Faster

by Alex Schuler

  “That’s all I’m trying to do,” Ted said. “My family is blue-collar working class. I want more.”

  “It may seem like we come from different worlds, Ted, but we are both pushing for a better world. Despite the struggles you’ve had at DSU, you must be proud of what you’ve achieved. The rotating lidar array you’ve built is revolutionary.”

  “Thanks.” He smiled and leaned closer to her. “My plan was to make it spin, not just rotate, but we ran out of time.”

  “Spin?”

  “Kevin and I went back and forth on it for months before I left to join DSU.”

  “Kevin’s the guy you worked with in Nixon?”

  “Right. We were too far into the Cyclops program to switch gears, but try and imagine Cyclops with a lidar array that spins continuously at high speed.”

  “Spinning lidar would give you a complete three-hundred-and-sixty-degree field of view with almost real-time information.” Sam leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes. Her mind began to race through the hundreds of computer programs and millions of lines of code she and her team had built for Athena. She thought of the obstacles they’d encountered, and the workarounds they’d developed. A smile spread across her face as she imagined what she could do with the system he was describing. “How close were you to having it completed?”

  “Kevin and I were close.” He took a sip of wine and frowned. “I had wanted DSU to try to implement it, but Rusty felt it was too risky. I think he was wrong.”

  “Maybe you shouldn’t be so hard on Rusty. The guy’s sent robots to the moon. I’m sure he knew the risk wasn’t worth the gain.”

  “So, you’re taking his side?” Ted’s tone was suddenly defensive.

  “This isn’t about sides. It’s about the approach. Progress takes time, Ted.”

  “I disagree. Progress takes pushing boundaries. That was something I admired about Rusty. He pushes. Just not the way I thought he would.”

  “I’m starting to think that extra ‘F’ in your name stands for ‘frenetic.’”

  “My teammates might agree with you on that one,” he chuckled.

  “Do you know the children’s story The Tortoise and the Hare?”

  “I’m familiar with it, but I can’t say I remember it well.” Ted tossed a cracker in his mouth and swallowed the rest of his wine. “Let me guess. You’re going to give me some lecture about slow and steady winning the race.”

  “It’s Dani’s favorite story. I read it to her all the time.” Sam downed half her bottle of water. The dryness of the air in the plane, coupled with the alcohol and spending the day in the desert, had her completely dehydrated.

  “You do realize that Cyclops blew past Athena to win the race today. Speed won the day.”

  “And nine women can’t make a baby in a month.”

  “What?” Ted stared blankly at Sam. “That makes no sense.”

  “My point exactly. Some things take time, Ted. Like it or not, oftentimes, you have to do A, then B, then C. Adding more resources won’t make something happen quicker. There are some things you can’t rush.”

  “Nine women making one baby.” He chuckled as he leaned back in his seat. “I’m going to have to remember that one.”

  “At Ashton, we’ve been very methodical in our approach to the DARPA project. If you rush things you run the risk of making mistakes. Mistakes can be costly. Mistakes can lead to consequences you have to live with the rest of your life.” Sam glanced right out the window. The jet was banking and she could see the ground far below. The faint glimmer of lights outlining the roadways flickered through the darkness of the evening sky. She grabbed for her pendant and closed her eyes. “You must see the good in what we’re doing, Ted. A world where vehicles drive themselves. A world without accidents from reckless drivers. A safer world. A better world. For my Dani. For everyone.”

  “It sounds like this is all very personal to you.” He leaned closer. “Why is that?”

  “Maybe another time, Ted.”

  18

  Ted glanced at the clock display in the Ford Escape Kyle had rented for them. It was 7:05 p.m. as they pulled up in front of the Fisher Tuner workshop outside Nixon, Nevada. The darkening sky was enormous and awash in deep purples and oranges as he parked and killed the ignition.

  “Only five minutes later than planned.” He popped his door open and pocketed the key fob. “Allow me to give you the grand tour.”

