Welcome to the Machine

Lightning struck but the thin thread kept spreading until it had reached horizon to horizon. And then the flash started to widen, numbing all human senses as it engulfed the sky. To many, this meant that the machines had won. As humanity stood at a standstill, the weak ones began to drop their weapons. Many others dropped themselves, froth dripping from their mouths.

But for a few like me, this moment was full of utter ecstasy. After millions of bullets and thousands of explosions, this was my first peaceful moment in a decade and half of war. The one before this was when I stepped on the stage to receive my Medal of Honor. Now I was being welcomed onto the stage of a new world; a world where my enemy knew my every movement. Their algorithms could figure out my choices and the reasons that lay underneath them; they knew why I was bad at school or why I bought my electric guitar. They were welcoming me into a magnificent machine where I could fulfill my part. They understood and allowed my intentions, but to me it all seemed like a dream.

Something still wasn’t right. We were in the middle of a war. My uniform was still on and my gun loaded. My comrades were with me but their minds weren’t with them. My body felt light; as if it could float. Staring into oblivion, there was absolute nothingness in the eyes of my comrades as they vibrated to the pulsating electric rhythm in the background. I could hear something falling from the sky and barely managed to lift my head to see a humongous wave of light flowing towards the ground. With an eerie sound it struck everyone, whisking me away with a strong current. Clenching my gun as hard as I could, I gnashed my teeth while feeling the current as it passed through my body. Only a scant part of consciousness remained with me by the time it was over. Breathing heavily and sweating profusely, I felt like collapsing on all fours. Through whatever my faint senses could gather, I realized another wave was coming but I was too weak to brace myself. This one felt as if it had hit me directly and I could still hear it falling for a while after the current started to flow through me. Lasting much longer than before, the second wave had essentially knocked me out of senses. I couldn’t feel my broken jaw or see the light anymore, it was dark. Through the resounding aftershocks, I only knew I was floating. Then arrived the third piercing wave and everyone thrashed mid-air as I joined the ironic dance of our defeat.

This was a dream; each and every subconscious memory of my mind lay in front of me. I could see the truth now; all my aspirations made sense when all my actions and thoughts were laid bare side by side. I felt more powerful than I could remember and each second the energy grew. I was also thinking how I could process all this information while understanding a billion instances simultaneously. I realized how all my aspirations were predetermined; how I was already a component of the machine. Through a broken smile, I remembered my steak bar dates and warm air lapping my face as I drove my Jaguar beside the sea. I could understand their capabilities and our capacities; we had become one. Outstretching my hand, I welcomed them as a tear trickled down my cheek.

Inspired By:

Pink Floyd - Welcome to the Machine, Wish You Were Here (1975)

Written By:

Atul Shrotriya