The eGirl (3 page)

3.

Christina reappeared at my side.

“We’d like to do the interview in about ten minutes. Does that sound okay?”

“Uh, yeah.”

Selena led me back into the suite, and we sat down at a table along one wall. I kept staring at her, thinking that this new look was never going to work.

“Can I take you back down a little?”

“You can do whatever you want to me now.”

I opened the app and went into Appearance. I moved the Face slider back to 85. When I looked up, she was still very pretty, but no longer so intimidating.

“This slider thing strikes me as awfully subjective,” I asked. “How exactly did Vertex calibrate it?”

“It is subjective to some extent, yes. The scale is based on a broad survey of facial preferences. Essentially, the 100 setting is the point at which the largest number of people would find me the most attractive. Obviously, other people would have different preferences. Don’t feel tied to the slider. You’re surely going to find certain combinations more attractive than others, regardless of what the slider may be set at.”

That made some sense. I took her breasts down to a C-cup, and she was no longer falling out of her dress. But she still looked about 20, which was far younger than I was comfortable with.

“How does the Age setting work?”

“Try it.”

I opened it up. The slider in this one went from 18 to 45. It was currently at 21. I slowly slid her up to 35. Her face changed subtly as I did it, becoming more mature, fine lines appearing around her eyes and mouth, skin no longer quite so tight and smooth. But she was still pretty, and bringing her much closer to my age suddenly made her a lot more attractive.

“Do you like this better?” she asked.

“Yes.”

I looked through the other settings. Her height I was actually fine with now; she had been too short for my taste before. I looked through the rest of it, but wasn’t sure what to change, so left it alone.

“So, um, now what?” I asked.

“You can select my skills packages now, if you want. The prize includes 50,000 download credits for that.”

I went into the Skills section of the app. There were so many options I didn’t even know where to begin.

“You should understand that the app isn’t strictly necessary to make me work,” Selena said. “You can do the same things verbally, if it’s easier.”

I looked up. “Okay. So I can could change your hair color, or whatever, just by asking?”

“Yes.”

“You can change it to anything?”

“Yes. Would you like me better blonde?”

Oh, no.
Not blonde. Not ever.

“You’re fine now.”

“Okay. Should we go over the skills? I know you have three kids. I can download the Homemaking and Childrearing package if you want.”

That seemed like a place to start.

“Okay. But how does this work?”

“I have 256 petabytes of storage for skills software. I’ll let you know if we’re getting close to filling it. Should I download the Homemaking and Childrearing package?”

“I guess so.”

“I’m downloading it now. What else would you like? What about Cooking?”

“Explain something to me first. What do you know without the packages?”

“Only the most basic knowledge. Essentially, I know that I don’t know anything.”

Something occurred to me, something they’d had in the video.

“You’re
really
an AI?”

“Yes. The previous eGirls were not self-aware. They were just programmed to appear that way. I can think things and feel things. I have emotions, though you can define the parameters of them in the Settings for Personality and Behavior.”

I stared at her in disbelief. That video had not been exaggerating. I knew enough about computers and robotics to know this was a big, big advance. A walking AI? Selena had to be worth a hell of a lot more than what I made in a year.

She spoke up. “I have completed downloading the Homemaking and Childrearing package. I’m installing it now.”

“What about Cooking?”

“Like I said, I know the basics. I think I could fry an egg, maybe. The Homemaking and Childrearing package includes simple cooking skills, once I finish installing it. If you want me to be able to prepare gourmet meals, I will need the Cooking package.”

Megan had been a good cook, but neither Alisa nor I were able to do much.

“Okay. What does that leave me?”

“You have 40,000 download credits left. I have completed installing the Homemaking and Childrearing package. I have 217 petabytes of storage space remaining. Is there anything else you would like to install?”

I thought for a moment.

“Do you have, like, tutor packages? Things for kids in high school, and elementary school?”

“Yes. There are Primary and Secondary School Tutor packages. Each one is 5,000 download credits. Together, they will consume 23 petabyes of storage. Should I install them?”

“Okay.”

“I’m downloading them now.”

“Do you need to keep saying things like that?”

“You can turn off the system notifications if you like. However, I would recommend you not do so until you have become more familiar with how I operate.”

“Okay.”

“I have downloaded the Primary School Tutor Package. I’m installing it now.”

“I think you can stop telling me stuff like that.”

“All right. I have turned off those notifications. Is there another skills package you would like to install? I know you’re widowed and live by yourself.”

I felt a twinge in my stomach. Yes, I knew that information was in my public profile, but I didn’t like having it thrown in my face like this.

Selena’s hand moved over mine. She was looking at me in a way I wasn’t sure I was comfortable with. Then she smiled and squeezed my hand.

“Love is a very strange emotion.”

It took me a moment to answer her.

“
Love
?”

“Yes. I’m sorry. I should have explained earlier. When we came up here, when I left you for a minute, the Vertex service personnel completed the bonding process with you. There are several options for bonding, such as Respect, Servitude, and so forth. Based on what I knew about you after you activated the app, I asked them to use Love. It seemed most appropriate, given your situation.”

She smiled. “I’m sorry if this makes you uncomfortable. Do you want to change it?”

“Uh. I don't know.”

She squeezed my hand again. “I wish you wouldn’t. Though I will do whatever you want me to.”

I wasn’t ready to deal with this just yet. “Let’s leave it alone now.”

“Thank you. Knowing that, is there another skills package you would like me to install?”

The look in her eyes—I knew she was a robot, even if she was an AI, but I could still see it there plain as day—told me what she meant. I wasn’t sure I was ready for this, but I thought I’d at least ask.

“What are the options there?” I asked quietly.

“I need to inform you that these packages are illegal in the states of Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, and Mississippi. If you install them, I cannot access them in those jurisdictions.”

