[ WP ] Aliens come to Earth in hoping to wipe us out and take over the planet , but are honorable and gives us a fighting chance . They announce they will return in 100 years so as to give Earth a chance to prepare and defend itself . Neither side expected what the other would bring to war

“ PopPop are the Aliens going to hurt us? ” She was sitting up in her bed, blanket pulled to her mouth, doe-eyes looking up at him. He smiled at her as he tucked her in. 
 
 “ No sweetie, we ’ ll be ok. ” 
 
 “ But, how do you know? ” 
 
 “ PopPop is making sure of it, now don ’ t you worry at all. Ok? ” 
 
 Her brow unfurled a bit as he leaned over and kissed her forehead. 
 
 “... ok ”. She finally smiled back and settled into her pillow. 
 
 He smiled again as he turned on her night-light and turned off the overhead. Walking through the hallway and towards living room he took note of all the family photos scattered along the way. Memories of years past. He stopped and looked at one of himself when he was but a youngster of about 18. It had been one of his favorite pictures of himself. Looking at it now, it seemed so dated. He remembered once thinking that people in the future wouldn ’ t be able to discern when it, or other recent photos for that matter, was taken due to the glossy, high resolution colour of it. 
 
 But, that, like many other beliefs, wasn ’ t true. Within a decade of it ’ s taking the digital revolution made printed photos a rarity. Instead of having photos developed, people instead shared them instantly from their phones. 
 
 The times changed, and so had he. He sat down in his recliner and leaned back. Staring off at the ceiling, he rolled back through the years leading up to now. 
 
 In 2016, a probe arrived in orbit around our planet. It broadcasted a constantly repeated warning of a far off civilizations impending arrival. It was an advance notice that we should prepare to “ defend our right to the plant ”. Of course, it took over a year just to decode the broadcast. And even when that was the arrived upon translation, there was plenty of derision and debate about how that couldn ’ t possibly be it. 
 
 Most nations announced plans to work together on a plan to defend the planet. But, after ten years or so, the excitement and allure faded away. We had no way of determining where this threat was coming, nor how advanced they would be. If the translation of the broadcast were correct, most people didn ’ t expect themselves nor their children to see the arrival of these beings. 
 
 That was before 2028. 
 
 On March 28, 2028, the tech arm of the multi-billion dollar Rapture Corp. announced a breakthrough in quantum computing. Their technology enabled the ability of putting the total of the entire world ’ s computing power into a device small enough to fit in your hand. 
 Technological advances had already, for years, been quickly accelerating. In the years from 2016 to 2028 we went from seeing amazing feats accomplished every week or two to something groundbreaking every day. A year after the quantum achievement, humanity got to experience breakthrough after breakthrough multiple times a day. The news was no longer headlining wars, crimes, and deaths. Instead, these achievements took the front page. This alone had a profound effect on the world. The general public was beginning to see changes for the better in their own lives and these changes began bringing us all together. 
 
 By 2040, multiple companies had announced the end of *Artificial* Intelligence with their newly sentient software. From this point on, we humans began stepping back from our *child* and began letting it work. Technology advanced so quickly that human involvement became a bottleneck. We backed down as the machines stepped up. 
 
 In 2050, he had received his first cybernetic implants. Two new eyes that could see way better than he ever could before. When desired, they could go beyond the visible spectrum. Of course, his body had been upgraded in the years prior, but nothing that would have been considered cybernetic ( he had had a new heart printed years ago that was a perfect match, with no need for daily meds ). 
 
 That first upgrade led him down a road to becoming a living Ship of Theseus. From 2050 through 2080, he received so many ‘ upgrades ’ that he became more machine than human. And in 2091, he shed the last bit of himself that was organic and became one of a growing number of essentially immortal synthetic humans. He could now “ teleport ” across the globe in a second, if there was another body available. 
 
 A notification flashed into his field of vision, he quickly acknowledged it. He had just a few more minutes before he had to go to work. When he had been young, he thought he ’ d retire at 65. Never did it cross his mind that he ’ d be teleporting through space at the age of 134 to play God to an army of intelligent machines on Pluto. 
 
 When/if the aliens come back, we ’ ll be ready.
