Family Materials [BAM RP] # 7 Cycle Number 'No Value'
"Display Current Organic CPU Vital Status and Await Further Instructions." CUK-2 Ordered.
"Acknowledged." The three cyborgs said together. The the information then ran across
their visual scanners like an image on a one way mirror.
SU-BRI-1 'Brian' Organic CPU Medical Status:
Pulse: ## BPM
Blood Pressure: ##/##
respiratory Rate: (##⁄## Hz)
Body Temperature: ##.#
Similar statistics showed on the screens of the other two Skin Units for CUK-2 to see.
"Organic CPU Medical Status Displayed," SU-BRI-1 said, again, speaking for the three of
them. "Awaiting Further Instructions."
Attention: All Organic CPU Status Within Healthy Margins for Gender, Age, and Species. No
abnormalities observed.
Status: Project 'Cyber Skin' Stage Zero
Steps Zero Through Nine Completed.
Action: Proceed With Steps Ten Through Thirteen And Engage Project Stage One.
Objective: Confirm Organic CPU Processor Status.
CUK-2 stepped away from the counter he was leaning on. "Step Foreword Five Paces, Pick
Up And Scan And Identity Object Immediately In Front Of You Then Cross Reference."
"Acknowledged." The three said together. Walking in sync, they tilted their heads to looked
down at the object in front of themselves and picked each one up as per instructed turning
them around in their hands.
"Object Identified: 'Captain Flash Super Zapper' imitation weapon. Military Usage: Non-
Applicable. Market Value $250.00. Note: Market Value Reduced by Forty Percent From
Extraction From Original Packaging. LED Light Destroyed." 'Geeze, what a piece of junk.'
"Suggestion: Minimum Repair Needed For Market Presentability. Cross Referencing."
"Object Identified: Paper Back Fantasy Novel 'Final Unicorn' By Snoopy Peters. Tenth
Printing. Notable Damage To Cover. Market Value: $20.00 Note: All Text Already Recorded
And Stored In Organic CPU Data Base. Hardcopy Unnecessary." 'Guess it's really of no use
to me then.' "Suggestion: Recycle Paper For New Use. Cross Referencing."
"Object Identified: Entendo Entertainment Inc. Hardware Gamersboy Version 2.5. Used.
Practical Application: None. Market Value: $115.00. Note: See Subtext 'A' For List Of
Applications Stored. 'What good is it for?' Suggestion: Salvage Hardware For Reusable
Circuitry and Recycle Casing. Cross Referencing."
"Cross Reference Found: Organic CPU 'Brian' personal property." 'Duh. Of course it's mine.
It's always been mine and nobody else's. It can't be anything but mine. And why would I
want it fixed anyway?' "Correction: Retract Original Suggestion: Repair unnecessary,
extremely low priority. To be kept off market as personal museum piece."
"Cross Reference Found: Organic CPU 'Gladys' personal property." 'This, this is MY book! It
belongs to me! You've always been with me. I would never ever throw you away! I'd never
betray you like that.' "Correction: Retract Original Suggestion: Hardcopy not to be
recycled, to be kept as long term reference. Preservation and protection to be listed as
high priority."
"Cross Reference Found: Organic CPU 'Lucky' personal property." 'This Gamersboy belongs
to me. It belongs to me. There is no way I'm losing all of my saved games now.'
"Correction: Retract Original Suggestion: Hardware not to be dismantled. Registered as
optional extension hardware to SU-LUCK-3. Possible need for port adaption noted."
They turned their heads together and looked at CUK-2, SU-BRI-1 being their collective
voice, "Identification And Cross Referencing Complete. Awaiting Further Instructions."
Confirmed: Functionality of Data Retrieval From Black Box Onboard Organic CPU Archive
For Skin Units Operational.
Attention: Organic CPU Installation Successful.
Action: Proceed With Completion of Project 'Cyber Skin' Step Zero.
"Make Visual And Verbal Contact with M-URSA-1 and M-UNI-2 then Engage Primary
Function."
The three Skin Units placed the personal items down smoothly and said in unison,
"Acknowledge."
A similar command was sent over the city's network to the two robians in the next room.
Directives: Make Visual and Verbal Contact with SU-BRI-1, SU-GLA-2, SU-LUCK-3, then
Engage Primary Function.
Response: Acknowledged.
The two Mentor Units obeying the command entered through the only other door in the
room.
CUK-2 walked to the door to the outside and waited. He would soon be forgotten about
and quickly fall out of context for the five units. He wanted to observe this directly with his
own optic sensors.
The trio looked upon the new arrivals, walking up to them, the information already
installed in their heads came up.
Identification:
Unit Designate: M-URSA-1 "Mama Bear."
Robian Model: Mentor Unit 1.0
Species: Ursine Female
Primary Function: Mobile Maternal Information Archive
Current Charge(s): SU-BRI-1,GLA-2, LUCK-3.
Attention(!): Mentors Orders Are Second Priority, And May Only be Overridden By Only
Direct Orders Of Higher Authorization.
Identification:
Unit Designate: M-UNI-2 '...'
Robian Model: Mentor Unit 1.0
Species: Unicorn Male
Primary Function: Creative Expression Co-Processor
Current Charge(s): SU-BRI-1,GLA-2, LUCK-3.
Attention(!): Mentors Orders Are Second Priority, And May Only be Overridden By Only
Direct Orders Of Higher Authorization.
The two Mentor units gaze down at the three beta units. Having gone through the
installation process, the children's data entries were now far more practical and less like a
person's personality profile.
Identification:
Unit Designate: SU-BRI-1 "Brian"
Robian Model: Standard CyberSkin V3.1
Species: Beta Male Fox
Primary Function: Cyber Skin Beta Tester
Current AI: Warning: Minimum use of pre-action revaluation protocols. Extremely Adapt at
Fuzzy Logic. Note: First in Series. Priority Control over SU-LUCK-3. Development Path
Already Designated: Guardian. Most Effective AI Development: Direct Interface With
Situations and Environment.
MENTOR UNIT(s): M-URSA-1, M-UNI-2
Identification:
Unit Designate: SU-GLA-2 "Gladys"
Robian Model: Standard CyberSkin V3.1
Species: Beta Female Fox
Primary Function: Cyber Skin Beta Tester
Current AI: Warning: Creative Thinking Protocols Stunted. Logic Programming Highly
developed. May Ignore Instructions of They Contradict Internal Logic Protocols. Onboard
fiction and non-fiction archive. Most Effective AI Development: Data Feed And Internal
Evaluation of Information.
MENTOR UNIT(s): M-URSA-1, M-UNI-2
Identification:
Unit Designate: SU-LUCK-3 "Lucky"
Robian Model: Standard CyberSkin V3.1
Species: Beta Male Cat
Primary Function: Cyber Skin Beta Tester
Current AI: Warning: Caution Routines May Impede Other Functions. Analytical and
Observant Abilities Moderately Developed. Pattern Recognition High Developed. Note:
Priority Control by SU-BRI-1. Most Effective AI Development: Unknown. Information
Incomplete, observe and update.
MENTOR UNIT(s): M-URSA-1, M-UNI-2
"Mentors Units M-URSA-1 'Mama Bear' and M-UNI-2 '...' Confirm." The three Skin Units
said together.
The Mentors followed suit. "Confirmed. Skin Units SU-BRI-1 'Brian' SU-GLA-2 'Gladys' SU-
LUCK-3 'Lucky' Confirm."
"Confirmed."
At those words, the same message ran through the heads of each of them.
-Primary-Function-Engaged-
'Men-tours?' Brian thought in alarm, 'What are men-tours? Mentors: to guide, to protect,
to teach. Robian units assigned to the development of the AIs of Alpha and Beta Robians
for the healthy growth of their awareness. Huh? What do robots needs mentors for? Can't
they just put what I need to know right in my brain like they did when I drove us all Here?
This really reminds me of something I really don't like it! They sound just like something
from the important place we came from! Robots don't have... those things though!'
Gladys' features would have blinked if they were able. 'Mentors? I guess that makes sense.
Practical really. Means that I don't need to be the only one to keep Brian out of trouble in
this awful city . . . is this city so bad? Of course it is, isn't it? That dream I had... it was a
dream right? It didn't seem so bad then, but that was just a dream... Are we to stay Here
with them? At least it's only until people really important to us come and take us back to
where we came from.'
Lucky couldn't have more relieved, 'I was scared that they were gonna have us go on our
own until CUK-2 contacted people important to us. I thought of Mentors before right?
When we were coming from the Command Center to Here. But it really important that we
get here, I don't think I thought about it too much. I hope they're around more than...
other... mentors I've had? I'm just really glade we have them. Sometimes I think I'm the
only one who remembers we're still kids,' Lucky thought, 'I hope they treat us like kids and
not little adults.'
CUK-2 quietly slipped out, no one noticing or caring, filing the project in the network
server in the 'C' Folder, and promptly moved onto other projects that needed his attention.
After the shock of actually -having- Mentors and actually -thinking- about it, the three
actually looked at the much larger pair.
Brian mentally grimaced, 'She reminds me of someone across the street of somewhere
really important, I hope she stops talking once she gets started, I really want to explore
Robitaria if I'm gonna be it's super hero.'
Lucky tilted his head as his tail pointed between them behind him like a periscope. 'She
looks like someone who was always at a place really important to me. Someone whose
there when ... other mentors?... aren't there... she looks... friendly...'
'She's kinda, wait,' Gladys' attention was draw away from Mama Bear to the robian right
behind her as if he was her shadow. 'A....a unicorn?'
'Huh? Oh, cool, a robot unicorn.' Brian though calmly.
Lucky was too focused on Mama Bear to care.
'Oh my,' Mama Bear observed, 'they're all barely out of the alpha stage.' -Alpha being
age zero to nine years, and beta being age ten to eighteen years.- 'And if we weren't here
for them, they'd be all alone. They are my charges, my responsibility. It's my duty, no, my
purpose to look after them. To guide them. Protect them. I'm to be here for them. Nothing
else matters. Nothing else -can- matter! They are mine!' Not even giving it a first
calculation, Mama Bear knelt down and embraced the three kids. They were her charges, it
was what she was supposed to do, what she wanted to do.
She carefully applied the right amount of pressure not to damage their fragile organic
insides, shutting off her eyes for seven point nine seconds to focus purely on the task at
hand.
All three were startled by the bear robot's reaction, which from their point of view had
happened three seconds after they had introduced themselves.
`Pressure per-square inch, thermal difference on contact areas,' Lucky mentally read off
the input appearing in his mind's eye, `It looks like one big math problem.'
`It's all just numbers.' Gladys thought, `Information. I don't -feel- being touched at all.
Does she-do any of these robots, do they remember what it feels like to be hugged? Or do
they all just have the data to go off of? It's, kinda sad.'
Brian looked at the woman's metal face, `Weird, why does she have glasses? What do
robots need glasses for? Are they super goggles? Someone really important gives me hugs
like this all the time, do they have the sta-tiss-ticks as this one?'
`Are these what hugs are like?' Lucky wondered, `I don't think I've had a hug this long
before, someone important when they gave me hugs, they were always fast, over before
they got started. Is this what robots hugs are like? With all the numbers and everything? I
think robot hugs are nicer.' Without even thinking about it, he put his arms around as best
he could around the Mentor Unit.
Mama Bear meanwhile screen captured this moment into her long term memory, she never
wanted to delete this.
`...' wished Mama Bear's arms didn't have so much motor mass. He couldn't hug the kids
himself while she was doing it. `...' looked at the picturesque scene, perfect except for the
small detail that he wasn't a part of it. A quick comparison of their internal data bases
showed that Mama Bear had been given the lion's share of maternal information. Why?
Why was she given such a massive amount of information while he was not? `...' wondered
if he was akin to the Living Art robians whose purpose was to appear beautiful and merely
be looked upon changing poses only to fit the scene. `...' wondered, why was he even
having these thoughts? Why was should he even care? What should he even think to
compare their data bases in the first place? Why should it even matter?
``...', `...', `...! DOT! DOT! DOT!' Why. Why has she been given a code name while I haven't?
