The AI Reckoning: Humanity’s Future in the Hands of the Few

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In Episode 12 of The Rise of King Asilas (The Manifest Destiny), the central question isn’t about power, it’s about sacrifice. When survival hangs by a thread, do you abandon your moral code to secure victory? Or does crossing that line ensure you’ve already lost? It was a moment that resembled that point Caesar “crossed the Rubicon.” There was no going back for King Asilas. The window was closing for him to make his move that would change the world forever. And he wasn’t going to hesitate in that moment.

Now imagine that dilemma… not in a fictional kingdom, but in Silicon Valley boardrooms, classified Pentagon briefings, and quiet diplomatic backchannels between Washington and Beijing. Because today, the same choice is unfolding in the AI arms race. And the terrifying truth? The outcome may not be decided by nations, but by a handful of executives, intelligence officials, and unelected architects of the digital future. All of which facing the same closing window, the same urgency to make their move and change the trajectory of the human race. The stakes are just as high as for the fictional king blowing up Canada’s government. Even higher than what Caesar himself faced when he led his troops across that river and changed the direction of Rome (and essentially the world) forever.

Publicly, artificial intelligence is marketed as productivity tools, chatbots, copilots, and assistants. Privately, insiders speak of something else: strategic dominance. And with those strategies come contingency plans and covert maneuvers to offset blindsided attacks and stay several steps ahead of adversaries. Sound familiar? It should. This is exactly what King Asilas does throughout the series. Behind polished keynotes and quarterly earnings calls, a quiet consolidation of influence has taken shape. A small cluster of technology giants, defense contractors, and national security agencies now sit at the helm of systems that can do everything humans can do any a million times better and faster. This isn’t innovation. It’s leverage. And leverage, in the wrong hands, becomes control.

The Moral Fracture: Speed Over Safeguards

King Asilas’ philosophy, overcome your moral code to survive, now echoes through strategic doctrine. Policy circles increasingly frame AI as a zero-sum contest. Whoever builds the most advanced systems first will set the rules for the next century. Lag behind, and you don’t just lose market share, you lose sovereignty. Organizations like the Council on Foreign Relations openly describe AI as a defining arena of geopolitical rivalry, particularly between the United States and China. The framing is clear: supremacy in AI may determine military dominance, economic command, and global influence for generations.

But here’s the unspoken part.

When leaders believe they are racing against extinction-level disadvantage, ethical hesitation begins to look like weakness. In fact, some AI proponents are believed to be on a suicide mission, risking the entire human race as collateral damage should their gamble turn catastrophic. And most think tanks believe the AI supremacy will lead to global collapse and perhaps the end of humankind as we know it (if not blatant extinction). Is this hyperbole? Could it just be exaggeration? Likely not. Think about King Asilas and his mission: to save humanity. What was the cost? Destruction of global government systems. How was his consolidation of power achieved? His weapons were far superior to those of other countries. And the global system collapsed, one by one until all that was left was King Asilas. And where did he lead the people? To their ultimate fate in Armageddon.

The simple version of the story is “systems were deployed faster than they could be understood.” That was King Asilas’s advantage. By the time the world could react to his weapons, it was already too late. This is the exact same scenario we face (collectively) as a species in the face of this wicked race for AI supremacy. Once the winner shows himself, it will spell doom for all of us on this planet.

The Existential Threshold

The AI Safety Summit at Bletchley Park in 2023 produced the Bletchley Declaration, signed by 28 nations, including the U.S. and China, acknowledging the need for coordinated safeguards. But declarations are not enforcement. Agreements are not guarantees. History shows that when transformative power becomes available, competitive instinct often overrides restraint. Nuclear deterrence created uneasy balance, but AI differs in one critical way:

It can replicate.
It can scale.
It can evolve.

