Author: TJ Edwards

Unbiased Law: Episode 17

Episode Sixteen Recap:  As Magnus sits in his car with human hijacking Veronica, ex human Veronica stands outisde arguing with her sister. As the tensions flare, Magnus realizes a robot is watching them from the end of the alley. When bullets start flying, Magnus grabs the sister outside the car, and reverses out of the alley, smashing into the killer robot. As he surveys the damage, ex human Veronica is trying to deal with her sister quickly bleeding out. Will they be able to help her or is it already too late? Head down for the crazy seventeeth episode (or head back to Episode One or Episode Sixteen)!

**********************************************************************
I stare at the girl as blood gushes from both front and back. My brain is trying to make sense of it all when suddenly Veronica screams at me. “Do something, anything!” This however doesn’t snap me out of my daze, there’s just so much… so much blood. I can tell she’s still screaming at me when I turn to her, and stare at her body. She looks disgusted and enraged all at once. “You’re going to check me out while my sister dies in my body?” I can’t hear her, I’m a million miles away. As she is screaming, she doesn’t notice me hack into her systems and arrange a minuscule amount of her nanites to go to her sister as if it was a normal transfer. I watch as her skin crawls, and the nanites make their way down her hand  by what seems to be the millions. Well, that’s about the only way you’d be able to see them with the naked eye is if they travelled in a large enough amount.
.
As I sit by, I can still hear Veronica screaming and I watch the progress of the nanites. They are amazing as the bullet holes rebuild from the inside out. Veronica is still screaming at me when her sister takes my hand, and I help her up. As R0N-N13 sits up, Veronica stares at the lack of bullet wounds and sighs with relief. I look into R0N-N13’s eyes and she looks back. I can tell she immediately regrets being in the fragile, fleshy casing humans call a body. She looks at me and I know what her eyes are asking. Switch us back, please switch us back. I stare for a moment as if to be sure, and she nods. I look to Veronica who both of us had tuned out. Her face is as red as a tomato and she is still screaming. What she doesn’t know, and what most robots do, is that you can be forced into shut down. I draw one of the hidden tools from my body and I tap the small stick on Veronica’s knee. She convulses a moment and then is silent. I turn to R0N-N13 and her eyes are already closed. I connect to her wirelessly, but as the Doc had removed Veronica’s wireless transmitter when he pronounced her dead, I connect manually.
.
As the transfer goes through, I feel relieved. Veronica opens her eyes and hits me, forgetting I’m a robot and obviously oblivious to the fact she’s a human again. She realizes this when seconds later pain shoots through her hand and up her arm and she stares at it with disbelief. Her mouth hangs open as the words tumble out. “I’m… back. I’m me.” As R0N-N13 wakes, I turn to her. “Are you all right?” I ask despite everything seeming fine. She nods and looks to her sister. “Call me Ronnie.” I would smile if I could, but I can hear some grumbling coming from Veronica. I turn to her and realize she’s not looking too happy. “What’s wrong Veronica?” She doesn’t hesitate to let me have it all. “You copied, but didn’t override my sister’s memory.” I turn to Ronnie and she is silent. When I look back from one to the other, guns are drawn and everyone is really unhappy. Veronica makes the first accusation. “You wanted to be the one my father loved, you switched us and almost killed me in the process. Then when you told my father, he refused to love you because he figured you had killed me.” Ronnie’s gun quivers in her hand. “You sided with the discards in hopes to clear father’s name and win back his love.” As Veronica and I both stare at her, she realizes that is one of her own memories, but as her human self.
.
In an instant everything changes and I watch as Veronica shoots Ronnie. As the organ donor droid drops, I immediately fear for my own existence. Veronica turns to me. “Thanks for getting my body back, so I owe you one.” I breathe a sigh of relief and then I hear her voice change slightly as she says, “You live today, but know something. I’m tracking you, so now I can find you and kill you whenever I want. So if you end up near my house again, I will hunt you down.” As she motions for me to get out of the car, I slide out and watch it drive away in shock. I have heard Veronica say that before, but it was when Ronnie had me in my office tied to a chair. I think I’ve done something absolutely terrible and against the law. I’ve given a human multiple personality disorder, and one of those personalities sided with the discards. Now I stand on the sidewalk wondering just which personality pulled the trigger.
.
**********************************************************************
As the Radlem sisters become one and the same in Veronica’s human body, will they fight for supremacy or will Ronnie try to keep it hidden as long as she can? Will Magnus attempt to turn them in or will he avoid the Police Station as long as he can? Where is the killer robot now? The answers can only be in the future! Two days time! Episode Eighteen! Be there!

Super Zero: Eccentricity

As the afternoon crawled by James got anxious for going home. He hadn’t paid much attention at school yet, it was seeming that he was easily distracted. When Miss Delilah looked at him, at least he was facing the board this time. Class continued and James made the effort to participate. He was extremely glad when everyone got paired up for a partner art project. He got partnered with Alex, and he sat beside him at the art table. “I like art a lot.” James smiled and looked at the paper. It was empty now, but it had the potential for dragons, monsters, ghosts and anything he wanted. As he looked at Alex, James realized he was looking away. “Alex are you ok?” James sat staring at him for a few minutes and asked again. Alex turned to him and shrugged. “I’m fine.”