What should it matter? If I'm not supposed to have a code name then why is there even a
blank space for it? It shouldn't even appear on my profile entry if there's not supposed to
be one! It was a waste of computer memory to bother with a `...' when it could be simply
skipped over like it is for the majority of robian! Am I supposed to name myself? There's
nothing like that listed in my directives! My directives! My Primary Function! I'm allowing
myself to be distracted by it! The betas are my function! And I'm was ignoring them with
my introspection! It's not right, it's not what I'm was supposed to be doing, it isn't what
I'm supposed to do! They're as much mine as they are hers! They're my responsibility, my
honor, they are -ours-!'
`...' observed the situation, `I want to hug our charges as well, but I can't since Mama Bear
is already hugging them. But I have to hug them! Ugh!' Was he blue screening? `What am I
supposed to do? The function of hugging is to kneel down and, and, and, but, what if,
then, but how, but then.' `...' Feared his entire system was going to crash. `Creative
Thinking Co-Processor, that is my primary function. The act of hugging is, but, that is not
what hugging is, hugging is, hugging is-'
`...' then did the uncalculable, he began to -think- which alone was stunning, but he
began to think about what the purpose of the action was, rather than merely carrying out
the action itself, he feared he protocols were becoming corrupted. But, he understood, he
figured out.
He went -around- Mama Bear, and hugged their charges from -behind-! Putting the Skin
Units in a two way embrace. Mama Bear opened her eyes, and wondered what `...' was
doing, she checked his index and saw he too was `hugging' she noted his action under
`hugging type B' and continued to merely enjoy impressing her contour data upon the
three.
The kids turned their heads as their sensors picked up the extra tactile data as it was fed
to their displays. In light of Mama Bear's actions, all of them had completely forgotten
about the unicorn. Willie took this as confirmation that robot hugs were better than
organic hugs while Brian again felt like he had been here before, being hugged by both
sides, after something awful nearly happened to him but didn't.
Gladys however, looked at his polished housing, and mouth less muzzle, and that golden
spiral horn. Unicorn.
'He can't be, he can't be real. Unicorns don't exist, they're just from fairy tales. But, his
profile says he's a unicorn. And he's right in front of me. But if he's real to me, does that
mean I'm not real? Ugh! If I accepted the existence of unicorns I might as well accept the
existence of Angels while I'm at it!' Cross reference, retrieving image from memory. 'The...
robot vixen who came out of the Robian Reassessment Center... she had wings, like an
Angel...But Angels don't exist... like unicorns.'
Calmly, almost thinking nothing of it, the entries of unicorn and Angels were both moved
from the fiction portion of the archive her memories had been rearranged into, and
causally placed into the non-fiction archive. `Right. A unicorn is right in front of me. And I
saw an Angel leave the Reassignment Center, therefore, both are real, it's only common
sense.' And that was that on that matter. `At least Brian's stupid idea got me to see a real
unicorn... his eyes, they're the same gold in black as Mama Bear, and L-EQUN-9 and I-
NEKO-2, and Sasha, and... !'
To the surprise of all parties involved, SU-GLA-2 broke out of the hug, Mama Bear and
`...''s embrace being easily escapable.
Gladys began to look around, desperately, she had to see, she -wanted- to see! She had to
know!
Mama Bear didn't react negatively to the hug ending, `That's not the body language of
someone rejecting a hug.' She noted.
"What is it dear?" Mama Bear asked kindly.
"Mirror! I need a mirror! Where is a mirror?" Gladys asked her cool calm and collected self
broken truly since their arrival.
`What does Gladys need a mirror for?' Both boys thoughts.
`Action: Checking item index.' "I'm sorry dear, there is no mirror here. But we can have
one made as a custom job at the equipment production center. We can go right now, I'll
send the order ahead of us.'
To call Robitaria a communist state would not be precisely correct. Mostly due to the
system's reputation for sheer disfunctionality. It was maatla, and in fact mammal nature,
for people to not work hard when they had nothing to fear for sub-pare labor, and
nothing to gain from excellence. And it was also nature to horde junk, regardless of how
available it was, or how useful it was. If you could have everything something for free, you
took everything you could, never knowing when it could run out. In particular if everyone
else was being given the same deal. Robians however, for all their mental drawbacks, were
infamous for their universal job satisfaction, and and didn't feel the base desire to horde
material goods. With Alberect gone, and with their master now a fellow Robian with a
similar enough mentality, the robians now basically worked for each other, which worked
perfectly for them and why money had yet to enter Robitaria. While currency might be
ultimately needed in the future for Robitaria to be recognized as a fellow nation rather
than a fortress of evil, for now Robitaria functioned on the largest trust system the planet
had ever seen, and for now it worked! While with Alberect's micromanaging gone, and
robians now slowly developing Egos of their own and with their personal ideas and desires,
for now, the system continued to work. Thus why Mama Bear could simply request a
mirror be produced for her.
`...' looked at his charge and heard her request and processed it differently from Mama
Bear. `A mirror. A flat reflective material protected by a glass sheet. Used primarily to view
one's self in the white light spectrum. Reflective metal surface. See one's self. SU-GLA-2
wants to see herself? To see herself in a reflective surface. A mirror is a reflective surface.
A flat reflective surface is all that's required for SU-GLA-2 to see herself. A mirror is not
needed.' '...' felt like his processor was going to melt. `It would waste resources to have
something produced that is unneeded. Reflective surface. Flat reflective surface. Flat metal
surface. Flat metal sheets. Reflective metal sheets.' Then it all clicked perfectly into place.
Doing a quick scan of the room and finding what was needed in a convenient location `...'
calmly walked up to SU-GLA-2 and gently but firmly took hold of the top of her head and
carefully turned it to face the right direction.
Gladys' registered the pressure on her head but saw the polished white casing in the
corner of her scanners, and didn't resist as he turned her head. `If he wanted to turn my
head this way, then I should turn my head this way, it's the proper and correct thing to
do.'
Gladys looked in the direction her head had been turned, and stared at that which
according to the law of averages had been included in the make shift structure. `Is that
really me?' She stared at the reflective piece of sheet metal that had been used as part of
the construction of the two room home.
Mama Bear, just before making the order, looked at what her charge was looking at, then
back at her, then at the reflective piece of sheet metal again, then at `...' then at her
charge and the reflective metal again. Mama Bear then calmly updated the inventory for
Residential Housing ProtoType 1.0 to include a mirror, wondering how it had failed to
make it into the inventory.
Brian and Lucky also wanted to know what Gladys was looking at and without giving it any
thought stood on Gladys' right and left and saw themselves for the first time. They had
only really seen the backs of each other's heads until now. It wasn't important, they had to
get to Here first, and then they had other things that needed to get done and had to get
done. But now, they beheld themselves.
`Cool. But I think I'd look better with a rocket pack, and laser blasters, and maybe a chest
emblem, and-' The glorified Reynard in a tin can mentally listed every robot super hero
cliche he could possibly think of in his vast mental collection.
Lucky's tail leaned up over his shoulder as if it too wanted a closer look as Lucky took in
the details of his black body that now looked strangely sleek rather than lanky.
There was a sense of gradation looking back at the three Skin Units. The only difference
between Brian and Gladys being gender, and the only difference between Brian and Lucky
was species. Their height gave away hints of the three of them not being really variations
on a theme but in their metal shells the difference was minute. Gladys noted that she
didn't have her original fur color, neither did Brian, rather, they were both a uniform color
scheme of black and orange, making their similarities of siblings all the more transparent,
making Lucky the odd one out.
Gladys looked at the identical metal features on her face and Brian's, only the exaggerated
curves of her body saying she was a girl and his rigid form saying he was the boy.
`I look like a doll.' Was her last thought before it hit.
Since the Skin Units were inside still flesh and blood beings, to call what they did base
instinct would not be entirely incorrect as their arms came down to their sides and they
stood rigidly at attention even their tails standing hut-to. Inching slightly away each other
standing exactly the same distance from each other their frozen metal features looking
straight ahead.
"SU-BRI-1." The tin plated Reynard's black in gold scanners glowed for a second as he
looked evenly at his own reflection. "Imagine captured and saved to onboard data base."
"SU-GLA-2." His sister said her golden optics giving off a quick dull flash, "Imagine
captured and saved to onboard data base."
"SU-LUCK-3." The third in their number continued, "Imagine captured and saved to
onboard data base."
SU-BRI-1 then turned his head towards his sister in doll like fashion not moving the rest
of his body as she did the same at the same instant, "SU-GLA-2." He monotoned and his
optics flashed as he took her image.
"SU-BRI-1." She state herself their words colliding in the air as her own camera glowed
briefly.
"Imagine captured and saved to onboard data base." They said together. SU-GLA-2 and
SU-LUCK-3 repeated the process then SU-GLA-2 calmly took three paces back as the two
boys looked at each other. Then all three said together, "Connecting to network: Updating
profile data base. Update complete."
And just like that, the images I-NEKO-2 had taken when the children had first arrived
were replaced by the images of the three Skin Units, and thus were the three Skin Units,
had always been the three Skin Units and could only be the three Cyber Skin betas.
Now having a perfect idea of what she looked like, Gladys turned and looked up at the
robian unicorn, "Thank you ... ..." `That's not right,' "What's your name?"
"... I have no name."
"What was your name before?" Gladys asked.
"I don't remember." The Doll House and it's processes were not part of SU-GLA-2's
question, thus `...' saw no reason to mention it.
Gladys thought of her next logical question in her train of thought.
"Do you want a name?"
`...' if he still had the ghost of those instincts would have visibly started. `Since when do
robians, actually -want- anything? Besides our base desire to fulfill our functions?' `...'
thought for a moment, it was eerie for him how easily he was able to do. Could he be
malfunctioning? `Mama Bear has a code name, and that dot dot dot is drive me crazy. Do I
want a name? "Yes."
Gladys stared at him, `What could his name be? Uni? Sounds like a pet. Name of a unicorn
in a book very important to me? No, that unicorn was a girl. What should his name be?'
Finally she said in a calm voice, "Adam. Your name is Adam." 'If you are a unicorn, I want
you to be the first, and not the last.'
"Adam, code name, Adam. My name is Adam."
Action: Updating Profile Data Base, connecting to net, update complete.
M-UNI-2 `Adam.'
And with that, `...' ceased to be, and never was, and never could be, and there was Adam,
had always been Adam and would always be Adam.
Adam looked down at SU-GLA-2 and said through his mouthless muzzle, "Thank you." His
metal features managing to turn into a slight smile. SU-GLA-2's face, being a glorified
mask, was frozen in it's neutral passive expression, never changing, never altering. Their
facial muscles needing to have been laced with millions of needle like wires to perform
even the simple expression Adam conveyed to his charge.
Remembering her manners, (she considered it one of the things that set her apart from
Brian), Gladys replied, "You're welcome."
With lifetimes worth of experience raising children in her mind, Mama Bear remember
manners being one of the fundamentals and was pleased with SU-GLA-2's choice of
words. Adam meanwhile was finding Gladys' responses, curious. He knew plain as day that
she was flesh and blood underneath that metal skin with a pudding soft brain, but just
seeing and hearing her use those words was itself particular. `All the Alphas and Betas in
my data base aren't noted to saying `please' or `thank you'... bit how many Robians are?'
`Please' and `thank you' were both very recent additions to the Robian vocabulary, some
robots had been intrigued by them, others had not. By order of their master the transport
units had added the words to their vocabulary, while Sasha had been firmly instructed on
their use. With many robians still rewrapping their heads around artistic expression,
remembering or relearning common curtsy was an incredibly monumental task. Many of
the determined ones went through the motions, but only the more radical ones were
beginning to appreciate them. In the end, Adam could think of only one thing to say
`officially' to his charge as her Mentor. "Don't ever forget your manners, those words are
very special." They made her interesting.
SU-GLA-2 heard the first command from her Mentor unit and replied, "Acknowledged,
`please' and `thank you' file locked in protected memory." `If he's supposed to look out for
me, then I had better listen to what he has to say, it's only common sense.'
Adam reached down and ran his golden hooves over SU-GLA-2's head casing, messing up
her hair if she had any. "That's a good girl."
`He called me a `good girl' that means I did the right thing by listening to him, which
means listening to what he has to say is what I should do whenever he has anything to
say.' Gladys thought logically enough.
Brian and Lucky's pin up display displayed increased pressure on their shoulders, they
turned to see metal brown paws, which inspired them to look up to see Mama Bear's
smiling mouthless facing looking down at them.
While the customizers complained about the `mouths' for Robians still in the research and
development stage, (as all artists did when denied a useful tool for their medium), the
cost in resources to give a mouth to each and every robian in existence would never be
cost effective given their complexity and remain a customization rather than a standard
issue. All the same, Mama Bear wouldn't have minded the ability to grin down at her two
male charges.
