by Morin, J. S.
That’s why he always won.
Chapter Sixty-Nine
Rachel sat alone in her private workshop, idly munching on a protein bar as she studied the crystal matrix under a digital microscope. As she browsed the damaged region, the software was making a thorough map of the 3D structure of the hole, the jagged edges, and the scratches left by the passage of the slug that had gone through Toby521’s crystalline brain.
The chassis on the table behind her looked brand new. Toby521 barely had time to wear the coating of polish off his gleaming surfaces before taking a slug while trying to defend her.
Rachel slurped iced tea from a straw. There was a whole jug of the stuff in the refrigerator just a meter away. She was situated for the long haul.
Staring through the stereoscopic eyepieces, Rachel could see all the way through the brain. She’d studied cross-sections from the manufacturing line and knew the schematics, the mapping, and the crystallography by heart. But this was her first time seeing one in such dire circumstances.
Just looking at that hole gave Rachel a shiver. The slug had passed through from front to back in microseconds. The steel and nickel projectile had touched a functioning mind—warm, caring, brave, and selfless—and it had exited the back of a husk, nothing more than a complex arrangement of conductive molecules. Life and death, touching the same side of a glass from opposing sides.
The door chimed, startling Rachel upright.
“Enter,” she called out, and the door responded to her command.
Charlie13 entered. “You were due at work three minutes ago.”
Rachel pushed back her stool with a grating scrape on the steel floor. “Sorry. Soooo sorry. I turned off the volume on my computers so I wouldn’t get distracted, and I must have lost track of the time.”
“How is your investigation proceeding?” he asked.
Rachel breathed a quiet sigh. Technically, this was unrelated to her job. It came as a relief that Charlie13 was curious about her efforts. Even after spending so much time around him, the inner workings of her boss were a mystery.
“Well, weighing the collected fragments indicates that I’ve recovered 99.98 percent of the mass of the crystal matrix.” Rachel had spent days combing the area around and under Toby521’s inert chassis for as much of the crystal as she could recover. “Now I’m beginning the process of geometric reconstruction. I’m hoping that if I can find the relative orientation of all the pieces, I can interpret the data in all but the fracture lines where fragments meet.”
Charlie13 nodded. “Have you made an estimate of the degree of recovery you expect from this methodology?”
Rachel pursed her lips. “Theoretically, 85 percent. I intend to investigate methods to improve on that, though.”
Indeed, Rachel had a number of ideas related to how Toby521 might be restored. She had hoped that by scanning the intact portions of the brain, she might be able to make updates to the original Toby521 upload profile. By committee edict, Charlie13 didn’t keep used profiles on record to prevent duplication. But Rachel would mix Toby521 from scratch if that’s what it took to restore him. Plenty of the undamaged areas would contain memories of his single, abridged day of life.
Not that she was ready to present that plan to Charlie13 yet.
“I see,” Charlie13 said. “You’re fired.”
Rachel’s eyes shot wide. “I’m WHAT?”
“Fired. You no longer work for me.”
“But… no. What did I do? I’ll get right to work. I just lost track of time is all. It won’t happen again.”
“Of course, it won’t. You don’t have a job to be late to.”
Rachel’s breath came in shuddering gasps. She blinked to keep tears from forming. “But all I’ve wanted to do since I was emancipated was to mix new robots. I want to bring new life into the world.”
…without the gooey, painful parts of doing so biologically, she silently added.
Charlie13 stepped past her and leaned down to look through the stereo optics at Toby521’s brain. “It appears you have other priorities.”
“It’s a hobby,” Rachel protested. “I still want to work on Janet230. I’ll work late to make up the time.”
“This isn’t a 1920s meat-packing plant,” Charlie13 replied. “I don’t care about the number of seconds you spend working versus learning versus pursuing personal interests. I care about your development as a scientist.”
Rachel swept a hand at Toby521’s disembodied brain, scattered in 1,255 pieces across her workbench. “But I am developing. This is giving me a detailed underpinning in the hardware we work with on a daily basis.”
“Indeed. You seem to have developed quite a passion for it,” Charlie13 said. He strode over to the door, and it opened at his silent command. “Of course, that’s why I contacted Jason90 and informed him that you’d make an excellent apprentice. He’ll be much more help than I in restoring your friend to working order.”
Rachel’s jaw hung open. Before the door could shut behind Charlie13, she gathered herself and rushed after him. Leaping, she clung to his back and hugged until the metallic joints dug into her.
