“And the AI, endowed with genius and the threat of boredom, was endlessly editing everything that was here, sculpting its own little storylines and odd sights; a marriage of the clever and peculiar leading to a view that people would watch, if only for fear that they might miss something remarkable. Moments later came the musical hum of a real bus. An efficient box pulled to the curb and opened up. Six or seven strangers climbed out, every face twisted to protect identities. And every one of them wore a red nose and the bright white skin of a clown…”

Text: Robert Reed, “Mantis”, in Engineering Infinity. Solaris, 2011.

Image: Mark Ryden, Goodbye Bear, 2006. Oil on canvas, 9″x8″