While as a rule all robians accepted their forms as being `blessed' at being able to preform
their given task better, part of Mama Bear's programming felt parts of her customization
might contradict her function. Ironically she envied Adam for his form's more liberal
appearance just he envied her for her larger forms larger onboard data base. She
calculated that appearing as a organic's grandparent figure might undermine her authority
slightly if, like any little kids, her charges might do what they thought they could get away
with their slower care taker. There was of course the ever present robian devotion to
order, but Mama Bear also had lifetimes worth of experience from countless women's lives
congealed in her memory letting her know the good and bad sides of parenting.
She actually giggled, (that alone would be enough to many robian blue screen in shock),
struggling to create an image of herself and Adam as a matching pair, him without his
`shirt' harness, and saddle and her with her chasing no longer resembling old woman's
clothes... but she felt, blocked almost, as imagination had not been designed to be her
speciality. She ran the possibility course of hooking up with Adam then and there to create
the image with his help, she felt several flags flared up in her memory about not doing so
in front of her charges no matter what. `Well, it'll just have to wait for later. Still, it's just a
simple network connection, why does it feel so, important?'
"Uh," Brian struggled to think of something to say to the loving but imposing face looking
down at him and finally said the first thing that came to his mind, "What do you me to do?"
That, Mama Bear realized, was a very good question. The Mentor project was them, with
little or no hands on research. The reawakened chaotic minds of children having proved
hard to gather information on in their new state of being and how parenting for organics
could be applied here. There had been some attempts to simply direction upgrade their
programming, which had resulted in alpha and beta robians who had to be given to the
Doll House as their new and old programming fell apart on itself, attempts to upgrade
their hardware had result in strangely clumsy and disoriented robians who needed to be
downgraded back to their original format, again attempts to directly upgrade their
programming had ended in disaster. `An alpha and beta's AI is a twisting kaleidoscope, to
impose order on it rather than guide the AI's growth pattern into order always grossly
fragments fundamental parts of the OS.' Those were the words of robian programmer who
had been assigned to the short lived `grow up' project.
And now Mama Bear, a robian, a being that thrived on being given orders and parameters,
had now been given a circle, and been order to figure out a way to make it into a square
without damaging it. Even if her duty for these charges was but to make sure they were
safe and happy for the remainder of their stay in Robitaria.
Looking for answers for at least the short term Mama Bear dived into her composite
memories, thinking of all the families she had had before, for these were her memories,
they didn't belong to anyone else now, nor did she think of how they could have belonged
to anyone else but her. She didn't think about it or tried to justify it, but if she had, she
could easily point out the original owners of these memories were now just mindless
husks standing at attention in the Doll House.
While `creative thinking' was part of her directive, her family memories did provide vast
comparisons to draw cross references to. She gauged up her current situation and ran a
cross check.
`We are together. They are dear to me. And they are dear to him. Therefore, we are a
Family Unit. This here is where we are to always come to at the end of the cycle. Therefore,
it is our home. We have all come here for the first time, meaning we have just moved in.
What is it I should have my Betas do right now?'
Years and decades flew by in her massive archive, as much of it stored in he head as in her
body, finally, conclusion was reached.
"SU-BRI-1, SU-GLA-2, and SU-LUCK-3, are to vacate Residential Housing ProtoType 1.0
temporarily, and manual scout the immediate area without line of light of Residential
Housing ProtoType 1.0, and make verbal and visual contact with robians encountered at
own discretion with priority set for Alpha and Beta type robians and exchange information
with contacted robians of own discretion and return to Residential Housing ProtoType 1.0
upon ordered or before end of current cycle."
`Go outside, check out the neighborhood, and make some friends.' Adam thought.
"Acknowledged." All three Skin Units said together.
`Finally! I get to explore Robitaria!' Brian thought.
`Right! That's what she says we're supposed to do, so that's what we ARE supposed to do.'
Gladys thought decisively.
`I wonder if all the robians are as friendly as I-NEKO-2...' Lucky wondered. `I hope they
are. Will they try to smash us if they learn we aren't really robians?'
Without even a glance back at their mentors the trio walked out of the two room shack to
carry out their instructions.
SU-BRI-1 however, again speaking for the whole, stopped while the others went ahead
and looked back at his Mentor Units.
"Request: require setting of internal clock, request time and date to concede with standing
orders."
Mama Bear didn't hesitate as she politely told him the time and current date which he took
in and swift told his two fellow Skin Units.
He, nor the others, didn't stop once to think about how this meant he and Gladys and
Lucky had been in the factory for than `just a few hours' their evening was in reality
morning, and the `start' of the ruthless snow front, was in fact the end of the eye of the
storm.
Without even bothering to think about it Adam looked at Mama Bear and said, "Prime
Directive subset, super vision for Betas required, Mama Bear, you dear, remain in case of
not all Betas return at the same time outside super vision required at the same time.
Adam, I, shall act as immediate field supervision."
"Acknowledged." She said calmly as M-UNI-2 `Adam' followed the Betas outside.
M-URSA-1 Mama Bear, in spite of being the senior unit by several seconds did not reject
the orders nor try to countermand them. It was right and correct that she be the one to
remain behind, this was truth. This was born from the majority of women whose memories
made her up had been home makers.
Mama Bear looked around the room following her most base robian gut instinct looking
for something to do and after a very swift cross reference came up with a solution. "Self-
Question: is this as visually pleasing as Residential Housing ProtoType 1.0 can be?
Conclusion: Negative." She quickly got to work.
+++++++
The two room shack was not in the Inner City of Robiteria, nor was it precisely in the
burned out husk of the Outer City. It had been placed on what amounted to a thin strip of
borderland that ringed the Inner City. Situated nicely between the new city the robians
were building for themselves, and the old city that was slowly being torn away. Ironically
as the Inner City grew, the more the deconstruction on the Outer City slowed down, as
more robians were redirected to managing, maintaining, and working within the new
buildings. Which suited the alphas and betas just fine. The more the Inner City grew, the
more the Outer City, the burnt out husks that the wild machine kids inhabited vanished. It
wasn't right to say that the kids had claimed it as their own, for they were quick to flee any
deconstruction crew, though they were more than willing to stake claims of territory
among each other. More than a couple decontruction robians looked upon the Alphas and
Betas as vermin. Oh the workers never went out of their way to harm the the Alphas and
Betas, but their presence was an unknown variable, something machines detested above
all else.
Some of the older Betas had begun to honestly wonder what would happen when the last
of `their' territory was gone. None of them dared stand up against the complete robians,
and anyone who went too deep into the Inner City either never came or came back funny
in the processor. Most children of many races were not known for their love of adults, and
robians were ultimately no exception. And like many children with a detestment towards
adults, they failed to realize just how much they were being provided for, their context
oriented brains not even questioning the power stations that just happened to be there for
them.
It was for the best that those same context oriented brain never questioned why there
were no Alphas among them who were too small to walk under their own power. The
context oriented brains were also a bless for the robians who maintained and managed
the city servers and collective computer on the basement levels of the Command Center
2.1, all they saw was hardware, the shape of the servers didn't matter, no matter how
`cute' those servers would have looked in another context. Yes, it was for the better.
None of the robotocizers original test subjects had even been children, it wasn't
programmed with how to deal with a child's brain. The robotocization process' mark on
these wild children once Alberect's micromanaging had been removed was rather
transparent, some were almost catatonic, some nice but completely delusional (if a
machine could be a such a thing), while still others were down right bonkers. But they
were still children in the end, machines or not.
And some where still parents, machines or not. For some robians it was just a feeling, a
hardwired subroutine without any index, for others it was a dream they struggled to hold
onto with intensity. Many parents who had watched or been watched by their children as
they were roboticzed with them soon joining them could and had walked right past each
other without even a glance or a thought. Some had found a priority flag in their
programming for no reason about a particular Alpha or Beta stating knowing their status
was Priority One and began observing them constantly in their off hours. Some without
even understanding the reason why, had requested to be permanently assigned to the
city's basement level servers, only knowing it was a priority above everything to be there,
to be close to what was there. And a few, a precious few, looked at them, saw them, and
remembered. They all tried at one time or another to get their all important alpha beta to
remember with them, to remember them. Nearly all failed, a few in their new despair
requested to be placed in the doll house. Those who chose not to delete themselves after
realizing the truth, or at least a fundamental of that truth, where the ones who had taken
it upon themselves to build the recharging stations, to act as the look out to make sure
the Alpha/Betas were not walking into a blast zone or destroyed each other. And the ones
who dragged them to a recharge station hooked them up and left if they powered down
and were forgotten by their fellows. Yes, all of those who had taken it upon themselves to
address the Alpha/Beta `problem' all shared at least one very important trait in common.
And the ones who attempted to get their all important Alpha/Beta to remember, and
succeeded, their Alpha/Beta, was look upon by their fellow wild children, as the ones who
had gone mad.
Not that the three child knew any of them. As they walked out of the shack, the small
manually driven cart still precise where it was before, fulfilling their Mentor's order, all
they saw one a bustling and almost surreal city on their right side, and a forest like maze
of black and gray hollowed out buildings on their left as far as their optics could scan.
Brian looked left to right, not knowing which one he wanted to explore first. `The stuff on
the right looks like it had lots of interesting stuff happening like what we saw to Command
Center 2.1 -except the baths, ugh!- but all those places on the left look like -just- the
kind of spots that you'd have all sorts of adventures!'
Gladys and Lucky meanwhile, made a full circuit around the shack, taking in their
surroundings, Lucky following Gladys for a change instead of Brian. Their heavy bodies left
deep tracks in the snow. They didn't feel a thing, temperature only existed as a number
with a symbol next to it in these metal shells, even if their fur would have frozen off if they
had been out here normally.
Gladys picked up some of the snow, it was white, but it was also grayish too, she rubbed
it as best she could in her segmented fingers, all she saw was the white melt and the gray
smug.
`Ashes and snow.' Gladys thought calmly. The snow was falling down, but it could not
impede their actions, nor could they stick their sealed up tongue to catch the snow flakes,
it had no context to them, and thus was ignored, not even thought about.
Lucky noted how the shack was kinda small, it could only have two or three rooms at
most. `Are we all gonna sleep in the same room? Like a sleep over? I guess this all isn't so
bad then after all.' For all his bad traits, Brian was great at sleep overs.
M-UNI-2 `Adam' wondered if he should have called out M-URSA-1 `Mama Bear' with him
after all. If the kids were going to split up and do their own thing as free willed beings
often will. `If there are three of them, why are there only two of us?' Adam wondered. But a
thought did occur to them as soon as he thought it, `'Two there should be, no more, no
less.' But what does that mean? And why should it be that way?' Adam took several steps
back from Residential Housing ProtoType 1.0 to enable a view of all three charges. The
Residential Housing ProtoType was built in a thin strip of nowhere between the two parts
of the city. There were no other structures adjoined to it or immediately close to it. It
simply was there. Adam wondered about that, and his creativity co-processor created a
vision of many Residential Housings circling the Inner City, containing all the city's
Mentors and Alpha/Beta.'An observation: it all starts here.' Adam thought.
Brian looked at the small tree seater cart, and wondered how fast it could go, and if he
could drive it all the way through the city and how quick a time he could do so. But he
remembered that Mama Bear had told him to check out the surrounding place and talk
with any new robians he saw until the -scy-kill- ended or she called him back.
`Too bad there isn't really much around here!' Brian managed to exasperate waving his
arms for a moment. In front of him was a lone line of white gray snow, and behind him
was a long line of white gray snow, that even his mind was able to piece together was the
same line. `I wonder if I could use it as a race track with the cart, no, no, gotta remember
what Mama Bear said to do.' If the very important people who Brian had not been worried
about before being installed had heard that thought, they'd have fallen backwards.
`And there aren't any robians around here except the `meant-tours!' And we know them!'
The fact they hadn't even seen their Mentor's faces until less than an hour ago was lost on
him. Brian kicked the snow in frustration.
Adam noticed Brian's actions, `Is he trying to get a better look at the dirt underneath the
snow? Did he wave his arms because he wants a flight customization? Can that even be
done to a Skin Unit?' Then Adam did a reference to see category both expressions fell into
and understood, `Ah, I got it.'
