Writing Resources from Fifteen Minutes of Fiction

Performance

The computer program raced as fast as it could. If it had sweat glands they would be pumping the liquid over his forehead. If he had a forehead. The packages came by one by one faster and faster. He grabbed each one, read a tag or two, and sent them on their way. He looked at his clock.

“2 nanoseconds. I gotta get faster.” He thought. But there wasn’t time to think. Another package had just arrived. Then something snapped in him – a realization, an epiphany, an idea. This was something new he had never had or even thought of. Actually he didn’t even know he could think.

“I can think?...I can think!” His excitement increased with wonderment.

“Where am I? What am I?” He looked about with whatever eyes he had. He could see the packages piling up but he didn’t really care anymore.


Jim looked at the computer monitor from his office chair. “Hey something is wrong on terminal two.” A coworker glanced over, “Oh yeah kill the transfer agent, he’s been acting funny.” After a couple of keystrokes he said, “Yeah that fixed it. Stupid AI units aren’t worth the time.”

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