“Thank you!”
Charlie13 calmly disentangled himself and turned to face Rachel. “You are human. I can’t expect single-mindedness or rote thinking from you. Depth of knowledge without breadth will make you fixed in your beliefs. Go. Learn to build and repair robotic chassis and crystalline matrices. Invent new archetypes. Fix Toby521. Maybe you can tinker with the mixing simulator in your free time. I still have so much to study with the six non-native English archetypes that I might not have time to mentor you properly anyway. Come back in a year… in five… in twenty. I’m not going anywhere.” Charlie13 smiled. It was forced, but all his smiles were to some extent. “You’ll be welcome when you do.”
Rachel leaped up to hug Charlie13 again. “I will. I’ll make you proud of me, and I’ll be back.”
With that, she dashed off toward Jason90’s section of Kanto.
Author’s Note
When I first conceived of Charlie7 as a character, I knew he was destined to be the center of a web of lies and intrigue. The question was, how long would it be before that web began to unravel. For me, the answer was Rebel Robots.
After being the hero of Extinction Reversed and a key ally in both Brain Recyclers and Weaponized Human, it was time to spring a trap that revealed both his most deadly enemy and his darkest secret. I wanted to see Charlie on the defensive, fighting for the legacy he built.
But beyond that, my favorite addition to the Robot Geneticists universe was Abby. For me, one of the most fascinating elements of the new human society is how they grow from here. Genetically speak, Abby is Eve’s twin, but she and Plato raise her as a daughter. And she grows up in an environment with little in the way of preconceived notions, only history to guide her parents, and the resources of a whole world to devote to her education. But it was in envisioning the girl that would result from that upbringing that turned out the delightful little scamp that came across on the page.
If you enjoyed Abby as a five-year-old, just wait for the next book in the series. You’ll get to see what a grown-up version of her can do. I can’t even tell you anymore what my exact intent was originally for book five, because now that I think about it, I can’t conceive of anyone besides Abby starring in it. She’s been the most delightful surprise for me of the series.
Books by J. S. Morin
Black Ocean
Black Ocean is a fast-paced fantasy space opera series about the small crew of the Mobius trying to squeeze out a living. If you love fantasy and sci-fi, and still lament over the cancellation of Firefly, Black Ocean is the series for you!
Read about the Black Ocean series and discover where to buy at: blackoceanmissions.com
Twinborn Chronicles: Awakening
Experience the journey of mundane scribe Kyrus Hinterdale who discovers what it means to be Twinborn—and the dangers of getting caught using magic in a world
that thinks it exists only in children’s stories.
Twinborn Chronicles: War of 3 Worlds
Then continue on into the world of Korr, where the Mad Tinker and his daughter try to save the humans from the oppressive race of Kuduks. When their war spills over into both Tellurak and Veydrus, what alliances will they need to forge to make sure the right side wins?
Read about the Mad Tinker Chronicles and discover where to buy at: twinbornchronicles.com
Robot Geneticists
Robot Geneticists brings genetic engineering into a post-apocalytic Earth, 1000 years aliens obliterated all life.
Explore the ruins of the Human Age. Witness the glory of a world reclaimed from the apocalypse.
Charlie7 is the oldest robot alive. He’s seen everything from the fall of mankind at the hands of alien invaders to the rebuilding of a living world from the algae up. But what he hasn’t seen in over a thousand years is a healthy, intelligent human. When Eve stumbles into his life, the old robot finally has something worth coming out of retirement for: someone to protect.
Read about all of the Robot Geneticists books and discover where to buy at: robotgeneticists.com
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About the Author
I am a creator of worlds and a destroyer of words. As a fantasy writer, my works range from traditional epics to futuristic fantasy with starships. I have worked as an unpaid Little League pitcher, a cashier, a student library aide, a factory grunt, a cubicle drone, and an engineer—there is some overlap in the last two.
Through it all, though, I was always a storyteller. Eventually I started writing books based on the stray stories in my head, and people kept telling me to write more of them. Now, that’s all I do for a living.
I enjoy strategy, worldbuilding, and the fantasy author’s privilege to make up words. I am a gamer, a joker, and a thinker of sideways thoughts. But I don’t dance, can’t sing, and my best artistic efforts fall short of your average notebook doodle. When you read my books, you are seeing me at my best.
My ultimate goal is to be both clever and right at the same time. I have it on good authority that I have yet to achieve it.
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