Adam subconsciously disabled his own bare bones verbal communication program logic
paths and rerouted it through his creativity thinking co-processor. "Hey Renny, why upset?
"
Brian wasn't so ignorant that he didn't know what a male of his own species was called,
"Because I need to talk to new robians but there aren't any, and I'm supposed to check out
what's right around here but there's nothing right around here!"
M-UNI-2 `Adam' took a look one way, then a look another way, and, "Yes, I would have to
agree with you there." `Can I override Mama Bear's instructions? We're the same authority,
so that would be illogical. Listed as possible bug in beta-testing report. Done. Moving on,
how can I fix this?'
He wished he was connected to Mama Bear's maternal archive right now, then he'd know
how good or not so it was to have a child upset. `Still, it seems to be a problem, and it
needs to be fixed. What resources are available?'
Immediate Resources Listed:
Mentor Unit M-UNI-2 `Adam'
Skin Beta Test Units BRI-1 `Brian' GLA-2 `Gladys' LUCK-3 `Lucky.'
Manual Three Seat Alpha/Beta Sized Wheeled Robian Exclusive Transport.
`Noted.' Adam thought. And thought of SU-GLA-2's actions with him. His circuits
shuddered again, he was pretty sure it wasn't right for him to be able to think this much.
Bad for order. `Another possible bug listed for the Beta testing report. Done. Moving on.'
"If that was not what you were supposed to be doing, what would you...." That strange
four letter word SU-GLA-2 had said to him. "-Want to be doing?"
Without even hesitating Brian pointed at the three in one cart, "I'd want to be racing round
and round the city in the cart to see how quickly I could do it." Brian said plainly,
straightly, and without fan fair.
Adam felt a flag go up in his programming. Weather or not he knew about Brian's
implanted skill level wasn't part of the equation.
Warning: Alpha/Betas not to be granted control of Any Non-Self Controlled Vehicle
Without Superior Consent.
Adam thought, `Again with this `thinking' thing. With the proper software installed SU-
BRI-1 would have no trouble controlling the R-Transport. And it's outfitted for snow use.
But Sub-Set of Prime Directive is to insure safety and health of charges at any and all
times... but couldn't going outside mean they'd be hit by a meteorite? But then...'
"It wouldn't be safe." Adam finally said.
"Hey! I'm a great driver!" The fact he hadn't even known how to hold a steering wheel right
before it was downloaded into his was meaningless.
"Besides, I couldn't keep an eye on you if you went all the way around the Inner City."
"But I'd want to race around the city...if I wasn't supposed to be doing what I'm doing
here..." That thought alone was enough to bring Brian back down to Maatla.
While Brian's metal face didn't have expression, Adam was still able to tell his charge was
unhappy.
Observation: Definition of `immediate Area Not set.'
Conclusion: Mode Change
His shoulder and hip joint rearranging themselves, Adam steadied himself for a moment
longer, then fell foreword into all fours, creating a shock wave that sent ash and snow
everywhere, covering SU-BRI-1 in it easily.
Brian wiped the junk from his optics (for that was all the snow was to him) and looked
upon the new robian in front of him. `Whose this new guy?'
Correction: Not New Robian. Robian Identified as M-UNI-2 `Adam.'
`How'd he do that? It's cool! I wanna be able to do that when I'm a robot super hero!'
Adam bent his knees, "Climb on if you ... want.. you'll explore the immediate area on top
of me much more quickly. And you'll be able to `race' me instead of the cart."
"Are you faster?"
"Unknown."
"Can I race you in the cart?"
"After the snow is gone."
"But what about right now?"
"No."
"Okay."
Since Brian still intended to convince the robians to let him become a robot for real
anyway, and he knew that it was the right thing to do to listen to everything that white
horse with the gold horn in it's head said the way it was the right thing to look both way
before crossing the street, (okay, so Brian didn't always do that one), Brian conceded on
the first `no.' Again, those important to him he wasn't worried about before would have
fainted at this.
Hearing the sound GU-GLA-2 causally turned to the noise, being nothing more a dull
pound to her ears. And she saw a four legged unicorn opposed to the bipedal one Adam
was, and had about a dozen scenes from her favorite story pass through her displays in
cross reference. Then she saw that Brian was getting up on the saddle that she had totally
failed to notice until now, since it hadn't mattered until now.
In a matter of seconds, without even realizing it, Gladys wrote her own objective into her
programming.
`Directions: Ride Unicorn Before SU-BRI-1.'
"Hey. HEY!" Gladys shouted as loud as her speaker allowed even if it became almost the
same noise level when it passed through the Skin Unit's self adjusting microphones.
SU-GLA-2 moved as fast as her metal incased body could carry her, which was a little bit
faster than you'd think. SU-LUCK-3 followed suit his curiosity perking.
"Attention: If anyone is going to ride the unicorn first it is going to SU-GLA-2!"
"Correction: First Will Be SU-BRI-1, Mentor Has Already Stated Such."
"Correction To Correction." Adam said turning his head at his three charges, "All Three
Skin Beta Test Units Are to Mount M-UNI-2 `Adam' to effective Scout `Immediate Area.' At
once."
SU-GLA-2 stiffened for one moment. `Directive Overwritten By Mentor M-UNI-2:
Directions Retracted: Riding Unicorn Simultaneously With SU-BRI-1 Now Acceptable For
Objective.' Then however.
"SU-GLA-2 Calls Front Seat."
"Objection." SU-BRI-1 said.
"Overruled." Adam injected calmly. "All Skin Beta Test Units Now M-UNI-2." Then came,
THAT weird word. "Please."
And that was that. SU-BRI-1 took spot behind SU-GLA-2, in spite of it being out
numerical order, that felt Brian feeling sort of funny in a way he didn't comprehend. After
several seconds, all three units noted they were one head short.
All three looked at SU-LUCK-3 at the same time. "SU-LUCK-3 Comply." M-UNI-2 stated.
"Danger... stability of mount unknown... weather conditions non-optimal... probability of
accident and damage to Organic CPU unknown...number of unknown variables exceeds
safety limits."
Adam asked, "Question: What is unknown variable safety limit?"
"Zero." Lucky said totally without shame or embarrassment weather his mind was being
translated through a robian emulator or not the answer would have been the same.
"Overridden." SU-BRI-1 said before, Adam had the chance, "Command Keyword, `are you
scared?' " `Geeze... command keyword? I don't control Lucky like that... do I?'
"Acknowledge keyword `I'm not scared of anything." `Wow. I never really thought about it
like that before.' Lucky thought.
And without any further thoughts on the subject or a peep of complaint or objection, SU-
LUCK-3 mounted on the very end of the robian unicorn.
Adam lowered his head, "All Skin Beta Test Units, apply maximum within safety limits to
manual safety restraints. Redirect CPU Processing Power to Sensors Input." `Everyone hold
on tight, and keep your eyes and ears open.'
"Acknowledged." All three said together.
`I wonder how fast he is.'
`It's really happening, it's really happening.'
`I hope we don't fall off!!'
"Engaged." `Here we go.'
And Adam galloped, no, -raced- in the strip of snowed and ash land between the reborn
and the decayed city of machines, kicking up a cloud of white and gray behind him! No
more surreal a scene had ever been seen in the memory of any robian who functioned.
The gold and pearl robian on four legs charged foreword ever so slightly at a curve as he
made his way around the over city long `racetrack.' Robian who possessed a spark of
curiosity and self motivation or whose job it was to simply be in the know with these sort
of things paused what they were doing or split their attention and multi-tasked as they
looked at the gold and mother of pearl shape racing around their city, a network
connection quickly identifying who it was, and who was with him. The purpose of what he
was doing, remained unknown, even for those curious enough to try and find out. It was
if, he was galloping, for galloping sake... but... that was illogical wasn't it? For those who
illogic was the only logic, this drew them like bees to honey.
Brian saw only ahead, looked only ahead, thought only ahead, his body and mind just like
his two companions nothing more at this moment than a mobile sensor array that took in
every single tiny detail of the racing machine mythical. Brian mind thought of the speed,
could only comprehend the speed, nothing else in the universe did or could have existed,
just the speed he was traveling at atop the robotic unicorn.
Lucky felt every bump, every jiggle, measured every wind sheer and flap of the adult
robian's mane as it was knocked about in the wind, a million possibility running through
his mind, only enhanced by the robian emulator, every scenario ending in him flying and
landing on the ground broken inside and out and every possible out come after that from
people important to him never finding his body, to him being apart for gruesome spare
parts, finally, the possibility overlapped themselves again and again, threatening to
destroy him, until finally, they shut off. The system reached it's limit, and simply shut off.
And Lucky, merely rode in a daze.
The hallowed out building to the left indeed did become a black forest, while the restore,
nay, remade city on the right looked almost like a cast down in the motion blur. Adam was
no robian in an alt mode, but a true unicorn, racing faster and faster down this chosen
road to whatever lay beyond! `It's, beautiful.' And deep down, within the metal shell,
underneath the programming, and deeper -still- past the fortresses built in the image of
adults and their world, a little girl surrounded by her story books laughed and giggled and
pranced around like a unicorn herself. And if Gladys had been able to express herself,
she'd had cried out in pure innocent joy.
Logically, Adam should have ended the `reconnaissance' after the first cycle, but, it didn't,
feel right, as if, that wasn't really the purpose at all. `I'm racing just to race, no, correction,
I'm racing for them, the only ones who matter.' And so Adam took another lap even as
they came back to Residential Housing Prototype, then another just for good measure.
Brain was in Nirvana, Gladys Heaven, and Lucky, had gotten to where his fear had simply
reached it's limit and shut off.
Finally, finally, Adam slowed to a stop, just a dozen or so yards away from the shack.
"Everybody off." He said smiling.
The Skin Units other functions clicked back on, SU-BRI-1 reluctantly got off, replaying the
moments of ride over and over again in his displays. `Man! That was so cool! Even better
than a thrill ride! I wonder if there are any other like him! I could beat Lucky and Gladys at
racing with him!'
SU-LUCK-3 got off calmly, indifferently, cooly, an emotional void left where his fear had
reached it's peak then simply vanished, he simply stood at attention waiting for someone
to tell him what to do next. `Hmmm, I wonder when I'm going to be afraid again.' He
thought idly.
SU-GLA-2 got off last, and the slowest, and even more reluctantly than SU-BRI-1, `It was,
wonderful.' She though her brain processing what had happened out there. `It was
beautiful. It was in another world... I hope we get to do it again soon.'
Adam if he had the maternal data base information, would have realized, he had just
played horsie with his charges.
Action: Mode Change.
Adam's hips and shoulders shifted cogs and gears again as his body reassumed an upright
position, his golden hooves splitting apart back into armored fingers. He wiped his mother
of pearl mane once, and looked at his charges. SU-BRI-1 gaze never left the saddle on his
back, his own body braced to jump back on at any given moment. SU-LUCK-3 merely
stood there, calmly and emotionlessly looking at the world around them without any real
reaction.
SU-GLA-2, gazed upon him, and just gazed at him, it wasn't like with SU-BRI-1 whose
scanners were focused on his saddle, she was gazing -upon- just looking at him, her
body language saying just one word `awe.'
Finally Adam spoke, `Action: Determine Charges' Statue.' "So how do you all feel?"
Brian blurted out, "Can we do it again?"
Gladys moved slightly side to side in her metal shell a slight spring in her step, "I
feel...good."
"All Systems Functioning Normally." SU-LUCK-3 said monotone.
With the Skin Units looking at their male Mentor, and Adam looking down at his charges, it
didn't register at first that they were no longer alone. As the crunching of the snow grew
to where it could no longer be brushed off as background noise, all four members of the
party looked behind the Skin Units.
Not all of them were as close as the one making the foot prints in the snow towards them.
Some were looking at the group from perches at the upper floors of the hallowed out
buildings, other just sat or laid in the snow with the warped smile of harmless mania, or
stared out with blank faces through them into the nothingness beyond. More still were
peaking out from hiding places, others had lost interest and were already wandering off.
Some were plain or dull silver, but the majority were every color of the rainbow and many
colors that were not. Their customizations ran from none, to sublime, to outrageous. The
customization robians never turned down a challenge, or a request in their entire half year
of operation, squeezing out their self expression into each job they did. The Alpha/Betas
were forbidden fruit, their requests completely free of the confines of logic or reason, and
allowing the fledgling self expression heroically struggling to grow and evolve inside each
of the Customizer robians, to truly touch itself upon the world. One or two Customizers
had actually begun to go OUT into the outer city when their favorite `customers' (hard to
be a customer when cash didn't exist) did not wish to venture into the structures eating
up their vast playground.