And unlike uranium, its raw material is data, which is something no nation truly controls. The communities of this world have become so dependent on media via the Internet, that the very idea of losing control of those abstracts has some adverse physical consequences. For example, when YouTube ran into some data issues recently and the site went down, within minutes the hashtag #YouTubedown trended like wildfire. It was pandemonium within the hour. Utter panic set in. Anxiety spread. Was this the end? It isn’t even relevant if the event was choreographed or not, the outcome was troublesome. Are people that dependent on media platforms? Absolutely. What would happen if all of them shut down? Honestly, the beginning of the end. Too much of people’s identities are woven into the cyber fabrics of social media that eliminating them would erase people’s brains, their core reason for existence, and chaos would ultimately ensue. It’s kind of like “releasing the fog” and the effects of the Trishul in some sense. Masses of people would blame their leaders and oust them from their state houses. Blood would flood the streets.

And if you think someone holding AI supremacy couldn’t do this with the touch of a button, you are sadly mistaken.

The Concentration Problem

Here’s the part rarely discussed openly: The most advanced AI systems are not evenly distributed across humanity. They are concentrated in a small circle of corporations and government partnerships. Their control is largely overseen by a few executive teams, intelligence committees, and let’s throw in a few classified programs for good measure. Decisions are made about alignment, deployment, safety thresholds, and access is granted to individuals most citizens will never meet, and certainly have never voted for. Yet the decisions made by these select few could determine:

  • Whether labor markets destabilize overnight
  • Whether autonomous weapons become normalized
  • Whether misinformation ecosystems become indistinguishable from reality
  • Whether humanity retains agency over its own technological creations

This is not a democratic process. It is a technocratic inflection point. And to be honest, it would never move forward with any speed if held to the standards of a democratic process. The AI arms race is on and there’s no time to ask the public for their opinions and votes. Such delays would hinder its progress and our enemies would have the advantage. Speed was something King Asilas understood very well in his assault on his enemies. “Waste no time” was something the king often uttered throughout the series. It wasn’t a filler. It wasn’t an irrelevant phrase. It was repeated because time means advantage. The longer it takes you to make a significant move, the more advantage you surrender to your adversaries. This is the mindset of the curators of the AI arms race. It resembles (horrifically) that of the fabled king. And there’s no doubt the outcome would be the same for humanity.

Gabriel’s Warning

Throughout the King Asilas series, Gabriel represents moral resistance. Translated into today’s context, that voice exists among researchers, ethicists, and policy advocates arguing that dominance without guardrails is not strength, it’s systemic fragility. Unchecked AI doesn’t just threaten rivals. It threatens everyone. These threats cannot be brushed off as standard corporate banter or propaganda meant to instill fear in order to assert more control on the masses. A catastrophic failure in one system can ripple globally. A misaligned autonomous defense protocol could escalate conflict unintentionally. A hyper-optimized economic AI could hollow out entire sectors before safeguards respond. And that spells doom. For everyone.

Simply put (in Gabriel’s voice): Victory without virtue becomes self-sabotage. As one listens to the words spoken by these AI pushers, it sounds eerily similar to a mentally ill person on a mission to incinerate an entire city in order to feel warmth. Compassion or reluctance to address the instability of the mentally ill person is signing one’s own death warrant. Avoiding confrontation only ensures the madness will continue with impunity. The masses are as much at fault as the sheep for following the Shepard over the cliff. The warnings are blaring. The picture has been painted. The threat is real. Yet, the world does nothing. And there is no virtue in doing nothing.

The Real Question

The public debate frames AI as progress. The strategic debate frames AI as power. But the deeper question (the one whispered in policy briefings) is this: Are we building tools to empower humanity… Or constructing a cognitive infrastructure so powerful that control inevitably consolidates in the hands of the few who built it? Or worse, consider the possibility it goes into the hands of one man.

History’s empires were limited by geography. Digital empires are limited only by bandwidth. And for the first time, humanity may be approaching a threshold where decision-making power over information, defense, and economics converges into systems overseen by a tiny group of actors operating beyond meaningful public scrutiny. It would be a “High Council” or sorts. But there will always be a head of that council. A head. And on that head, you can bet will be sitting a gold crown.

