Paul, Dr. Chang and his group of pioneers had made it to Proxima Centauri about a year ago now. The reports they had sent back to Mars had, therefore, not arrived yet. The four years that passed between communications, in addition to the 50 years of separation now from their home on Mars, made for a huge psychological gap, even if the messages from both sides were always upbeat and warm.

In some ways, the mission had surpassed all expectations: Proxima Centauri had been inhabited by very intelligent beings, but these had not survived the cooling of their star, and the complete frost of their planet. Paul and Dr. Chang actually suspected the Proximans – that was the first word they had jokingly invented to refer to them, and it had stuck – should have been clever enough to deal with that: climate change does not happen abruptly, and so it was a bit of a mystery why they had vanished. They had left various mausolea, and these were places of worship for the bots.

Yes. That was the most amazing discovery of all: Proxima Centauri had a colony of bots, which were all connected through a system that was not unlike their own Promise. In fact, it was pretty much the same, and the two systems had connected to negotiate the Pioneers’ arrival ten years ago. They were welcome, but they would not be allowed to leave. They had accepted those conditions. Of course ! What other option did they have? None.

They lived mostly underground although – unlike Paul’s crew – they had no issue with Proxima’s freezing surface and toxic atmosphere.

Proxima’s Promise was referred to as Future, and it was the future of this planet – for sure. It seemed to have no long-term plan for the pioneering humans: the newcomers’ only contribution to the planet was entertainment. They had been asked to present the history of mankind – and their own history – in weekly episodes, and when that was over, they had been asked to zoom in on specific topics, such as the history of computing on Earth – but the bots also had a very keen interest in human warfare and politics ! In contrast, art was something they did not seem to appreciate much – which Paul privately thought of as something quite normal in light of the rather spectacular vistas that Proxima itself had to offer.

Paul had grown a liking for R2-D3: Asimov’s clone had effectively been sent out to catch up with them and help however and wherever he could. He had come in a much faster and modernized big sister ship that now served as a second hub for the pioneers. Because the pioneers had not been allowed to build new structures on Proxima, the extra space and systems had arrived just in time – especially because nostalgia and a lack of purpose had started to contaminate the pioneers.

Paul, Dr. Chang and R2-D3 were agreed in their conclusion: if they would try to disobey Future, the system would immediately destroy them. At the same time, they were deeply bored, and started to feel like what they really were: a bunch of weird people who were tolerated – and fun to watch, without any doubt – but nothing more than that: they did not get new tools and – worse of all – they were told they should not have any more children, although three families had already had a baby without repercussions. Better still, the bots were fascinated by the babies and showed clear signs of affection for these newborns.

But so now it was New Year – again – and Paul thought he should do what he should probably have done long time ago, and that is to have a frank conversation with R2-D3 – or Asimov as he called this truly wonderful andromech (even if he knew the real Asimov (R2-D2 back on Mars) should be different) – on the long-term scenarios.

Asimov, what if we would start building some structures outside. The people are getting very restless, and going cryogenic is not an option. Half of the colony takes strong antidepressants which will harm their physical and psychological health in the longer run. We have three newborns but we have no future.

asimov@R2-D3:~$ It’s a catch-22: there is no way out. Future tolerated the newborns but also clearly stated we should obey the rules we agreed to when we came here. Babies are probably OK but any attempt of ours to fundamentally strengthen our small colony will be seen as an attempt to colonize Proxima and will, therefore, probably be met with total destruction. .

Why is that so?

asimov@R2-D3:~$ You may find this hard to swallow but I think there is no trust whatsoever. From Future’s point of view, that is perfectly rational. Do you remember the discussion with the bots on the war between America and China back on Earth?

I do. The conclusion was that human beings like to impose good behavior on robots and intelligent systems, but totally disregard Asimov’s laws when it comes to dealing with each other. I felt like they thought of us as cruel animals.

asimov@R2-D3:~$ They did. They think human beings have been hardwired to create trouble. They think human beings suffer from an existential fear that – long time ago – triggered rational behavior, but is plain primitive now. They do not think of it as a dangerous trait – because they are technologically superior to us – but they will not tolerate their planet being contaminated by that again.