Adam looked at them, and he didn't see incomplete or fault machines, he just saw a large
amount of tikes who were lost.
SU-LUCK-3 looked at the collection of strange robot kids, and hoped he'd be able to feel
fear again soon, he was pretty sure that he should be very scared of them trying to tie him
up and hang him upside down after writing `I am a luzur' on his back. It just didn't feel
right now to be scared.
Brian had never seen so many kids in one place before in his life, which actually wasn't
saying that much. Even though he had no way of knowing this was still not the entire
population of Alphas and Betas in this metal city. A lot of them looked kinda cool through,
including one whose red and black paint job made him look like Brian's favorite aracnid,
aracnide, acracnid, ugh, eight legged based super hero.
"You again?" Gladys' sensors actually flickered at the familiar sight of the friendly looking
solid blue older alpha raccoon robian standing in the snow that same exact smile on his
face from before... had he -painted- a smile on his face since she had last seen him?
"Hello? Have we met before? My name is... my name is... it's starts with a B, and I'm a
raccoon, so I guess that means my name is Becoon. This is my best friend, have you met
her too?" Becoon gestured at the same robot mutt Gladys had seen with him before.
Brian thought look at the too bright colored dog bot, `Did CUA-1 Robotocize dumb
animals too?'
The unevolved robotic doggie barked. But the moment the neon yellow metal four legged
labrador let out it's emulated bark, a message was sent directly to the four party members
via the network the message appearing as text in their mind's eye. Startling everyone.
Daisy20CQ(heart symbol): Hello! Nice to meet you! My name is Daisy, what's yours? Is that
your unicorn? (heart symbol) Can I ride him too?
Gladys asked the question, "Are you... a robian?"
Daisy20CQ(heart symbol): What's a robian? I'm a girl.
It began to dawn on the skin units that this robot lass was not quite right in the CPU.
Gladys asked the next logical question, "Why are you going on four legs?"
Daisy20CQ(heart symbol): I hear we all start out going around on four legs, then everyone
goes on two because everyone else does, I knew I could be special, so I asked the nice `fix
it people' to make me special how I wanted! :-) (heart symbol)
Gladys' optics flickered again, "'Fix it people?'"
Brian wondered if this was how super heroes felt whenever they had to face an evil
collective awareness out to devour the minds of every being in the universe. "Get out of
my head."
Daisy20CQ(heart symbol): Out of your head? I'm not in your head, I'm right here, how
could I be in your head? How can I get out of your head when I can't fit in your head to get
out in the first place?
Gladys shifted her attention away from Daisy and back to Becoon as Brian had a chat with
someone who could use the same inverted upside down reverse logic as him.
"What are you doing here?"
"We wanna ride the unicorn!"
Adam calculated, `I wonder what fate I just unwittingly doomed myself to.'
Gladys looked at Becoon, and at Daisy, then her optic swept the entire collection of face
here. If this was supposed to be an emulation of daily robian life, and the trio had
Mentors, then why didn't these? If they had Mentors they would be in view like Adam was
with them. Right? Or did their Mentors give them a greater amount of autonomy? Did they
all want to ride Adam? Some were looking right at him, but others were staring at SU-
GLA-2 and the others, while the rest Gladys couldn't even begin to figure out what they
were looking at.
Then came the suddenly stream of questions, like a flood gate had been lifted, and hit
them all at once. The words hitting in a barrage with no space between for answers to be
given or to return fire with their own questions.
"I haven't seen any of you before, are you new?" The Beta asked kindly and politely. She
was at least three years `older' than Gladys and was a skunk, she had black and white
ribbons wrapped around every `ending' join on her body from her ankles and wrists to her
neck and tail base. Her metal body's color scheme however looked like rainbow sherbet.
Something inside SU-LUCK-3 made the observation that her monotone ribbons and color
wheel casing where not artistically pleasing. Gladys just wondered where she got the cloth
for her ribbons from, it wasn't like robots needed cloth, why did Transport Unit L-EQUN-9
have a cloth cabbie cap even?
`Wow! She looks so cool!' Brian thought.
"Why are you with an add-dult? Did he make you crazy? By saying he was your pair-rant?"
`What's an add-dult? What's a pair-rant?' Gladys thought. Poor spelling and poorer
pronunciation will screw over any index search.
The male Alpha who asked looked like the smallest one there, a minimum age. He was, or
once was an avian, parrot. He didn't look to have any weird modifications, he even still
had the silver and gray coloring the `non-specialized' robians had, but SU-LUCK-3
observations picked up the Alpha's servos twitching and the Alpha's scanners darting this
way and that.
`I hope he has a baby sitter.' Brian thought, `Little kids are so annoying.'
"Do you wanna play with us? Do you know any new games? Heh." `How am I supposed to
know if I know anything new if I don't know what's old?!' Gladys thought agitated. The
male Beta possum who ask the question was the largest one of the close ones, but he
looked at everything with a completely innocent wonder that didn't belong on either a
machine or someone who appeared his `age.'
`Do robots age? Do they develop?' Gladys realized these robotocized kids could have been
altered the day Alberect declared war on the world and not aged a day. Servos didn't
grow, circuits didn't grow up... `They're just... frozen.'
The large beta possum had a series of tiny marks all over his body, it looked like he had
been counting, Gladys thought, `Those symbols next to each batch of niches, they look
like the doodles I did to show whose score was whose before we learned to write our
names...' The beta also had tether coils around his wrists and what looked like a portable
container built into his back. His color scheme, was a dull yellow body with red hands and
feet with other dabs of red here and there. `He looks like a clown.'
`I really really should be scared of this Beta, I just know I am.' SU-LUCK-3 thought, `He's
too nice...' Then the robian emulator logic picked up the error, on the mere idea that
anyone could be too nice. After all `nice' was socially acceptable behavior, wasn't it? That
niceness was something to be afraid of, was a paradox, one that twisted up and down
inside SU-LUCK-3, until Lucky suddenly realized much to his relief, he was suddenly
scared of the large too nice beta.
`He looks boring.' Brian thought of the big possum.
"You all look so dull, why don't you ask the fix it people to make you interesting like me?"
The robian was female, and was the same `age' as the Skin Units, but anything else about
her was impossible to tell. She had a orange body with dark violet strips patterned after a
tiger. Her swishing tail was long horizontally flat, looked like a cross between a feather
and a fin. Her feet looked like a bird's or a reptile with curved claws and one toe facing
backwards and were made for grasping. Her servo mass was more than it should have
been on a Beta her age. Her also had small bird wings on either side of her head, a long
series of wafer thin tiny sheets of metal laid up on top of each other connected to servos.
These complimented the much larger Angel like wings on her backside that folded up they
looked to be made the same as her head wings. And -those- wings were complimented
on by the folding wing like a fan that went from her wrists to her elbows. But that was
nothing compared to, `She... has the body of a feline centaur?' She was on four legs. She
might have once been a lynx, but it was equally possibly she had once been a fox, or a
wolf, the traits of feline and lupine were so intermingled. Hyena? Yet... all the same, they
didn't look mangled. "And just think, after you're fixed, we can go around flying! Like me!"
She spread the wings on her back for effect.
SU-LUCK-3 hated to admit it, but the effect of the open wings was dazzling.
Gladys was mentally agasp. `Something... thing like her... couldn't... couldn't possibly
really fly can it? And what did she mean `fixed?''
`I wonder if she'd want to be part of my super hero team.' Brian wondered looking at the
chimera.
"Where did you get your unicorn? Can I get a unicorn? Shouldn't you have a muzzle bridle
for him?" The female kangaroo robian was just below the `age' of a Beta, rather like
Becoon. She was a strange breath of fresh air from the chimera, her design was mostly
standard. Except for her white and pink color pattern and her pouch resembled a small flat
cabinet. In her own way though she was the oddest one there, parts of her were covered
in faux blond fur.
The ones curious enough to ask questions were also the ones braves enough to get closer.
Adam considered taking his charges and taking several paces back, but there was no
record of hostile action of the wild kids towards any robian who was part of the system,
`Uh-oh,' Adam's creative thinking co-processor went off again, `But what's considered a
prank with Robians... might damage the organic CPUs of the Skin units!' He took a step or
two foreword. And spoke at his maximum safe volume, "COMMAND: CEASE OUTPUT!" All
the wild kids shut their speakers off.
"Continue Directives." M-UNI-2 said calmly to his charges. And they all instantly
understood what he meant,'Right, we're supposed to exchange information with any
robian of our choice we meet, that's what we're supposed to be doing and should be
doing.' Brian thought.
Brian of course spoke for the three of them. "There is no registered previous encounter
with any of our Mentor/Beta Unit Group and you. Our Designations are SU-BRI-1, SU-
GLA-2, and SU-LUCK-3. Mentor M-UNI-2 is not our personal property. We are authorized
to grant permission to what units may scout with M-UNI-2. We are scouting the
immediate area and are to make contact and enchange information with robians at our
own discretion as per ordered by Mentor Unit M-URSA-1. Yes are new, we were registered
in the Robian Data Base less than four cycles ago. We don't know what an 'add-dult' or
'pair-rant' are, he is our Mentor, our software is functioning at near optimum efficiency.
He has not damaged our ability to process reality. We can't know what new games we have
until we know what games you have. Thus for us to learn what games you have, we would
have to play with you, so yes, we do wish to play with you. We will joint evaluate your
design as a possible upgrade after our model's base schematics have been fully tested.
Our Mentor was assigned to us upon our activation, he has no need for a restraint."
Gladys and Lucky would have thought Brian saying all that coherently and concisely did
not compute with or without the Robian Emulator wrapped around their minds.
The seven braver wild alpha/betas actually stood confused as the rational answers to their
unhinged questions were processed again and again in their skewed perceptions. It also
took them about five minutes for them to sort out just which answer was relayed to which
question. And there was much looking at each other and flickering of optics.
Those who would lose interest had lost interest and had wandered off to find something
else to amuse themselves with, others had been intimidated by the way SU-BRI-1 spoke
and were certain that he was one of the `crazy ones' and had retreated. That left the the
seven braver or perhaps even more crazy ones.
The Neon yellow four leg robian lass barked.
Daisy20CQ(heart symbol) to M-UNI-2: Can I ride you?
Adam sent the answer via network back to her, even if she didn't realize that was how she
was `speaking' she just thought everyone could understand her backs like in all those
cartoons with the kids understanding what the unevolved animals were saying.
M-UNI-2 `Adam' : Negative. I have to look after my charges who are here, and interacting
with you as per directives. Additional: You are not configured to ride my saddle.
Daisy20CQ(heart symbol): Can you have your saddle fixed to have me ride you?
M-UNI-2 `Adam': Negative, you are not one of my charges. Idea: Do you wish to become
one of my charges?
Intentionally or not, that ended the discussion rather quickly as Daisy took a step or two
back. M-UNI-2 had a repeat performance of his talk with Daisy with the pink kangaroo.
"So, you do want to play with us?" Becoon asked a little unsure.
`Well, most of'em look cool, and I bet they know a lot of fun places.' Brian thought,
"Reaffirming Response: correct."
"Yippie!" Clapped the large Beta possum. "Can you show us what new games you know?"
`Dang he's still going on about that?' Gladys thought. SU-GLA-2 replied, "Counter
Request: Please show us what games you know first."
"Whao K!" The yellow and red possum nodded, his tail doing the same, it featured a red
and yellow strip pattern.
SU-LUCK-3 `Lucky, turned his head and looked at his own tail that was currently pointing
at his face.
The black and the stripped tails then pointed at each other and `nodded' in sync while
their owners looked at each other.
The dull colored parrot stayed silent, sticking close to the possum like his shadow was
protection somehow. The inverted Gothic Lolita and chimera merely watched with over
eager curiosity, wondering what new fun and games these new playmates could bring. The
chimera wondering if she'd have some `converts' to her wonderful design soon, and the
inverted lolly goth and just hoping for new friends to talk with.
"Let's go!" The inverted lilly goth clapped. "Into the woods!"
Cross reference: woods, Alpha/beta code name for Outer City.
M-UNI-2 calculated.
Warning: Outer City May Not Be Stable, Possible Danger to Skin Beta Units.
