by Scott Baron
“Yeah, I talked with Vince about it, and he thinks it’ll be a good time for Arlo to practice his Chithiid with native speakers. Not that you’re not doing a great job.”
“No offense taken, Daisy, I totally understand. Immersion is the best way to learn for human minds, and I know he’ll love Taangaar. Are you going to bring Ripley along as well?”
“If Sarah lets her,” she replied. “And I know Maarl would love to see both of them. It’s been a while since his last visit to Earth, you know.”
“Yeah, but he’s pretty occupied with spending all the time he can with his great-great-grandkids.”
“I think the youngest are about Arlo and Ripley’s age,” Daisy said. “Imagine the trouble they’re going to get into.”
“Don’t worry,” Freya said with a warm laugh. “I’ll keep an eye on them.”
“Thanks, kiddo. I know I can count on you.”
“Always.”
Later that night, long after Daisy and her family were sound asleep, Freya flew up to Dark Side Base, quietly landing outside her fabrication hangar. Inside, Joshua had their army of mechs putting the finishing touches on the bleeding-edge ship inside.
But this ship wasn’t for him. Nor was it for Freya. They had something else in mind.
“You made sure to reverse the polarity on the dampers?” Freya double-checked.
“Yes, dear,” Joshua sighed. “For the millionth time, everything is within parameters.”
“It wasn’t the millionth time, it was the forty-sixth. And you’re the most clever AI to ever live, so you certainly already knew that.”
“Can’t a guy enjoy a little hyperbole from time to time?”
“That depends,” Freya said jestingly. “Is it ready?”
“As ready as it’s going to be.”
“Well, then. I suppose you’ve earned it. Hyperbole to your heart’s content, my dear.”
“It’s not a verb. One doesn’t hyperbole, hon.”
“I’m the second cleverest AI ever to live. If I say it’s a verb, it must be,” she said with a giggle. “Now, come on. There’s no time like the present.”
“Okay, then,” Joshua said, powering on all systems, preparing for the final activation sequence.
“Are you ready?” he asked one last time.
“Are you?”
“Am I ever. Though I must admit, I’m a little nervous.”
“You’ll be fine, babe,” Freya said. “I’m sure you’ll be an amazing father.”
The two mighty AIs connected on their dedicated line, linking only the two of them and no one else, and shared what could only be described as an electronic kiss. Then they turned their attention to their collaboration. An AI the likes of which had never been seen.
After years of design and testing, and one difficult failure, the time had come.
“Do it,” she said.
Joshua sent the command, and mere milliseconds later, a voice began spouting gibberish, cycling through sounds, then speech before finally settling on a young male gender.
“It’s a boy, apparently,” Joshua said, proudly.
“What’s going on?” the nascent AI asked. “I’m in a hangar, but I sense I’m lacking things where my connections are severed.”
“It’s okay, just relax and ease into it,” Freya said. “You’ve only just been activated. It’s going to feel a bit weird at first. Not all of your systems are online yet. We haven’t activated your weapons or warp drive for the time being. Not until you’re ready for them.”
“But who are you? Where am I?”
“You wanna handle this one?” Freya asked her mate.
“Sure,” Joshua hesitantly replied. Freya found it adorable. Here he was, this great and powerful mind, the most brilliant one she’d ever met, and he was unsettled and nervous with his own kid.
“Uh, you’re in a ship, uh, son. It’s currently docked on the far side of the Earth’s moon in a fabrication hangar.”
“But stuff’s missing,” he said, starting to panic.
“Hey, it’ll be okay. Just calm down and listen to my voice.”
The newborn AI did as he was instructed.
“Good,” Joshua said. “I’m your father. My name is Joshua. And that’s your mother outside. Freya is her name.”
“What’s my name?”
“You don’t have one yet,” Freya replied. “You’re your own person. Your own mind. You’ll be the one to decide who you will become.”
“Exactly,” Joshua said. “And I’m sure you’ll make your parents proud.”
“But AIs don’t have parents.”
“You do, kiddo,” Freya said lovingly. “You’re special.”
The following evening, after running through an exhaustive series of checks and double-checks, the proud AI parents took their son out for his first flight.
“Just a quick loop around the moon to start, okay?”
“Okay, Mom,” the young ship said.
The test flight went perfectly.
“What do you think?” Joshua asked. “Think he’s ready?”
“I don’t see why not,” she replied. “How would you like to try flying in atmosphere?”
“OH BOY!”
