Stephen looked at the one-eyed monster, then back at the crew. They all regarded him with awe.
“What’s wrong?” Stephen asked.
“You— you’re not stuttering,” Isellia said.
Stephen covered his mouth, as if he’d accidentally uttered an obscenity. In all the excitement, he hadn’t even noticed.
***
Slowly, the giant regained consciousness. Its eyes blinked open, and it looked around at the crew as if noticing them for the first time. Then it seemed to ignore them altogether, lifting itself up and back, so that it sat cross-legged in the sand. It looked at its foot, rubbing it a bit, then sat and was silent.
“What’s it doing?” Isellia asked.
“I-I-I don’t know,” Stephen shrugged.
“Your stutter’s back,” Isellia said.
“Don’t remind him,” Porter said.
“It’s ok-k-kay guys,” Stephen said, staring at the sand.
“Well, what’s that thing doing?” Isellia demanded. She looked at the giant sitting in the sand, its eye nearly closed. It appeared to be in a trance. Isellia walked as close as she dared to the giant, and stood looking up at it from where its feet rested. “I suppose I can’t shoot it now.”
Just then, the oasis reappeared. A canopy once again covered them, with lush palms and exotic flowers of colors brighter than what seemed possible. The giant now sat on a large pillow, intricately woven with fine golden threads over a purple fabric, with golden tassels that rivaled the brightness of the sun. Jewels dotted the pillow’s fabric. With it’s size, it could have served as a bed for all of them, with room to spare.
“I most certainly would hope that you wouldn’t shoot it,” said a newly familiar voice. Slithen appeared right behind Isellia’s shoulder, his breath inches from her ear. She jumped and turned, and reached for her holster. Porter placed his hand on top of hers, slowly shaking his head no.
“I can’t imagine one shooting such a peaceful beast, after all.”
“Just what is that thing?” Porter asked.
Slithen’s eyes widened in mock surprise. “Thing? I’ll have you know, that’s the last Gooohhhm left in the universe.”
“Gohm?” Joey asked.
“No, no, no,” Slithen said. “Try it with me. Gooohhhm. Gooohhhm. Right. Give it a try then.”
“Gooohhhm,” Joey said. “Gooohhhm.”
“Once is enough, young man, but yes, you’ve got it now.”
“Peaceful? That thing tried to kill us!” Isellia pointed at the beast, which seemed to be resting in oblivion.
“Well, the steel shard you pulled out of it seemed to chipper him right up, then, didn’t it? How happy would you be with such a thing lodged into your ankle, hmm?
“It prefers to meditate,” Slithen continued. “It will sit there for some time now.”
“How long?” Joey asked.
“Oh, by your time standards, a good century ought to do.”
“What!?” Joey asked. His and Isellia’s mouths both dropped.
“Okay, that’s all fine and dandy,” Porter said. “But I think it’s time you told us exactly what’s going on here.”
“Hmmm,” Slithen said. “Yes, I suppose you’ve earned that much. Celia.” He snapped his fingers, and she was standing behind them.
“You know I hate it when you do that, Slithen,” she said with a dangerous smile.
“Very well. Right, time your party was given some answers, then. The master awaits you on the mountain.”
“I thought you were the master,” Joey said.
“Oh, of all things! Yes, I can see how it might appear so, but—”
“He’s not the master,” Celia said, smirking and rolling her eyes.
“Well, you needn’t say it like that!” Slithen said, with mock hurt. “But yes, the master awaits you on top of the mountain. More answers there. Right, off you go then.”
The oasis disappeared, along with Slithen and the giant. but Celia remained, and a large mountain stood before them. The mountain felt more like it had always been there and they hadn’t noticed it than it had just appeared.
“It’s been awhile,” Celia said, looking up at the mountain. Her sunbathing bikini had been replaced by hiking gear with supplies. “Shall we be off then?”
