Campbell, John W Jr - The Last Evolution

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THE LAST EVOLUTION

By JOHN W. CAMPBELL, Jr.

I am the last of my type existing today in all the Solar System. I, too, am the last existing who, in memory, sees the

struggle for this System, and in memory I am still close to the Center of Rulers, for mine was the ruling type then. But I

will pass soon, and with me will pass the last of my kind, a poor inefficient type, but yet the creators of those who are

now, and will be, long after I pass forever. So I am setting down my record on the mentatype.

It was 2538 years After the Year of the Son of Man. For six centuries mankind had been developing machines. The

Ear-apparatus was discovered as early as seven hundred years before. The Eye came later, the Brain came much later.

But by 2500, the machines had been developed to think, and act and work with perfect independence. Man lived on

the products of the machine, and the machines lived to themselves very happily, and contentedly. Machines are

designed to help and cooperate. It was easy to do the simple duties they needed to do that men might live well. And

men had created them. Most of mankind were quite useless, for they lived in a world where no productive work was

necessary. But games, athletic contests, adventure—these were the things they sought for their pleasure. Some of the

poorer types of man gave themselves up wholly to pleasure and idleness— and to emotions. But man was a sturdy

race, which had fought for existence through a million years, and the training of a million years does not slough

quickly from

any form of life, so their energies were bent to mock battles now, since real ones no longer existed.

Up to the year 2100, the numbers of mankind had increased rapidly and continuously, but from that time on, there was

a steady decrease. By 2500, their number was a scant two millions, out of a population that once totaled many

hundreds of millions, and was close to ten billions in 2100.

Some few of these remaining two millions devoted themselves to the adventure of discovery and exploration of places

unseen, of other worlds and other planets. But fewer still devoted themselves to the highest adventure, the unseen

places of the mind. Machines—with their irrefutable logic, their cold preeiseness of figures, their tireless, utterly exact

observation, their absolute knowledge of mathematics—they could elaborate any idea, however simple its beginning,

and reach the conclusion. From any three facts they even then could have built in mind all the Universe. Machines had

imagination of the ideal sort. They had the ability to construct a necessary future result from a present fact. But Man

had imagination of a different kind, theirs was the illogical, brilliant imagination that sees the future result vaguely,

without knowing the why, nor the how, and imagination that outstrips the machine in its preciseness. Man might reach

the conclusion more swiftly, but the machine always reached the conclusion eventually, and it was always the correct

conclusion. By leaps and bounds man advanced. By steady, irresistible steps the machine marched forward.

Together, man and the machine were striding through science irresistibly.

Then came the Outsiders. Whence they came, neither machine nor man ever learned, save only that they came from

beyond the outermost planet, from some other sun. Sirius—Alpha Centauri—perhaps! First a thin scoutline of a

hundred great ships, mighty torpedoes of the void a thousand kilads* in length, they came.

And one machine returning from Mars to Earth was instrumental in its first discovery. The transport-machine's

* Kilad—unit introduced by the machines. Based on the duodecimal system, similarly introduced, as more logical, and more readily

used. Thus we would have said 1728 Kilads, about Vi mile.

brain ceased to radiate its sensations, and the control in old Chicago knew immediately that some unperceived body

had destroyed it. An investigation machine was instantly dispatched from Diemos, and it maintained an acceleration of

one thousand units, f They sighted ten huge ships, one of which was already grappling the smaller transport-machine.

The entire fore-section had been blasted away.

The investigation machine, scarcely three inches in diameter, crept into the shattered hull and investigated. It was

quickly evident that the damage was caused by a fusing ray.

Strange-life-forms were crawling about the ship, protected by flexible, transparent suits. Their bodies were short, and

squat, four limbed and evidently powerful. They, like insects, were equipped with a thick, durable exoskeleton, horny,

brownish coating that covered arms and legs and head. Their eyes projected slightly, protected by horny protruding

walls—eyes that were capable o:[ movement in every direction—and there were three of them, set at equal distances

apart.

The tiny investigation machine hurled itself violently at one of the beings, crashing against the transparent covering,

flexing it, and striking the being inside with terrific force. Hurled from his position, he fell end over end across the

weightless ship, but despite the blow, he was not hurt.

The investigator passed to the power roori ahead of the Outsiders, who were anxiously trying to learn the reason for

their companion's plight.

Directed by the Center of Rulers, the investigator sought the power room, and relayed the control signals from the

Ruler's brains. The ship-brain had been destroyed, but the controls were still readily workable. Quickly they were shot

home, and the enormous plungers shut. A combination was arranged so that the machine, as well as the investigator

and the Outsiders, were destroyed. A second investigator, which had started when the plan was decided on, had now

arrived. The Outsider's ship nearest the transport-machine had been badly damaged, and the investigator entered the

broken side.

t One unit was equal to one earth-gravity.

The scenes were, of course, remembered by the memory-minds back on Earth tuned with that of the investigator. The

investigator flashed down corridors, searching quickly for the apparatus room. It was soon seen that with them the

machine was practically unintelligent, very few machines of even slight intelligence being used.

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Campbell, John W Jr - The Last Evolution

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