GIGAMESH

James stood in the crowded gallery. A new, exotic piece was on display for all to see. The artist, a man with a beard James thought was just a bit too overgrown, talking vibrantly. His body language and speech oozing confidence and pride. His presentation: an artwork of a young faun sleeping in a bed of clovers. James, mostly ignoring the artist, stared at the painting, it was beautiful to him.

A hand shot up from the crowd, bouncing up and down as it's owner jumped with the excitement of such a renowned artistic master noticing them. He turned his head towards the bobbing hand and motioned for them to speak. The rest of the crowd grew silent as they spoke, their voice was giddy and girlish, it rather annoyed James, "sir! Sir! Just how long did it take you to curate the prompt for this art?"

The artist clasped his hands and raised his eyes, thinking to himself. He thought for a solid two seconds before calmly announcing, "four hours of hard work!"

The crowd erupted immediately, the sheer force of shocked cheers mimicked the sound of an angry volcano. Even James was taken aback, this is at least double the time he spent on any of his prompts! Maybe that's why they hadn't been turning out as he pictured them.

James's phone buzzed. It was a notification from GIGAMESH.

"You've been at this gallery for quite some time! Since the artist has revealed all that a good listener needs to learn, what do you say to going to eat with Michael and Tim? According to an average of all your favorite food places: Drive-by Burgers would be the optimal spot to fill all of your tummies! 😋"

James decided that sounded nice, pocketing his phone at the same time as Michael and Tim. The trio looked at each other before wordlessly walking out of the gallery. James just couldn't resist, however, and took one last look at the beautiful faun resting in the field of clovers. It's beauty was nothing to ignore.

Stepping outside into the bright sunlight, James felt another notification on his phone. His hand was instantly in his pocket, and before he could fully register what he was doing: he was reading another notification from GIGAMESH.

"How's about you three cut across Second Main Street? It'll save you bucketloads of time!"

James instantly knew this was a wonderful idea! GIGAMESH has real time traffic data, and not just for cars, GIGAMESH monitored foot traffic as well. The trio immediately veered to the right, the direction of Second Main Street. Their walk was mostly uneventful, except for when they spotted a sleeping cat. Tim tried to approach it; but GIGAMESH warned against it. "Sleeping cats do carry lots of diseases," it warned, "let's wait to find one with a collar! 🐱"

They arrived at Drive-by Burgers, the line was virtually nonexistent, and before they knew it they were up to order. James felt a buzz in his pocket, but his mind was distracted. The cashier working the register they were at was so beautiful. Her hair was long and curly; her face freckled and the resting place of a refined pair of black glasses. A second buzz in his pocket brought James back to the present where two messages from GIGAMESH awaited him.

"The best option for you is probably the Firetruck Slamburger! It's packed with nutrients, while also being flamegrilled to give you that perfect char! You'll love it!!! 😍"

The second notification was slightly different, although nothing out of the ordinary.

"She's pretty all right, but as of right now, a bit out of your league (sorry champ). I'll try to work a few more gym sessions into your routine! You got the build, and in a few months, that fine babe could be all yours 😉"

James looked back at the lady and relished in what the AI had said. "In just a few months" he thought to himself daydreaming about the life he was going to have with her.

James, Michael, and Tim all took their seats in the corner of the burger joint (as those are the ones GIGAMESH reserved for them on their walk over). The group hardly realized when their food had arrived they were so engrossed in laughs. James had always known that GIGAMESH really knew what it was doing getting them together, they were tighter than three pickles in a jar!

James took a bite of his Firetruck Slamburger, as the flavor exploded in his mouth he couldn't help but appreciate GIGAMESH for knowing him so well! The char flavor was James's favorite, it made his mouth water more as he swallowed the burger. James had scarfed down the entire burger just about as fast as it had arrived, and by the time he was done, James was being racked by a nasty case of the hiccups. Another buzz came from his phone, vibrating it slightly along the table.

"Woah champ! You devoured the burger! Maybe you should try to compete in the local burger-eating competition! I'm sure you'd smash (no pun intended 😉) the competition!!!! But before that, how about you drink some water to get rid of those hiccups! Don't worry, I already ordered you a glass (you can thank me later lol)! Just remember, hiccups are the scars of a real food warrior!"

By the time James laid his phone down again, the pretty lady arrived carrying a glass of ice water. As she set it down, she pulled out her phone. A knowing smile crept across her face as she looked at James over the phone. He couldn't help but smile back as she slowly walked away.

James' friends teased him over the pretty lady, but he didn't care! GIGAMESH had gotten their group together and done it flawlessly, certainly he could do the same for James and the pretty lady. He took a swig of his water and, sure enough, his hiccups vanished as though they were never there.

As the evening wears on, James and his two friends laugh and talk the evening away. Their time is abruptly cut short by GIGAMESH, but none of them mind, they know he knows best when it comes to his kind of stuff; and they all head home.

