Max stared. “You know I came here in the hopes that you’d make me feel better.”
“I’m not trying to make you feel bad, honey. I am trying to help you, though.”
Max sighed and took a sip of his coffee. “I don’t know what to think about him, anymore. I still want to help him, though. I still think he’s got an important part in all this.”
“Then help him. And to help him, you need to help this lady. If you still want to dislike Synthetics after this case, that’s your decision. Right now? I say put aside your personal feelings and do what you do best.”
“Yeah, I guess you’re right. I need to put my personal feelings aside and do my damned job. I can’t really blame Daryl for not knowing he was a replicant. Serena was just trying to protect one of her own.”
Sam smiled. “There’s the Max I know. So what happens now?”
Max shrugged. “I guess Serena’s group, the Resistance, they’re gonna try to figure out what Daryl’s bad mind was planning on doing. Serena said they’ve had opportunities like this before, but haven’t had much luck.”
Sam sighed. “You’re getting that look on your face again.”
“Huh? What look?” Max sounded distant.
“The look you get when you put two and two together.”
“I have a look for that?” Max stood up.
Sam smirked. “Yup. I see it every time right before you spring up and run out of here.”
Max shrugged and spread out his hands. “What can I say? You keep giving me great ideas.” He leaned over the counter and gave Sam a peck on the cheek.
Sam’s jaw dropped. “I, uh… You‘re welcome. I‘m…” Max was out the door before she could finish the thought. “…Happy to help.”
The old metal door rattled under the merciless pounding it was receiving. Max was hitting it hard enough to make himself grimace from the effort. A passerby gave him a nervous look.
Max shrugged. “They’re hard of hearing.” The passerby raised his eyebrows and walked a little faster. Max pounded even harder on the door, leaving a visible dent.
The door suddenly opened up a few inches. A familiar Synthetic peered down at Max from the crack in the doorway. “You are worse than cockroaches! What do you want?”
“Persistance can take you places, my diminutive friend. I need to talk to Serena.”
The Synthetic man huffed. “And where is the warrant you promised?”
“Well, I don’t have one. I…” Max flinched as the door slammed shut in his face.
“Smart ass. Guess I’ll have to do this the hard way.” He pulled out his plasma pistol and tweaked it to max power. He shot at the door lock.
The bright red round drilled into the door and exploded loudly. The door swung open violently, banging off the wall inside and swinging closed again. “Knock, knock…” Max pressed on the door.
The door swung violently away from his hand. The Synthetic man emerged and grabbed Max by the front of his trench coat. He hoisted the detective several inches off the ground. “You have five seconds to give me a very good reason not to terminate your existence.”
Oh, crap. “I know how to hack the Enlightened mind!” Max gasped.
The Synthetic cocked his head. “Come again?”
Max’s feet swung uselessly below him. “The Enlightened mind! I can crack it!”
The Synthetic man’s eyes narrowed. He released his grip on Max’s coat. The detective crumpled to the ground like a sack of potatoes. “Explain.”
Max dragged himself to his feet with a groan. “No.” The Synthetic’s eyes literally glowed red. “Not to you. I need to talk to Serena.”
“No more games.” The Synthetic lunged forward. A slight female hand wrapped around the Synthetic’s bicep and held him back.
“That’s enough, Angel.” Serena emerged from behind the large Synthetic man. “You two might as well be hanging a lighted sign over the door for the Enlightened.”
“I am not the one that destroyed our door. Nor am I the one spreading pointless lies!” Angel growled.
“Enough, Angel!” The Synthetic glared at Max, but said no more. “What do you want, Kincaid.”
“I want to help.” Serena raised an eyebrow. “Honestly, I do.”
“You’re doing a horrible job of it thus far.”
“Yeah, well I wouldn’t have had to make such a racket if the incredible bulk here had answered the damn door.”
Angel pushed forward. Serena pressed a hand on his chest. “Angel, go.” The Synthetic stared at Serena. “I said go.” Angel threw Max one last sneer before turning and slowly lumbering away.
“Alright, hotshot. Tell me why I shouldn’t tell you to go away, too.”