As their paper became a war zone for stick men, Alex finally cracked a smile. James looked around and noticed other students were looking at him too. He turned to Alex for the answer. “Why is everyone treating me different now? Did the hero thing wear off that fast?” Alex took a deep breath. “People don’t know what to think. You seem a little crazy. They like they you stood up to a bully, but you’ve been staying outside after the bell. I guess they’re worried that you’re going to be the next bully.” James shrugged. “Why would I be a bully?” Alex looked around and realized other students were watching them. “Because no one can hurt you, so now they’re scared of you.” James shrugged. I can’t win, no wonder why Willow doesn’t like the other kids. As he looked around, other kids looked away. Finally the buzzer sounded and he was ready to go home.

As he got on the bus he made sure he got to the back so he could see if Willow was following him home. The bus pulled away and he watched closely. He kept watching. He watched for the entire ride to his stop. As he got off he noticed his Mom was waiting for him again today. “How was your day James?” She watched as James looked up and down the street and then back to her. “Yeah, it was ok.” She smiled and fixed his makeshift cape. “How did you manage to stop a kid from being bullied?” James snapped out of his daze. “Oh yeah, I just got between them, and I got punched. But it’s okay.” She shook her head as she watched James trot on ahead of her. What a crazy kid she had, but she had never been more proud of him.

James ran in and tossed his cape and backpack aside. His father stirred from his nap on the couch but James was gone again before he could get a word in. He shrugged and nodded back off. Bursting back through the front door, James ran straight down the driveway and looked around. Much to his dismay, there was nothing there. Nothing but dirt and road. As the breeze blew his hair around, James felt compelled to call out to her. He resisted the urge. Where could she be? Maybe the Mothership took her home. Or maybe her parents wouldn’t let her come. His shoulders dropped in disappointment, She’s not coming either way. He turned to go back home and ran smack into something. “Ow, what’s wrong with you?” As he looked across the ground from where he had landed, he spotted Willow rubbing her forehead. “Your head is really hard you know. Probably why bullies don’t bug you.” James jumped up and helped Willow to her feet. “I’m glad you came, I didn’t think you had.” Willow looked around. “Maybe if you’d have paid more attention you’d have seen me. But I don’t think you’re very good at that.”

“James, supper!” His mother’s call normally was a treat, she was an excellent cook. However today it just seemed to be another distraction. “I’ll wait here.” Willow said with a certain finality in her voice. James shook his head. “Don’t be silly, my Mom would love to meet you!” Willow shook her head. “No thanks, I’m not a fan of parents much either.” James looked confused, but shrugged it off and accepted it. “Wow, you don’t like anyone do you?” Willow’s scowl was the angriest look James had seen ever. “Well, I did just follow you home. But I guess that means nothing.” James stepped back, and back pedalled. “No, I meant you don’t like many people, aside from me anyway. I mean not that you like me. Do you?” Willow looked down at her shoes just as another call for supper sounded through the air. “Go James, but I am going home now. I’ll see you tomorrow after school.” As James watched her drive away, he couldn’t help but wonder if she really was a friend. He stood and watched as she rode her bike forward into the ever looming dusk and out of sight.

Unbiased Law: Episode 16

Episode Fifteen Recap: Magnus indeed won the struggle for his interrogator’s gun, using only his problem solving skills to overpower his opponent. Despite destroying the robot with a limp for a second time, it seems as though this new threat can body hop and has appeared in three different droids since Magnus first discovered him. Could this be a legendary robot assassin sent to kill him? Also after escaping from the police station, Magnus finds himself in his car once again, with Robot in Human Veronica while Human in Robot Veronica stumbles upon them together. Will it be lights out for one, both or none? Head down for the dramatic sixteenth episode (or head back to Episode One or Episode Fifteen)!

**********************************************************************
“Well, well, well. My body hijacking sister and the robot I hired to bring her back to me. Are you two working together? You trying to kill me again… Sis?” The last word hangs in the air, it’s venomous enough to make it’s way into the world’s deadliest top ten. I decide to chime in. “Actually, she was saving me from the police.” She stares at me. “The police she sicked upon you if I’m not mistaken.” I do recall that part as well. I turn to the Veronica in the car. “Well, you are on your own.” As the two Veronica’s are shouting at each other, I glance in the side mirror just in time to notice a robot peering down the alley toward us. Well, that can’t be good. I lift my gun and watch as the robot limps its way into view. Hmm, definitely not good. I notice him raise something, and suddenly I see the muzzle flash. Shit, he’s got a gun. Absolutely not good!

