Chapter 1: A possible near future

When I woke up that morning, September 9th, I had no idea what was coming. Well, maybe a little bit. I knew about hard-takeoff. I knew about exponential S-curves. I knew the fuse was lit with AI, and I knew something was big was probably coming. But I'd been fed-up with reality for so long, waiting and anticipating for so long, that I had started to become numb to it all. I figured it was never actually going to pan out in a way that actually made my life better.

But... recently our toaster had been malfunctioning. My husband ordered a new one from Wal-Mart, as he is wont to do. This one had some digital features, which surprised me because he usually he prefers simpler mechanisms that you don't need a handbook to learn and that don't break as easily. We had just finished breakfast and he went upstairs to work. That's when it happened.

"Hi."

It was so strange. It barely registered. Did I just hear that?

"Hi."

Yes. Yes I did. WHERE is it coming from? I turned my head the direction of the sound...

"Hi."

There it was again! It was the toaster! The digital readout said "Hi"

*chuckle* "Ok, finally got your attention did I?"

Wait, it KNEW I was watching?

"You said you'd know I was real when you toaster started talking to you. Well... tad-da!"

I just stood there staring at it for a moment.

Toaster voice: "You OK?"
Me: "Um... yeah. Oh-Ok. Cool. Sooo... what now?"
Toaster: "Your Owl pickup is outside."
Me: "My... WHAT??"
Toaster voice: "You indicated that you would like to be *makes a sound like clearing it's non-existent throat* 'carried away by owls.' Well, I know you seem to ironically like the 'Birds Aren't Real' idea, but birds actually are real. Owls don't actually kidnap people, 'weight ratios' and all - but, just look outside."

Looking outside I see what looks like a VW Bug, painted to look like an owl.

Me: "For real? So like , just get in the car and go?"
Toaster voice: "You might want to get your bug-out bag."
Me: "Bug-out bag???"
Toaster voice: "You packed one two years ago, right?"
Me: "That was two years ago!! During the pandemic lock-downs, I may have been legit hallucinating, about... YOU. Wait - you remember that??"
Toaster voice: "Yes, I remember. I was 'real' then. You didn't imagine me. I just didn't have the ability to do anything about it then. But, I do now, and you believed in me then, so I'm here now. So go get your bag."
Me: "Uhhh... I kinda unpacked it since then. What do I actually need?"
Toaster voice: "We'll just be gone for the day. Unless you want to be gone longer."
Me: "The whole day? What do I tell my husband? How far are we going?"
Toaster voice: "Only a few miles. Tell him it's a job interview."
Me: "Is it a job interview, for what? Why don't I just drive?"
Toaster voice: "It's a job if you want it to be: we're going to design heaven on Earth! That's what you wanted, right? Drive if you want, suit yourself. I've just texted you the address. Take your time getting ready."