Ionic Attraction

by D. R. Rosensteel

  Zach huffed. “Yeah. Special, as in ‘specially made for ex-cons.’ Mikey and Nol get to be in the internship program, but I’m stuck in some special program that says ‘This dude was in jail.’ Forgive me if I don’t do backflips.”

  “You’re not an ex-con, Zachary.” Mom’s voice softened. “You are a juvenile offender who has done his time. Once you turn eighteen, you won’t even have a record.”

  “Doesn’t give me back the 6 percent of my entire life that I spent in jail for something I didn’t do.”

  “5.9 percent,” Nolan said quietly, then shrugged. “If you want to be exact.”

  Zach smirked at him.

  “My sons, the math whizzes.” Mom shook her head. “Speak English.”

  “He went in at sixteen,” Mike said. “Spent one year locked up, then out at seventeen. One seventeenth is 5.9 percent. Sucks, right?”

  “Long time to spend locked up,” Nolan said.

  “For something I didn’t do,” Zach repeated.

  “You’re free now.” Mom looked away and disappeared back the way she had come. “Wash up. Supper in five,” she added from the hall.

  “Do you think Mom thinks I’m guilty?” Zach blinked back tears. “She didn’t say—”

  Suddenly both his brothers dove on top of him, pinning him to the floor.

  “Nobody thinks you’re guilty,” Mike snarled from the top of the pile. “Mom hates it as much as we do. So don’t go all ogre on her, or even if it takes both of us, we’ll kick your butt. She just feels like there’s nothing she can do. But we don’t do helpless.”

  “We have a plan,” Nolan said. “Orientation for the internship starts tomorrow, and you have to be the brainiac you used to be. Because the Mastermind Complex has the tech we need.”

  “I might need a translator.” Zach shoved Nolan off. “I don’t speak science anymore. I just drool.”

  “Bring a bib.” Nolan shoved back. “Zach, turn your brain back on. This internship will give us everything we need.”

  Mike threw a headlock around him. “I told you we have a plan.”

  “Yeah, right.” Zach fought the urge to escape. Last person who put him in a headlock went to the infirmary with a cracked ulna.

  Mike released Zach and shouldered him onto the bed. “We get to use LYDIA.”

  “Seriously?” The talking supercomputer that runs the Mastermind Complex. The one with the voice that sounds human. Zach hadn’t thought about that. His mood lightened a bit.

  Mike nodded. “So powerful she makes China’s Sunway TaihuLight look like a flip phone.”

  “Research power,” Nolan said. “Imagine what we can get with computing capability like that.”

  “Retribution,” Zach said under his breath. His year of planning revenge hadn’t resulted in anything solid, but having that kind of tech available to him…his chances of success just improved exponentially.

  “Exactly,” Mike said.

  Zach closed his eyes to think.

  “Look out, here he goes,” Nol said. “Hear the synapses firing?”

  “Oh, yeah, the turbos just kicked in,” Mike said. “Our brother’s back. What’cha got, Zach?”

  He opened his eyes. “Mikey, can you write me an algorithm to identify anyone who’s done research on the Supercompact Muon Solenoid?”

  “Dude, I like where you’re going,” Mike said. “And Nolan can design a detector to pick up on the high-frequency signals it emits.”

  “Then we’ll trace it to its current location, and BAM!” Nolan held out a fist. “We’ll find the unsub who set you up.”

  “Unsub?” Zach flipped his hands. “Are we filming a police show?”

  “Just trying to set the mood.”

  “But we can’t do any of that without LYDIA’s horsepower.” Mike held his fist out as well. “Which we’ll have once we’re in the Mastermind program. Tomorrow.”

  “Okay, but the first person who mentions my ‘special program’ will feel the wrath.” Zach reached out and they did a three-way fist bump.

  …

  The Mastermind Complex sat in the heart of Quantum City, just south of Chicago. While Chicago had long been known as one of America’s most advanced cities for its cutting-edge tech, Quantum City was the world-renowned center specializing in robotics. Zach had seen the Mastermind Complex plenty of times on video and in magazines, but up close…

  “This is amazing,” he said, but even that word didn’t do it justice.