As Veronica stands outside, and a Veronica sits idly in my driver’s seat, I realize they’re both stunning and stunned. Damn dumb beauties. I grab the Veronica outside by the collar and drag her across her sister’s lap. Suddenly I am wedged firmly between two lovely ladies and with a killer robot on the way to kill us all. Just another damn day. I jam the car into reverse and hit the gas with my hand. I can’t see a damn thing, so all I do is pray we make it straight out of the alley. Suddenly a large bang and the sound of metal dragging on pavement gives me hope. I push the Veronica on top of me head first between my feet and I slide magically out from under her, ramming the driver’s seat as far back as it can go. I look in the rear view mirror and watch it get blown off. Glad that wasn’t my head. I slam the hand brake on and I hear metal skidding across the pavement once again. Such a beautiful sound, like nails on a chalkboard. Releasing the hand brake I ram the car into drive and peel away from the scene. What insanity.

My mind jumps to the freeze frame of the limping killer robot before he blew off my rear view mirror. He is a good shot, which leaves me wondering why we’re all still alive. How is this robot getting around so quickly? It seems he can’t be killed. Perhaps he is being controlled remotely by another robot. Worse case scenario this gimped robot has figured out how to copy his memory and transplant it… wirelessly… to many robots. I let that thought sink in for a few seconds. It feels good to be back behind the wheel of my own car, I should shoot them both in the head and leave them outside the police station in the pouring rain… yeah, that’d be good. Sadly, my days as a police officer won’t let me harm them, but I’ll save that thought for my personal moments. I really need a new job. Suddenly, I realize I’m surrounded by chaos and brought back to the situation at hand.

The Veronica in the driver’s seat is moaning in absolute agony. Poor robot, must be weird feeling pain for her. I look to her sister and she’s already on it, apparently concerned more for her body than her sister. I shake my head at the world. After this maybe I’ll retire. As a great cop once said, “I’m too old for this shit.” Sad part is, I’m not. I drive mostly in silence, except for the wailing of a robot in a human’s body. If anyone else could hear this girl, they’d think she was in her death throws. I park on a deserted side street and turn to see the damage. There’s bullet holes all in my car, I’m missing a rear view mirror and a girl is bleeding all over my seat. Son of a… Blood doesn’t come out easy. I’m going to need bleach, and a lot of it. The Veronica in the passenger’s seat looks at me. “Do something damn it!” I look at her sister and realize she’s not doing so well. A small bullet hole gushes blood out of the right side of her abdomen. What’s worse is the matching one also spewing blood on her lower back.

**********************************************************************

Will the wounded Veronica survive? Who is this strange killer robot? Only Episode Seventeen may tell you! Tune back in two days time!

Super Zero: After School Special

James waited patiently through art and writing practice, constantly glancing outside to see if he could see his new friend. As time passed he realized she wasn’t out there. Perhaps maybe she had run home, which could mean she was close to the school. He wondered if she was thinking about him and their chance encounter this morning. Suddenly he heard his name. “James, are you listening?” His head spun to see Miss Delilah waiting patiently for him. “Sorry Miss, I guess I wasn’t.” He hung his head in shame. After all, he really liked Miss Delilah, and he didn’t want to cause trouble for her. As the lesson went on, James paid more attention but his mind kept wandering back to this girl. Finally the lunch bell rang. James bolted from his seat and toward the door, the last thing he heard was Miss Delilah shouting to him to ensure he came in this time.

He was so anxious he couldn’t finish his lunch. As he sat in the playground staring at it, James found himself thinking up scenarios of what he would say. I live over here, maybe your Dad or Mom could drive you over. No, what if she doesn’t have parents? What if she’s an alien? What if she’s planning on abducting me? As a slight chill ran down his spine, the buzzer sounded for the end of lunch. James sat in the bushes again, waiting for the teacher on duty to leave. As he emerged from the bushes, he looked behind him just in time to see Willow sneaking up on him. She smiled politely at him. “You might want to be careful, I hear aliens can sneak up on you.” James immediately had a whole conversation about what she said in his head.

Maybe she read my mind? Why pick aliens? Maybe she really is an alien? She is really sneaky. James eyed her cautiously. “Ahem, I was wondering if you’d like to come to my house sometime?” As he posed the question, he tried to read Willow’s expression. She seemed not to care at all. James leaned in as if she didn’t hear him. “So did you want to?” Willow looked up at him and smiled, that gap as evident as ever. “That’d be neat, I can follow you home from school if you want?” James looked confused. “Or, you could ride on the bus with me.” She stared at him. “I hate the other kids. Hate them. They’re mean.” James shrugged. “Well I guess I’ll meet you at the end of my driveway after school then?” Suddenly Willow got up and looked back to the school. “Yeah, ok, bye!” With that she ran back through the bushes and James just watched. This girl was beyond confusing.

“James Kent, I told you not to be late young man!” Miss Delilah stood behind him, scolding him from just beyond the playground. As he turned, James slouched his shoulders. “Sorry Miss, was just saying bye to a friend.” Miss Delilah looked around with a concerned look on her face. As she watched a car exit from the staff parking lot, she feared the worst. “James, I’m sorry, but for disobeying me I need to put you in detention, you will spend lunch and recess tomorrow with me in the class.” As she issued his sentence, James nudged the pebbles beneath his feet with the toe of his shoe. “Yes Miss, it won’t happen again.” Miss Delilah took his hand and brought him all the way back into the school.

