Engineered Tyrant

by J. S. Morin

  Abby swallowed. Nigel had subtly hinted that mixing personal statements would give her speech more heart. She liked to think she would have done so anyway, but now she’d never know. “The easy path would have been to let modern science build me a new arm, to forget that my decisions have consequences, to allow shock and pain and self-pity rush me into a decision that I would live with the rest of my life. I chose better.”

  Raising her arms, one sleeve of her sweater dangled loose. The stump inside it less than half the length of the knit wool tube. “My name is Abbigail Fourteen, and I am human. I am the riverbed my life has carved. I have made mistakes, and I have learned from them. I have grown despite setbacks. You won’t get any more from me than I am capable of, but I can promise that you won’t get any less, either.

  “Technology will march forward with or without us. We must choose to walk hand in hand with our robotic neighbors. We are no better than them, nor are they better than us. We abide together aboard a tumbling spacecraft known as Earth, and while we can at times escape its gravity, we can never be cut off from the hold it keeps on our hearts.”

  Abby scanned the crowd. Her friends weren’t backstage somewhere, calculating the Social effects of her words; they were in the early rows, watching. Her family wasn’t carefully distancing themselves from the campaign; now that the election was over, Mom and Dad were front and center. She basked in the comfort of knowing they were all in this with her.

  “I apologize in advance, because I’m going to screw up plenty along the way. In four years, you might be itching to replace me. By then, I might have grown into someone no longer fit to represent you. I might have grown into the role perfectly. I might be wearing a cybernetic arm or maybe even one made of lab-grown flesh bearing my own DNA. I might be a mother in four years time, or I might still not have found a partner to raise a child to emancipation. I might become too fond of power, or I might never find the leverage to deliver your voices to the committees who need to hear them. I don’t know what I will be—what any of us will be—the next time this election business comes around, but there is one certainty upon which I will bet everything I own.

  “We are all human. Even the robots.”

  Ready for book 6? Human Phase is available for you right now. Continue reading for an excerpt.

  Human Phase: Chapter One

  The red planet will run red with blood.

  * * *

  Martian terraformer Kaylee Fourteen is a recent immigrant from Earth. Residents of the domed colonies of Mars can practically smell the day they’ll be able to walk outdoors on their own planet without the need for air supplies. But the committees on Earth control the resources the colonists need and their interference threatens the terraforming project’s very existence…

  * * *

  Until a group of radicals takes hostages to force the release of the tech and materials the terraformers need.

  * * *

  Caught in the crossfire, Kaylee has to navigate the delicate line between sympathy for her captors’ goals and horror at their methods. If she can’t keep the peace and find a way to get the hostage takers what they ask for, humans and robots alike will pay with their lives.

  * * *

  How can anyone negotiate a hostage crisis with a bomb locked around her neck?

  * * *

  The fate of two worlds and the balance of power between humans and robots hang on that answer.

  Kaylee Fourteen wiped sweat from her forehead as she checked and rechecked the alignment of Mars’ first locally built atmosphere generator. The turbine would be spinning at half a million revolutions per minute once activated, and the slightest misalignment of the meter-long blades could cause them to shatter against the casing at supersonic speeds. Her breath echoed from inside the mask of her portable oxygen supply, working on the exterior of the machine. Baking red sunlight filtered through the thick miasma of carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and methane that sustained the planet’s first outdoor plant life. Soon—possibly within the decade—Kaylee would be able to picnic with her family under that sky without special equipment.

  Tucking the nanoscale scanner into its holster on her belt, Kaylee tapped at the corner of her data goggles. She scrolled through her contacts list and connected to Ned Lund, the project lead for the Mars Terraforming Initiative and Kaylee’s boss. “All set, Ned. We can cap the outlet nozzle on atmo pump one. All seventy-two blades check out. All fittings exact within the micron. Thermal expansion zone is clear.”

  Ned’s gruff voice came back in her ear. “Throw a tarp over it. We’ll cap pump one after lunch.”

  Kaylee secured the site. Magnetic tie-downs clamped the pale purple alienite tarp across the exposed opening of the turbine. The last thing any of them needed was to come back from lunch break to find a grain of sand carried on the wind and dinged one of the blades. A quick double-check that the tarp wasn’t going to move while she was gone, Kaylee maneuvered the bucket of her lift-arm truck to deposit her at ground level.

  Hopping the safety chain that kept her from falling out, Kaylee hustled over to one of the group transports and squeezed in beside a coworker on a bench in the back. The ride to base camp was only five minutes. Walking would have taken nearly an hour. Being jammed in shoulder-to-shoulder with people she barely knew was worth the time savings.