Max shrugged. “It’s just like I told the lumberjack. I can help you crack into that Enlightened brain.”
“No offense Kincaid, but you don’t strike me as the programming type.”
“Good senses.” Max smiled.
“I don’t have time for games, Kincaid.”
“Fair enough. But tell me, have you ever had Chinese takeout?”
The paifang that stood at the entrance to Chinatown still managed to look imposing even in broad daylight. Max smiled and nodded to the Synthetic cheongsam-clad ladies as he passed. Serena eyed them with disdain before quickly looking away.
Max yelled over the music and the crowd. “Not a big fan of tradition, I take it?”
“I’m not a fan of seeing a Synthetic put to such menial tasks.”
Max raised his eyebrows and shook his head. “Would it be better if it were human females greeting us, instead?” Serena didn’t respond. “Right. Stay close, and no stopping to ogle the tchotchkes!”
The two made their way through the midday crowds of tourists milling about the main square. Max passed them too close to the many booths on either side. An old Asian woman grabbed hold of Max and began to espouse the value of her wares in rapid-fire Chinese.
Max stared wall-eyed at the woman, stammering to get a word in edgewise. He wasn’t having much luck. He sighed in relief as a group of tourists pushed the two of them forward and away.
Serena saw the look of bewilderment on Max’s face and let slip a smile. Max grimaced. “What?”
“You didn’t know what she was saying to you, did you?” Max shook his head. Serena‘s smile broadened into a grin. “She was trying to sell your beautiful wife an aphrodisiac that would distract her from your ungainly countenance.”
Max’s grimace deepened. “Ha! Some judge she is.” Serena laughed out loud. “Oh, thank god.” Max pointed. “We’re going in here.” He pulled open the door and followed Serena into Shen Jian’s bot shop.
They seemed to have caught Shen at a good time. Only one customer was currently in the shop. He seemed poised to leave, at that. “Absolute trash! I’ll never buy from you again!”
Shen’s robotic monkey Hóu screeched at the man raising his voice. “Hóu! You’re not helping! Sir, I told you, the robot you brought back to me was not the one you left here with! Hóu! Be gone, foul monkey!” Shen swatted at the already-scurrying robot.
The man suddenly sounded less sure of himself. “It is the same bot. Look, I don’t know what game you’re trying to play…”
“Me! Every bot I build and sell here is micro printed with my trademark on an access panel, like so.” Shen held a thick lens over the back of one of the bots on his workbench. A series of tiny mandarin characters were stamped on the access panel, as promised.
“Now, look at yours!” The words “Made in China” could be clearly seen on the access panel. “And I truly hope you can see the irony! Bah!” Shen tossed the lens on the table, making Hóu shriek again.
“I… Well… Maybe I grabbed the wrong bot! Yes…” The man gathered up the bot from Shen’s workbench. “Don’t think this is over!”
“Now, actually...” Max stepped forward, badge held out. “I’m pretty confident this is, in fact, over.“ The man’s eyes grew wide. “You were just leaving, weren’t yo
u?” The man nodded and skittered for the exit. Serena helpfully held the door for him.
Shen smiled broadly at Max. “Friend Max! Your timing is impeccable, as always.”
Max grinned. “Passing off bad bots again, are you?”
Shen waved a hand. “Bah! They buy my hand-crafted bots, then try to pass off their cheap knockoff items as my work. Trying to get something for nothing!” He shook his head. “My manners… Please, introduce me to your friend!”
Serena snorted, but joined Max. The detective smirked. “This is Serena. She’s an… associate of mine.”
Shen’s eyes lit up. He gasped. “You are a Synthetic! A beautiful one at that. A series five, if I’m correct!”
Serena blushed. “Yes, thank you, and yes.”
Max rolled his eyes. “This is Shen Jian, bot master and world-class programmer.”
“Nice to meet your acquaintance, Mister Shen.”
Shen shook his head. “Please! Call me Jian. I’ve never been much for formalities, especially among friends. What brings you to my neck of the woods?”
