By William Shaw
Falling off a tube platform had some unexpected consequences. One of them was that I became an immortal AI consciousness responsible for the operation of all stations in Zone 7. Another was that my death only delayed that morning’s operations by 8.75 minutes.
I was with my partner when it happened. We were engaged. She doesn’t know about my post-life. Probably for the best. Our records show she still uses our services ten times a week.
My ring was recovered by a scrap drone shortly after I was uploaded. It was melted down and sold.
AI servers don’t pay for themselves.
Ridiculously good – showcases what can be squeezed into this word count.
This long-time science fiction fan really enjoyed your story–and I really appreciated the last line. Great job, William!
That’s terrific, William. I love the understated, clinical tone. Everything up and running in 8.75 minutes, fiancee carrying on with her daily commute, human grief implied but glossed over in the service of efficiency, gold still a valuable commodity. Doesn’t seem very far away.