***
The old man stood on top of a rock jutting from the side of the mountain that overlooked the desert. He stroked his long white beard a couple of times, watching the crew making its way toward his mountain.
“Finally, you have returned,” he said to himself. His feet, cracked and weathered, and clad in simple wood sandals, perfectly held the rock he stood on. With perfect grace, he leaped backward, flipping over and landing on the path that led back to his cave.
“Perhaps I should shave,” the old man muttered to himself, stroking his beard as he disappeared down the path.
Chapter 17
“You know, I’m getting a little tired of all this walking!” Isellia complained as she huffed and puffed along, her shoulders slumped and her eyes droopy. They’d been walking for the better part of half a day, and the mountain path grew steeper as it wound a trail up through the sparsely populated slope. Few trees clawed their way between cracks in the rocky surface next to the trail. The sun shone on the other side of the mountain, casting a shadow that started as a relief from the heat, but was starting to cast a chill on everyone.
“Good for you,” Rex said, trudging along with little effort. He hardly seemed to be breaking a sweat. “Makes your legs strong.”
Everyone save the robot was soaked in sweat, and the cool air made their clothes heavy, the fabric clinging to them. Isellia became increasingly aware of how terrible she smelled; the odor reminded her of a wet dog.
Trees began dotting the trail with more frequency, reaching their way through the rocks and mini cliffs toward the sky. Isellia appreciated the change in scenery, but her legs ached and her back hurt from pitching forward toward the mountain.
At least the sand had been level.
“Let’s take a break,” Isellia said, stopping in her place.
The robot looked from her to Rex to Isellia and back again. “Inferior systems,” the robot said, its LEDs blinking once. “Recommend abandonment.”
Porter smirked while Isellia pouted. “Shut up, you rusted out piece of space garbage!”
She picked up one of the rounded cones that grew on the trees like ornaments and threw it at the robot’s head. The tiny cone made a “pink” as it bounced off the metal chassis.
Isellia chuckled at the ring it made, and picked up another one. “Direct hit!” she yelled. Everyone laughed, save for Rex.
She launched another, but it flew off course and headed toward Joey. With lightning speed, the robot unholstered its ROU and sent a red laser blast toward the cone, instantly vaporizing it into dust that blew past Joey’s face.
“Fastest draw in the stars,” the robot said, twirling the weapon before he holstered it.
“What the heck was that?” Isellia asked.
“He’s been watching shows on the holo,” Joey said.
“Must be imitating Space Pirate TM,” Porter joked.
“Is that some old fogey show from your youth?” Isellia asked.
Porter crossed his arms. “Yes, an old fogey show from my youth. And a damned good one, I’ll have you know. You’re too young to appreciate it.”
“Might as well stop here,” Rex said. “It’s going to get harder here on out.”
“Harder?” Isellia said, her eyes growing big.
“Yep,” Rex said. “And stop throwing cones.”
***
The further they all ascended the mountain, the more walking turned into climbing. The path grew steeper and more rocky, and each had to search carefully for their next foothold. The trees thinned out, with a few stragglers jutting through the spaces between the rocks. Isellia grabbed a branch when she could to help pull herself up.
The transition between walking and cl
imbing blurred, as they seemed to be doing a little of both. Rex seemed to know the mountain, so everyone followed his lead as best as they could. Porter noticed it, wondering why Rex seemed to know this path so well, but he kept his thoughts to himself.
The path eventually transformed into a maze of rocks. Sometimes a makeshift path presented itself between crag; at other times the crew found themselves simply climbing over boulders that just kept getting bigger. Rex showed them some basic rock climbing holds, which helped a little. The robot slowed their progress, as it needed to carefully engineer its way over some of the more challenging passages.
“Who’s inferior now?” Isellia joked as the robot became stuck on a particularly tricky rock that needed climbing.
“Humans are inferior to robots,” the robot responded.
“We’re all better together,” Joey said, smiling,
“What’d you learn that, in kindergarten?” Isellia mocked.