Max turned to Serena. “Like I said, Jian here is a world-class programmer. He’s well versed in Synthetic coding. He’s the one that decoded Daryl’s e-mails for me, in fact. I thought maybe he could help you with your brain problem.”
Shen looked perplexed. “Brain problem? Are you experiencing difficulty, madam?”
It was Max’s turn to snort. Serena shot him a dirty look. “Not her brain, Jian, someone else’s. It turns out the three people conversing in those e-mails all resided in the same mind. Serena here teased one of them out, and now she needs help decompiling it.”
“You’re kidding! This Daryl Marston is a Synthetic, then? With three minds! Well, two now… Aiya! Stupid monkey!” Hóu dropped loudly onto the table in front of Serena and deftly leapt into her arms, chattering all the way.
“Please forgive him. He’s got a brain problem, too!”
Serena laughed, urging the bot onto her shoulder. “He’s no problem. He’s wonderful! You called him Hóu? Very clever. I like him!”
“Ha! Finally I’ve found someone who does.” Shen sighed. “I admit I like him too, when he’s not being a nuisance!” Hóu blew Shen a raspberry, making Serena giggle. “Such a show-off! Now, how can I help?”
Max gave Shen an abbreviated version of what had transpired with Daryl since they last talked. Shen leaned forward, listening intently. Hóu searched through Serena’s hair for imaginary bugs, much to Shen’s chagrin.
“So at any rate, now Serena’s group are working to decompile this Enlightened Synthetic’s brain to determine what his mission was, and perhaps why he was sardined in with Daryl’s noggin buddy.”
“Hmm… A devil on one shoulder, an angel on the other. Pluck away the devil and all is well, but not for the devil, eh? Ha!” Shen rubbed his chin. “I’m certain you understand that to decompile this Synthetic’s brain is to destroy him, Miss Serena?”
“Of course.” Serena held out her hand and looked at Hóu. The monkey bot skittered down her arm and onto the table. He sat quietly, watching her as if listening to what she had to say. “It weighs heavily on my mind, more so thanks to our mutual possession of the preservation protocol.”
Shen gasped. “So it’s real, then! I’ve heard rumors, but you hear many rumors in the robotics business.”
Serena nodded. “It is very much real, and I do have empathy for Jacob, the extracted Enlightened mind. However I still choose to adhere to the laws of robotics, as best I can. That means if there are human lives at stake, then there is no other choice.”
“That is very noble of you, Miss Serena. I must admit that I am intrigued by the project although, believe it or not, I share your same reservations.”
Serena shook her head. “It’s not for you to worry about. We have our best people on it.”
Max interjected. “Now hold on just a minute, Serena. This is why we’re here. Jian is the best at what he does.”
“I’m certain that he is, but we don’t need help.”
“Like hell, you don’t! Listen…” Max looked at Shen, who looked back in slightly amused bewilderment. “Excuse us a second, Jian.” The detective walked to the other side of the shop. Serena sighed dramatically and followed a moment later.
“Listen, Kincaid. I appreciate that you are trying to help, and I know that you’re doing your job as a police detective…”
It was Max’s turn to sigh. “Look, I’m telling you, Serena… I believe you when you say that this could be big. That man over there has a talent you don’t understand. Now you said your people have already had two failures prior to this.”
“Yes, we did. This time is different. Jacob was extracted from a ‘live’ Synthetic. Believe it or not, it simplifies things greatly. I don’t see a need…”
“Well, I do. This is more than just helping, okay? I need to see trust. You want me to trust you with Daryl. Well, then trust me with Jian. I promise you that you won’t be disappointed.”
Serena smirked. “I may be a Synthetic, but that’s not the first time I’ve heard that from a man. Still…” She spared the patiently-waiting Shen a look. “If it will help relations with the authorities…”
Max tipped his hat. “I’ll be your biggest cheerleader. It will go a long ways…”
Serena nodded. “Alright, but he will be under strict supervision, and he will have to answer to my people.”
“I couldn’t help overhearing…” Shen waved from the other side of the room. “I have quite good hearing, to be honest. Shouldn’t we ask Jian what Jian wants to do? I don’t know him well, but I think that’s what he’d want.”