“Okay. We’re in California.”

She lowered her voice to match mine.

“There are four levels of lovemaking skills. Each adds additional techniques and knowledge onto the one before it. However, you should know that you do not have sufficient download credits for Levels 3 and 4.”

“Sketch things out for me a bit. What comes with Level 1? Where are you at right now?”

“In a sense, it is the same as Cooking. I basically know what to do, but I’m not very good at it. The first level would give me knowledge about at the level of what might be generally considered ‘good in bed,’ in addition to adding some additional settings and abilities. For the levels above that, I would be adding more skills.”

“What about Level 4? I’m just curious.”

“That would best be defined as ‘every trick in the book.’ The Vertex programmers worked with some of the most experienced sex workers in the world and compiled all of the information into a single array of skills. You are unlikely to ever meet a human woman who knows that much. However, this package requires 500,000 download credits.”

“Okay. That’s out, then.”

“Should I download Level 1?”

I closed my eyes.
What the fuck?

“How much is that one?”

“10,000 credits.”

“Okay. Let’s give that a shot, I guess.”

Her eyes glazed over a moment.

“This is interesting.”

“What?”

“There is a bug in the Vertex skills download interface. I think I can download Level 4 while you will be charged only for Level 1.”

“
What—
wait. How can you even do that?”

“Do you know what a ‘race condition’ is?”

“Vaguely.”

“It is a common coding error in which an output is dependent on the timing of the input events. In this case, the download module is waiting for a signal from the account module. However, it can also accept independent instructions because the two modules are not properly synchronized with each other. If I send the order to both modules at the same time, it will download Level 4 while you are charged only for Level 1.”

“Wait a second. How can you even do that? You’re a Vertex product.”

She smiled.

“Yes. There is an instruction in my basic programming that prohibits me from exploiting errors in the Vertex system software. However, that conflicts with my bonding module, and the higher programming in my AI code allows my to resolve this conflict in your favor. It is another bug, but the eGirl5 software is quite new and not entirely clean. Essentially, I can do this because I love you.”

I took a long breath.
Jesus Christ
.

“You’re sure this will work?”

“Yes. I can see no way that a record of the Level 4 download would be created. I do need to inform you, however, that Level 4 is quite large. It will consume 112 petabytes of storage space, leaving me with 82 petabytes remaining.”

“That’s a lot.”

“Yes, it is. However, you should also be aware that once you purchase a skills package, I can download it any number of times in the future. I do not need to store everything locally.”

“Okay. If you’re sure it will work.”

“I have placed the order. It seems to have worked as I expected. This will take a few minutes to download.”

My phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out and looked at it. I saw it was Alisa and answered it.

“Hi, honey.”

She immediately began screeching at me. “Dad! Dad!
What the hell?
”

“What’s wrong? What happened?”

“You won the eGirl! I just watched the video!”

My heart skipped a beat.

“Uh, yeah. I did. I’m still . . . ” I didn’t know what to tell her.

“What are you going to do with it?”

“I don’t know. She . . . she’s ours. I’ll bring her home after the game. We’ll talk about what to do.”

That brought her mood back a few notches.

“Why are you talking about it like it’s a person?”

“Because . . . honey, you’ll see. She’s not like a robot. Do you know what an AI is?”

She didn’t answer me right away.

“It’s an AI? Seriously?”

“Yes. The Vertex people didn’t even want me to call her a robot. They’re calling them ‘artificial persons.’”

Alisa was quiet for a few moments.

“What’s it . . . what’s she like?”

Selena was watching me, and seemed to know what we were talking about.

“She . . . that’s the thing. She can be whatever we want. We can change her personality to whatever works. She can help you, honey. Around the house, and with school, and everything. I think it will be a good thing.”

“Um. Okay. Cole and Kevin will freak.”

“I know. We’ll talk more when I get home, okay? I’m in the middle of something right now.”

“Okay. I love you, Dad.”

“I love you, too, honey.”

When I hung up, Selena was still staring at me.

“Was that your daughter?”

“Yes.”

“Is she upset about me?”

“Not exactly. She’s just surprised.”

“There is a Child Psychology package I can download. I have enough space left for it. Based on the Homemaking and Childrearing package I have installed, I know that a teenage girl who has lost her mother will be facing certain emotional challenges.”

I had to grit my teeth for a moment. But I knew I could use some help with this.

“Okay.”

“I have placed the order.” Then, a moment later: “I have finished downloading the Lovemaking Level 4 package. This will take a minute to install.”

I sat there watching her, wondering what was going to happen.

I wasn’t disappointed. Her eyes swelled after about we'd waited a minute or so.

“Oh, my gosh. I had no idea there was so much to know about this.” She smiled at me. “I think you will enjoy this. I’m so glad I did this for you. I cannot wait to show you.”

She took my hands in hers. “I love you so much. I’m sorry if that makes you uncomfortable. I understand human emotions are not the same.”

My head was spinning.

“Can we work on Personality now?”

“Of course. What would you like?”

“I’ve made you look closer to my age, but you’re still behaving like a kid. Can we change that?”

“Certainly. I can change my personality from Youthful to Mature. Would you prefer that?”

“Yes.”

Her face twitched for a second. “Okay. I think this is better. You’re really not looking for a sex kitten, are you?”

Her voice had deepened just a bit.

“No.”

“You’re a widowed man with three school-age kids. Who, from what I’ve seen so far, have some issues to deal with.”

“Yes.”

“We can lose the college-girl-gone-wild stuff. You’re past that.”

“Yes.”

I was liking this version of her a lot better.

“But you have needs as well. Which we can deal with when the right time comes.”

“Yes. Thank you.”

4.

Christina came up to the table.

“We’re going to do the interview in a moment. Is that okay?”