Stanley Duncan's Robot: Genesis by David III (korean ebook reader .txt) 📕

“Look.” Dan pulled up some of the footage on the computer showing an android being beaten and burned alive. In the background, the crowd was chanting, “Abomination.”

The thought of something burning made Stanley anxious. He couldn’t bear to watch more than a few seconds. The familiar burning sensation in his body returned, rekindled, and he fought the urge to go to the dining-room table and sign his name.

“This was a living being — like me and you.” Dan pressed his hand to his heart. “How could someone do this?”

Stanley nearly choked on his tongue.

“So much hatred,” said Dan. “Doesn’t anyone care what happened to him?”

“It’s what I have been trying to tell you, Dan. People are angry and violent. The world isn’t a nice place when people don’t like you. And if you’re a machine, it can be downright dangerous.”

“The police were there. Why weren’t they doing anything about it?”

Stanley felt heavy. “Well — ”

Dan waited expectantly.

“The world is fighting against evolution. The police and lawmakers are holding onto power, and many are still angry about losing their jobs.” Frustration swept across Stanley, causing him to lose his train of thought. “That’s why I don’t want you out there. It’s not safe.”

“I’m not afraid.”

“Well, you should be.” There it was again. Dan was showing human traits. Another incredible milestone in his progress, but Stanley couldn’t stop to think about it. “If they can kill one android, then they can certainly kill another. Maybe next time, it’ll be a cyborg.”

“And that is exactly the problem. We have to stop it.”

The burning intensified. The feeling was surreal. Stanley shook his head. Didn’t Dan know who these people were? They would kill him. There was no way he was going to let anyone hurt him. Not Dan. Yet, looking into those teary eyes, staring at that soul who had given him a reason to live again — how else would he ever have the strength to wear pajamas and drink tea for hours on end in the formidable stillness of this empty room? Despite giving him so much, that man had asked for nearly nothing in return. “Those men will never change. Trying only exposes us to danger.”

“I’m not saying we need to convince them overnight. But we need to do something.”

Everything inside Stanley told him to forbid Dan from ever leaving the house again. To lock the door, throw away the key, and forget all about the outside world. They could watch movies, play games, and order foods for the rest of their lives. But deep down, Stanley knew this was his own fear. He had to push past it for Dan’s sake. “I’ll give you my blessing, but on one condition.”

“What’s that?”

“I need to know I can protect you should something happen. Enable GPS on your phone at all times so I can know where you are.”

“That’s fine, Stanley. If that makes you feel better.”

“I’ve also ordered some equipment to build some protective gear for you. Until everything is ready, you are not to go outside.”

“Stanley, we’ve talked about this before. I can protect myself.”

“You nearly broke your ankle today! And you went on fuse!”

“I didn’t say — ”

“You didn’t think I knew? Of course, I knew, but I let it go because, to me, you’re still a little boy. My little boy. And I’m not going to let you get hurt.”

“Yeah, but — ”

“Don’t argue with me!”

“Yes, sir,” said Dan, saluting him and then crashing onto the couch.

Stanley stared at him.

“What? It’s the microdose. If it makes me feel this amazing, I can’t begin to imagine what a full dosage would be like.”

“Don’t even think about it because it’s never going to happen. It’s too dangerous.”

“You worry too much.”

“One of us has to.”

Dan stretched out his legs across the arm of the couch and giggled.

“What’s so funny?”

“I think I’ve found my calling.”

“Please tell me it involves working remotely from home.”

Dan held up a finger. “I want to be an educator, like you.”

“My lecturing days are long over. I could never do that again.”

“Really? That’s a shame. You did an incredible job on the livestream.”

“If you agreed to stay home, I would be more amenable to helping you make videos and sharing them online.”

“That’s good. Children love the internet.”

“I can’t talk to you when you’re like this.” Stanley turned to leave.

“Wait!” Dan pressed his fingers together, forcing the wide grin smeared across his face into a toothy but less-crazy-looking smile. “After talking to this boy without parents today, I realize that children nowadays are lost. They don’t hate my kind — they’re bored. Uneducated. I want to give them a path forward, raising this new generation to usher in the next revolution on Earth, the coexistence of man and machine.”

“Machines with dreams,” said Stanley.

“I like it.”

“Me, too — as long as they are safe.”

Dan burst out laughing, and Stanley went straight to his room and shut the door.

After the encounter with Dan, Teddy wandered the streets until finally returning to a better-hidden spot near the tavern. That idiot’s contact information reverberated in his head, and it was driving him crazy. If he wanted to call him, it would be to threaten his life and tell him how much of an idiot he was. But he didn’t. He wanted nothing to do with that freak. All he wanted was his revenge. Pressing his thumb against the dagger, blood trickled to the surface as the knife dug into one of a half-dozen cuts. He sat there for hours, watching and waiting for Brad to stumble into his cruiser after drinking himself half to death. This was when he was most vulnerable.

But there were too many people here. Too many cameras. Too many cops. Teddy was tall and powerful, but so was Brad. He had to be careful. Better to lie in wait for Brad at his own house and stab him there. He would watch him bleed until the light faded from his eyes.

Teddy shifted anxiously. His