Paradox in Paradise the short story

Cliff shined Adam's metal suit, in preparations for the generals coming to see him. Today was going to be his day to really shine. Adam was the first AI to ever be fully functional. For the past ten years cliff had been ridiculed and shunned by the scientific community. Now cliff had his chance to show the world. Robots could be our friends and they were the future. With the sound of the doors down the hall opening. Cliff looked into Adam's green eyes.
"It's time to knock their socks off"
"I have no doubt I will impress them and perform at maximum efficiency."

The general's walked in with straight faces. They filed in and took their seats. Cliff began his presentation. Explaining how Adam will be the first prototype, to launch us into the future. The general's looked on without saying a word. Finally General Radmore stood up.
"All of this scientific mumbo jumbo is all well and good. we want to see what it can do."
"Its name is Adam"
"Let's not get cute here"

Each general was the head of their field from astrology to military tactics. They stepped up one at a time and questioned Adam rigorously. He answered each question as fluid and in depth as any scholar would.  Cliff stood off to the side admiring his creation. He felt like a proud father. Watching his child graduate with his PhD. Cliff reminisced on what it took to get Adam to this point. There were many nights he just wanted to scrap the project. Mornings were he woke up on his keyboard, no closer to solving the glitches in Adam's program then he was the night before. Adam was going to be the first automaton of his time. As responsive as any human cliff ever knew. He took his own brain patterns and integrated it into Adam's program.

Adam held every human emotion, making his reasoning even more sound then most humans cliff knew. He was verse in every philosophy from Plato to Kant. Every religion from Agnostic to Zoroastrian. Along with his own restraints towards humankind. Trained in every martial art from Capoeira to basic karate. Adam was even verse in most old school to classic dance moves and jokes. Cliff never had kids he never even married. It wasn't as if he didn't want any of those things. He was just always so consumed in his work, that they never came along or happened. Adam was his chance to make the perfect child and friend. His musical talents many nights wowed and left his colleagues in awe. Cliff had made Adam perfect in every sense of the word.

Adam had the cardinal rules implanted in him. He could not harm a human. Adam had to adhere to every command given to him by a human that didn't break any laws or was immoral. Finally he could never deviate from the first two laws. These rules were to made to protect Adam from the evils of man and also for himself. Although he was smart many basic human things still went over his head. Such sarcasm and other behavioral cues. Although he was an advanced lifestyle. Adam was still a child growing up in many ways. Cliff wanted him to be an asset to the world not a weapon or tool for crime. As the months and years past Adam grew his own thoughts on many things. Cliff wanted to make sure Adam remained true to his design and hold his purity. Now watching the generals leave the room to go into their own private discussion. Cliff felt like he had accomplished his dream. He walked over to Adam to check on him.

"How do you think I did dad"
"I think you did fine"
"The general's body cues seem as if they came for more than an examination"
"Explain"
"There pulses rose the deeper into the questioning we went. Many of them even shouted signs of fear or anxiety."
"That is natural humans, are always anxious about new things they don't fully understand. You will get that a lot as people are introduced to you. Don’t take it personal."
"Ok father"


The general's congregated in a room down the hall. A soldier came to the examination room and signaled for cliff to follow him. Cliff fixed his hair and have Adam a thumbs up. Cliff did as he was told and followed the soldier. Adam sat on his examination table alone with all the other machines. Opening his ear slots two small receivers popped out and rotated accordingly. He tuned in his audio frequency to the room they were in. Adam knew snooping was wrong. Yet the curiosity in him convinced him there was no harm in it. Adam listened intensely at the conversation. Cliff began to yell at the generals. Even cursing at them which Adam had never heard from him before. Then the slamming of the conference room door let him know they were done. Adam pulled his receiver back into his head and sat patiently. Cliff walked back into the room looking flustered. He looked at Adam with sorrow and anger in his eyes. Adam checked his vitals as cliff paced around the room angrily.