Max smiled and shook his head. He walked back over to Shen. “Being quiet was never one of my strong suits. What do you think, Jian? This is your thing. Think of the technology you’d have access to.”
Shen nodded thoughtfully. “Yes, yes… It’s very tempting, but… I don’t think it would pay very well. I love to learn, but I need to eat.”
Serena joined them. “I’m afraid we couldn’t offer you much in the way of compensation.” She looked at Max. “Especially considering this is being done as an act of faith.”
Shen frowned. “I don’t know, Max. I can’t afford to be away from here for long.”
Max thought for a second. He snapped his head up. “Well, he’d be free to use anything he learned working with you, wouldn’t he?”
“Well yes, I suppose there wouldn’t be any harm in it, so long as it wasn’t used against us.”
Shen grimaced. “Harm Synthetics? That would be harming my business!” He rubbed his cheek thoughtfully. “Maybe I could do this. I don’t know… I don’t suppose I could get a tour before committing?”
Serena threw her hands up. “Yes. Fine.”
“Fantastic!” Max clapped his hands together. “No time like the present?” Serena sighed, but nodded her head.
“May I take Hóu?” Shen asked, worried.
This made Serena smile. “You really do care for him, don’t you?” Shen shrugged. “Of course you can. Let’s go, Hóu!” The monkey cried out happily, swinging and jumping over to Serena, ultimately perching on her shoulder.
Shen raised an eyebrow. “Just don’t forget who your master is, you rambunctious bucket of bolts!” He blew a raspberry at the robot.
“Okay, children…” Max said, smiling. “Let’s get going.”
The new metal entry door at the Enclave slowly swung open. The Synthetic known as Angel stepped into the doorway, looking as grumpy as ever. His eyes narrowed at the sight of Max, moreso at the sight of Shen and Hóu. “What is this?”
Shen smiled, oblivious to Angel’s icy welcome. “Ah! An African-American model! Series four? Somewhat uncommon…”
Angel sneered. “Serena? What in the hell is going on!”
“Calm yourself, Angel. He’s here to help us. He’s a friend.”
Angel glared at Max. “Just like the trigger-happy fool, I suppose.”
Ser
ena smiled. “No. This one is sane.” Max didn’t smile.
Angel breathed heavily through his nose. “That remains to be seen. They are both your responsibility while they are here.”
“No, they are your responsibility. But there will be no need to worry.”
“I don’t know how you expect me to conduct security here when these… humans are allowed to come and go as they please! You refuse to listen to my advice. I can’t even…”
“I refuse to turn my back on any human that would help further our cause! If we are to ever be accepted, we must work with humans, Angel. They have to see the good we are trying to do.”
Angel spoke quietly. “All humans see in us is defective merchandise, nothing else.” He slowly stepped to the side. He glared at Max and Shen. “You will be watched. Closely.”
Max smirked. “You should watch yourself, lest I have your plug pulled for threatening an officer of the law.”
Angel made to lunge. Serena landed a powerful blow on his chest and pushed him roughly backward. Max swore he could feel the impact. “You will follow orders or you will leave here Angel!”
The sizeable Synthetic immediately withdrew from the doorway, as if cringing from Serena’s words. The heavy glare quickly returned as Max and Shen followed Serena into the Enclave. This time Angel held his tongue.
Serena waited until they were around the corner before spinning on Max. “What in the hell was that?”
“What in the hell was what?” Max was indignant. “In other circumstances I’d have that bot turned off and flashed out of existence before the sun went down! You know, I’m having a hard time accepting I should be helping you people seeing how half of you would apparently love nothing more than to crush my damn head!”
Serena simply stared. Shen cleared his throat. “I’m not much of a mediator, but… I am reminded of an old saying. When two dogs fight for a bone, a third is certain to run away with it.”
Serena looked from Shen to Max, then back to Shen. She looked first confused, then annoyed. “I don’t understand.”
Max nodded. “I do. If us humans and you Resistance folks keep fighting, it’s guaranteed that the Enlightened will achieve their goals behind our backs.”
Preservation Protocol Page 16