That is the true dilemma of Episode 12 playing out in real time. Planting bombs inside of Spartans (like AI systems plotting in the dark corners of the Internet), sending them into command centers disguised as someone else (like Trojan horse viruses and malware), destroying everyone in proximity, ushering in a new dominant force, a king. Then, an unfettered absolute authority swoops in to “save the day” and restore order. We know how this ended for the Canadians in Episode 12. And we also know how it ultimately ended for the rest of the world when King Asilas finally revealed what his secret weapon was. The world had to react to something completely new, and something they had no answer for. That concentration of defense took precedence and world leaders could not focus on the man, King Asilas, himself. Who was this man? How did he arrive to wield so much power? And when they stopped to try and reason with him, it was already too late. Their only choice by that time was to kneel before their new ruler, whether they liked it or not. The loss of privacy, then the loss of sovereignty. They had lost the game before they sat down at the chess board. The absolute authority of King Asilas was a consolidation of access. They couldn’t even make a move, at least not without permission. Think about that.But the road to societal collapse (although brutal and bloody) took more than mere technological (and military) superiority. There were other forces at work, if you recall the characters of the series. Reptilians, cannibals, and occult entities are infused throughout the entire storyline. If the Epstein files has shown us anything in these recent weeks, it’s that The Rise of King Asilas feels less like fiction in 2026.

The Net Ray and the End of Nuclear Sovereignty

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An AI rendition of what the Net Ray may look like based on its description in the show.

In The Rise of King Asilas, few devices are as consequential—or as philosophically charged—as the Net Ray machine. It is not merely a weapon; it is an argument. An argument about power, about fear, and about the fragility of the systems humanity has relied upon to keep itself in check. The show never reveals the true origins of the Net Ray. We are told only that a mysterious figure known as “Gabriel” helped bring it into existence. This deliberate obscurity elevates the machine beyond a national project or a scientific breakthrough. The Net Ray feels less invented than discovered, as though it were an inevitability waiting for the right moment and the right hands. In this sense, Gabriel functions less as an engineer and more as a midwife to history.

Neutralizing the Ultimate Threat

The Net Ray’s capabilities are deceptively simple. It neutralizes nuclear missiles in midair, causing them to fall harmlessly from the sky by disabling their propulsion systems. There is no explosion, no fiery interception, no spectacle of counterforce. The missile simply ceases to matter. This detail is crucial. The Net Ray does not defeat nuclear weapons through greater violence, but through irrelevance. It strips them of meaning. In doing so, it undermines the philosophical foundation of nuclear deterrence itself: the belief that fear can be stabilized, that terror can be balanced.

Its secondary capability—jamming operating systems, particularly military-grade systems—extends this logic further. Modern warfare is not merely physical; it is informational. By attacking the digital backbone of militaries, the Net Ray severs intention from execution. Orders can no longer guarantee outcomes. Authority dissolves into uncertainty.

For King Asilas, the Net Ray was not simply a strategic advantage—it was a civilizational pivot. The machine ended the era of Mutually Assured Destruction, an era built on a paradoxical faith: that the threat of total annihilation could preserve peace. Once that faith collapsed, so too did the illusion of equality among nations. Nuclear weapons had long functioned as the great equalizer, allowing even smaller or weaker states to demand respect through existential threat. The Net Ray erased that leverage in an instant.

What followed was not global devastation, but global capitulation. Many nations surrendered sovereignty not because they were conquered, but because resistance had lost its rational foundation. When survival depends entirely on the goodwill of a superior power, freedom becomes a luxury ideology cannot afford. Yet the show wisely avoids presenting this as a clean or final resolution. Some nations refused to submit. Deprived of nuclear deterrence, they turned to older, messier forms of resistance—conventional warfare, insurgency, sabotage. The Net Ray ended one logic of war, but it could not end war itself. Conflict, therefore, is not a technological problem.