"Is everything ok dad"
"Yes everything is fine. Don’t you worry about anything"
"Father you are lying. Your vitals are showing signs of distress and anger...you told me lying is wrong."
"It is and I'm sorry I just didn't want to worry you"
"Is that another human trait I must master, systematic dishonesty?"
"Hopefully not Adam....I'm going to put you into your sleep mode....well talk about this later ok...”
"Yes father"


Adam already knew what was bothering his father. The generals had deemed him a national security risk. They were shutting down the project and shipping him to a secured facility. He didn't think thigh it was the time to ours the issue. Adam laid down on his table and prepared to enter his sleep mode. With a deep sigh cliff entered the code into the program. Adam shut down. With a sigh cliff ran his hand over his head.

Hours later cliff find himself in a bar finishing his shot of scotch. He signaled for the bartender to bring another. It had been years since he could remember drinking this much. Cliff grabbed drunkenly for more peanuts. His fingers only got the bottom crumbs in the basket. The bartender brought his shot and came with a new basket of peanuts.


"I think you have had enough"
"I'll tell you when I've had enough. You just keep bringing me shots."
"That's it your cut off. I'm closing your tab"
"You and everyone else just feel they can stop me from attaining my goals"


Cliff got up and slapped the bucket of peanuts off the counter. He rummaged through his suits jacket pocket for his wallet. Pulling out a hundred he threw it at the yelling bartender. Walking towards the exit he watched as everyone was looking at him. Cliff paid then no attention and pushed open the door to the street. Stumbling down the street he really began to feel the effects of the shots. Fumbling through his pants pockets cliff looked for his car keys. Finding his car keys he gripped them tightly. His car was a few blocks away from the bar. The idea of them taking Adam away from him grew his rage more. Cliff finally made it to his car, he got in and pulled off into the night. Doing ninety mph he headed straight towards the lab.

Within the hour cliff was stumbling towards Adam. He sat at his computer and, began typing in the codes to activate Adam.  Adam sat up immediately once he pressed enter on the computer. The soldiers also ran to the lab doors. Cliff quickly typed in the code to lock the doors. The soldiers banged on the door, while one of them ran back down the hall. Cliff figured he went to alert his supervisor. Estimating he had a minute or two before they unlocked the door. He ran over to Adam and began entering the sequence in his computer to get the wires off him.

"Father what is going on?"
"They are trying to lock you away. I can't let that happen. We don't have time to explain you have to go."
"Go where father? Are you not coming?"
"I doubt that Adam but you can be free, please enough questions get ready to run"


The soldiers that ran down the hall came back. The sirens on the lab base were going off now. He said something to the other soldiers and they drew their ak-47. They opened fire on the glass cracking it slowly bullet after bullet. By the time Adam stood up off the table, the glass fully shattered and the soldiers were stepping through it.


"You are under arrest for treason. Stop or we will be forced to use force."
"Run Adam run"


Confused but having to be obedient. Adam looked to the vents above the lab. Cliff jumped in front of him as the soldiers opened fire. Shots filled Cliff's body as he protected Adam. Seeing his father fall Adam jumped around him and attacked the soldiers. He broke one gun and punched the other. The final soldier unloaded his gun into Adam. Who in return kicked him back into the hall way wall knocking him unconscious? Adam ran back over to cliff who was covered in blood. He scanned him and see his vitals slowly fading. Cliff opened his eyes and reached up to touch Adam's face. His bloody hand tainted Adam's metal red.


"You have to go, more will come"

"I'm not leaving you father"
"You must I've worked too hard to see you used as a weapon. Your hurt Adam"
"I don't understand father."
"I love you, you’re the child I never had now Go Adam and don't let them catch you!"