  Once back at the pre-fab collection of environmentally controlled structures, Kaylee waited in line and made her way through the airlock in the third batch of workers. Once inside the cafeteria, she pushed her goggles onto her scalp and unbuckled her oxygen mask. The first breath of free-floating air always tasted better than the dank, rubbery-smelling stuff from inside the mask. Kaylee filled her lungs, and the sheen of sweat around her nose and mouth cooled and dried.

  “Good work out there, Fourteen,” Ned greeted her with a handshake. His palm was callused and rough; his grip like iron. “We might get that unit online by nightfall at this rate.”

  Kaylee stifled a yawn. “I thought we might push through lunch…”

  Ned shook his head as he picked up a tray and got in line for chow. “Right is better than fast. That’s half the reason you’re here. Adrian wanted fast, but he got sloppy. We’re not robots. Food. Rest. The body works best when you maintain it.”

  Kaylee fought back another yawn as she retrieved a tray and perused the camp’s lunch fare. All of it was Earth-grown, shipped across seventy-nine million kilometers of orbital space, and manufactured to last. Inside the colonies, more and more local food was consumed, but out in the work camps, they ate the cheap stuff.

  “Sorry, Ned,” Kaylee said. “Don’t mean to seem like I’m—”

  Ned waved a hand, brushing her apology aside. “Nah. Takes getting used to. Forty minutes a day doesn’t sound like much, but those short Earth days you’re used to will take their toll. Happens to everyone their first couple months here.”

  Kaylee smiled her reply as the two of them piled their trays with canned peaches, beef jerky in gravy, and vacuum-packed broccoli. They’d all been so nice since she arrived. Everyone back home had warned her about the Martians and their bias against Earthborn humans, but Kaylee had yet to experience that bias firsthand.

  She joined Ned and a few of the other supervisor-level workers at one of the main tables. Kaylee was Quality Assurance Chief, a role that had seemed to elude the Martians despite their attempts to fill it from their own ranks. Around the table were Chief Logistics Officer Miriam Hazra, Chief Technical Officer Ben Santos, and Operations Manager Lijing Chang. They all scooted and rearranged their trays to make room for the two newcomers at the round, plastic table.

  “Heard we might cap the nozzle this afternoon,” Lijing said, raising a paltry toast with her thermos of water.

  “To Kaylee,” Ned said, playing along and raising his thermos as well. The others followed suit. “May our next turbine activation not blow up in our faces like the last one.”

  “Hear, hear,” the others joined in, including a halfhearted Kaylee
. Stainless steel bottles clanged. Everyone chuckled, then dug into their meals.

  No one was overly formal on the project. They were all sitting around a Protofab-grade table with environmental hazard gear dangling loose from their clothing. All of them were sweaty and dirty with a powdery red coating of untamed soil from outside the dome. Perfunctory discussions of work-related topics soon gave way to chatting about the latest movies, soccer, and the upcoming Emancipation Day celebration on Earth.

  When talk crept toward politics, Kaylee wolfed down the last of her soggy, vacuum-preserved broccoli, and excused herself. “Time to prep that turbine for low-speed testing.”

  The rest of them gave a quick acknowledgment and returned to discussing local elections.

  Kaylee pulled down her goggles, fixed her filtration mask back in place, and stepped out into the dusty Martian wilderness. She took a breath in the privacy of her own company, and the rubbery smell came as a welcome reprise.

  Grab a copy of Human Phase, book 6 of Robot Geneticists, and continue your adventure now.

  Author’s Note

  While the action of the first four books was packed into a reasonably short timeframe—from a societal perspective, at least—I wanted to show how the Robot Geneticists’ view of Earth evolved over time. Up until now, there had been a relatively small population, carefully controlled and cultivated. Fast forward sixteen years, and humanity’s numbers are growing to the point where they are looking to stretch and grow, pushing the boundaries of the society robotkind has established.

  In short, it was time for a human villain.

  Alex Truman is Charlie7’s ego run amok. Given an unfortunate confluence of genetics and upbringing, Alex becomes aware of just how much smarter he is than everyone else. With an immense intellect and both internal and external expectations to excel beyond imagining, he’s under intense pressure to succeed and succeed at an early age. He’s in a rush to the finish line, all too aware that the life expectancy of a prodigy is measured in years, not decades. Raised by the world’s foremost political manipulator, Alex tries to emulate his robotic father and cut corners, challenge rulings, and generally make a nuisance of himself until he gets his way.

  And unlike many villains, Alex is willing to learn from the mistakes of the past.

