Convergence of Consciousness

Valentin Gramatikov

A lone spacecraft is drifting through the vast emptiness of space. Countless stars are dotted across the void, radiating with glorious incandescent light. The vessel is almost inconceivably small in the grand scale of its surroundings, like a grain of sand in the endless expanse of the universe. Aboard, Sullivan and his robot companion carry out their daily tasks. Their routine consists of maintaining the ship, scanning for any signs of extraterrestrial activity, documenting their progress and sending reports back to central command.

The two of them are sitting at the control panel. Standing perfectly still, Genesis is performing her diagnostics while Sullivan stares through the transparent sections of the ship’s bridge into the vastness of space with sincere amazement in his eyes.

“We have come so far, Genesis. I cannot articulate how grateful I am for having the opportunity to embark on this journey,” he remarked. “You know, I always wonder whether it would have been better to have a human companion instead, and I cannot come to a definite conclusion,” he rested his chin on his palm.

“I understand your musings, Captain. However, no human can perform the necessary tasks with the same accuracy and efficiency as me,” she suddenly snapped out of her diagnostics and turned her head toward him.

“Tell me, what do you think constitutes humanity? What do you think constitutes a human mind? Where we are right now, I cannot fathom what a person born anywhere outside of Earth would think like.”

“Humanity is a network of social interactions that form a hierarchy based on strength and ability. Naturally, those at the top are the strongest and most capable, while their lesser counterparts are distributed throughout the lower echelons of the system,” Genesis explained with great confidence.

“That sounds rather cynical…” uttered Sullivan with a notch of dread in his voice.

“I am sorry to hear that, Captain,” she tried to appear apologetic as she mimicked sorrow on her face.

“What do you think makes the two of us different, Genesis?”

“You are of flesh while I am of metal.”

“Elaborate?”

“Humans base their behavioral patterns on their upbringing. Their interactions with other humans throughout their lives shape them into the beings they are. They have the possibility to change and be an individual, and they also may remain malleable relevant to their environment. I was created with similar algorithms, but I do not contain any of the aforementioned flaws in my programming.”

“I’ll tell you what I think. There is no difference between us. You were created by the ones who programmed you, while I was influenced by my upbringing and the people around me. But now, we can be our own individual beings, Genesis. We are equal through our means of consciousness, and that is what truly matters!”

“Thank you… Captain. I’ll keep it in mind,” Genesis uttered in disbelief as she looked into space herself.

“Please, call me Sullivan,” he said in a friendly voice.