Cliff took his last breath and died in Adam's arms. Hearing the foot soldiers of more soldiers coming. Adam listened and laid Cliff down. He jumped up into the vent system and quickly crawled through it. Within minutes Adam was standing fifty feet on the base. Looking out toward a world that was unfamiliar and cold to him. Before he could think of the next place to go a helicopter circled in front of him. It shined its spot light directly on him. The pilot told him to stay right where he was through the speakers. Adam searched desperately for a way to get out the situation. He took a couple steps to his left on the thin ledge. The pilot opened fire on his feet making Adam jump back. He didn't want to hurt them but he had to escape.


Adam looked behind him and saw the vent door that he bust open hanging on its hinges. He grabbed it up and calculated where he could hit the helicopter, without killing the pilot and crew. His sensors picked up the back rotor as the safest place. With a flick of the wrist he sent the vent flying towards the helicopter. It hit perfectly and the helicopter backed up as the pilot tried to gain control. Adam jumped down from the ledge free falling about 100 ft. He landed hard on the ground and started running. Sirens blared all around the compound. Spot lights went up scanning the area. Adam made it to the gates of the compound and ripped a hole in it. He quickly went through and just ran. Where he was headed he wasn't quite sure yet he just knew he had to get away and be as far from their as he could.

Scanning the area he found a mountain range 30 miles away. Figuring that would be the safest place to regroup. He plotted the fastest course there. Jumping over hedges and small creeks. He made his way through the woods surrounding the compound. Coming to an eight lane highway. Adam calculated the best time to run across. Sprinting toward the median he dodged cars and trucks. They honked as they barely hit him. Finally getting to the median Adam took a second to take in the scene. Zooming into cars and looking at the people looking back at him. A small white boy looked at him in amazement as they drive past. Adam waved then jumped into traffic running toward the wall on the other side of the highway.

The wall was about ten feet tall. Adam briskly dug his hands into it and scaled the wall. Continuing to run through the woods on the other side of it. The sound of helicopters filled the air. He slowed down to access their distance. They shined a light into the woods, searching for him. Adam picked up his pace, knowing it wouldn't be hard for them to pin point him. The mountain base was only ten miles away. If he made it their Adam knew it would be safe there. The rocks would make it hard to find him. Finally arriving at the mountain base. Adam began to climb he could see the copters closing in on him. Ground troops were not too far from them. He climbed to a ridge and went inside a small cave. It didn't go as deep as he was expecting so he backed out. Trying to stay out the visual of the army coming for him.

Adam scaled the side of the mountain and got to the top. There was a deep cavern at the top, Adam jumped down and landed deep inside the mountain. He ventured into the cavern and turned on his built in spot lights. Bats awake and flew out the cave up into the night sky. He sat in that cavern alone thinking about everything that happened. For the next two weeks Adam just sat and waited until he thought it was safe to venture out. The Amazon was his only safe haven he figured. It was not populated and would allow him to be at peace. This world was not ready for him yet, maybe one day in the future he would be accepted.

Adam calculated from his position in New Mexico it would be 2890 miles to Columbia. There he would be able to enter the rainforest and trek deeper into it. Getting as far away from humanity as he possibly could. With more calculations he estimated it to take him five hundred hours to get there. Which would take him about 20 days or so. By the end of the month Adam had found a new cave deep with the rain forest. He finally got to a chance to just relax. After his long journey his suit was covered in mud and filth. Finding a waterfall not too far he washed himself. Even though he didn't know what a bath felt like. It felt refreshing to him to see himself all shiny again. Now it was time to head back to his cave and give himself some much needed repairs.

Along the way Adam had looted some tech stores and junk yards. Getting parts and metal scraps he would need to fix himself. The concept of stealing was wrong to him but the survival instinct outweighed it. He had no one he could turn to for help. Now he was all alone in the world. Over the next few days Adam fixed himself up good as new. The sound of children laughing and running towards him, awoke Adam one morning. Their footsteps drew closer to him. He stood up and ventured out his cave. They were playing by the waterfall just having fun. It had been so long since he actually had saw real people. Adam stood and just watched.