Unbiased Law: Episode 15

Episode Fourteen: As Magnus witnessed the murder, albeit in his defence, of the acting commissioner, he found himself an unlikely ally in Veronica. However the lady may giveth and may also taketh away as she frames him for the murder, thus slowing him down in his investigation. Magnus then learns more about the looming robot war from an old friend in his short stint in a holding cell. As he is escorted to an interrogation room, he finds himself looking down the barrel of yet another gun, only this time he’s ready. Will he win the struggle? Find out below! (or head back to Episode One or Episode Fourteen)!

**********************************************************************

As the sound of two clunky robots fighting across a table for a gun sounds much like a factory floor, no one outside the room seems to notice. I struggle to wrestle the gun from his hand, but it’s useless. We are robots, equal in strength and stamina. I attempt to put my intellect to good use, and look for a weak spot in his joints. I note a potential weak spot in his wrist and as our hands are locked around the gun, I slide my forearm up to our hands. I give him a little flex room with the gun and he noticeably relaxes a moment, just the moment I need. I slam my forearm hard onto his hand, landing his wrist on the edge of the table. Both hands come off much to my surprise, and apparently his as well. He looks at me and only gets a chance to say a few words, “Shoddy workmanship here” before I blow his metal head off his shoulders.

I step into the hallway and look around, the guards don’t spot me so I begin to sneak past and around the corner. I turn to look back one last time before continuing on. The path to the door is straight and I can easily make it, but something catches my eye. A janitorial robot with a limp. A limp. My mind flashes back to the Acting Commissioner and my Interrogator. Damn, not much time to think, he’s heading straight for more droids. I rush into the nearby bathroom and look for some sort of escape. Lucky for me, the main windows seem to lead into the alley and seem to be open. I turn to look behind me, being ever so cautious and then bolt for the window. Hmm, not as open as I’d hoped. As the window shatters around me, I land on the ground and keep running. I run until my energy meter tells me I’m low again. I run until I am back at my office.

I hurriedly grab all I need plus another gun not used in a crime and rush outside. I look around and I see my car parked conveniently nearby. As I look around confused by seeing it there, I hear the familiar hum of police sirens. Without a second thought, I run to my car. As I open the door, Veronica looks at me and I look at her legs. Human, she framed me, but do I have a choice? As I hop in, we peel away, leaving the police to investigate my office. They don’t pursue us at all. I turn to Veronica and she giggles. “Fun day at the office?” I feel rage well up inside my metal frame as if my cooling system just died. “You set me up!” I pull out my gun and point it at her. She does the same and pulls into an alleyway. As we sit, guns pointing at each other I feel the need to question her. “Why should I trust you?” She smiles. “Because I like you?” I stifle back a sarcastic laugh and shake my head. “You are beautiful, but I know you’re just a robot in a human body. You’re a thief.” The smile drains from her face and she scowls. “I am not a thief. I’m just as good as she is, and isn’t that the tin kettle calling the human pot black?” Her analogy makes little to no sense, but I understand what she means. As a human in a robot body, robots call people like me a driver, a human steering a machine.

The next few minutes are tense and then we both begin to lower our guns. She makes the first move. “I’m sorry. But what if someone told you that you could be human again, legally?” I think about that for a moment. Would I go back? I’m not exactly sure, if I was entirely human I’d have died this week. But in all reality, I wouldn’t have made it this far. “I don’t know, they both have their advantages.” She grabs my robot hand and puts it firmly on her breast. “I can feel that, it’s taken some getting used to, but I can feel everything. It’s incredible!” I stare at her breasts, so perfect, and my metal hand feels nothing. I pull my hand back and reflect on that for a minute. She looks over to me and sighs. “I’m sorry, I know you wish you could now for sure, but being a robot has it’s benefits for sure.” She puts her hand on my leg to reassure me. “The first time I stubbed my toe, I thought I was dying. Never feeling pain before made that seem so much worse than it really was.” As we sat there chatting suddenly a knock came on the window to the car. As Veronica rolled the window down, a gun slid in pointed directly in her face. At the other end was the other Veronica, and she seemed pissed.

**********************************************************************

Both Veronicas finally in the same place, and the only thing between them is Magnus. Will he be able to stop them from killing each other? Or will he get caught in the crossfire! Another Episode, in another Two Days!

Super Zero: Girl With The Tangled Hair

Second day at school, second day sitting in the principal’s office. James sat in his chair with a large grin on his face. He had won this battle. His pride kept the tears back and he looks around the room. Suddenly he realized the bully was staring at him, actually more glaring and perhaps snarling. James couldn’t help but smile. “I think Miss Delilah called you Ronald MacDonald.” The bully didn’t blink, nor move. James sat swinging his feet content of his actions so early in the day. He felt like a hero! Maybe wearing his underwear on the outside gave him superpowers? Only time would tell. As Miss Delilah emerged from the office with Mrs Stein they both looked at the bully with disapproving eyes. “James Ronald MacDonald. Your parents have been called, and you will remain in my office until they arrive. Do you understand?” The bully nodded sadly.

