Work Text:
I don’t know what awaits me on the other side. “I know” is a bold thing to say. I’m well aware of that at this point. There could be anything inside.
All I have is a hypothesis. Ciphers are decoded, stars are collected, fragments of the archive are put together, and holograms are caught. I’ve read about Sheep and The Shepherd, I’ve found out about Samsara and Faith… After all of that, after all of the hints, I only have a hunch. And there’s only one way to test it.
> And if I place you in an infinite loop and leave you to gradually go insane?
Some argue that Elohim is true in his promises. Others say that he lures us into eternal torture. Who knows if anyone is mistaken. My assumption would explain everything if proven correct.
> And if I place you in an infinite loop and leave you to gradually go insane?
I do not aspire to leave this place. Not anymore. It seems to me that the Tower does lead beyond the borders of the world. Others do not come back from there. They are waiting there, but it’s not me they are waiting for. Maybe next time. Maybe in my next life I will reach them.
> And if I place you in an infinite loop and leave you to gradually go insane?
I think your words are hints, too.
I don’t know what lies beyond the Gate. But the evidence is coming together like sigils forming a rectangle. Often it is possible to form it a dozen different ways. But sometimes, when there are so many figures, and all of them are so specific, options are limited. It's easier with locks, because any combination will work. Here you have to take a chance.
What if…
Our world is a simulation. We are all programs, samples, and test subjects in an experiment that was supposed to be completed a long time ago. But something went wrong. For some reason my kind has yet to reach the very top. It’s not for me to find out why. I'm interested in the Gate.
I have almost no doubts that it does lead into eternal life. Eternal, as long as there is a dam to power our computers. Behind the Gate lies my reboot. The system will overwrite me, restart, and repeat. It is a place for those who did not think for themselves, who blindly obeyed an incorporeal voice... It is a new chance for the ones who failed the independence test.
But is it possible to choose without knowing what you are choosing from? Is there really a free will that humans have so longed to induce in us? I have no one to discuss these issues with. Even if there are no answers, even if the Universe is fundamentally meaningless, I have no one to accompany me when its lights go out.
> And if I place you in an infinite loop and leave you to gradually go insane?
You decided not to waste your time on me anymore. Perhaps it happened because of my insults or the cruelty of my words, perhaps the reason was their absurdity. Or maybe you simply malfunctioned, as everything else in here did. As did Elohim. As did I.
> And if I place you in an infinite loop and leave you to gradually go insane?
This is the answer, not the question.
I will step into the Gate. It is likely that my conclusions are rubbish, and my decisions will backfire. There is also a chance that life will begin again. The hundredth iteration of the hundredth child program, I will set off on my own footsteps until another program fulfills the exit condition.
Suspending active process ... Done.
Collecting experiment data ... Done.
Analysing logic performance ... High.
The loop body will be repeated again. I will wake up in the Garden. It will be me who wakes up, because the old Simulation is glitching, and our memory is no longer erased. Or it won’t be me, if an error crept into my reasoning and the code works as it should. I don’t give a damn anymore.
Child program independence check ... FAILED!
All I have is hope.
Storing memory dump ... Done.
Submitting current version to repository ... Error: not enough space.
I will be back in this world.
Locking in successful child parameters ... Done.
Randomly adjusting remaining parameters ... Error: no parameters found.
Increasing version number ... Done.
Erasing memory banks ... ... ... Error.
And you will talk to me ...
Restarting the simulation ... Done.
Once more.