Servo 31:1
Servo 31:1
I returned to the room with a renewed sense of vigor. My friendat the electronics shop had been most helpful; not only with giving me the radios, but bringing me up to speed on what was going on in the Inner States. We had to get this plan rolling. “Dad?” I said, sitting down at the table.“Yes?”“I heard that the government is taxing citizens to the breaking point.”“Where’d you hear that?”“Oh, the guy at the electronics shop told me.”“Why did you go there?”I pulled the box from a bag. “I got these so we can stay in communication when you’re inside Servidyne.”“I can’t be seen carrying one of those around.”“You won’t. I’ll strip it out of the case and directly implant it into your head.”He picked up the box and studied it. “Hmm, good idea.”“And he also told me that you can’t just go to the main building.”“Why not?”“They won’t let anyone near there. Malfunctioning bots have to be brought to a collection center.”“Did he tell you where one was?”“I found one about five blocks to the north of here according to my tablet.”“That will certainly make it much safer for Suz and Otto.”“So we’ll need the radio to keep in contact with you.” I opened the box and fought with the annoying plastic packaging. Dad chuckled as he watched my frustration. “What’s the range on it?”I looked on the back. “Umm, about a mile.”“Not very far.”“Well, it was all they had.”“That means you’ll have to be close enough to Servidyne.”“I figure we’d take a taxi to a spot I found on a satellite overview map. There’s a low hill just to the southwest that might be a good place for us to wait.”“As long as you don’t draw suspicion.”“Don’t think we will.” I assembled my tools and set about disassembling one of the radios. Inside the package were two voice activated microphones. That would be very handy for Dad; he wouldn’t have to key the radio each time he wanted to speak. But it also meant we’d hear everything he said, and quite possibly everything going on around him. As I worked, I wondered if there was a way I could see what he’d be seeing as well. My tablet was outfitted with a wireless video input. All I’d need was a small camera implanted behind one of Dad’s eyes and I could watch his every move. Maybe tomorrow I’d go see my friend in the electronics store again. Otto sat down at the table and watched. “You think this plan will work?”“Unsure,” said Dad. “But we have to try.”“We did our best in getting all the new plates put on; still some small holes from where the other bot’s plates fit differently.”Dad looked at one of his arms. “Yes, I see. And they might too.”“Some elasto-polymer filler should do the trick.”“Hardware store?”“Probably.”I glanced up from my work. “I was planning on going out tomorrow. I can pick some up.”“Yes, do that. I can’t be compromised on this mission.”“That’s the last thing I want to have happen. We need to stop what’s going on here. It’s bad,” I said, pulling the “guts” out of the radio. “And when it’s done, I want to get out of here fast.”“We all do,” Otto replied. “I miss home. This was such a stupid idea. Who was I to think I’d fit into a society like this?”Suz wandered over and joined in the conversation. “You’re a really smart guy, Otto, but right now things aren’t good. If it had been different, I’m sure they would’ve treated you more fairly.”“No, this isn’t the world for me. I’d rather get kicked by a cow than live here.”I uttered a little laugh. Despite Otto’s intellect, he still possessed a back-country humor about him. The same kind of humor that filled Dagwood up to his eyeballs; oh, how I missed my friend. How long had we been gone? I’m sure it couldn’t have been more than a week or so, but it felt like years.
My tablet sat on the table. I poked at it, bringing up a calendar. At the end of the month, just a mere two weeks away, was a date circled—the beginning of the school year. I hoped we’d be back by then. Even though we were schooled in a different manner than the rest of the children, I still felt I was learning an amazing amount. Mrs. Graham kept our tiny class flexible when it came to education; she rarely had a structured lesson plan, and the tests were downright difficult. I had grown to love it.
I returned to the room with a renewed sense of vigor. My friendat the electronics shop had been most helpful; not only with giving me the radios, but bringing me up to speed on what was going on in the Inner States. We had to get this plan rolling. “Dad?” I said, sitting down at the table.“Yes?”“I heard that the government is taxing citizens to the breaking point.”“Where’d you hear that?”“Oh, the guy at the electronics shop told me.”“Why did you go there?”I pulled the box from a bag. “I got these so we can stay in communication when you’re inside Servidyne.”“I can’t be seen carrying one of those around.”“You won’t. I’ll strip it out of the case and directly implant it into your head.”He picked up the box and studied it. “Hmm, good idea.”“And he also told me that you can’t just go to the main building.”“Why not?”“They won’t let anyone near there. Malfunctioning bots have to be brought to a collection center.”“Did he tell you where one was?”“I found one about five blocks to the north of here according to my tablet.”“That will certainly make it much safer for Suz and Otto.”“So we’ll need the radio to keep in contact with you.” I opened the box and fought with the annoying plastic packaging. Dad chuckled as he watched my frustration. “What’s the range on it?”I looked on the back. “Umm, about a mile.”“Not very far.”“Well, it was all they had.”“That means you’ll have to be close enough to Servidyne.”“I figure we’d take a taxi to a spot I found on a satellite overview map. There’s a low hill just to the southwest that might be a good place for us to wait.”“As long as you don’t draw suspicion.”“Don’t think we will.” I assembled my tools and set about disassembling one of the radios. Inside the package were two voice activated microphones. That would be very handy for Dad; he wouldn’t have to key the radio each time he wanted to speak. But it also meant we’d hear everything he said, and quite possibly everything going on around him. As I worked, I wondered if there was a way I could see what he’d be seeing as well. My tablet was outfitted with a wireless video input. All I’d need was a small camera implanted behind one of Dad’s eyes and I could watch his every move. Maybe tomorrow I’d go see my friend in the electronics store again. Otto sat down at the table and watched. “You think this plan will work?”“Unsure,” said Dad. “But we have to try.”“We did our best in getting all the new plates put on; still some small holes from where the other bot’s plates fit differently.”Dad looked at one of his arms. “Yes, I see. And they might too.”“Some elasto-polymer filler should do the trick.”“Hardware store?”“Probably.”I glanced up from my work. “I was planning on going out tomorrow. I can pick some up.”“Yes, do that. I can’t be compromised on this mission.”“That’s the last thing I want to have happen. We need to stop what’s going on here. It’s bad,” I said, pulling the “guts” out of the radio. “And when it’s done, I want to get out of here fast.”“We all do,” Otto replied. “I miss home. This was such a stupid idea. Who was I to think I’d fit into a society like this?”Suz wandered over and joined in the conversation. “You’re a really smart guy, Otto, but right now things aren’t good. If it had been different, I’m sure they would’ve treated you more fairly.”“No, this isn’t the world for me. I’d rather get kicked by a cow than live here.”I uttered a little laugh. Despite Otto’s intellect, he still possessed a back-country humor about him. The same kind of humor that filled Dagwood up to his eyeballs; oh, how I missed my friend. How long had we been gone? I’m sure it couldn’t have been more than a week or so, but it felt like years.
My tablet sat on the table. I poked at it, bringing up a calendar. At the end of the month, just a mere two weeks away, was a date circled—the beginning of the school year. I hoped we’d be back by then. Even though we were schooled in a different manner than the rest of the children, I still felt I was learning an amazing amount. Mrs. Graham kept our tiny class flexible when it came to education; she rarely had a structured lesson plan, and the tests were downright difficult. I had grown to love it.
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