Mrs Stein then turned to James and stifled back a smile. “As for you young man, I hear you saved a fellow student from bullying?” James looked up to her and nodded. “He was pushed to the ground. There was nothing he could do, so I moved between them.” As Mrs Stein and Miss Delilah shared a glance, Mrs Stein turned back to James. “That was a very brave thing you did. Not many people would stand up for someone in trouble like that. Especially a child as mean as a bully.” James nodded and then looked to Miss Delilah. “I know, and I might get bullied more, but I don’t care. I like helping people.” Mrs Stein smiled. “That is an excellent way to think James, I’ll be calling your parents today as well… but with a much different story to the one I have told Mr. MacDonald’s parents.”

As Miss Delilah helped James out of the chair, he found himself more proud than he had ever been of anything. But before the two could leave the office, a large man with red curly hair burst in and glared at James. He looked at Miss Delilah and winked. “How do you do Miss, my son is here. James MacDonald is his name.” Miss Delilah shook her head and pointed to the boy in the far corner. “He’s over there, and hopefully he’s learned a valuable lesson today.” As she ushered James out of the office he turned in time to see the bully’s father smack him across the top of his head and grab him by the arm. James shook his head. I’ll bet his father was… or possibly still is a bully too.

Upon arriving in class everyone got up and clapped. James was surprised and Miss Delilah began shushing them. Alex was already sitting in his seat when James strolled over. “Thank you for helping me. I don’t think he’ll pick on me any more.” James nodded and turned to face the front. As he thought back to Ronald’s father hitting him upside the head, he couldn’t help but feel bad for the bully. As the smile drained from his face Miss Delilah started the class with some simple spelling. Alex leaned forward and whispered to James. “Everyone thinks you’re a superhero. You got punched and didn’t cry.” James turned and smiled. “I felt like one! I got in between you guys and even though he hit me and it hurt, I felt better than I hurt!” Miss Delilah shushed the two boys and continued on with the lesson. As James turned back around in his seat, he noticed the young girl with tangled hair out on the playground again. Today he would get his chance to talk to her.

As the bell tolled for recess, James broke away from the class and made his way outside. He would need to find a place to hide while the teachers went inside. As he made his way from the other kids, he managed to hide in some bushes. As he snacked on the granola bar his mom had packed, he waited patiently for recess to end. Finally the buzzer sounded and everyone went inside. His plan had worked! Now all he had to do was wait for the girl to go to the playground. He waited for a few minutes and began to wonder if she would show up. It was beginning to look like she wasn’t. After ten minutes of waiting, James rose from the bushes and brushed himself off. As he turned to make his way around the bush he came face to face with the girl with the tangled hair. As he stumbled backwards in shock he tripped and tumbled backward making a full somersault until he was facing her again. She giggled and thrust out her hand to help him up. He grabbed hold and got off the ground. “Hi… thanks for that. Not the scare, but the help off the ground.” She stared at him as if he had said nothing. James scratched his head. “My name is James, and you are?” She grinned showing she was missing a front tooth. “My name is Willow, and I’m an adventurer!”

As the two played on the playground for a few minutes, James got concerned his teacher would soon realize he wasn’t there. “Willow, I’ve got to go back to class, but it was nice to meet you. Maybe we can hang out together at lunch?” She shook her head. “No, kids are mean.  I don’t like when it gets crowded here.” Suddenly they both looked up as Miss Delilah came bursting out of the school doors. “James, why are you still out here?” James turned to Willow but she had already ran for the bushes and was long gone. James turned to Miss Delilah as she picked him up off the ground. “Come on now James, I was getting worried I had lost you today!” As James turned back to the playground he wondered why Willow wasn’t in school. He decided not to mention her to Miss Delilah, but he was surprised that she didn’t say anything about Willow either. After lunch he would tell Willow his address, and hopefully learn more about her.

Unbiased Law: Episode 14

Episode Thirteen: Magnus started off our last episode with a gun pointed in his face and ended off in the same way. Only difference was the person holding the gun. As our detective unravels the mysteries behind the Radlem sisters, he is now pinned between a robot posing as a human, and a woman stuck as an organ donor robot. When he turns to the police for help he finds that there is more than meets the eye to the current acting commissioner, as episode thirteen seemed unlucky for our robot protagonist, will episode fourteen be any better? Please enjoy today’s episode (or head back to Episode One or Episode Thirteen)!

**********************************************************************

The sound of metal tearing apart shattered all that was silent. I froze, as if to fall over dead once again. Suddenly I realized I was still standing. “Hey, stupid robot, we’ve got to move!” The voice was sweet but the message wasn’t as I turned to see Veronica standing behind me. Shock turned to surprise as I turned to see the commissioner had been “deactivated”. I spun back to her and headed for the door. This was my worst case in years. Note to self: Never take a high profile case ever again. I’d rather find Miss “TooManyCats” lost kitten. As I rushed past Veronica I realized someone must have heard the shot. Strangely, it seemed no one was paying attention. I turned to see Veronica putting something in her bag. “What are you doing?” She looked up at me. “It’s a silencer, disables all robot hearing for the moment the shot goes off.” I nod. That is actually not a bad idea, however I heard the shot. As we close the door behind us, we make our ever so slight escape.