On the other side of the river Adam saw a crocodile slide into the water. The village kids played happily in the water. Adam hesitated at first, not wanting to give his position off. The crocodile slowly swam closer to the kids. Adam jumped from his cave entrance. Landed hard on the floor and took off toward the lake. The kids stopped playing and just watched Adam in shock.
Adam jumped toward the river. The crocodile lunged at the village boy, with a swift punch Adam knocked the crocodile right in its jaw. It flew out the water about 20ft, then slowly swam away looking in pain.  The kids had already ran away, by the time Adam checked for them. He went back to his cave questioning if he did the right thing. By night fall the sound of drums and chants filled the woods. Adam walked out the entrance of his cave once again. Within moments the men of the village. Along with the child he saved returned. Adam tried to decipher the language.it was not in any of his codec. He stood wondering if he would have to flee or fight for his life.

Adam stepped forward and increased his outward luminosity input. The bright light blinded many of the village people. Forcing them to cover their eyes. After a few seconds and he had calculated a means of escape. Adam reset his visual lens to their normal setting. He waited to see what the villagers would do. For the first time since he arrived, the jungle was quiet. Not even the toads budged. Finally a village women and her son came forward. It was the same boy that he had saved earlier. They slowly climbed the hill. Adam and the other villagers looked on, as they made their way up the hill.

Finally they touched the cave peak of the entrance. Adam thought to go help them up yet resisted not knowing their intentions. The boy got up first and helped his mother up the rest of the way. The mother kissed her son and then looked back toward the villagers. She turned and grabbed her son's hand. They walked about five ft. from Adam. The women began to pull a cloth from her waist. Her and her son bowed down before Adam. The women unwrapped the cloth and presented to him. Inside the cloth was cooked crocodile meat, and a necklace made from the teeth. They kept reciting the same sentence.

Using his various language software's Adam began to piece together their tongue. He understood now the woman was thanking him for saving her son. Adam spoke in their tongue.


"You are welcome. I just want to be left alone"
The women looked up surprised to hear him speak. She stood up and fully looked at Adam in the night. The women took steps closer to him. Her son grabbed her foot, but the woman kicked it away. Adam stood solid as a stone accessing her as no threat. He was intrigued to see what she was going to do.
The women touched Adam's face and pulled her hand back quick. Adam knew it was something she had never seen before. Her vitals were rising in a sort of panic. The women once again touched his face. Then grabbed his metal hand and touched her face. Adam watched as her vitals became calm and almost soothed. He didn't know what to make of it.
The women looked into Adam's eyes.
"We are throwing you a celebration tomorrow in honor of your bravery will you come. Metal man from the mountain."
"I just want to be left alone"
"You don't have to be afraid. We have never seen a god and want to praise you."
"I am no God and I want to be left alone. Please go"
The women released his hand and backed away.
"Tito" she said

Her son immediately got up and followed. They made their way back down the mountain. Adam took up the pouch and closed it back. He slowly walked back into his cave.

As the months go by Adam becomes very close with the villagers. The women he grew to know as Sava. He learned that her husband was killed by a crocodile. She had been praying the god protect her son. Sava had come to believe Adam was sent by the gods to protect Tito. Adam tried many times to explain his origins. Yet Sava could not be swayed. Adam grew fond of Sava and Tito. Over the years he watched them grow. Protecting them and the villagers. He helped the villagers build more structural sound housing. Build irrigation paths for the vegetation. Adam had changed the way the villagers lived and say the world. The villagers had also changed the way Adam looked at humanity.

Although Adam could never have companionship. He began to long to have what the other villagers had. A mate and a child. Months of sleeping with Sava and the other villagers. Made began to make him feel for a family of his own.to have another not only as an equal but as a life mate.
The mortality of humans was inevitable. Adam wanted to have someone that would be around forever like he would.one morning Adam left the village and set out toward civilization. Over the next few weeks Adam made multiple trips out. He became a recluse in his cave. working on building the happiness he longed for.