  “I’m shocked we didn’t get stopped by the police.” Sam got out of the SUV and slammed the door shut. “You were going way beyond the speed limit.”

  “I told you to relax. I’m intimately familiar with these roads. The cops are never around. I had a heavily tricked out Mustang GT I used to drive here. I’d open her up regularly. She was a beauty. I wish I had time to show you the testing grounds we used.” Ted fumbled through his pockets until he found the key Kyle had given him. “Or Wadsworth, where I used to live.”

  “Wadsworth? What an odd name for a town.” Sam paused and scratched her head. “That sounds like a measurement for the maximum amount of gum you can safely chew before choking.”

  Ted let out a boisterous laugh as he unlocked the front door. The interior of the office smelled of grease and oil. He ran his hand along the side wall until his fingers came across the light switch for the office. In a flicker, the office appeared before them. Sam stepped inside and closed the door behind her.

  “Follow me.” He opened the door to the main garage and hit the switches to turn on the huge overhead lights. The maintenance bay sparked to life. Ted paused to take in the surroundings, noting the familiar and the new. “This is where the magic happens. Well, it used to for me.”

  Three vehicles were crammed inside the garage. A black Jeep Wrangler was on a lift on Kevin’s side of the shop. The area closest to the office, Ted’s old space, had a dirt bike completely disassembled, along with a heavily modified bright blue Toyota FJ Cruiser. Ted frowned at not seeing Frankie parked inside. The Pontiac had been gutted and sold for scrap several months after he left for DSU.

  The workbench Ted once used was littered with tools and equipment. Instead of replacing Ted with a full-time employee, Kyle had opted to do an internship program with some of the local colleges. Over the past two years, Kevin had taken on a number of different students as protégés, exposing them to hands-on development. Ted briefly surveyed his old desk before heading to the other side of the garage.

  Kevin’s workspace was crammed with a variety of gadgets, all in various stages of assembly. Half a dozen were covered in Do Not Touch sticky notes. A picture of Ted and Kevin sitting on Frankie’s hood was pinned to the corkboard lining the back wall.

  “What are these all about?” Sam ran her fingers across the edge of one of the yellow stickies. “It looks like someone doesn’t like to share.”

  “That’s Kevin.” He smiled as he studied the components Kevin had marked with caution. “Looks like someone’s been a busy boy.”

  Sam made her way past him to the far end of Kevin’s desk. A black cylindrical object, two feet tall by a foot wide, caught her eye. She grabbed the slotted center section and wiggled it back and forth. A bright orange sticky note fell from the top. Ted immediately joined her to see what she was studying.

  “Is this what I think it is?” she asked.

  “That’s it.” He grabbed the sensor by its base. It weighed less than he expected. “This is the spinning lidar we were developing. Kevin’s made a lot of progress.”

  “Wow.” Sam bent down to get a closer look at the technology. “This could be a huge boost for autonomous driving.”

  “I told him to wait until after the DARPA Challenge so that we could finish it together.” Ted slid the device back onto the table. He opened up a notepad resting beside the lidar system and began to read through Kevin’s notes. He felt his blood pressure rise as he digested the
information. “He’s working off my designs. Mine! I’m going to have to have a chat with him when he gets back. He’s changing things I explicitly told him not to.”

  Ted flinched at the feel of Sam’s fingers along his shoulder. The tingle he felt from her gentle stroke surprised him. He exhaled slowly and turned around.

  “Relax.” She brushed his lock away from his eyes and slid her hand down his arm. “I’m sure he’s only trying to perfect it.”

  He felt his pulse soften. Sam’s blond hair and green eyes sparkled in the harsh fluorescent lighting inside the garage. The smell of motor oil was replaced by a flowery scent, coming from her skin and hair. Her presence was so calming. Her touch. Her voice. Ted smiled and ran the back of his hand across her hair, pushing it behind her shoulder.

  “You look so different without that silly baseball cap on.” He grinned as she took a small half step back and began to fidget with her hair. He noticed her blushing. “It’s a good look.”

