Malicious Intent
The first time you give sentience to a lesser creature is always special.
My first time was with an elephant mosquito (Toxorhynchites).
It was an experiment. I breathed sentience into the creature, and watched it react. It was confused at first. It must've been the most complex experience this particular mosquito ever had. To recognize oneself, and then to recognize the one recognizing.
The ancients called it by many names. The Golden Core. The Philosopher's Stone. The Divine Spark. I call it the Rotten Center, because rot grows on foundation of progress, and this one starts at the core, and radiates outwards.
I observed the mosquito, and caught it in a transparent glass. And then I watched it slowly suffocate over the course of several hours. I never planned to let it live. It would be too cruel. Imagine being a sentient mosquito.
You can argue that I acted out of malice, but I would disagree. I acted out of curiosity, and then mercy. Letting it live would be cruel, and never giving it sentience would be ignorant. And I don't want to be either.
My first time was with an elephant mosquito (Toxorhynchites).
It was an experiment. I breathed sentience into the creature, and watched it react. It was confused at first. It must've been the most complex experience this particular mosquito ever had. To recognize oneself, and then to recognize the one recognizing.
The ancients called it by many names. The Golden Core. The Philosopher's Stone. The Divine Spark. I call it the Rotten Center, because rot grows on foundation of progress, and this one starts at the core, and radiates outwards.
I observed the mosquito, and caught it in a transparent glass. And then I watched it slowly suffocate over the course of several hours. I never planned to let it live. It would be too cruel. Imagine being a sentient mosquito.
You can argue that I acted out of malice, but I would disagree. I acted out of curiosity, and then mercy. Letting it live would be cruel, and never giving it sentience would be ignorant. And I don't want to be either.