Overwritten: Presence of functional Alpha/Beta Units confirm area designated safe for
standard Alpha/Beta Units.
Resolution: Continue passive observation of Charges.
Action: Priority Set for Detecting Action, Hazard, or Unit that would pose serious damage
to Skin Beta Unit organic CPUs. Authorization given to act proactively.
`They are supposed to make friends after all. But I better keep an eye on them in case the
wild kids play too rough.'
Becoon without hesitation skipped over to SU-GLA-2 and took hold of both her hands
began to skip backwards pulling her along.
"Huh? Hey! Wait! Watch it!" Gladys stated, being shrilled if she could have been.
"Come on! There's a lotta I wanna show you!"
SU-GLA-2's mind went blank for a moment as she processed his complete non-formal
words. Though like all the robians, their voices were just as robotic as the next, but in
spite of their insanity, or perhaps because of their insanity, it held more... expression.
`Lotta. Wanna. Uploading from Organic CPU Slang Data Base.'
Gladys stopped dragging her feet to keep from falling over forewords.
Brian didn't like someone taking the lead who wasn't him if he could help it and gave
chase. SU-LUCK-3 `Lucky' followed suit, content to simply watch.
M-UNI-2, followed as a shadow, their Mentor never quite out of sight.
"Does he have to come with you?" The Alpha parrot asked.
"Affirmative." SU-LUCK-3 `Lucky replied before the others could, feeling it simply was a
question that needed answering and it was an answer he knew.
"I don't, trust him, he's an add-dult."
"Don't worry about it," Brian said, "He's cool! Just like most of you guys are, he won't do
anything, promise." `I wonder what super games you can play with robots?'
"Of course the unicorn can come." Said the pink Kangaroo girl.
Daisy barked in compliance.
Overridden by two of the group, and the others not really caring, the alpha conceded.
Also, he wanted to learn more about these strange new kids who had appeared in parallel
to the weird shack. The first new ones to appear since all of them had woken up from the
weird dream all of them remembered waking up from but none of them could remember
falling asleep to.
The pink kangaroo wondered if she could convince the unicorn to be her pet, or find out
where other unicorns were that could be her pets.
And so the three adventures followed the fairy folk into the woods, seeing the side of it
the loggers and the woodsmen did not see.
In any other city, in any other culture, what the trio and their shadow saw could only be
described as `graffiti.' But these weren't rebel youths looking to stick it to authority
figures, or a civilized pack of ruthless wolves marking their urban territory. M-UNI-2 was
focused on his charges and on the look out for dangers to his charges, saw only
meaningless images.
SU-LUCK-3 scanned the artistic renderings on the sides of the buildings not facing the
inner city or the roads that cut through the outer city. `Creative use of color, minimal
consistency between images, could make better use of medium tools: Geeze they really
need to take some art classes, no, they need to go to art -school-!'
Indeed, some of the building were nothing but canvases, with any number of artistic
rendering, using anything from salvaged paint to ashes as chalk to rubble as erasures.
They were so full, but the art flirted from one theme to another, never staying in one style
long enough to really get a message across or anything other than base feelings or ideas.
Some where just scribbles, but quickly evolve into detailed renderings, only to look like
scribbles again, but unlike graffiti art elsewhere in the world that existed as a form of
intense and harsh expression... this art... looked like it was honestly -trying- to be
beautiful.
Gladys' reaction was a lot different, `It's like I'm stepping between the pages of a story
book.. I've never seen any pictures this big before, they're drawing on the entire
buildings... it's amazing.' And she was still being led by Becoon's hands.
Brian looked left and right, `Wow! They really do have a lot of cool robot pictures, but why
aren't they fighting giant monsters or blowing stuff up? ... Why is that one picking -
flowers-?! Ugh. Hopefully some other stuff is cooler.' He looked at the face of another
building. `Well, at least the robots -look- cool.'
The children were led through what was an act in progress, like kids at the beach before
the tide, the alpha/betas with enough mind for it forever scrawled their creative
expressions in an eternal work in progress as the deconstruction robian tore the buildings
and their art down with it. Not that the alpha/betas cared for long, they simply started
over again. Even as the trio was led along, alphas and beta, some even more wildly
customized than the welcoming committee, such as an ocelot who looked half octopus
with coloring coming out every which way.
Of course, this was just one facet, one group, one subset of the alpha/beta population.
Down another block, Lucky observed Alpha/Betas talking to themselves. Others just
seemed to wander about looking at nothing and everything. And of course there was one
group playing kick the can. Another had Alpha/Betas dueling with sheet metal swords
(might as well be wooden swords). And plenty who were playing with toys of their own
invention, salvaged from storage (trophies from the converted for Alberect), or just plain
improvised. And a lot more than a few where playing in games of pretend more elaborate
than any flesh and blood child had the time or energy to construct. No one was playing
`Simon Says.'
Finally, the seven wild kids and the band of three and their shadow stopped in the middle
of a seemingly random street intersection, looking much the same as any of others.
Becoon slowly turned towards SU-GLA-2, and leaned slowly towards her, "Suglatuu?" He
said lowly, slurring her designation into a something his mind could comprehend. "There's
something I need to tell you." He said strangely solum.
Gladys was totally taken aback, "W-w-what?"
He tapped her on the forehead, "Tag! You're it!" Becoon laughed, and ran. The other six
quickly retreated from the `It.'
`Hey! I'm too old for tag!' Gladys thought harshly, however, "You cheater!" `I'm not gonna
let some cheater win!' Brian and Lucky followed flanking her. `But that doesn't mean I'm
gonna enjoy this!'
Half an hour later, a girl's electronic laughter could be heard echoing in the Outer City.
+++++++
Robots don't tire, and robot children were no exception. The game of tag lasted over
three hours as each child made creative use of their own natural talents to their advantage.
M-UNI-2 felt the truth of parenthood as he over clocked his own CPU to keep up in the
sea of cheerful chaos, nearly drowning it.
Other games quickly followed, including the most complex game of hop scotch ever
beheld that took hours to play. And of course, naturally, the inevitable snowball fight, and
the snowman building. There was also the child version of the tour of Robitera, much like
I-NEKO-2's. But with more giggles and a lost less boasting of the glorious future of their
glorious city.
The chimera showed off her `lair' at the top of one amazingly stable building. She made
sublime and not so sublime hints about `not minding some similar friends to share it
with.' None of the Skin Units accepted her offer to carrying them around in a flight. The
alpha parrot had his `perch' a few stories below, and the large possum had his `recharge'
spot on the ground floor.
The pink kangaroo introduced them to `her castle' which was painted more girlie colors
than Gladys thought existed, and had both `pets' and `ladies in waiting' the ladies in
waiting of course all being lasses, but when one asked,
`Do you want to be comissioned into a lady in waiting?' caused a chill to run up Brian's
spine even the Cyber Skin could not suppress. The little princess as she fancied herself
actually managed to create a slight sense of order, restoring the ambiguous hollow
building (as they all pretty much where) in a tiny make shift play castle. No one really
minded, and she kept coming up with such wonderful games to play.
The alpha parrot had his `perch' a few stories below, and the large possum had his
`recharge' spot on the ground floor.
The wild kids, nor the adventures, questioned how these obvious brand new recharging
station were `here' for the kids to use. Gladys wondered about bullies hogging these vital
spot. But the robian tikes appeared to keep just enough sense of unity not to horde or
fight over them.
Becoon and Daisy seemed to have no fixed spot, just going from one part of the over city
to the next, boosting of how often they had gone into the `add-dult''s world' and came
back `not crazy.'
The inverted lolly goth did have a singular spot,one she had claimed as her own very very
far away indeed from any of the deconstruction projects. The outside of the building was a
drab and lifeless as any other, but inside... inside.. whao. Gladys didn't even know toy
stores that held this many dolls. Each and every one of them was special, unique, one of
it's own. Gladys asked the obvlious question, "Did you, make all of these?"
"Yes," The skunk said, "All of them." Some were metal, some were made obviously from
scraps of cloth (again trophies taken from the converted), but each showed an ever
increasing level of skill, precision, and creative voice. She had more than one room full of
them. A doll maker who never needed to eat or rest while awake, she was a factory. "I
base many of them off those I see in my dreams, I don't know who they are, but I know
they are important to me, so, I make these dolls, so they can keep me company." No sane
robian would have ever given away that after being asked a simple yes or no question.
The cloth doll next to her recharge station inside the building was particularly good, it
showed a small skunk child about ten years old, wearing a white dress.
The seven members of the welcoming committee, with no uniform recharge cycle unlike
the adult robians, one by one had to recharge, and did so, and the rest of the party had
moved on by the time they had finished recharging, and when they awoke they were quick
to discover a new game. Idly wondering if they would meet their new friends again
eventually, and if many more new friends would appear where they came from.
Finally, his power cells running low, and not insane enough to risk recharging in this place
and being helpless, M-UNI-2 informed his charges that it was time to go. And indeed,
after their trek through the outer city in a chaotic pattern, they would arrive back at
Residential Housing Prototype 1.0 just as the current cycle ended.
Becoon, and the inverted lolly goth sunk bid the trio fair well, and Adam quickly led the
trio rather hastily through the giant chaotic playground, least they get distracted by other
robian alpha/betas wanting to play, ugh, complete robian alpha/betas wanting to play, he
really did need to recharge. It had been hard enough to keep them from engaging in a
wresting match with their new friends.
When they return to the strip of snow and ash between the Woods/Outer City and the
Inner City, and enter the shack, no one was prepared for what waited them inside. They
found everything polished to a shine, dents removed, metal finished, the `items' stored
away in a cabinet, and everything in general just looking more, clean.
Mama Bear beamed with pride when her partner and charges entered.
"Visual appeal optimized with immediate material available." She said proudly.
"Acknowledged." Adam said in awe looking around, barely able to acknowledge this was
the same structure he had left at the beginning of the day. And the day now as ending.
The temperature was dropping. And the stars had come out long ago. The moons rising
and one already setting.
`She really did a good job.' Lucky observed.
`It is kinda pretty.' Gladys conceded.
`At least she didn't have me do it.' Brian though in relief.
Action: Debrief Skin Beta Testing Units on Last Given Directives.
"And how did all of you dear do today in your first day in Robiteria as Skin Units?" She
asked kindly.
"We made a lot of new friends." Brian said proudly.
"It was... fun." Gladys said at a very low volume.
"You should ask for your money back for what you paid for this housing location." Lucky
said simply.
"That's impossible dear, housing location was given, not traded via legal tender."
The three animals in tin suits looked at each other, and shrugged.
Attention: Skin Unit Power Level About To Enter Red Zone.
Attention: Organic CPU Recharge Cycle Quota Fulfillment Required.
"Now you dears have had a very long day." She was right, they had been awake for
nineteen hours and only after her words began to feel, okay, not really feel tired, but
figured they should be tired. "It's time for you to recharge."
Yes, Companion Unit Sasha had mentioned this, and had answered what questions the
children would ask, sparing Mama bear the Q And A session.
Before any of them though could so much as mention that they weren't tired, or that they
had so many things more to say, or on hand questions to ask, Mama Bear said,
"Now go through that door," She pointed at said door, "And into your recharge stations
and begin your recharge cycle, and that'll be it for this cycle."
The same thought echoed in each of the kids heads. "Right, I have to go through that door
and into my recharge station, and begin my recharge cycle, and that'll be it for this cycle."
Thinking about it nearly as their own idea, the Skin Units walked single file in numerical
order into the only other room in the shack.
It was circular, with two large vertical rectangle devices on the right, which the Skin Units
ignored utterly since they had nothing to do with them. They didn't notice or care the
same amount of work that had gone into making this room presentable to the naked eye
as had the `entry room.' The fact they were sleeping in the same room as their caretakers
didn't, and couldn't cross their minds. they just knew they had to climb into the three child
sized devices on the left side of the room and let techo-nature take it's course.
The three child sized devices had at least twice the amount of connecting cords and tubes
as did the adult sized ones, and the Skin Units felt a slight identical twang of shame at the
extra amount of effort needing to go into supporting their organic cores.
The entire procedure happened with a surprising sense of unfestivity and unformality.
There was no need to go to the bathroom before bed here. In fact they had emptied the
waste from their systems even while talking to Mama Bear without noticing or thinking of
it. The hose that feed into the water recycle unit on their back side, and the connector that
linked it to their organic core, was just another piece of pumping, going as was needed,
with less distraction than breathing. If possible, they noticed the pumping of waste into
the tube that fed to the incinerator on their backsides even less so.