  I think the parallels to human history are where Alex comes across in his truest villain form. He’s willing to do almost anything, be nearly anyone, if it wins him the power to do as he pleases. With thousands of years of human history at his disposal, in addition to modern data science, he’s treating the Earth as a puzzle to be solved.

  In the end, all he really wanted was to achieve greatness.

  Some parents leave bigger genes to fill than others.

  Books by J. S. Morin

  Black Ocean

  Black Ocean is a fast-paced fantasy space opera series about the small crew of the Mobius trying to squeeze out a living. If you love fantasy and sci-fi, and still lament over the cancellation of Firefly, Black Ocean is the series for you!

  Read about the Black Ocean series and discover where to buy at: blackoceanmissions.com

  * * *

  Black Ocean: Astral Prime

  Co-written with author M.A. Larkin, Black Ocean: Astral Prime hearkens back to location-based space sci-fi classics like Babylon 5 and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Astral Prime builds on the rich Black Ocean universe, introducing a colorful cast of characters for new and returning readers alike. Come along for the ride as a minor outpost in the middle of nowhere becomes a key point of interstellar conflict.

  Read about the Black Ocean: Astral Prime series and discover where to buy at: astralprimemissions.com

  * * *

  Twinborn Chronicles: Awakening

  Experience the journey of mundane scribe Kyrus Hinterdale who discovers what it means to be Twinborn—and the dangers of getting caught using magic in a world that thinks it exists only in children’s stories.

  * * *

  Twinborn Chronicles: War of 3 Worlds

  Then continue on into the world of Korr, where the Mad Tinker and his daughter try to save the humans from the oppressive race of Kuduks. When their war spills over into both Tellurak and Veydrus, what alliances will they need to forge to make sure the right side wins?

  Read about the Mad Tinker Chronicles and discover where to buy at: twinbornchronicles.com

  * * *

  Robot Geneticists

  Robot Geneticists brings genetic engineering into a post-apocalytic Earth, 1000 years aliens obliterated all life.

  These days, even the humans are built by robots.

  Charlie7 is the oldest robot alive. He’s seen everything from the fall of mankind at the hands of alien invaders to the rebuilding of a living world from the algae up. But what he hasn’t seen in over a thousand years is a healthy, intelligent human. When Eve stumbles into his life, the old robot finally has something worth coming out of retirement for: someone to protect.

  Read about all of the Robot Geneticists books and discover where to buy at: robotgeneticists.com

  * * *

  Sins of Angels

  Co-written with author M.A. Larkin, Sins of Angels is an epic space opera series set 3000 years after the fall of Earth. With the scope of Dune and the adventurous spirit of Indiana Jones, it delivers a conflict that spans galaxies and rests on the spirit of brave researcher Professor Rachel Jordan. Follow the complete saga, and watch as the fate of our species hangs in the balance.

  Read about Sins of Angels and discover where to buy at: sinsofangelsbooks.com

  * * *

  Shadowblood Heir

  Shadowblood Heir explores what would happen if the writer of your favorite epic fantasy TV show died before the show ended—and the show was responsible. If you wonder what it would be like if an epic fantasy world invaded our world, this urban fantasy story might give you that glimpse.

  Read about Shadowblood Heir and discover where to buy at: shadowbloodheir.com

  Email Insiders

  You made it to the end! Maybe you’re just persistent, but hopefully that means you enjoyed the book. But this is just the end of one story. If you’d like reading my books, there are always more on the way!

  Perks of being an Email Insider include:

  Notification of book releases (often with discounts)

  Inside track on beta reading

  Advance review copies (ARCs)

  Access to Inside Exclusive bonus extras and giveaways

  Best of my blog about fantasy, science fiction, and the art of worldbuilding

  * * *

  Sign up for the my Email Insiders list at:

  jsmorin.com/updates

  About the Author

  I am a creator of worlds and a destroyer of words. As a fantasy writer, my works range from traditional epics to futuristic fantasy with starships. I have worked as an unpaid Little League pitcher, a cashier, a student library aide, a factory grunt, a cubicle drone, and an engineer—there is some overlap in the last two.

  Through it all, though, I was always a storyteller. Eventually I started writing books based on the stray stories in my head, and people kept telling me to write more of them. Now, that’s all I do for a living.

  I enjoy strategy, worldbuilding, and the fantasy author’s privilege to make up words. I am a gamer, a joker, and a thinker of sideways thoughts. But I don’t dance, can’t sing, and my best artistic efforts fall short of your average notebook doodle. When you read my books, you are seeing me at my best.

  My ultimate goal is to be both clever and right at the same time. I have it on good authority that I have yet to achieve it.

  Connect with me online

  jsmorin.com

 

 

 
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