The Troll Read Online Free

sacrifice his life, as many a savage has
been, rather than betray his comrades, would often leave no offspring
to inherit his noble nature.”
    “ Darwin
also knew altruism was everywhere. It’s a stubborn anomaly of
nature. Bats feed their own when they’re hungry, honeybees
commit suicide with a sting to defend the hive, birds raise offspring
that aren’t their own, humans leap onto subway tracks to save
strangers. Goodness is not a losing life strategy.”
    “ I
love this, you and I talking,” Moderator shot back quickly. “You never stood a
chance, but you’re at least the closest thing I’ve ever
had to a rival. Everyone else is on a leash,
and even though I hate those of you who run around without the chip
in you, I’d be lying
if I told you I didn’t enjoy the chase.”
    “ You’d
enjoy it more with a fair fight on a level playing field.”
    “ I
once took over the world with a dozen people. I don’t think I
need to prove to you that I can defy the odds.”
    “ Maybe
no one saw it coming because no one expected anyone to do something
so shitty.”
    The
Moderator ignored the remark and scratched his head instead. His neck
twitched and he suddenly looked up and spoke fast. “I was a
pioneer before this, you know that? The good jobs were in programming
and I was good. I was really damn good. I worked for Circular Prime,
where they manufactured the chips. I started on an assembly line and
soon, I was tweaking the design to perfection. I quadrupled the
speed. They were forced to dial back on their customer service
department because no one complained. Our consumers had the chip
inserted and data would upload because their brain wanted it to. They
blogged with their minds, had access to anything they wanted,
instruction guides, gaming, porn, you name it. They were able to
control their own network using their brains, and I was the guy who
perfected the process. Back then, I had no dreams of domination.
That’s for certain. Now, you want to believe I’m just an
evil guy who had world domination on my mind, but life was dandy as
was. I made good money, loved my work, loved the attention it got me,
the prestige that success had to offer, the booze…my goodness
I had some good times in the clubs night after night and I wore a new
suit every day. I would have done that forever, but the powers that
be patented a similar, but lesser quality, Psi. When I objected, what
do you know? Goodbye day-job. Hello unemployment line.”
    “ What
does that have to do with everyone else?”
    “ Nothing.
What does everyone else have to do with progress? Nothing. You were
all just fine test piloting your couches, but unfortunately, when
gods fight, they step on insects.”
    “ I
already know what happened to you.”
    “ I
have a hard time believing many men in my position would have acted
differently. In those times, everyone was disposable. They’d
say to pack a box and don’t let the door hit you on the way out
and we all wanted to believe that it couldn’t be business as
usual without us there, but it was never true. Then, they ousted the
wrong man.”
    “ So
you became a terrorist.”
    “ I
don’t see it that way. The difference between living in the
city with us and being a part of the rest of the world is tantamount
to being a house-pet versus an animal in the wild. Which is really
worse?”
    “ What
are you going to do with me?” Surfer finally asked.
    “ Let’s
do something different,” The Moderator said with a sudden
smile, as if a light-bulb lit up over his head. “You and I have
been chasing each other for awhile. You’re special Surfer. We
could debate the pros and cons of Psi all day, but since you believe
the world is better off without and I believe the opposite, maybe we
let the people decide.”
    “ You’ll
track and kill anyone that votes my way. How is this a fair
resolution?”
    “ Turn
on the monitor,” The Moderator said, and suddenly, one wall of
the court was a giant computer screen