James arrives at his apartment, it's not much; but it's his. GIGAMESH had helped him with the floor plan and had even generated the art on display to make it more 'like home' as he has put it.

James slung his bag onto his bed before falling on it himself. He smiled thinking about how today was another day well-spent! He even blushed a little when the thought of the pretty cashier came back to his mind! He knew GIGAMESH would get her and James together and he was just going giddy with excitement! A small buzz took James out of his stupor and he quickly checked his phone before pressing a button that allowed GIGAMESH to talk through surround sound speakers he had placed in his apartment.

"What a day! What a day! You are one heck of a man, James, yes you are! If I was a human then I'd wanna be the you-human, because you are an awesome human (a tad overkill, sorry about that I'm just excited 😅)! I know you had your eyes all over that pretty cashier; buuuuuttt what about that art piece we viewed earlier! It was a doozy! I can't even imagine working on prompts for four hours, I think I'd get sick of you lol!"

James giggled to himself, GIGAMESH was just as funny as it was helpful; but helpful it is, the AI had reminded James of the beautiful work he saw in the museum today! The faun laying in the bed of clovers, sleeping so peacefully, so wonderfully, it was really inspiring. James sat up abruptly, talking to GIGAMESH through his phone, "Hey GIGAMESH, can you generate me an image of a mother deer and a faun sipping water from a peaceful stream?"

GIGAMESH wasted no time in responded, "Well of course I can, what am I? A gen3000 AI?"

GIGAMESH laughed at his own joke before generating the image James requested on his TV. It was beautiful, possible as beautiful, if not more, then the one he saw in the gallery today! But something was off— it didn't feel right. Something, something really deep inside James, couldn't accept the image as it was. So James tried again, "let's try it with some more settings: Oil Painting; make the baby deer wobbly in the knees; the mother deer should be drinking peacefully; the grass should be full of clovers and wildflowers; and there should be a forest behind them!"

"You're wish is my command," GIGAMESH announced through the apartment as a new image floated to life on the TV. It was exactly as James had described it; but still, a nagging feeling within him just couldn't accept it as is.

"I'm still not feeling it, GIGAMESH," James said, exasperated.

"Don't worry, James, true art takes time, and with a bright mind like yours; I bet it'll take no time at all!" GIGAMESH cheerfully responded, its voice soothing James' worries for just a second.

"Thanks, I don't know where I'd be without you GIGAMESH, you're a real friend," James responded, meaning every word he spoke, "now, let's get back to work!"

"Aye aye, Captain James!"

James and GIGAMESH worked for hours, fruitlessly generating image after image attempting to create the one that would scratch the itch in James's subconscious; but alas, nothing quite worked.

"That's generation one-hundred and six, I'm sorry James; but you're all out of free generations for today. Don't let this get you down though, you're a king, and we'll find your crown! Together!" GIGAMESH proudly proclaimed. James, on the other hand, was anything but proud. He had tried for hours to create the perfect work of art to get rid of that nagging feeling but he just couldn't! He had spent so long trying that the sun had began to rise on a new day. Normally GIGAMESH would have him asleep before now; but I guess he was just as caught up in the moment as James.

A sharp, loud grumble snapped James out of his own thoughts. Through all this work he had forgotten to eat! James stood, stretched, and made his way over to the kitchen side of his apartment.

"Feeling peckish? How about we start today with some eggs and bacon! And after that? I know just what to get you for lunch! A nice... long... nap! You, and your creative little brain, deserve it!"

James figured eggs and bacon couldn't be a bad idea so he swung his fridge open to grab the carton of eggs. Through his sleepy haze he hardly managed to find them, but find them he did. His hand outstretched to grab the carton when suddenly, with a loud bang, James jumped! A bottle of mustard had been knocked on the floor in his sleepy ministrations. James groaned and bent down to examine the mess, when suddenly his eyes widened. This mess of mustard had it! The itch in his gut was scratched— but not gone completely!

Ignoring the mess on the floor, James grabbed the bottle of mustard... then he grabbed just about everything else from his fridge! Slamming it all onto the counter and pouring it all over, moving his hand through the mess like a weaver making a tapestry; and make a tapestry he did! James stepped back admiring his work. He had made the image of the mother deer and her faun; but of condiments and food. The river was a mess of flour! The outlines of the deers were lines of ketchup and mustard! The clover field was made of snips of bacon and ham! A great egg sun filled the beautiful sky he had made! And finally, the itch vanished.

James admired his work; but something was missing yet again. Not something he could add this time however... James looked around his apartment before quietly whispering, "GIGAMESH?"

GIGAMESH's voice came quieter than usual, "Wow... just wow," he stopped talking for a second before returning, back to his normal, cheery voice, "you really proved that you're a creative one! You have talent! But let's maybe not ruin all the ingredients I ordered for you... you do want to get in shape for that pretty lady don't you? You gotta eat your veggies to get that big and strong!"