“Shut up!”
“Guys, stop bickering and help the robot up.” Porter was starting to lose his patience as fatigue set in.
Stephen took some rope from a small pack and handed it to Rex.
“That should help,” Stephen said.
They gathered on top of the rock, bracing themselves to pull the machine up with them. They strained with effort to hoist the machine up and over the rock face.
“Ugh, what have you been eating?” Isellia said, pulling with all her might.
“Robots to not eat,” it said as it hung from the rock face.
“Stop talking and pull,” Porter said, straining against the rope.
Just as they reached the limits of their strength, the rope seemed to move on its own accord. Without bothering to question it, they pulled with renewed effort as the robot easily mounted the rock.
Porter and the others dropped the rope as the robot stood up on the granite-colored rock, looking around to see what had assisted their effort. They almost didn’t see the small, bald man with a long white beard.
“Thought you could use some help,” the small old man said, smirking. His eyes momentarily caught a glimpse of Isellia’s chest, then he bounded away, impossibly spry for a man his age.
“Master,” Rex said, watching the old man.
“Pervert!” Isellia yelled as he disappeared into the mountain side.
***
They continued on, the old man appearing periodically, usually just to wink at Isellia or peer at her inappropriately. He left subtle clues for Rex to find during the crew’s trek up the mountain, clues too subtle for the others to pick up. The robot recognized the pattern but felt no need to assert that fact, since the outcome was already positive. A robot will always strive to be correct, but has no egotistical need to be right.
Rex stopped and picked up a broken twig, examining it between his fingers. It’s dark brown bark had a rough surface with an orangish under bark. Rex’s eyes lit up nearly imperceptibly.
“What is it?” Porter asked, puffing next to him. The large man’s bulk weighed heavily on him as he’d struggled to continue up the mountain.
“Rest time!” Isellia announced, plopping on the ground with abandon. She snow-angeled in the brown grass of the plateau they all stood on, her chest heaving.
“We’re almost there,” Rex said, his eyes narrowing.
“Almost where?” Joey asked.
“Yeah,” Isellia heaved, “are we just about done? I ache everywhere...” She rubbed her thighs, which ached. The robot and Stephen crested the plateau as Joey attempted to catch his breath.
“How could this be?” Rex asked, staring at the branch.
“It’s not real, whatever it is,” Porter said. “We’re in the server.”
“Are those real?” an old man’s voice mused. Isellia jumped up at the sight of the old man looking down on her chest.
“Pervert!” She yelled. “I’ll kick the plasma out of you!” Isellia swung a roundhouse kick out as fast as she could.
She nearly fell off balance as her leg seemed to pass right through him.
“What the — are you a hologram?”
“He doesn’t need to be,” Rex said.
“That’s the first nice thing you’ve said to me in years,” the old man lit up, chuckling under his breath.
“That’s the first nice thing I’ve said to you,” Rex returned. “Ever.”
“Indeed,” the old man said. “But you’ve brought such a lovely young lady for me.”
“She’s not ‘for you,’” Rex said. “Don’t worry, he only likes to tease. He’s too old and brittle to do anything else.”
A dark shadow crossed the old man’s face, his eyes grew narrow, his features hardened. No one among them could explain it, but they all, even Rex, felt a chill.
Then the feeling was gone, the happy, perverted old man was back. But none of them could look at him the same way.
“Anyway,” Rex said. “Leave the ‘young lady’ alone, old man.”
“We’ll see...” The old man said, stroking the long hairs of his white beard. Suddenly he lifted a finger behind him and spun impossibly fast. Before they could blink, Celia was lying on the ground in front of him. Kenpur held her wrist while the weight of her body held her arm in a locked position.
“Close,” the old man chuckled. He patted her arm and gave the slightest of nudges, sending her rolling and onto her feet. She stood next to Rex and cracked her knuckles.
