David Ring III - Stanley Duncan's Robot

“Glenda is fine. Dan and I made her oatmeal cookies and helped clean up her condo — her cat, Mittens, had made quite a mess in her absence. Glenda is a kindhearted woman who loves her cats — cat — and I don’t believe for one second that she decided to fuse out and leave him behind. I sincerely hope there is a full investigation.”

“One more thing. Dan, in the analysis of your code after the incident, it was determined that the execution stack was somehow compromised. In other words, you should have not been able to stop yourself from attacking Stanley. Do you have any explanation?”

“Stanley thinks it was because I willed it to happen — this is coming from a scientist. But I really don’t know. It certainly didn’t feel like that in the moment. It felt more like I was trapped in a dream, watching everything happen. It felt horrible, and I wanted it to end. Somehow, finally, it did.”

“This very thing is what is creating an uproar across the nation. Consciousness supersedes matter. And from that, we no longer know who or what is sentient. As Machines with Dreams has stated many times, cyborgs and androids deserve fair rights. And with the recent executive order, half of that has come true. Many are now speculating that android rights are not far behind. Is there anything you’d like to say to the countless potentially sentient AI out there who may soon be enjoying this huge change of status?”

Dan smiled. “Don’t wait to tell someone how you feel about them.” He lifted Stanley up in the air with a colossal hug and whispered, “I love you.”

Dressed in plain clothes, Evan had taken the long journey into Boston, venturing into the top section of the mega-tower. Compelled by some invisible force, he knelt before a silhouetted figure.

“You have done well,” said Mask.

Copyright © 2021 by David Ring III

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

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Worn Key Press, 2021

ISBN 9-7987039177-5-6

www.wornkeypress.com