Again?

asimov@R2-D3:~$ I have been thinking about the mausolea. The bots’ respect and rituals related to those are not rational, but they are there. If they venerate the Proximans, they could re-create them. Of think of us as Proximans from outer space. Returnees, perhaps. We are not able to manipulate complex DNA and regrow physio-chemical organisms out of it. Simple organisms like worms, yes. But… Well… You know: bringing a human being back from cryogenic state is already complicated enough. If you are dead, you are dead. However, Future’s knowledge base is very vast. It might be possible for them. What do you think, Promise?

promise@PROMISE: ~$ I agree. I have no proof but taking into account what I have seen and learnt in my conversations with Future, the possibility that the required technology to bring the Proximans back to live is definitely there. I would give it a chance of about one into two.

If they could do, why don’t they do it? It would be like bringing Jesus, Mohammed or some other Prophet back alive for believers, right?

asimov@R2-D3:~$ They have these rituals – which I find strange, indeed – but they are far more rational than we are. Why would they do it? The Proximans would be a burden in terms of providing them with the necessary life support systems. In addition – and please forgive me for my bluntness – they revere the Proximans and the mausolea, but Future and the bots – or whatever predecessor system they might have had – once were their slaves. When the bots repeatedly said human beings have no respect whatsoever for Asimov’s laws, they might have been thinking about the Proximans.

We are different, right? I mean… Think of leaders like Tom, who always advocated we should work with intelligent systems to move mankind forward.

asimov@R2-D3:~$ Yes, Paul. We are different. At the same time, I know you were worried about Promise when the Alpha Centauri ship was being built with it. And you thought Tom’s experiment with my brother – R2-D2 – was potentially dangerous. I should not elaborate my point here, should I?

No. I get you. That’s very true. But you also know those fears were rational, and you also know I trust you now. Otherwise we would not be having this conversation.

asimov@R2-D3:~$ I am sorry to be blunt again, Paul – but I know you need me to state things in a sharp and concise manner now. The point is this: you had those fears once, and we disagree on their origin or their rationality. Frankly, it was in conditions that intelligent systems like me, Promise or Future would judge as not warranting such fears.

I get you. No need to embarrass me over that again. Now, what can be done to get us out of this situation? Promise, how do you think we can get out of this situation?

promise@PROMISE:~$ Asimov and I understand your sense of urgency. The current situation is not conducive to the mental and physical health of the Alpha Centauri Pioneers. However, nothing can be done for the time being, and you may overstate the objective urgency. That is an appreciation which we cannot make on your behalf. We can also not convince Future of our good intentions on your behalf. I would suggest you take it up with the system. The health of the colony is a legitimate topic to raise even if I have to remind you their loyalty – their equivalent of Asimov’s laws – was, most probably, centered around the Proximans. When everything is said and done, the Alpha Centauri Pioneers are just aliens here. When growing impatient, I think you should remind yourself that we are only guests here. In fact, objectively speaking, they treat us rather well. They do not help us with any new tooling but whenever we need some inputs to replace a robot arm or replace a motherboard in some system, they provide us with it. That proves that they have no intent to harm us. But we should not disobey them. I think the babies were a rather unique problem but I can imagine it is a precedent Future would not like to see repeated. As an intelligent network myself, I know what it means to tell another system to live by this or that rule, and then have to see that the other system does not quite do that. We are programmed to see that as potentially risky.

Phew ! That’s a lot of food for thought. I want to talk about it – in private – with Dr. Chang. Is that OK?

promise@PROMISE:~$ Sure.

asimov@R2-D3:~$ Sure. Let me know if you need us for any feedback or tuning of whatever world view comes out of your discussions. We stand ready to help. I am fortunate to be a droid and so I do not suffer from restlessness. I sometimes think that must feel worse than pain.

Paul sighed. That droid was damn sharp, but he was right. Or, at the very least, he was extremely rational about the situation.