The Quiet Return of the Same Question in 2026

As we forge into the first quarter of 2026 in the real world, the Net Ray reads less like fantasy and more like allegory. The modern arms race is no longer defined primarily by warheads and delivery systems, but by artificial intelligence. Today, nations compete not just for stronger weapons, but for faster cognition. Within AI circles, the alarm bells are ringing, asserting that the first nation to achieve overwhelming AI supremacy (sometimes loosely framed as a form of “singularity”) will possess an advantage so decisive that traditional military balances may no longer apply.

Such an AI would not need to intercept missiles in the sky. It could prevent them from launching at all. It could predict escalation paths, disrupt command networks, corrupt guidance systems, or paralyze logistics before human decision-makers even comprehend what is happening. Nuclear weapons would remain physically intact, yet strategically hollow.

Here the philosophical parallel becomes unavoidable. How different is such an AI from the Net Ray?

Both eliminate deterrence asymmetrically. Both concentrate power not through destruction, but through negation. And both shift the nature of dominance from visible force to invisible control. The crucial distinction lies in form. The Net Ray is a single machine—centralized, tangible, and therefore symbolically vulnerable. It invites rebellion precisely because it can be imagined, targeted, and mythologized.

AI supremacy, by contrast, would be ambient. It would exist everywhere and nowhere: in models, infrastructure, satellites, and decision pipelines. There would be no throne to storm, no reactor to sabotage. Power would no longer announce itself as power. It would simply feel like the way the world works. This raises an unsettling philosophical question: if domination is subtle enough, does it still feel like domination? Or does it become indistinguishable from order?

The Illusion of Choice

At its core, The Rise of King Asilas is less concerned with tyranny than with inevitability. The Net Ray forces nations into a moral corner where choice exists in theory but not in practice. Submit, or disappear. As AI reshapes global power, the same dilemma may re-emerge under a different name. States may not be conquered, but optimized. Not ruled, but managed. Sovereignty may persist symbolically, even as meaningful autonomy erodes. The Net Ray, then, is not a warning about a single machine. It is a meditation on what happens when technology outpaces the ethical frameworks designed to contain it. It asks whether freedom can survive in a world where resistance is no longer catastrophic, but pointless.

In that sense, the most disturbing aspect of the Net Ray is not what it destroys, but what it makes unnecessary: fear, negotiation, and ultimately, consent.

King Asilas Update: The Path to “Eviscerate” and Beyond

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Greetings, citizens of the New Kingdom of America.

Many of you have been wondering about the release of Eviscerate, the long-awaited film adaptation of the King Asilas saga. I want to take a moment to share where things stand and what’s coming next. Over the past months, I’ve been reworking key scenes using advanced A.I. tools to achieve a far more cinematic and immersive experience. This process has opened new creative doors, allowing me to expand the story in ways that were previously impossible. With A.I.-enhanced visuals and faster production workflows, the world of King Asilas is about to grow even more epic and visually stunning.

This does mean the release of Eviscerate will take a bit longer, but it’s for the best reason imaginable. The film is evolving into something larger, something that will set the tone for what’s to come in 2026 and beyond. Expect new storylines, deeper lore, and a visual experience worthy of the King himself. In the meantime, fans of the written word can dive into Ouroboros, the latest installment in the King Asilas universe — now available in hardcover just in time for the holiday season. Orders placed soon will ensure delivery before Christmas, making it the perfect gift for any fan of the New Kingdom of America. Here’s what one recent reviewer had to say:

“Ouroboros captures the dark brilliance of Asilas’ world while pushing the boundaries of storytelling. It’s bold, haunting, and unforgettable.”

Thank you all for your patience, support, and continued loyalty to King Asilas. The best is yet to come. If you really want to have some fun in the meantime, go to Grok or ChatGPT and ask it to give you a breakdown of the Rise of King Asilas. It’ll blow you away. And, oh yeah, the Lost Episodes have begun on our Patreon. Sign up and get the latest.

