Servo 22:2
Servo 22:2
That night, as I readied for bed, Dad stood looking out my bedroom window. “You haven’t heard from Suz, have you?”“No.”“I’m worried about her.”I didn’t reply. A miniscule part of me missed her. She’d always been mean to me and Rory, so her absence brought a welcomed breath of relaxation to the old house. It was nice not dealing with her sour attitude or barbed ridiculing of our very existence. “You said she might’ve run away to the Inner States?”“Probably,” I replied, pulling on a pair of sleep shorts. “She and Otto disappeared, not so much as leaving a note.”“I fear she might be in distress.” He turned to me. “Your sister is nearly off the charts intelligent, but she doesn’t have a lick of common sense.”All I could do was laugh. Dad was spot on in his ascertainment of Suz’s skill in the real world. She didn’t even know how to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. How could she survive in the Inner States without assistance? I doubted Otto, despite his cunning, would know what to do. He’d been thrust into an entirely different world. Citizens of the Inner States would immediately recognize him as a foreigner and opportunities would close like doors being slammed in his face. He’d be treated as nobody—just like Rory and I, should we return for college. It didn’t matter that we were GEE and born there, because we came from the Outer States, we’d immediately be shunned. Dad held up a finger. “It’s not funny. She could be in real trouble.”“Sorry,” I said, clamping my lips together to prevent any further outbursts. “We need to find her.”“How?”“Go to New Philadelphia. I bet that’s where she went.”“Get there, how?”“On foot if we have to.”“Dad, that’s a long way away.” I sat down on the bed. “And we have another problem.”“What?”“You can’t be seen around here.”“Why not?”“No license.”He cocked his head.“Anyone having a bot in the Outer States has to get a license and pay lots of money.”“Absurd!”“No, it’s true. If someone gets caught with an unlicensed bot, they could go to jail and lose everything.”“Rather harsh,” he said, walking over to my wardrobe. The door was open and he stood looking at himself in the mirror. “I’m a bot, and then I’m not.” Dad touched the mirror. “A conscious, sentient being trapped in a metal body.”“I’m sorry.”“For what?”“Doing that to you. It was wrong.”“Why do you say that?”“I wanted something better.”He came over and sat next to me. “What do you mean?”“I wanted to make you like Grandma.”“Grandma? She’s human, and very much alive.”“No, no, Tom’s grandma.”“Who is Tom?”“In the book.”Dad took my hand. “Jonah, what are you talking about?”“Fantoccini. He made them so real.”My father sat quietly. Perhaps he was accessing his data base. “Fantoccini? As in Guido Fantoccini?”I nodded. He chuckled. Although the voice modulation did a horrible job and it sounded like metal clacking together. “Oh, my son, you are a misguided visionary.”“I wanted to give you warmth.” I gently squeezed his hand, but I doubt he felt it. “I wanted to make you my father all over again.”“There is nothing more noble than that.”“Instead, I made you Frankenstein’s monster.”“No, you didn’t. I’m not a monster. I’m here because of you and a miracle. Fate brought that lightning bolt to the barn. Fate brought me back from the dead.” He lifted my hand and held it to his chest. “You can’t see it, and you can’t feel it, but inside, I’m thrilled to be alive—even in this metal body. I was wrong to say I felt trapped. Jonah, what you did was totally amazing. I cannot think of a single soul that was able to bring someone back from the dead. You have achieved the impossible.”“Still, you deserve a better body.”“Don’t worry about that. In time, I’m sure we can create something warm for me to live in.”“I’d like that.”“So would I. But first we need to find your sister.”“How are we going to do that?” “We’ll need the help of your friends.”
That night, as I readied for bed, Dad stood looking out my bedroom window. “You haven’t heard from Suz, have you?”“No.”“I’m worried about her.”I didn’t reply. A miniscule part of me missed her. She’d always been mean to me and Rory, so her absence brought a welcomed breath of relaxation to the old house. It was nice not dealing with her sour attitude or barbed ridiculing of our very existence. “You said she might’ve run away to the Inner States?”“Probably,” I replied, pulling on a pair of sleep shorts. “She and Otto disappeared, not so much as leaving a note.”“I fear she might be in distress.” He turned to me. “Your sister is nearly off the charts intelligent, but she doesn’t have a lick of common sense.”All I could do was laugh. Dad was spot on in his ascertainment of Suz’s skill in the real world. She didn’t even know how to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. How could she survive in the Inner States without assistance? I doubted Otto, despite his cunning, would know what to do. He’d been thrust into an entirely different world. Citizens of the Inner States would immediately recognize him as a foreigner and opportunities would close like doors being slammed in his face. He’d be treated as nobody—just like Rory and I, should we return for college. It didn’t matter that we were GEE and born there, because we came from the Outer States, we’d immediately be shunned. Dad held up a finger. “It’s not funny. She could be in real trouble.”“Sorry,” I said, clamping my lips together to prevent any further outbursts. “We need to find her.”“How?”“Go to New Philadelphia. I bet that’s where she went.”“Get there, how?”“On foot if we have to.”“Dad, that’s a long way away.” I sat down on the bed. “And we have another problem.”“What?”“You can’t be seen around here.”“Why not?”“No license.”He cocked his head.“Anyone having a bot in the Outer States has to get a license and pay lots of money.”“Absurd!”“No, it’s true. If someone gets caught with an unlicensed bot, they could go to jail and lose everything.”“Rather harsh,” he said, walking over to my wardrobe. The door was open and he stood looking at himself in the mirror. “I’m a bot, and then I’m not.” Dad touched the mirror. “A conscious, sentient being trapped in a metal body.”“I’m sorry.”“For what?”“Doing that to you. It was wrong.”“Why do you say that?”“I wanted something better.”He came over and sat next to me. “What do you mean?”“I wanted to make you like Grandma.”“Grandma? She’s human, and very much alive.”“No, no, Tom’s grandma.”“Who is Tom?”“In the book.”Dad took my hand. “Jonah, what are you talking about?”“Fantoccini. He made them so real.”My father sat quietly. Perhaps he was accessing his data base. “Fantoccini? As in Guido Fantoccini?”I nodded. He chuckled. Although the voice modulation did a horrible job and it sounded like metal clacking together. “Oh, my son, you are a misguided visionary.”“I wanted to give you warmth.” I gently squeezed his hand, but I doubt he felt it. “I wanted to make you my father all over again.”“There is nothing more noble than that.”“Instead, I made you Frankenstein’s monster.”“No, you didn’t. I’m not a monster. I’m here because of you and a miracle. Fate brought that lightning bolt to the barn. Fate brought me back from the dead.” He lifted my hand and held it to his chest. “You can’t see it, and you can’t feel it, but inside, I’m thrilled to be alive—even in this metal body. I was wrong to say I felt trapped. Jonah, what you did was totally amazing. I cannot think of a single soul that was able to bring someone back from the dead. You have achieved the impossible.”“Still, you deserve a better body.”“Don’t worry about that. In time, I’m sure we can create something warm for me to live in.”“I’d like that.”“So would I. But first we need to find your sister.”“How are we going to do that?” “We’ll need the help of your friends.”
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