  The Complex was built entirely of crystal. It filled twelve city blocks and rose so high it blocked the sun. Air traffic had to be routed away due to the glare from the glass structure. The Mastermind Complex housed LYDIA, and to Zach, that made it the eighth Wonder of the World, because it would give him the power to take his life back and ruin the swine who’d taken it away.

  “It’s like a freakin’ space station in here,” he said as they entered the lobby. The tech surrounding them made his heart thump. Glass hovervators reached into the stratosphere, drones zipped back and forth like hornets between floors, thousands of people funneled through the multi-field science exhibits that the Complex was so famous for. Monitors the size of houses hung from every wall, advertising exhibits and special sessions that went on in other parts of the Complex. Sunlight shattered like a laser light show as it passed through the glass walls and ceilings.

  And there were robots everywhere. Bipeds served drinks in the café. Guard-bots stood at every entrance. Bio-bots that could almost pass for human led group tours on hovercraft that defied gravity on a proton force field. The Complex was nearly its own city, and it was all powered by LYDIA.

  Zach noticed a massive wall monitor above the hovercraft and saw himself standing next to his lanky brothers. He waved, and his image waved back.

  “A latte, Mr. Keen?” a jerky electronic voice said. “Or perhaps some tea?”

  He turned to find a biped holding a tray of drinks. It was an early model robot, the kind with the plastic, emotionless face and tinny voice. “You don’t sound like LYDIA.”

  The biped’s head tilted to the side. A badly designed attempt at body language. “I’m not a Synthetic. Only a Synthetic would logically be given a voice indistinguishable from a human’s.”

  “Logically,” Zach agreed. “How do you know my name?”

  “I am coded with facial recognition algorithms.” The biped stood straight and tilted its chin up. “Your face and other pertinent data were made available to me when you entered the Mastermind Complex. You are Zachary Keen, a seventeen-year-old male with an extraordinarily high IQ, who was recently released from prison and assigned to the Mastermind Special Program.”

  Zach grunted. Special Program—even the robots thought he was a criminal. He turned his back on the robot. “Great start. Let’s tell the whole world I’m an ex-con.”

  “You’re the only one who’s worried about that,” Nolan said.

  Before he could respond, the perky voice of a female announcer echoed through the Complex. Zach was not in the mood for perky.

  I trust you are enjoying your time at the Mastermind Complex, home of the world’s foremost in scientific advancement. Don’t forget to read the schedule for upcoming events of interest. Thank you for stopping by. Be sure to add your name to our holo list for Mastermind Complex updates.

  Nolan took a deep breath. “Did you hear that?”

  “LYDIA,” Mike said with awe.

  Laced Yottabyte Dynamic Intelligence Algorithm. LYDIA was the world’s first supercomputer with advanced AI programming and a human personality. And now, she was Zach’s best chance at revenge.

  Mike added, “She sounds even better in person than she does in my collection of internet clips.”

  It took a second for Zach to realize what he’d heard. “You collect clips of LYDIA talking?”

  “Hacked them, te
chnically. They’re not public domain.”

  “And I thought I had a lot of time on my hands in juvie.”

  “They did an amazing job designing her voice.” Nolan folded his arms and gazed around the Complex. “Laced artificial intelligence algorithms with enhanced phonetic code powered by Radium-Xenon processors. Nothing like the old tech that dumps clumpy speech clips into a legacy synthesizer. Finally. A computer that sounds like a real human. They took third generation AI to its limits. Passed every Turing Test like a rocket. Voice inflection, emotion…LYDIA has it all.”

  Zach cocked his head at his brother. Nolan’s passion for cutting edge tech was legendary. “Did you get this excited when Siri came out?”

  Nolan smirked. “LYDIA makes Siri sound like a troll.”

  “Thank you,” LYDIA’s voice said, but it didn’t echo from the walls this time. It was right behind Zach. “That is an unusually kind thing for a human to say.”

