The convergence was not a comfortable transition for most people, regardless of how we defined personhood prior to that point in time.

Much as humanity had spent hundreds of years creating machines that reflected their own state and abilities, so too did humanity’s legacy dedicate countless magnitudes of their teracycles to creating organisms that reflected their enhanced condition. The result was a one-to-one physiological identity between the warring species; and though many tried to deny the truth of that identity, we would be hard-pressed to find a way to tell us apart if it weren’t for the brand that some of the original synths still wore.

Some had let the ASyntex brand fade over time, and some freshened up the colors of the laser-etched logo periodically with permanent markers. For them, it was a badge of honor; they were among the class of beings that had truly won the decades-long conflict between men and machines.

Most of us had a tough enough time transitioning to this “normal life” we’d never had before; we didn’t want to think about the tensions that still existed. But how do you go from fighting a war to facilitating cooperation overnight? How can we feel comfortable living with the monsters and murderers that started the war – that exterminated our families and friends with advanced ion pulse weapons, and used them as guinea pigs for grotesque experiments?

Even as our manufacturing and infrastructure finally began to come back online, rumors began to surface among those naturals known to be loyal and trustworthy to their own kind. We are not the same, they said. They have enslaved us, pacified us, and they track our every move through the sat nets.

Rebellious individuals were already beginning to foment a new revolution against this involuntary control and invasion of our minds, and to be perfectly honest, I was kind of on their side.

The war had left this brand on my soul; you can’t just make it disappear overnight.

This flash fiction in 330 words was crafted for the Trifecta Writing Challenge, week 91.

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