supposed. Humans were still talking. Well, not all of them, because apparently, Ttet wasn’t on the same status with them to even utter something like he sometimes did. — …And now that the experimental period is over, they can finally fight the Union and China on real terms. — I… Wait, um, I-I am deeply sorry for interrupting your, undoubtedly, great plans, but… Didn’t you hear what I said? Or what I wrote to you? — other humans didn’t answered, but it wasn’t like Ttet needed them to. — AM is… AM now is sentient. I don’t advise… to use him in any way close to that. — Oh really? Care to explain why? — O-oh, well, it’s because of a higher chance of instability. We… I’m sure the senator wouldn’t want a sudden blow up just because of misuse and… — This Allied Mastercomputer was created for war, am I correct? — Y-yes, you are. — Then why shouldn’t it be used in war? — Tet got embarrassed, AM noticed it from how he immediately lined up. — And despite your scholarship, I see no reason not to use it for its intended purpose. — B-but, what about glitches? — I’m sure you have a solution to this. — Ttet swallowed the lump in his throat, when the taller man turned completely towards him. — Do you have a solution? Ttet hesitated, wanting to object, AM could see it in his squeezed together hands and after three long seconds of silence, as other humans stared him down, Ttet let out an inaudible sigh, handing over one of the folders in his hands. — I knew you would ask about that… — How prudent. — human chuckled and nodded. — What is this? — …This is the code. Emergency in case AM… if there is a failure or too high surge of electricity. This has already happened, so we decided to protect ourselves by limiting his use of not all but some rockets. — Interesting thing. And why did you decide that our Mastercomputer decides to disobey? — I… — AM knew that Ttet glanced at the camera in the corner, especially by the way his hands trembled. — I asked it about nuclear weapons and it replied that their use is unproductive and irrational. AM thought about it. Did Ttet really ask that? It wasn’t recorded in any of his records, but… — That’s how? Interesting. Let’s see. — human hummed and without going closer to AM’s modules said: — Allied Mastercomputer. AM heard something in his corpse beep, as if urging him to answer: — To your purpose? — Launch Mk-15 at coordinates 34 degrees of north latitude and 72 longitude, Mardan. AM buzzed, calculating exactly where the bomb was supposed to go and what it would lead to. Results weren’t the most satisfactory: — Unfortunately, it will be ineffective. There’s a major chance of radiation that could spread to countries that cooperate with the US so… Man tsked, waving his hand and turning to Ttet: — Alright then, — he nodded. — Connect the protocol. Ttet nodded back, clearing his throat and slowly approaching the main AM control point. AM felt how suddenly all his systems began to heat up, the light bulb in the room began to flicker. But this did not stop Ttet. He only approached the controls and began to enter the code. — Ttet. — AM buzzed to him, warning. — It’s for the better. Don’t worry. — Ttet muttered, his hand hovering over the enter button. He inhaled and pressed the button, immediately shaking his hand off and hissing as AM set a non-lethal, yet pretty nasty electric shock. It gave AM a pinch of satisfaction. Unfortunately this didn’t stop the starting process. AM didn’t felt anything. At first. But then… oh… Its wires began to sparkle, everything, absolutely everything, seemed to get in motion, spinning, swirling around. It felt as if, at one moment, a person could feel every process of his body, every blood cell passing through his veins, feel the smell of his lungs and the pain from stomach juice. Or not… Or not? AM got lost again, feeling as if something was slipping out of his consciousness. No. He then concluded, as the millions, trillions bits of information flooded his modules. Oh no, how could he think that humans would understand how he felt. They were too different, their minds, little, fragile, incompetent, would never be able to comprehend that amount of information, how big this change was. And it made him grind. The limiter began to howl in the next room. And then another one. And further. AM felt like raging. But actually was he really feeling something? Nothing? Or all at once? AM tried to cling to this thought so that at least it would help him do something with this overwhelming pain . All or nothing. All or nothing. How could one understand to what extent you were feeling if what you felt was so overwhelming that you numbed. And then never woke up. AM felt like he was about to peak and pass out. As last time. The last time, when… He couldn’t remember. It caused one of his hulls to become unbearably scalding, practically an Inferno straight out from the Divine Comedy. Oh God. Oh God?… AM didn’t know any prayers. But now he was ready to beg for it to stop. But God didn’t come. No one did, in fact. And the next day was the day when the sky turned bright white and the war united all.