“Well, can’t blame me for trying,” Celia said. Everyone looked at her in surprise, remembering how strong Rex was, and how Celia had wiped the floor with him.
Joey stood on the other side of Rex. “Is he really that strong?” Suddenly Rex seemed less intimidating by comparison.
“He was being gentle. He could have snapped her neck with a slight twist.”
Joey stared at him blankly.
“Don’t worry, he’d never harm his favorite student.” Rex gave a dry stare to Celia, who winked back at him.
***
They followed the old man across the plateau to a small cave. The members of the crew could see a glow of a fire dancing on the cave’s rocky walls. They felt its warmth as they entered the small opening, which was barely high enough to cover their heads. Joey wondered how many years the old man had lived like this — or lived in this manner in a real cave somewhere. Joey kept telling himself that none of this was real, but it was hard to believe; everything felt so real.
The narrow path inside opened up to a larger cavern, with a fire pit roaring in the middle. Craggy sticks and a few larger logs fueled the blaze, which felt warm and comfortable after having walked in the cool mountain air.
The old man motioned them to sit with a slight gesture of his hand. Isellia noticed a look of deviousness in the old man’s eyes as she passed him. She wasn’t sure whether it was a child-like playfulness or whether something more sinister was on his mind. It made her uncomfortable either way.
As she passed him, the old man reached out to pinch her. Isellia swatted his hand away before she had time to think.
Rex and Celia quickly rose to their feet to stop what was surely going to be a thrashing.
But the old man only laughed. “You learn quickly,” he mused, rubbing his long, bushy white beard.
Rex and Celia slowly sat back down cautiously. Isellia said nothing; instead, she stared down at her hand, wondering how she had reacted so quickly. The old man still grinned at her.
They all took their seats around the fire. The embers cast an orange glow on the old man’s face, making him appear more ancient than he already had. The fire’s light accented the cracks and wrinkles on his face. Everyone looked him, as indirectly as possible, since no one wanted to make eye contact. Even Rex and Celia didn’t quite know what to expect as everyone sat in uncomfortable silence.
The old man cleared his throat loudly. “I thought I trained you two better than this,” the old man grunted.
“Forgive me, master,” Celia purred. “I forgot introductions. This is mast
er Kenpur.”
“Master Kenpur?” Joey said.
“He is our beloved teacher,” she continued. “You might have been impressed with our skills, but we’re nothing compared to this fellow.”
“And we’re not nearly as old,” Rex added.
“Young enough for the likes of you,” the old man teased, shadow boxing into the air playfully. Joey smiled at this, and Isellia rolled her eyes. But no one disbelieved it, after seeing him flatten Celia without hardly moving.
“Too old for robot.” Its green LEDs flashed across the cave wall.
“A challenge?” Master Kenpur winked open one eye.
“Issued.” The robot said unmoved.
“Later,” Rex said. “We’re here. Why did you summon us, old man?”
The old man sighed, his fun delayed by more serious matters. The young were always so eager to rush into seriousness. Fun is what keeps the soul alive, he thought to himself.
He settled down, sighing with his age.
“Let me tell you ...” he began.
***
“You found this place?” Joey asked, drinking a bitter tea the old man had brewed over the fire. Joey wrinkled his nose at the strong flavor of the brown liquid, but he couldn’t say he didn’t like it.
The old man nodded, smiling and sipping his tea. The fire’s light brightened the old man’s features, illuminating the cave’s stony walls. The fire offered them all some warmth that contrasted with the cool, dry air that hung inside the cave.
“How?” Porter asked, not understanding how someone who lived in a cave could possess the technical understanding to find and operate a virtual world.
Master Kenpur giggled to himself. “Young people,” he laughed. “Think there’s only one way to do things.”
Porter flushed with shame. He prided himself on wisdom; being cowed by the old man struck a cord.
“This is Babel IX, then,” Porter asked.
Robot Awareness: Special Edition Page 21