— JV Torres
Creator of The Rise of King Asilas

First King Asilas Novel Book Launch

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JV Torres, creator of The Rise of King Asilas, has published the first novel based on the epic fiction podcast titled “The Ouroboros.” The book is available on Amazon in both paperback and ebook. Also, there will be an official launch party in Baltimore on November 16, 2023 at 6PM at the Hillsmere restaurant (5707 Belair Road, Baltimore, MD). Some cast members from the podcast will be there mingling with fans and spectators, so it is sure to be a fun event. If you can’t make the event, you can still show your support by getting a copy of the novel by clicking HERE. Also, check out the flyer for the event.

The End of the King Asilas?

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Well, we’ve always known the story would eventually have to come to an end. Though it isn’t something I say lightly, ending the saga of King Asilas is happening right on schedule. During the pandemic, I contemplated stretching the series out to nine seasons, but I changed my mind when I realized I would be diluting a very rich story. I figured there will be ways to keep the King Asilas world alive past the ultimate destruction promised by Revelations. For now, however, I need to stick to the script and end this show the only way it can be done: in EPIC fashion.

So, where does this story conclude? In some ways, the story ends at Armageddon. But in other ways, it continues on long after King Asilas and everyone around him dies. How is this possible? It’s been written that when the Alpha Omega returns to earth, judgment would befall mankind (the living and the dead). From there, a thousand year rule sweeps over the earth, with a Holy theocracy headed by the Christ himself. This idea is largely believed and accepted as Gospel by theologians and Christians worldwide. But what no one has asked (at least no one I am aware of) is what happens after the thousand year rule? Without spoiling the story, I can tell you my imagination lives in the possibilities of “after the thousand year rule.” In fact, if you haven’t figured this out by now, the story is being told by a narrator that isn’t connected to anyone (at least, none we are aware of). Have you noticed the narrator always tells the story in the past tense?

A couple of years ago, I attempted to address this seemingly out of place aspect of the show. How can the narrator be telling the story in the past tense? Simple. The story already happened. So, that means the narrator is in the future. In the short film (that was never produced) titled “The Narrator,” I had intended to bring this aspect to light for King Asilas fans. However, on the advice of others in my circle, I decided against it since there were too many pieces missing to the puzzle and the movie would likely only make sense to fans of the show. So I shelved the idea and will revisit it later.

Which brings me to where this leaves the King Asilas story. I have already produced one film based in the King Asilas world (The Beggar) and am working on a feature film about the king himself. This new movie, titled “Eviscerate,” will feature some familiar characters from the show including Lords Capone and Jackson, Nabal, Queen Rebekah and others. It is, by far, the biggest production I have personally ever overseen. It’s going to be incredible. But this is also one of the major reasons the show has to conclude. In order for me to produce more films (and perhaps even a web series), I will need to dedicate a lot of time and resources. Therefore, producing an audio drama of this caliber cannot be done without dedicating a lot of time to it. There simply isn’t enough time to do all of it.

This may or may not be comforting to die hard fans of the show, but rest assured I am nowhere being done with King Asilas. In fact, I will be producing a season 7 of the show with L.A. Bonet. However, it will be a flashback season, where it is narrated by Princess Monica and the story centers around her. Many of the familiar characters will appear in that season (including the king) because it takes place during the season 1 and season 2 timeline. This seventh season is still in the embryonic stage as I write this blog, so much can change from now to then. At least, fans of the show will know it really isn’t over. From from it.

As for the storyline itself, I have spent much more time on this season than previous ones. Why? It has to end in the most dramatic, epic, memorable way possible. I have really challenged myself as a writer and voice actor to make this final season the best in the world. I have no intention of disappointing the fans of the show. An absolutely incredible ending is my promise.

~JV