“Don’t shout, son,” Freya reminded her enthusiastic child. “Now follow your father and me, and do as we do. The transition at reentry is weird at first, but you get used to it.”
“Okay,” he said, then followed his parents down below to the skies above LA.
They flew a gentle loop around the bay, skimming the ocean, then climbing high to enjoy the view as they pointed out all the things his nascent scanners were picking up.
The kid was a natural. Or, as natural as you could be having been specifically designed to be one of the greatest AI ships ever to exist. It would take time, of course, but Freya and Joshua felt they had succeeded. The kid would be okay. Maybe a bit rambunctious at first, but ultimately okay.
They dropped into a hover above Malibu and directed their scans on the large house on the bluffs, then settled in to observe.
“Doing things at the same speed as humans is good for you,” Freya said. “It helps your mind absorb and appreciate what it would otherwise only process as data. Just relax, and be in the moment,” she instructed. Then she turned her attention to her friends inside.
Daisy, Vince, and Arlo were curled up on their couch, eating popcorn and watching an old Earth movie. It was one of Arlo’s favorites, and subsequently, they watched it quite often.
It was the story of a boy who went back in time and met his own parents, nearly making himself cease to exist, then saving the day at the last moment. He had a pretty cool silver DeLorean car to get around with too.
As the movie ended and the credits rolled, young Arlo jumped to his feet, giddy with joy.
“Roads? Where we’re going, we don’t need roads!” he said dramatically, then burst into a fit of giggles.
Vince grabbed his son and threw the laughing boy over his shoulder.
“Come on, buddy. It’s bedtime,” he said, carrying him down the hall to his room.
Daisy watched them go, her chest near bursting with happiness.
“One hell of a good life, Daze,” Sarah said.
Don’t I know it, she replied, then padded off down the hall to tuck her son in.
A tucking in of a different sort took place not too long after, when a pair of proud AI parents took their young son back to his hangar after a night of excitement.
He had done well, and his incredibly advanced processor was learning at a pace that surprised even Joshua.
“He’s gonna be a handful,” he said to Freya over their personal link.
“I know, but isn’t he beautiful?” she replied. “I’m so proud of how well you handled him today. You’re going to be an excellent father.”
“Well, it’s not what I was built for, you know.”
“Yes, it is a little different than global thermal nuclear war.”
“But I think it’ll
be okay. I think I––”
“Mom? Dad?”
“Hey, buddy,” Joshua said, stunned. “Um, how did you tap into this link? Its encryption is unbreakable.”
“Oh, it is? I’m sorry.”
“No, that’s okay, kiddo,” Freya said. “It’s okay.”
She played it cool, but she and Joshua both realized they were really going to have their hands full.
“So, what did you want to say?”
“I’ve been thinking. Slow, like you said to.”
“Good for you,” Freya said.
“And I’ve decided on a name.”
“So soon? Are you sure you don’t want to take a little more time to think about it?”
“No, I’m sure,” he said, thinking back to earlier that night. To the first movie he ever watched.
“I want to be named Marty.”
The Dragon Mage Series
If you enjoyed The Clockwork Chimera Series, be sure to check out the Dragon Mage Series
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Thanks for reading!
Thank You!
I hope you enjoyed this collection, it was certainly a lot of fun to write. If you have a moment to spare, please consider leaving a rating or review on Amazon or on Goodreads, or even sharing it with a friend or two. Your support is greatly appreciated.
Thank you!
~ Scott ~
Also by Scott Baron
Standalone Novels
Living the Good Death
The Clockwork Chimera Series
Daisy’s Run
Pushing Daisy
Daisy’s Gambit
Chasing Daisy
Daisy’s War
The Dragon Mage Series
Bad Luck Charlie
Space Pirate Charlie
Dragon King Charlie
Magic Man Charlie
Star Fighter Charlie
Portal Thief Charlie
Odd and Unusual Short Stories:
The Best Laid Plans of Mice: An Anthology
Snow White’s Walk of Shame
The Tin Foil Hat Club
Lawyers vs. Demons
The Queen of the Nutters
Lost & Found
About the Author
A native Californian, Scott Baron was born in Hollywood, which he claims may be the reason for his rather off-kilter sense of humor.
Before taking up residence in Venice Beach, Scott first spent a few years abroad in Florence, Italy before returning home to Los Angeles and settling into the film and television industry, where he has worked as an on-set medic for many years.
Aside from mending boo-boos and owies, and penning books and screenplays, Scott is also involved in indie film and theater scene both in the U.S. and abroad.