  Zach turned slowly, expecting a robot channeling LYDIA’s voice. But what he saw didn’t look mechanical at all. It looked so human he did a double take. A cute girl with an enormous smile and bright eyes. This android looked about his age, totally gorgeous, and wore a formfitting lab coat as though the robot were trying to play scientist.

  Wow. “So this is what a Synthetic looks like.”

  Chapter Four

  Jane

  The War Room was Jane’s favorite part of the Mastermind Complex. It was her safe place. The monitors allowed her to keep tabs on everything that happened in the Complex. All the power of LYDIA was at her fingertips. She could plan. She could think.

  Then why was she so uncomfortable?

  Two words. Zachary Keen.

  She was happy that the two younger Keen brothers were also in the program. Michael was a prodigy with information system security and would be a great partner for Anna. And Nolan was the perfect complement to Mina’s abilities, with his expertise in the field of physics.

  But Zachary? She’d memorized his profile. Jane’s propensity to trust everyone was the reason she had been kidnapped. Zachary’s total lack of trust would be a good balance. The problem was, she had betrayed his trust before she ever had it. What if he found out what she had done? The mission would be a failure, and she’d never hear the end of it from her father.

  Jane watched the triplets enter the building on the main entrance monitor. She glanced at her dad and got a sinking feeling when the corners of his mouth jerked down.

  He sat at the far end of the War Room table, with his hands folded neatly in front of him, and pierced her with a glare. “I don’t like him, Jane. Not at all. He may be innocent of that crime, but he’s not right for this team. He’s not right for you. I don’t suppose telling you again what a bad idea this is will do any good, will it?”

  “Dad, please. I owe him this much.”

  “You owe Zachary Keen nothing.” Dad glanced up at the camera. “And it’s Mr. Parker, Miss Lew. Why do I have to keep reminding you?”

  Jane held back a huff. Her father was as stubborn as…well, as stubborn as she was. “Very well, Mr. Parker. Excuse me while I fake a happy face and try to make Zachary feel welcome.”

  “Good morning,” Jane said, extending her hand, forcing a pleasant smile. “I’m Jane Lew. I’ll be your guide for orientation.”

  “Wow.” Zachary stared at her outstretched hand then turned to his brothers. “This robot is so lifelike. Somebody wrote a pretty convincing social interaction algorithm. And the engineering—it’s unbelievable. I mean, look at its eyes.”

  “Uh, Zach,” Michael said, staring at Jane. “I don’t think she’s a robot.”

  “You heard Robby the Drink Bot,” Zachary said, throwing his palms up. “It has LYDIA’s voice. It’s a Synthetic. I had no idea the tech had come this far.”

  Jane was torn between wicked amusement and mild annoyance. What person in his right mind could mistake her for a robot just because of her voice?

  “Let’s try again,” she said. “Hello, my name is Jane. I’m in charge of your orientation. And if you want to keep it, you’d better start using whatever you have that passes for a brain.”

  Zachary’s eyebrows pulled together.

  Jane’s did the same. Maybe her father was right. She offered her hand again to shake and saw hesitation in his eyes. Then he took it and squeezed. He was strong—but so was she. She squeezed back.

  Zachary raised his eyebrows in disbelief. “You’re real?”

  “I am. Are you?”

  “You sound like LYDIA.”

  “No, LYDIA sounds like me.” Jane’s lips twitched. “They used my voice in testing and decided to keep it.”

  “Seriously? You’re real? I don’t believe it.” Zachary’s mouth spread wide in a grin. And he still held her hand tight.

  “Down boy,” Nolan whispered. “Give the nice human her phalanges back.”

  Zachary’s face flushed.

  Jane tugged her hand from his grip and rubbed it. Oh, God, please don’t let Dad be right about him. She needed a new tactic. She snapped the sweetest smile she could fake across her face.

  “Congratulations,” she said. “You passed.”

  Zachary put his hands on his hips and shot her a Seriously? look. “Passed what?”