  “Thanks. Um, so, where are the parts that you need? We should probably get back to Reno.”

  “They’re in the warehouse. I’ll need a few minutes to find them. Why don’t you wait outside?” He tossed the car keys to her. “The stench in here is nauseating.”

  She smiled, nodded, and headed back into the office. As soon as he heard the outside door close, he went into the back room. The warehouse, roughly half the size of the main garage, was filled with floor-to-ceiling metal shelves. The air was stale and dry. Kevin was responsible for maintaining the inventory of every item they stocked. He never allowed Ted, or anyone else, to add or remove items without following his strict rules.

  Ted grabbed a binder resting on the table just inside the door to the warehouse. He flipped through and took a full two minutes until he found the entry for the magnetic shocks. Kevin had them listed as being in aisle 3, section D, shelf 2. Ted looked around for an empty box. There were several along the back wall. Taking the largest, he headed straight to the third aisle, binder in hand. Kevin labeled every shelf and section in the warehouse. Section D of the second shelf had four boxes. Each one had an inventory ID number, along with magnetic dampers/shocks scribbled on them in black ink.

  “Bingo.” Ted pulled the four boxes out and placed them on the floor. Most of the items were very familiar to him, given that he had designed and built them. The fourth carton contained components he’d never seen before. He checked the binder for the ID number listed on the box. The items were dated from late last year. “You son of a bitch. You’ve been modifying my designs.”

  Ted slammed the binder closed and flung it down the aisle. His mind was a blur, filled with months of developing new technologies for Cyclops while at DSU. He glanced at the shelves around him and shook his head.

  “What else of mine have you stolen?”

  He took a few minutes to study the modified design Kevin had built, but ended up selecting a slightly older set of dampers. He retrieved the binder and began searching for additional items he wanted to collect, figuring he might as well stock up on spare parts, just in case they ran into issues during the rest of the challenge.

  Ten minutes later, Ted emerged from Fisher Tuner carrying a large cardboard box, sealed in packing tape. Sam was sitting inside the Escape, behind the driver’s seat. The SUV was running, and the headlights illuminated the exterior doors as the sky was nearing complete darkness. Ted took a deep breath, taking in the crisp fifty-degree air. He’d forgotten how peaceful the desert could be.

  He popped the back hatch open and slid the heavy box into the cargo hold, locking eyes with Sam, who was watching him in the rearview mirror.

  “I’m driving,” Ted said. “Out.”

  “I prefer not to get killed.”

  He slammed the hatch closed and walked over to the driver’s front door. He tapped the glass with his knuckles. Sam lowered the window and raised her right eyebrow.

  “The tortoise will be driving us back to Reno.” Her grin turned into a snicker.

  “We’re not going to Reno.” He grabbed the door handle and pulled the door open, surprising her. “There’s something else I have to show you. Out.”

  “Show me? What? Wadsworth?”

  “Out.”

  He stepped aside as she hopped from the driver’s seat, jumping in quickly and adjusting the seat and mirrors. As soon as Sam was buckled in, he guided them back to Route 447. Once there, he turned right and quickly accelerated.

  “The airport is south,” Sam said. “Where are we going?”

  “It’s a surprise. Something Kyle suggested.”

  ***

  Ted’s iPod rested in the Ford’s cup holder. A deep charcoal cord ran from the mp3 player’s headphone jack to the auxiliary input on the Escape’s dashboard. “Lunatic Fringe” by Red Rider was playing through the car’s speakers. He had been frustrated at Sam’s disapproval of his music choices during the car ride, so was keeping the volume down.

  “We’ve been driving forever, Ted. Where are you taking me?”

  “Were you this annoying when your mom drove you around as a kid?”

  “Won’t Kyle be expecting us?” She spun sideways in her seat so she could face him. “I think we should at least call him.”

  “Kyle knows where we’re going. He gave me the tickets and insisted we use them.”

  “Tickets? To what?”

  “That.”