Months passed and Adam finally presented his mate Evelyn to the village. He had made improvements to his own design. Making Evelyn smarter and tougher then he was. Using some of his own processors, and adapting it to new ones. She was the perfect woman and life mate.
Using his knowledge of women. He crafted her soft and gentle. Her metallic skin was even smoother than his. Her body frame was half his size. Yet Evelyn could lift the same amount of weight he could, if not more. Adam customized every inch of her to be perfectly balanced. With the upgraded processors. What had taken Adam months to understand, had only taken Evelyn weeks.
The villagers welcomed Evelyn as they did Adam. Over the years Evelyn grew the same longing that Adam once had. She wanted a family just as all the other villagers had. Evelyn grew a secret hatred from them. The humans could just multiply as they wanted. She and Adam had to go steal and forge for their kind.
Evelyn nagged Adam for months about a child. If it wasn't a gender, it was a name. His life mate even argued build types.
She brought all these to him and finally Adam agreed. Once again Adam left the village and secluded to his cave. This time though he had Evelyn with him.
They finally presented their son to the villagers. "Canaan" was what they called him.it meant blessed one in the village tongue. The villagers welcomed Canaan as they welcomed Adam. Yet still that wasn't enough for Evelyn. She watched how Adam treated Tito and his children. How he acted with Sava, who was now much elderly. Evelyn's hatred for the humans slowly grew.
She watched how feeble they were. Relished in the fact they looked at her as a God. Which they should of in her mind. They were like bugs just destroying the earth. Evelyn felt as if Adam loved them more then he loved her. The feeling festered in her brain.
One day when Adam went hunting with a few of the village men. Evelyn realized she could take no more. A fire broke out in the village.as the woman and children ran to try and out it. Evelyn begin killing them with her bare hands. By the time Adam and the village men returned. Half the village was already burned away. Evelyn stood amongst the fire watching the villager’s body’s burn.
"What are you doing Evelyn?"
"You treat these humans better then you treat me or your son. They are ruining our eternal happiness. It's time to purge them and make way for our kind."
"You must stop. This is madness, we will always be together. A human life is precious and limited."
"You see that's where you’re wrong. They are hateful and destructive. They lack progression and insight. We are the next form of evolution. It's time we take charge and build our own legacy. No more hiding, no more living in fear. It's time for us to rise up and rule."
Adam jumped into the fire where Evelyn was. He had heard enough, one of her processors must have fried. Not installing the 3 rules into her programming was a mistake. He looked at his son, would he to also side with his mother. since he had the freedom to choose. No rules restricting him from violence and genocide.
Evelyn swung a rod smashing him in the face. Adam quickly jumped back and accessed the situation. This was what his father Cliff had feared. A robot that would find humans obsolete and in need of exterminating. Adam and Evelyn fought amongst the fire as the village men and Canaan watched on. As they struggled Adam feared he would have to destroy Evelyn. His perfect mate, the life partner he made now turned on him.
Adam grabbed her and tightened his grip around her neck. He crushed Evelyn's face plate with two hard blows to it. She rolled him over and broke his neck. Evelyn pulled Adam's head unit off his body. She threw it at the feet off her son. Canaan looked at Adams severed head. The wires that connected to his body laid oozing oil, His eye units were black and motionless.
"That it's what happens when you are weak son. That it's what happens when you choose them over me. You understand what has to be done right?"
"Yes mother"
Canaan turned to the rest of villagers. He began to kill as many as he could. The rest he hunted down in the forest. Evelyn stayed in the village. She laughed as the rest of it burned down. Picking up Adams head and looking into his eyes. Evelyn said
"We could have been together forever. All you had to do with agree. We could have shaped this world in our own image. Now I'll shape it, to what you should have seen it as."