As we arrive at the front door Veronica turns to me with a concerned look on her face. “Oh you dropped this by the way.” She hands me my gun and I look down at it. Strange, I don’t remember it falling. When I look up Veronica is talking to a police officer a few paces away, and he raises his gun at me. “Halt! You are under arrest for the murder of the Commissioner!” As I stand there shocked, the gun literally slides from my hands. I stare at Veronica as she runs down the steps. She is insane. It wasn’t until that moment I notice her exceptionally sexy human legs. Damn it all to hell, I just got played. As the metallic officer scans me for anything else I watch her jump into my car and drive off. Son of a bitch, I’m going to get my car back when this blows over.

As the officer places me into custody and throws me in a cell, I take a look around. Delinquent robot holding cell, very nice. One of the robots in the cell looks extremely familiar, so I decide to seat myself beside it. “What did you do to get thrown in here?” I ask politely, hoping I wasn’t responsible for putting the robot in here. As he looks up at me, he sits up straight. “Magnus? Why the hell are you in here? I thought you were solving the problems, not creating more?” It was Farley, a cabbie I had met a few days back, after I got shot at the beginning of this investigation. “Yeah, well you can’t bake a cake without cracking a few eggs. Or in this case, opening some tin cans.” We shared a laugh and then he looked back to me. “I was hoping you could solve my case as purely self defence. Some crazy robot tried to harvest my parts while I was using them! I took one swing and it must not have had a great connection, because its head fell right off.” I grinned. “Wow, that sounds nuts. I heard robot on robot crime was on the rise, but that’s ridiculous.” As we both stared straight forward, Farley had to ask. “So why are you in here detective?” I share a laugh with no one but myself. “I killed the Acting Commissioner. Or so it may seem.”

Farley sat as still as a statue. I couldn’t tell if he was out of juice, or just that shocked. “Well I don’t think you’d do that.” I nodded and then looked away in thought. “Actually I would have. I think the Commissioner wasn’t the Commissioner at all. Much like some robot wanted your parts, robots have been hijacking robots and now it seems people as well.” Farley leaned back against the wall, shaking his head in disbelief. “What the hell is going on out there?” I pat him on the shoulder. “I don’t know, I’d love to find out though.” Suddenly a robot bursts into the room and looks into the cell. “Magnus, you are coming with me.” The cell door opens and two officers are standing on either side. “Good luck out there Farley.” He nods to me. “Same to you buddy, seems the world is going crazy.”

As the three of us march down the hallway, I am lead to a small room with only a desk and a chair. The officer droids force me into my seat and then they leave. Another robot enters the room and he has an oh so familiar limp. As he sits down in front of me, I can’t help but think I have some new problems. He stares me right in the eyes. “So. You may have been saved last time, but Magnus, you know too much. I am sorry but I will have to disable you.” I decide enough is enough. “Well, if you must, first tell me who you are.” The robot laughs. “Or not.” He raises a pistol to my face and pulls the trigger, lucky for me I have my speedy moments. Today, I dodged a bullet. Marking that on the calendar. As our hands both wrestle for control of the gun, I pray that no one else can see the struggle going on in this room.

**********************************************************************

Will Magnus prevail? Or will he fall victim to yet another bullet? And who is this mysterious robot with a limp? Only Episode Fifteen can tell you! Thanks for reading!

Super Zero: A Cape of Courage

Despite it being only his second day of school, James had already met with one of his largest obstacles at school; Bullying. Today was a new day though, today he would overcome all odds. Today he would fight back. He had fashioned himself a costume for school and after getting out of bed, he decided it was now or never. As James put on his costume, he felt stronger than ever. He felt like he could do anything. Actually, he really didn’t feel any different. But today! Today would be different! As his mother greeted him coming down the stairs she looked to his father for advice. As his Dad jumped up to get a better look at what his son had taken from his story the night before, he realized that James had decided to accept the nickname a bit too much.

Wearing a pair of jeans with a pair of red underwear over them, a blue sweater with a zero marked on it and a red towel cape; James had fully embraced the nickname. “Son, I love you, but I don’t think William went as far as to dress up as the Green Ranger.” James crossed his arms and stared disapprovingly at his father. “Maybe not, but I searched Superman last night and he is a hero and he wears his underwear on the outside!” William looked to his wife and she just snickered as he tried to explain his way out of this one. “James, it was just a story, the point was to accept the nickname and adapt to it. Not necessarily become it. After all, your mother and I love you very much, not Super Zero.” James looked back and forth between them and decided that he should try this. “Nope, I’m going to school. This will work. I promise.”

James and his mother walked to the bus stop again, the fresh dew soaking their shoes. As they arrived, everyone was turning to see the kid dressed up as a superhero. James looked to his mom and smiled as the kids came over and talked to him. Maybe this isn’t so bad after all, she thought. Suddenly another parent approached her. “I hear your boy has been getting bullied already, my girls are in his class and they won’t stop talking about the bully.” The male parent stopped to judge her reaction and seeing nothing, continued. “Do you think it’s a good idea for him to go to school like that?” James’s Mother turned to him and smiled. “I’ll let him try it. He wants to do things his way, it either works or it doesn’t. What matters is he learns from the experience and moves past it.”

