“I have no idea, sir,” I lied, adding creatively, “Perhaps tomorrow?” Ralph Sigma-Two continued dancing from foot to foot. “Wutterfuk?” He bawled in a brief interlude from biting his bitty fingernails. “Wutterfuk ‘no idea’?” He aimed a vicious kick at… Continue Reading
“Say again, Control. Should I cut the red or the blue wire?” I wait, cutters poised in mid-air above both. Status reports scroll through my eyeline, but I ignore them. Every previous time I’ve dealt with an Improvised Explosive Device… Continue Reading
I protect Isaac. That is my purpose. The blizzard has let up somewhat since I left camp. It is still too heavy for anything organic to risk being outside, but that is no obstacle to me. Ahead, I can see… Continue Reading
Cyberline Mishap Report — Model: Male Cyberline iCompanion V2 Software Version: V4.86 Summary: Deadly iCompanion interaction due to auto-execution of the self-preservation routine. Recommend issue of an emergency software patch. iCompanion transcript: She’s sitting on the brown sofa with a… Continue Reading
Android JT1K checked its data. Alert: Power low. Reduce load. The solar flares they’d experienced in high orbit must have done more damage than had been recorded on board the mother ship. Power to the lander had almost drained. Decision:… Continue Reading
I looked at myself in the mirror, wishing that my eyes were lying to me — that this was all just some screwed up nightmare. But it wasn’t. My eyes were telling the truth. The bony, pinkish arms that I… Continue Reading
Darren faced his greatest creation and failure. The torso and head of the mechanical man leaned in the corner of the basement. Even limbless and freckled by rust, the old prototype was an awesome sight. It dominated the room, as… Continue Reading
The brilliant mad inventor Tarantula Turnbull built herself a robotic man, for all the wrong reasons. She called him Adam Mann, but it came out like, “A Damn Mann.” She hated men, but she admired their sleek power and cunning,… Continue Reading
We were in my office. The old dog lay in Simon’s lap. “She’s been with me twenty years,” he said. “Seems like forever.” He had been bringing her to my clinic for three years. “You got her while you were… Continue Reading
This time when Roo woke them up, some of the colonists began to cry. They looked around with eyes still bleary from deep sleep, at the medical robots that stood ready to check their status and Roo waiting to take… Continue Reading