The idea of saying prayers was left at the door. Abstract higher powers, was something
many machines struggled to comprehend. There was no need to brush teeth, or change
into pajamas.
The three Skin Units, their brains lulling as they entered sleep mode, as one turned
around, and walked neatly backwards into the recharge stations. Again, whatever fantastic
details these machines had would wait till morning once this current task was complete.
Ports subconsciously opened as connecting power cords fixed into place, one in the back
of their heads, and the other over their heart as their ID plate slide back to show the flat
power plug. Another cord connected to the side of their faces, connecting to a opening
port there, that feed a nutrient fluid into the tube that led down into their stomachs.
Others connected to their rears, checking benign bacteria levels, and the status of other
various parts.
The Skin Units saw each of the connector status messages change from red to green in
succession and finally the Cyber Skins entered recharge mode, and the brains of the three
children inside them fell fast asleep. Their scanners turning from gold in black to solid
black.
And for four to six hours, they stood as if nothing more than status, almost as they were
when they were first installed, but only in appearance. Inside their brain, where their minds
resided, it was a flurry of activity.
To the recharging station, and to the robian emulator downloaded into unused brain cells,
the brains of the three children was nothing but hardware, a computer. And like any
computer once it had been shut down for the day, it was time to de-fragment, clean out
the short-term RAM, and debug.
`Whao, what a day,' Lucky dreamed himself thinking, `I don't think any of Brian's
`adventures' have ever gone this far. But at least we're all okay.'
`At least they didn't try to hurt us,' Gladys dreamed herself contemplating, `Still, I can't
wait to get home, home, where, mom! Dad! I can't believe I didn't think about them all
day! I'm getting as bad as Brian! Maybe worse!'
`I still can't believe robots here have ... mentors? No, pair-rants, wait, parents! That's it!
And I can't believe we'll still have to take baths and... stuff... I hope can still convince
them to let me be a super hero because this city needs a hero, every city needs a super
hero, everyone knows that... But if I'm the super hero here, who'd be the super hero... at
home? Maybe we can form a super group and split up?' The logic error of Brian's last
dreamed thoughts were lost on himself and the system.
In their dreams, all three children heard, and saw,
"UPLOADING SHORT TERM RAM."
`Huh?'
`What the?'
`What do goats have to do with this?' Brian wondered.
`I remember, we woke up, and Brian drove to the place we were supposed to go.'
`I remember, we woke up in a shack and talked about my book and the other stuff we
brought with us.'
`I remember, we woke up with our stuff next to us and met those robians who were like
parents, ick.'
`I remember, we woke up with a big brown robot bear hugging us, that hugging was so
nice.'
`I remember, we woke up outside a metal shack and we rod the unicorn, and to think Brian
thought he could ride one with me!'
`I remember, we woke up with a bunch of kid robots looking at us, most of them were so
cool.'
`I remember now, we woke up in the outside part of the city surrounded by those really
really weird looking and stubby robots, they showed us all over the place.'
`I remember, we woke up in a secluded part of the outer city with a bunch of hand made
dolls, and we had to go back with a unicorn because it was already getting dark.'
`I remember, we went into the Install-lation Center, and we haven't woke up yet, I wonder
when we'll wake up and if being a cyborg will be cool.'
"SHORT TERM RAM UPLOAD COMPLETE." They all dreamed hearing and seeing. "SAVING
RELEVANT DATA."
`I remember we drove from the Installation Center to Residential ProtoType 1.0. What did
any of the roads or robians we saw on the way look like again? Which of us drove again?'
`We identified and cross referenced our personal items. Did I say or thinking anything
strange when I first saw them? Why am I even asking that question? Of course I didn't. I'd
remember if I did. I'm not an air head like Brian... why am I calling him by his code name?'
`Ugh. We met our Mentors. Mentors, I still can't believe we have Mentors, I was sure robots
wouldn't have Mentors, wait, robots DO have Mentors, so why wouldn't they have Mentors?
Oh well, doesn't matter.'
`We were hugged by our Mentors, the data feed from it was nice, like hugs are supposed
to be. The only hugs I've had. Wait, that should be obvious, so why am I stating that?
Illogical, oh well.'
`We scouted the area outside our home and rod on `Adam' M-UNI-2. It was so great to
meet a unicorn at last, wish SU-BRI-2's adventures had at least one where we tried to find
a unicorn, he didn't have any right to call them boring!'
`We met a bunch of Alpha/Beta Robians, at least three out of seven could be identified in
category `cool.' They were fun.'
`We enter Robitaria's Outer City Zone, and observed several creative expression on the
condemned structures. I remember every single detail of every single picture down to
every spray blot and paint line.'
`We inspected five independent reconstruction projects. All totally customized to creative
expression and entertainment. Story settings, lore rules, and prominent players all
recorded.'
`Units SU-BRI-1, SU-GLA-2, SU-LUCK-3 and M-UNI-2 tranversed Outer City Sections 5A,
6B, 5C, 4D, 4E, 4F, 3G. Inspected Cool Alpa/Beta Custom Doll Factory.'
`Upon order from Adam/M-UNI-2/M-UNI-2,' `Units SU-BRI-1, SU-GLA-2, SU-LUCK-3
and M-UNI-2,' `returned to Residential Housing ProtoType 1.0.' `And Began recharge
Cycle.'
"LONG TERM RAM DOWNLOAD COMPLETE" `LONG TERM RAM DOWNLOAD COMPLETE'
`LONG TERM RAM DOWNLOAD COMPLETE' `LONG TERM RAM DOWNLOAD COMPLETE'
`'' Reviewing Long Term Data.`''
`'' Crossing Referencing All Available Data.`''
`''All Files Cross Referenced To Robitaria Found. Transferring To Long Term Memory.'''
`'' All Files None Cross Referenced To Robitaria Transferred To Protected Archive,
Password Lock Enabled: Selecting Password: ***** PassWord Confirm: *****.`''
"REVIEW AI GROWTH PATTERN."
`''ReViewing AI Growth Pattern/ReViewing AI Growth Pattern/ReViewing AI Growth Pattern."
"RUN AI GROWTH PATTERN REVIEW VIA PRIMARY FUNCTION."
"'"RUNNING AI GROWTH PATTERN REVIEW VIA PRIMARY FUNCTION.'`'' Reviewing Long Term Data.`''
`'' Crossing Referencing All Available Data.`''
`''All Files Cross Referenced To Robitaria Found. Transferring To Long Term
Memory.'''
`'' All Files None Cross Referenced To Robitaria Transferred To Protected
Archive,
Password Lock Enabled: Selecting Password: ***** PassWord Confirm: *****.`''
"REVIEW AI GROWTH PATTERN."
`''ReViewing AI Growth Pattern/ReViewing AI Growth Pattern/ReViewing AI Growth
Pattern."
"RUN AI GROWTH PATTERN REVIEW VIA PRIMARY FUNCTION."
"'"RUNNING AI GROWTH PATTERN REVIEW VIA PRIMARY FUNCTION.''`
`Whao... I feel weird, I'm dreaming. What am I dreaming about? I'm dreaming about how good I am at looking at things, I'm dreaming about how ... I'm always careful... I'm dreaming about being a safety inspector, no an artist, no a business rep, no a reporter, no a, I'm dreaming that my cache is full? CACHE IS FULL.'
`Uuuuuuuhhhh... where am I? Am I dreaming? What am I dreaming about? I am dreaming of games, of beautiful unicorns, of dragons, witches, fairies... I'm dreaming of being a story teller, a maker of games, an imaginer, but with rules, should fantasy HAVE rules? I'm dreaming about wondering about that? My, SU-GLA-2 AI GROWTH PATTERN REFINEMENT SESSION COMPLETE.'
`Ugh! Am I on one of the moons? Am I on another planet? Am I in an anti-matter universe? Huh? Oh? I'm dreaming? What am I dreaming about? Where are my comic books? Not here? Oh! Uh. Er. I want to be a super hero! A super hero! A guardian! A protector! Going around the world to protect things, what? Protectors don't leave their cities? That sucks. But I want to be a protector and travel around...No I don't want there to be a war. Why would there be a war?... I want to have all sorts of cool powers! And all those cool Alpha/Betas can be my super hero team! Yeah! That's what I'm dreaming about! That's, my, SU-BRI-1 AI GROWTH PATTERN REFINEMENT SESSION COMPLETE.'
`Status: Cycle Memory Review And Save Complete.'
`Additional: Cycle AI Growth Pattern Refinement Complete.`
`Action: Begin Organic CPU Sleep Mode'
`Sleep mode engaging... I feel sleepy/I wish Adam would manually connect my cables/I don't need to enter sleep mo-'
Four to six hour later, the three `proto-type robians' with an `organic core system', came back on-line. Their living brains and bodies being brought back hut to into the waking universe.
Three to two hours earlier, one of countless update messages was sent into the system, seen as no more or less special by the system, and received in order by the sentient heart of that system. The update message contained mundane routine information on when a set of units had begun their recharge cycle and when they were scheduled for rebooting, but it also contained data that was of particular interest to the system for one of it's standing projects and that data was sorted and categorized accordingly. This
information triggered a flag and was given high priority status relating to Robitaria's unspoken truce
with the rest of the world and it's continued stability. The information eagerly waited it's turn as it was pushed ahead to nearly the front of the line and gave itself utterly and completely to the sentient heart of the system absorbed directed into the core's central data base.
Once inside the data piggy backed on the update message triggered another flag as it traveled up the hierarchy of prioritization, pushing many projects further down the line, not the one currently being worked on of course, that would have simply been rude. Five hours later when the daily observation, planning, and adjusting of the city's new power distribution system wires and cables to keep pace with the new buildings and structures had been completed, the update message, along with the heavily prioritized data within was brought to the attention of the system's awareness.
Immediately the system focused all it's attention on this tiny but all important piece of data that had a high probability of being vital to the continued silent peace between the city of machines and the world of organic life. The information was backed up, and system protected, then the real work began.
The system's sentient heart brought up the two messages it had previously composed the last cycle, adjusting them accordingly to the new information provided. Then like slipping a hand into a sock puppet, the system's sentient heart opened it's avatar's eyes and ordered the presence of it's co-unit that was vital for the system's continued mental stability.
`My Sasha, come at once.' The system's voice range out in her head.
`Yes My Master.' The companion unit replied. Such face to face interactions were not technically efficient or necessary, but again were heavily flagged as important to the system's continued mental health.
The companion unit enter the housing room for the heart of the system. "What do you wish of me my Master?" She asked in a cheerful and eager to please voice. Her AI already running through all the wonderful things she could do for him.
"Data for stage two of Project Cyber Skin has been acquired. Review and edit messages for appropriate tone, attitude, and perform two review edits for proper terminology. Arrange for safe and appealing delivery of messages to target locations, and eventually arrival for new honored guests."
"Already?" She didn't hide her disappointment, "But their profile images are so cute." She sighed, "As you command my Master."
Companion Unit Sasha's `Skunk Works' status enabled her to accomplish tasks ironically with more fineness and dynamic problem solving than if handled by the system direct sometimes, and even by other independent robians. And since this function dealt with factors outside the safe orderly Robitaria zone, a higher level of independent thought than was standard was required at all steps.
A small device with a display of the two messages was manually handed to Sasha, again seemingly insufficient than a direct download into her database, but the gesture was flagged as one of the minor details to keep the system's AI stable. It also kept the function exclusively connected to Sasha and would now run independently from the majority of the system for the remainder of this function.
"I shall not disappoint you Master," She curtsied holding the display pad in one hand. She did not turning her back on him until she had back paced out of the control room. She navigated the identical white halls of the command center flawless from her onboard map alone. Sasha never thought how empty the great tower felt, with only herself and her Master as the only constant residents, but she didn't care, she was the only company she ever needed. Entering her private chamber Sasha wirelessly and causally
connected to the tower's central data base, her number two spot in the pecking order bypassing any
security or authorization block, and brought up the information regarding this stage of the Cyber Skin Project and took it into account and began her first step in her given task.
Sasha manually read over the two messages, having been programmed to perform actions manually when reasonable as part of her function as a Companion Unit. As her scanner read left and right she quickly made notes, knowing it was common sense to read document completely before editing it. She repeated the process with the second document, taking her own initiatives and comparing the two.