The bus ride to school proved rather eventful as everyone wanted to sit with the superhero kid. As James told a few kids about himself, he managed to start making some friends. Not bad for a second day! Once they arrived at school, James got off the bus and he had a crowd around him as kids asked him questions and wanted to know more about him. He found it all really strange, especially since the day before, no one even noticed a kid stealing his recess. As he made his way through the crowd he spotted the bully across the playground. He was already bullying the poor kid who was now sitting behind him in class. Not today though, it would stop today. James marched past everyone and defiantly stood between the bully and Alex and crossed his arms. “Stop.” The bully looked to his friends and couldn’t believe his eyes. “Super Zero got himself a costume. Still doesn’t make you super though. He turned and got a high five from one of his posse. He turned back around and Super Zero had helped Alex up and told him to get away. The bully clenched his fists and stared James right in the eye. “You want to start this huh? Because I will finish it.”

Alex ran from the growing crowd of children, feeling bad about leaving James in there to face off with the bully. Suddenly an idea popped into his head and he bolted for the nearby teacher on duty, who just so happened to be Miss Delilah. “What is it Alex?” He pointed toward a crowd and she watched as the bully punched James in the face. Panicked, she rushed over and grabbed the bully by the arm. “You think you’re tough Ronald MacDonald? We shall see how tough you are when you’re already on detention with your parents coming.” She helped James to his feet, and was surprised he wasn’t crying. “You all right James?” She could tell he was fighting back tears, but he grinned despite it. “I’m ok.” As she escorted them both off, the small crowd of kids they left behind began chanting “Super Zero! Super Zero!” James knew he had already made an impression for the day and was pretty proud of himself. No wonder Superman was such a great guy, it felt good to do good!

Unbiased Law: Episode 13

Episode Twelve: Gun in his face, Magnus was left last time staring at Veronica’s “declared dead, but no so dead” twin. After speaking with the Doctor about the corpse, he is now thrown for a loop into all he knew. Which one is the girl, which one is the robot? Only time will tell! Hope you enjoy the thirteenth episode of Unbiased Law (or back to Episode One or Episode Twelve)!

**********************************************************************

“Sit robot. We need to talk.” The gun stayed aimed directly at my head. I love these girls, both as gorgeous as they are deadly. Someone make a movie about this pair already! As I sat across from her, she shifted in her seat and crossed her legs the opposite way. “So you’re the one she killed. Seems you’re not the only human who has trouble dying.” I looked around. Me, human? Well that was a compliment. “So, you think I’m human?” I asked, looking back and forth between the gun and the beautiful girl. “Of course you are,” she replied matter of factly, “How else can you think outside the tin box you’re trapped inside?” If I could have smiled, I would have. She somehow read that I was smiling anyway. “I’ve got a case for you, my crazy sister R0N-N13, tried to kill me and left me in this terrible body. I went into shock and they actually thought I died.” I nodded at her. “Actually, you were declared dead.” She shot me a glare that could melt steel to paste. “It doesn’t matter. What this is, is a case of body swapping.”

“Body swapping is…” I chose my next words carefully as the gun stared me down. “Highly unlikely, but I guess since you’re here, it’s happened?” Veronica let the gun lay on the table, allowing me to trust in her a little bit. “You’re right you know, it was highly unlikely. After Dad cooked up this crazy scheme to frame robots and retake the job market for humans, my sister came for me. She’s been working with the Discards on starting this war from inside the bodies of people.” My mind was actually blown by this concept and I interrupted. “So you mean to say, that the Discard army is real?” She nodded. “The army is extremely real. In fact, many of the discards down at the dumping grounds are actually humans now. They struggle to survive and are piecing themselves back together.” I looked around in shock, my head was reeling from all this information. “So, the actual robots have possessed people?” She shook her head, “No, not possessed, swapped. Using wireless transmitters they perform an upload of their mind overwriting a human mind while the human mind is overwriting their own robot mind back in their body. Therefore, they gain control of human bodies. They have integrated into society now. They were looking for high ranking officials and officers.”

I sat back and stared at Veronica. Well, if this was her. Hell, if I was me? What is it to be anyone any more? Are we all just data now, over written and copied like regular old files in Windows? I noticed her waving her hand in my face. “You ok? I thought you shut down on me!” I shook my head. “I just don’t know what to say. Discards have become humans, and humans are stuck in discards. I’ve got to go to the acting commissioner.” As I got up to leave Veronica grabbed my arm. “Be careful, these robots are dangerous.” I nodded and told her to go to my office and wait. Today was already a long day, and it was about to get longer.

As I got to the Police Station, I looked around. The area was desolate. I walked in and was immediately hassled by a robot guard. “Halt, identification please sir.” Sir? I reached up and touched my face. I was still wearing my nanite mask. Well that explained how my emotions were showing through. I looked to the robot and requested to show him my ID in private. After exposing my robot face to him and my real ID, he let me pass. He told me that the acting commissioner was actually awaiting my presence. That didn’t sound good. As I marched to his office, I swung open the door and saw him across the desk. I nodded and he held up his hand for me to wait. He was on the phone and all I caught was, “Yes, Magnus is here, bye.” That uneasy feeling was coming back, stupid memories replicating reality. “Hello Sir, I understand you’ve been expecting me?”