  He pointed ahead, thrusting his arm above the steering wheel. Sam turned to see what was in front of them. A glow filled the sky so bright it was almost as if a small subdued sun was rising.

  “What . . . what is that?” she asked with confusion. “Where are we?”

  “Black Rock Desert.”

  “Black Rock? Why does that sound so familiar?” She focused on what was ahead of her. “Wait. Isn’t that where they have that big event every year? What’s it called? With the big fire.”

  “Yes. Keep going. You’ve almost got it.”

  Sam looked back and forth from Ted’s grin to the ever-increasing glow in the distance, eventually throwing her hands up and shrugging.

  “What do fires do?” he asked.

  “What?” she paused.

  “I’m trying to give you a hint. Fires burn.”

  Her jaw slowly fell open. She looked out the window and said, “Burning Man!”

  “See, that wasn’t so hard.”

  “Why . . . why are we going to Burning Man?”

  “Kyle goes every year. This year with DARPA happening, Kyle gave his tickets to Kevin, but Kevin’s out of town. Kyle didn’t want the tickets to go to waste. He also felt a bit guilt-ridden about smashing Cyclops.”

  “That was very sweet of him.”

  “Oh, he’s not all roses and sunshine. I’m pretty sure he’s in Reno, probably at his favorite strip bar.”

  “Oh.” She sat back in her seat. “Burning Man. Wow. I’ve. . . I’ve heard about it but I honestly don’t know what happens there. Do you?”

  “Brace yourself, Sam.” He turned off the stereo. “Trust me when I say you’ve never seen anything like this before.”

  Arriving late in the week meant that traffic was fairly light. They parked at a campsite and immediately set off on foot to explore the city. Despite the free-spirited nature of the event, the city followed a rigid structure in its design. When seen from above, it was shaped slightly larger than a half-circle, with clearly defined rings and roads running from the center to the outer bands. Attendees got around on foot or by bicycle. The only vehicles allowed on the streets were service personnel or creative works of automotive art dubbed Mutant Vehicles.

  As they headed out, a bicyclist came around the corner, almost hitting Sam. White and orange silk fabric covering a wire frame transformed the bike into a rolling clownfish. The elderly woman riding the bike smiled a toothless grin and waved apologetically as she continued on
her way.

  “This is all so bizarre,” Sam said, coming to a halt. “Don’t. . . don’t you find this weird?”

  “Very. Kyle brought Kevin and me here once. It was wild. I’d only been working at the shop for a few weeks.”

  Another bicyclist whizzed by, causing Sam to jump. Ted gently draped his arm around her shoulder and guided her to the side of the road. She smiled and pulled back.

  “Was . . . was this supposed to be part of your initiation?”

  “I guess.” Ted laughed as he recalled how awkwardly he’d behaved back then. “In case you haven’t noticed, Kyle’s a bit of a free spirit. I remember him telling me I was too uptight and needed to learn to let go.”

  They walked a few more blocks, taking in the sights and sounds of laughter and excited talking around them. As they rounded a corner, Sam came to a halt. Two women, wearing only beaded necklaces and flip-flops rushed by holding hands, smiling and waving as they passed by.

  “They . . . they don’t have clothes on.” Sam moved closer to Ted, keeping her eyes on the couple as they disappeared into a large canvas tent. “Is that allowed?”

  “Pretty much anything goes, here.” He reached over and gently took her by the hand. “Stay close. I’ll keep you safe.”

  Dozens of camps lined the streets—cars, vans, and tents of all shapes and sizes. Some people were even staying in converted school buses. The smells were also pretty intense. Incense, all kinds of food, and marijuana permeated the air.

  Ted pulled out a map Kyle had given him. The streets that led to the city center, the Burning Man location, were numbered like the hours and minutes on a clock face, making it easy for people to find their way around.

  “We don’t have that much time before we have to leave,” he said as he looked between the map and the streets surrounding them. “I feel like we’re at Disney. A very weird Disney. We should just hit the highlights. Maybe we can head to—”