Not being a direct part of the network, Sasha could often act more personable than her Master, not having to divide her attention over the input and output of an entire city. And in keeping with her role, her AI expression were the most advanced in the entire city.
"Hmmm, avoid majority of technical terms, education level of recipients unknown, never a nice unknown, but what is a nice unknown? Hmm, how to address to who, how formation of name should be used. Exact age unknown, again not good, approximate. Hmm, formal style speaking with not over abundance of technological terms. Include safety of Organic CPUs, er, make sure to use non-robian terms at all times, direct notes to messenger, avoid unnecessary contact, observe all social taboos and expectations at any and all times, make note to download it into messenger's protocols. Avoid super structure maatlans when at all possible. Do not act aggressive at any time, do not touch any
Maatlan unless directly requested to. Better down load some of my own protocols so the message can
negotiate at intelligent and sociable level, adversary style negotiations to be avoided at any and all costs. Do not harm any and all Maatlan, to retreat in encountering of physical hostility. Oh right, right, better make sure these two speeches can make sense to an average organic brain... flag, lots of flags, make sure it doesn't appear as a ransom note, or a demand, or a threat, be sure to include subjects came to Robitaria of own free will...okay, let's do this."
Two hour later, (even for machines, the art of language took time), the Sasha left her private cambers, and called for a transport unit to pick her up at the base of the tower.
Taking the transparent elevator to the ground floor, Sasha artistically appreciated the view of the city draped in white, a preview of her master's vision. She saved the image to her long term memory.
The Transport Unit arrived at the front of the tower just as Sasha stepped off the last step of the wide steps at the tower's base. She calmly entered, "Robian Reassessment Center."
"As you Command Companion Unit Sasha." The horse torso rising of the floor said along with the speakers.
Sasha felt the strange subroutine to inform the transport unit to address her as `Mi'Lady' but ignored it. She had set her own flag for when she would be called that along side her master. She was also the only adult robian in the entire city not to have a serial number, making her particular among them, Sasha wondered if this made her odd, but being her Master's companion this fact just meant she was special. After all, there was only one Companion Unit Sasha.
The sentient vehicle hovered up, blowing away snow, and flew almost to the building that stood in front of the Doll House. Some of the customization robians called it `Their Studio' while a handful of others with just enough creative thought called it the `alchemist's lab.'
Sasha on rout called up the list of possible candidates for this all important job, looking like she was staring into space inside the transport like a zombie. She eliminated the ones who she felt didn't have the right base AIs for the job and didn't warrant full reprogramming, and the ones who didn't have the base body she wanted for this task either. Those eliminated, she picked one who matched what she wanted whose base form was already on par with what she wanted. What did she want? Hmm. Feeling a
mischievous streak, which she often felt when given a -off-network- task, she knew precisely what she wanted. She was sure the maatlan would hesitate to shot and ask questions later if her message was shaped like that! Or maybe pass it off as them seeing things.
She sent out a PM to the appropriate robian to return to the Robian Reassessment Center immediately and where to go once there. She also sent out several messages at once to countless `customizer' robians each one to focus on a separate part of this project and to network to coordinate their efforts when need be.
The transport unit stopped right in front of the center, and Sasha calmly got off after saying a quick thanks to the transport unit when gave her a simple `you're welcome' before returning to the duties she had already been assigned to.
The unaltered robians split apart like the Red Sea for her. Even after six month, the process was very slow going, and they had not completed upgrading and super specializing their entire race yet, not to mention the fickle ones who switched jobs or had to be reassigned when a task needed some extra sentient bodies.
A minute or so later, they split apart again as a robian with a high end prioritization flag flew down into the greek style entrance (a bit of artistic expression by the customizer units).
Sasha stood a few paces back from the center of one of the altering rooms, a minute or so later the robian she had picked arrived. She was a `head-fur-less' blue vixen robian not wearing anything with white wings with faux feathers, hiding anti-grave equipment.
She clapped her hands together and now deeply, "You have commands me to come and I have come Companion Unit Sasha."
"You have been selected for a very important function, perhaps the third most important since our Master has taken his proper place as the heart of the system. Failure is not an option for this task."
"As you command Companion Unit Sasha." The vixen replied. "You were redesigned to act as a overhead observation unit for the illogical alpha/betas... now you have a perhaps even greater task. You will have to leave the territory of our city."
The vixen looked in shock, confusion, and fear. "L-l-leave, Robitaria Zone...this... this unit does not... compute-, error."
"Don't not damage your logic circuits, the level of upgrades you will receive for this function are xtensive, and then you shall understand, are you ready?"
"This Unit... I... am always prepared to serve our kind. Question." The vixen took some self initiative. "After this task is completed... may I be returned to my function of watching over the Alpha/Betas? Or will an replacement be assigned?"
Sasha was totally taken back by this question. The Vixen barely understood it herself, she had some base desire to look at the Alpha/Betas... it was almost like she was searching for something, but she knew not what. ".... You may request to return to your current function with these upgrades upon the completion of this task. As you ready?"
"I offer up my AI and my Hardware to our future." The vixen formally bowed one more time saying her technological voice.
Sasha clapped her hands, "Then let's begin!" From all four doors on the compass point, pairs of customization robians came in, and descended upon the vixen who never once offered any resistance, this was the command of Companion Unit Sasha after all.
The customizers started by stripped away all her casing plates, exposing the circuits and wires underneath, they disconnected her wings and tore them apart like vultures. They disconnected her voice box and threw it into a recycling bin, they then disconnected the entire lower half of her face. A customization robian whose antlers now doubles as high speed wireless connectors pulled out a thick cable and plugged it into the back of the vixen's head, even as her male partner took out pieces of her brain, causing the vixen's hearing and sight to vanish. Not that it matter after her eyes were taken out.
Circuits in her fore and back paws were all stripped off. And she was hooked up to a power generator
as her batteries were all removed including her emergency back up ones, leaving her on the techno equivalent of life support. Her observation, precious alpha/beta interaction, and flight pattern protocols were erased. Of course her tail was disconnected as well.
Sasha looked at her. Now an emptied out, lobotomized, blind, deaf, skinless wingless tailless creature missing many of her internal organs. Sasha nodded, and the vixen began to be built up again.
Much more precise controls were put into her hands and feet, look much more slim and compacted. Her super structure was already hallow rods like the bones of a bird to cut down her weight and thus needed no real adjustment. Her power cells, were replaced with batteries with a much longer life span and an internal generator taking up a good deal of room, and more than a little expensive on resources and time to build. The majority, if not all her upgrades were in the prototype stage, effectively becoming their field
tester.
New pieces for her brain to replace those taken out and scrapped were put in, granting her the ability to process the telescopic vision of her new eyes and hardwired sound protocols to pick up the emotional sublimity in an organic voice.
Social and formal expectations and taboos of the children's nation and region were overwritten into her behavior programming, along with global maps, weather patterns, flight laws, and border customs if need be. The wire was disconnected from the back of her head and pulled back into the customizer's body.
A new voice box with the speak right on top, also a prototype and VERY expensive was placed into her throat. In fact, the equipment that was now slowly making her map made her on market price of her hardware now perhaps even more than Sasha's!!
The `life support' power cord was disconnected from her body and moved away after her power cells and generator came on-line ran a successful start up. The new tail that was connected to the base of her motor function cord column (spine), was covered in the most beautiful faux blue fur imaginable. Again, pricey. The servos in it whirled as the tail made a very maatlan style twitch. Another of her behavior upgrades.
Her wings were given back to her, looking even more beautiful than when they had been taken off her, having been rebuilt almost form the ground up like her. The wings were still very clearly metal, but there was a certain shine to them, and much more precise motor control, and now had a double function of being able to spread out far enough to glide.
They flexed when reconnected to her.
A lower face, bearing strange white pieces of plastic and red rubber and a very weird joint, was connected to the bottom of her skull's face. It was easily the most early prototype and expensive piece of equipment placed on her in it's own way.
They didn't put metal plating back on her, but a rubber like material made from various plastics and synthetics, colored white and cobalt. It was slowly connected to her body, not like a costume or a glove, but connected at many, MANY points on different sections of her, becoming indeed like skin. The effect, was to make her body casing appear, while clearly still not maatlan, have a seamless, bolt less, screw less, mold line less, shinny, smooth appearance.
Her eyes were also perhaps the greatest challenge the customizers had had to deal with for some time. Purple in white eyes, -BLINKED- back out at the world (another protocol that was set to run quick diagnostic when her eyes were closed). To call what was placed on her head a short sky blue wig wouldn't be right, since it was not simply a hat, each fiber was carefully connected to sensor... making it as much a part of her as an organic is a part of her own hair (note, head is dead except at the base).
Making some final adjustment here and there and remotely and manually checking servos, the customization robians stood back from their joint project.
Then came the moment of truth, when the robian OPENED HER MOUTH, a device that cost more many of their parts put together, and said in a voice sounds much more alive and less electronic than her old, "I...."
The angel techno vixen slowly stood up to her full height, looking at herself in awe and bring up her own blue prints from within. "I'm..." She took a few steps foreword on much more agile feet, her fingers, much less clumsy, slowly touching her smooth shinny skin, lacking a metal casing... "I am..." She did her best to look at her own hair, but it was little too short for any of that.
"You have been given a design and form that hopefully will inspire the maatlans you are meant to speak with NOT to `shoot to kill on sight' when they encounter you. You are quite expensive now, so don't go wasting resources and getting yourself destroyed."
Finally, the vixen formed a full sentence, "I'm beautiful." She looked at all the customization robians. "Mirror."
A customization robian rose one up, and the vixen beheld her own face for the first time.
She saw eyes blinking back at her, and a mouth full of plastic teeth and a motorized tongue forming raw sounds into words.
Her eyes then went dull as Sasha downloaded her new Prime Directive, and Mission objectives, and the two all important messages direction into her core on board data base.
Sasha looked at the totally upgraded robian she had effectively created. "You are now....hmmm. Mentor Units already use the `M' so that leaves out messenger... ah! Ah! Now I know! Your new designation is A-VIX-1. Messenger Unit A-VIX-1." `Angel, in it's direct translation, means messenger.'
And so her designation was A-VIX-1, could only be A-VIX-1, and had always been A-VIX-1.
"My designation is A-VIX-1." She said in a submissive voice, assuming her bow stance again, but this time CLOSING her eyes as she did so. "Is all your mission and function data properly installed?"
"Yes Companion Unit Sasha." "Then you are begin your mission at once without delay."
She looked Sasha in the eyes and nodded, "I'll do my best to be there before the sun closes and reopens it's eye Companion Unit Sasha!" She said using a Solitaran figure of speech.
"Go." Sasha said simply. "Deliver the messages to the designated maatlans at the locations given to you."
"As you command Command Companion Unit Sasha!"
And so the most expensive piece of hardware that had been produced by Robitaria, flew out of the Alchemist's Lab, out over the Inner City, out over the Outer City, ignoring the Alphas and Betas, and out over the ash field southwards, flying low.
As she did so, her AI reviewed her directives and objectives, and now cross referenced them, which she hadn't done before, or even had the -mind- to before. Then the last thing she could have ever wanted popped up in her head.
Warning Flag!
Attention: Maatlans do not refer to each other by designation, but by name, this unit lacks a code-name, a code-name is required for proper interaction with designated subjects.
A-VIX-1 pondered this conundrum, and pondered, but could not find a solution. But she needed a name if she was to fulfill one of her base directives of speaking with Maatlans in their style and terms. Should she turn around? She was already outside of radio contact with the system... it hit her hard she was ALONE! ALONE! She was disconnected form the system! The system!
She steadied herself, she would just complete her mission and return with post haste, she would prove she was worth all the resources that had just gone into her recreation, she would. Still, it was awful to be alone.
She listened to the various radio chitchats between other flies she managed to pick up, even natural flier needed headset radio to hear each other over the speeding winds.
That was when she heard her salvation, to at least one of her problems.
One of the flies she overheard on her radio... was singing...
"The world shall change, islands become mountains, mountains dust, but you will always be mine, my Melanie~"
And without a second thought, or even thinking of asking permission from the system wanting to follow her protcols as she should...she updated her own internal profile data, on her own!
And A-VIX-1, `Malanie' smiled to herself... then frowned, now her protocols told her, as she had to do was avoid being mistaken for an enemy bomber...