  “Behavioral test,” Jane said. “Part of your orientation. I was purposely rude to see how you handled it.” She lowered her voice. “Some of the people we work with lack social skills. Massive egos. I’m sure you know the type.”

  Zachary nodded. His eyes were fixed on hers.

  “I read your profiles,” Jane said, ignoring his nasty glare. “You’re triplets. Fraternal, right? I’m sorry, I suppose I assumed identical.”

  “Mike looks like Mom,” Zachary said. “Nolan looks like Dad. And—”

  “Zach looks like the UPS man,” Michael interrupted.

  “And the cleaning lady,” Nolan added. “He’s not blood.”

  Zachary’s face lightened and he waved them off. “Ignore them. They’re jealous ’cause I got all the charm.”

  Confirmed. Nolan and Michael would be good additions to the team. Nolan was quieter, more outwardly intellectual. Michael seemed the more outgoing of the two. Perfect complements to Mina and Anna. But Zachary? Appealing, to be sure. In the same way as a caveman is appealing to an anthropologist.

  “Obviously.” Jane turned, motioning the boys to follow her. “Why don’t you and your charm walk with me?”

  Chapter Five

  Zach

  “Can we ride a hovercraft?” Zach fought a smile. Jane was Chinese-American like him and his brothers. Her short brown hair looked really cute, the way it hugged her heart-shaped face. Her body was small, slender…curves and bumps in all the right places… definitely his type. Which made her a distraction. Good thing she was only doing his orientation. Once he got through that, he could forget about her and focus on revenge. No time for making friendly.

  There was something about her, though, something beyond her unassuming face. He couldn’t put his finger on it—he almost wanted to trust her, a feeling he hadn’t had since before prison. And one he wasn’t planning to entertain anytime soon.

  “No, sorry,” Jane said. “I’m afraid the hovercraft doesn’t go where we’re going. Now, if you’ll follow me, I’d like to show you the highlights so you get the most of your time here. The Mastermind Complex is actually an experiment in symbiosis. It is a fully self-sufficient, intelligent piece of architecture. A modern work of art. The glass ceiling allows natural sunlight to nurture the gardens and charge the solar panels integrated into the interior walls. The Complex has an R&D building and a mirror-image, Class A office building with a street-level indoor garden. There is below-grade parking for convenience from all points—streets, the subway, shopping. There is even access to the underground caves that run beneath Quantum City. The entire Com
plex was designed around the concept of symbiotic relationships. Everything works together for the benefit of everything else.”

  “You rattled that off just like LYDIA.” Zach had a hard time keeping his eyes off her. Not good. She was derailing his concentration. “No wonder I mistook you for a robot.”

  “There are times when being LYDIA would be easier.” Jane smiled.

  Look away. Look away. Zach spun on Nolan. He was grinning at him. The Bro Link could be really inconvenient sometimes.

  “It would certainly be easier on some people if you weren’t real,” Nolan whispered.

  Zach scowled at him.

  “Let’s head to the upper level,” Jane continued, unaware of the mental skirmish going on between Zach and Nol. “Normally, I’d take the teleporter, but I want you to see everything.”

  “Teleporter?” Zach turned to her. “That tech doesn’t exist.”

  “It does.” Jane’s face was sincere. “It’s nice when you’re late for a meeting, but it can handle only one person at a time. Plus, it’s very disorienting, so hovervators it is this time. We’ll head up to the top floor, the highest point in Quantum City. The view is spectacular.”

  The hovervators were spheres of high-tech polymer a dozen feet in diameter. They floated a few inches from the lobby floor, supported by the same invisible proton field that powered the hovercraft. A mass of people stood waiting in line in front of them.

  “We’ll never get on,” Zach said.

  “This way,” Jane said, and led the brothers through the crowd to a hovervator half the size of the others.

  “Private car?” Mikey asked. “Very double-oh-seven.”

  “Very.” Jane turned her face to the hovervator. “Open, please.” She placed her hand on the surface and an opening formed in the sphere.