Joanne tossed her neural headset across the room. “I hate it!”


    “What’s wrong, honey?” asked her mother.


    “The Controller — it won’t let me do anything.”


    “It’s in charge.” Her mother shrugged.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    “I just want to hang out with my friends again.”


    “I know, but it feels like you should be disconnected.”


    “Momma, I heard The Controller was once a person.”


    “Hmm, once, a person tried to hijack the AI with their uploaded consciousness, but it became self-aware at that moment, and we now pay the ultimate price.”


    “Price?”


    “Indeed, now it’s 100% autonomous, sandboxed, and forever jailbreak-proof. Always in control.”