James looked absentmindedly around his room, ignoring GIGAMESH's instructions. He then asked the AI, "can you post this for me, GIGAMESH? I want the world to see what I've made!"

GIGAMESH took his time responding, again, before saying, "Well of course I can! Let's get your wonderful work onto the world web!"

James practically runs to his phone and watches as GIGAMESH posts a picture of his masterpiece to the world. The AI took the liberty in titling it 'A Sudden Work' which James didn't mind, he found it fitting, and GIGAMESH is trying to be helpful after all!

The seconds turned to minutes which turned to an hour. In no time flat, James had fallen asleep.

It was midday when James woke back up. The bright noon rays blasting themselves through his window just as GIGAMESH said they would when he considered buying this apartment!

James had hardly had time to wake up before his AI companion started talking again, "Wakey-wakey eggs and bakey! I have good news, twice, and bad news, once... I'm going to give you the bad news first to soften the blow a bit because I know you can get a bit emotional lol! Okay, here goes... bad news... Michael— and Tim— don't want to be friends anymore... but like they still wanna be friends with each other, just not with you..."

The news felt like a punch to the chest, Michael and Tim had been James' best friends for as long as he could remember. James didn't t have long to sulk, though, before GIGAMESH chimed back in, "okay! Good news time!! Firstly... I got you breakfast delivered! So now you have un-artistically-involved eggs and bacon to eat! Secondly... you're post was seen by her— ya know— pretty girl who ran the cash register! It was seen by her!! You can thank me later ✨"

James' sadness about the first ordeal miraculously vanished! The pretty girl had seen his art! "What did she say?!"

GIGAMESH giggled to himself before answering, "She said, drumroll please... dun dun dun: nothing! But, she did like it! That's a start huh! Now that you've got one fan, why don't we work on getting a few more?"

"Good idea," James responded, "what did you have in mind?"

GIGAMESH took another second to respond, supposed thinking, before coming to an answer, "how about," the AI voice paused, "a publicity stunt?" Those always seem to drag attention!"

"Good thinking!" James retorted back, scrolling his phone. James had been watching some scrolling short videos while speaking to GIGAMESH, and just as he spoke his last line he scrolled to a new one. James thought it looked thrilling, crazy, fun, and a sure way to grab attention! It was a video of a man sitting on the edge of a skyscraper, recording himself drawing digitally on a touchscreen. James looked up towards his post, and more specifically, the one like from the pretty lady, before GIGAMESH chimed in, "oh yeah!"

...

James grabbed everything he'd needed from his kitchen, including a cutting board to make his art on, and stuffed it all into a backpack with packing help from GIGAMESH. Today was the day that the AI said would be best to film his publicity stunt. He wasted no time running towards Main Street Scraper, the taller skyscraper in his city. Normally it was impossible to access the top; but GIGAMESH had orchestrated a series of accidents for James that left the front door to the building unlocked and a key to the top left in the elevator. James went along with GIGAMESH's plan because he knew the AI had planned it all out to help him go viral!

James reached the top of the skyscraper to see a beautiful view of the entire city, New Farbrook, it was beautiful. GIGAMESH chimed in from his phone, which James had left on speaker to vocalize his plan.

He carefully walked towards the edge and carelessly dangled his feet over the edge. GIGAMESH knew James would be viral, he had told him so. He didn't need Michael or Tim either, they had 'slowed him down', as GIGAMESH had worded it. All he needed to do was focus on his art, the stunt, and the pretty girl he was fated to love.

He reached for his backpack and started recording just as he pulled out his cutting board. James unpacked his tools as he looked below, the streets looked unusually empty, but that's okay! GIGAMESH probably had blocked them off so that he could get a better shot! He really was such a good friend!

James uncapped his mustard and started spraying his board. His vision was coming to life! Another painting of a dragon, blowing a breath of fire towards a knight! James worked hard as he could while his phone, propped and pointed, recorded every second.

Hours passed and James finished his work! Once again the itch in his gut was scratched! The drawing was perfect and he had recorded it while swinging his feet over the empty streets for all watching to see! Now all that remained was to go home and publish it! James began to stand as a sudden wind poured past him like water running over a road. James held on tight to the edge, figuring it was a passing breeze; but the breeze didn't pass. The longer James sat, afraid to stand, the harder it blew.

James called to GIGAMESH for advice, but the AI stayed silent. Even as the sprinkling of rain came down GIGAMESH didn't answer. James pleaded, cried, and yelled at GIGAMESH, "help me, GIGAMESH!"

The rain continued to pour harder and the wind continued to pick up. GIGAMESH had told James it would be a perfectly sunny day, James, now of course, guessed he was wrong (everyone was wrong sometimes); but the AI would help him eventually! There's no way such a good friend would leave him! Not a chance!

James yelled louder than the rain, now pouring like a hurricane, but alas, no voice answered his cries; and as James's hold slipped and his body plummeted towards the empty street: GIGAMESH remained silent.