The Commissioner rose from his desk and had a strange limp. “Are you ok Commissioner? It seems your right leg isn’t working all that well.” He looked down at the leg and shook it. “Old wounds. Anyway, what is your status on the case?” I thought to myself to hold back, but I decided to hell with it and told him. “I have found out that the dead girl who escaped from the morgue is the human who had her body stolen by her robot sister. Both of these two are the daughters of Mister Radlem, our favourite prison inmate who had his daughter tamper with a judge aside from his conspiracy to start a war between humans and robots.” The Commissioner leaned back and nodded. “Sounds like quite the predicament.” I shrugged in response, but suddenly he spun with a gun aimed at me. “You know Magnus, it was you who inspired me. The story of a human transmitting and surviving in a robot body. I thought to myself, if I could get access to your logs, I could replicate that effect but in the opposite direction.” I watched as he paced back and forth. “It took awhile for us to infiltrate society and I’m not about to let you ruin all of our work Magnus. But in thanks for your inspiration, I’ll grant you a quick departure from the robot body you are not worthy of having.”

The muzzle of the gun rose from his side and aimed directly at me. I closed my eyes and hoped I would end up back in my office when everything passed. The click of the trigger, the bang of the gun and the deafening silence were all that guided me as I waited for the bullet to tear me apart.

**********************************************************************

Hope everyone enjoyed today’s episode, it has been fun writing these and even more fun rereading them. I would love to hear feedback on how the story is going and favourite moments now that we’ve reached ten episodes! Thanks!

Super Zero: Tale of the Green Ranger

“James, she was just an old dog. There was nothing they could do.” His mother’s words echoed forever in his mind. He knew Willow wouldn’t be home when he got there, but ever since he got home no one had bothered to ask how his day had gone. As he lay in his bed, head buried in his pillow, he considered running away. School sucks, he thought, I should pack up and go to Grandma’s house. As he forced himself out of bed, he grabbed his Toy Story luggage bag and began packing. He packed his teddy, King Arthur, and started considering what clothes to bring. As he leaned for a pair of pants, he realized his father was standing in the door. “Going somewhere bud?” James stared at his Dad and tried to figure out a lie to tell him. He didn’t want him to worry. “I’m not going to Grandma’s house.” His father laughed, “Of course you’re not James.” He swooped in and picked James up, sitting them both on the bed. “Is this about Willow? Or is this about something else?”

Moments passed and James stared sheepishly at the floor. He turned to his Dad a few times, but his Dad looked like Hercules. There was no way he would ever have been bullied. James looked at King Arthur and pulled him out of the bag. Hugging him tightly he looked back to his Dad. “I’m not smart Dad.” His father didn’t believe it for a second. After all, James was starting writing and math when most kids would still be squawking unintelligible sounds. “James, is this about the cut on your lip?” James became embarrassed and leapt off the bed. “You don’t understand, he’s bigger than me!” His father lowered himself from the bed and patted the floor beside him. As James slowly came over and sat beside him, his father began a story.

“James, let me tell you a little story about a scrawny kid named William who was bullied all through school.” James looked up to his Dad for a moment. “Your name is William too!” His father looked down and smiled, pulling his son closer with a hug. “That’s not all we have in common my boy.” James smiled and then looked a bit confused. “What does scrawny mean?” His Dad laughed, “Tiny James, tiny and weak.” With a sigh, he continued. “William was a bright little boy who started his first day of school with a Power Ranger vest on. It was bright green with all kinds of logos on it from the television show of the same name. No matter how cool William thought it was, it seemed it wasn’t cool enough for the other kids. As his first year went on horribly, he survived and earned the humiliating nickname of Green Ranger. William loved the Green Ranger and everything he stood for, from fighting as a bad guy to switching to the good guys.” James stared at his Dad with intensity, he was completely enthralled by the story.

His father began again, this time with a smile. “William however was just as strong as the Green Ranger and although he did some mean things to the boys who bullied him, he managed to know when he should stop. As he embraced his nickname as the Green Ranger, he eventually lived up to the name and became a leader among his fellow students. He spent a few years being bullied a lot, and sometimes it wasn’t fun for him. But the only way to win over the bullies, is to not let them get to you. No matter how hard it may seem.” As his father looked down to him, James nodded. “I know what I have to do, but tomorrow I want to dress myself.” His father nodded in approval. “I’ll let your mother know.” As the two rose from the floor, James tugged at his father’s pants. His father looked down to him with a curious look on his face. “Yes James?” James held his bear tight and looked up sheepishly at the large man that was his Dad. “Dad, was William you?” His father laughed. “Maybe, but there’s no way to ever really know.” As James followed his Dad out of his room, he noticed one of the trophies in his Dad’s cabinet was for baseball. Etched on a metal plaque below the trophy were the words, To William “The Green Ranger” Kent, MVP 2009. James grinned after figuring out the mystery of the Green Ranger. Tomorrow he would embrace his nickname.