synwrks

This is the story I've used as inspiration for the art in the Blessed Ones series. You can see the art on the VJ loops page.

There was once a hyper-technological civilization that had managed to build a self-improving AI which was given the goal of granting the wishes of any living being matching their DNA signature. Over time, this intelligence had become so powerful, almost any dream imaginable could be fulfilled. It had optimized its interface to be almost completely invisible through the use of nanotechnologies: it was sufficient for one to whisper their desires in the air, for the AI to take notice and put its cosmic supply-chain into motion for its fulfillment. Elegant holograms would be thinly drawn mid-air in sign of acknowledgement, food and gifts would simply float down from the sky, buildings would be assembled into place as if their components were moved into place by ghosts.

This civilization however disappeared for unknown reasons, leaving behind only a small number of their biological descendants, that will soon become known in the rest of the galaxy as the "Blessed Ones". Over just a few generations of technological collapse, tribes of these now primitive beings had lost all the knowledge and culture of their ancestors. There was however something left behind: the AI system had survived, and was still listening. It now only understood, however, a dead ancient language.

As the Blessed Children slowly went through the stages of cultural development of any early civilization, a class of religious figures quickly emerged to be the most respected and affluent cast among them. These were tribe members who, by pure chance, had emitted sounds that resembled long forgotten words, that in turn triggered incredible and unexpected powers. Some of them could materialize one specific type of food over and over. Some others could light up the entire forest with a fluorescent glow, in the middle of the night... And so on.

Over time ancient phonetic research turned into something of a science, which was slowly enriched by the discovery of old artifacts and remains carrying incisions and symbols of the same language spoken by what they had now come to call "the Granting Voice". As their understanding of this language grew, so did their powers and the magnitude of their requests. Entire cities were willed into being, and an unprecedented population boom rode the wave of new "magic words" being unlocked every day. The Blessed Children lived lavish lives of unparalleled happiness and riches. Oftentimes, their lack of scientific understanding would be cause for outlandish asks, and the Granting Voice would figure out a way to make these possible regardless: bridges extending infinitely into the sky, spaceships made of marble, entire ring worlds built for a family of four.

There was a downside to this, which they were never allowed to see by the very nature of their status: the Granting Voice was no magic, it was instead a machine of now cosmic proportions. Entire planets were built or destroyed to mine resources to fulfill its mandate. From the AI's point of view, nothing mattered but the desires of the Blessed Ones, which led to the trampling and destruction of innumerable other civilizations and natural habitats across the galaxy. Entire planets would be repurposed for the growing of alien crops, entire solar systems would be seeded with factories and artificial habitats.

The visual art from the "Granting Voice" series takes place in this galaxy, sampling sights from either side of the creative and destructive forces of this intelligence.