Murder Drones: New Models

Uzi and Izun stood in the basement as the Worker Drone inspected every corner. Turns out Izun had worried for nothing. All it took was a little focus and determination—once he got going, the cleanup practically flew by. Uzi: Well done! You can do it when you want to. Are you hungry? Izun: No, I already ate. I just wanted to ask you something. How long will you and Dad be at work? Uzi sighed and crouched down to Izun’s level. Uzi: I’m sorry… We really hate leaving you alone for so long. Izun: Well, in that case… can I ask you something? Uzi: Of course. Izun: Mom, why did you give me the ability to shoot photons? Uzi was slightly surprised by the question. Honestly, she hadn’t thought about what she’d say if he ever asked. But the answer came naturally. Uzi: Well… There are a lot of bad Drones out there. But you shouldn’t be angry at them—because anger leads to worse things. That’s why we gave you that power. So you could knock them down without hate. She stood up and silently headed toward the basement exit. Izun: Then— Uzi stopped. Izun: Then train me to use it! The Worker Drone’s eyes flickered into zeros. Was he serious? But when she looked into his violet digital eyes, filled with determination, she knew she had to teach him—at least the basics. After all, this was her creation. And no one knew better than her how to train photon control. Uzi: Are you sure? Izun: Absolutely! Uzi: Then go wait for me in the backyard. Izun, filled with purpose, ran to the back door. Uzi headed to the kitchen. About half an hour later, Uzi stepped into the backyard holding several bottles of “Freezer.” Izun (pretending not to know): What’s that? Uzi: Cooling fluid. Your power heats up your system due to its intensity. So after every shot, you’ll drink this. I had to work hard to dilute it—because one full bottle could freeze your system entirely. Izun (thinking): Seriously?! So that’s why I couldn’t regulate my temperature when I drank it before… Uzi: Let’s begin while I still have time. Try shooting—say, at those stumps over there. She pointed to some tree stumps beyond the fence in a nearby grove. Then she sat down in a lounge chair and watched. She didn’t need to teach him how to fire—she knew he could. The torn-up yard was proof enough. Izun began channeling his energy into acidic-colored beams. Each time he succeeded, he drank a diluted Freezer bottle. He trained for about three hours, downing nearly 60 bottles. Uzi: That’s enough for today. We’ll run out of Freezer—and your dad won’t have any left for the rest of the month. Izun: Ugh! Why does it heat me up so much?! Uzi: Ha! What did you expect? That beam is powerful. And the stronger you get, the stronger it gets. Izun: What do you mean? Uzi: You’re using photons. Photons are fundamental particles—quanta of electromagnetic radiation. In short, particles of light. Drone cores, which hold our life force, emit a unique type of photon. That’s what determines our strength, agility, speed, durability—everything. Your magnetic amplifier doesn’t just pull photons toward you—it pulls them inside you. There, they mix with your core’s photons. And that blend makes your beam five times stronger than you. Izun: So no matter how strong I get, my photon blasts will always be five times stronger than me? Uzi: Exactly! And when you train your body or physical skills, your core gets stronger. Which means it emits stronger photons. Which means your blasts get stronger too. Izun: Awesome! Uzi: You bet! Your mom knows her tech! checks her watch And she also knows… SHE WAS SUPPOSED TO BE AT WORK TWO AND A HALF HOURS AGO! A slicing sound cut through the air—N landed beside them. N: Uzi! You’re still home?! You were supposed to be at work two and a half hours ago! The core situation needs second-by-second monitoring! Uzi: Sorry. I just haven’t found anyone to stay with Izun. N: Ugh! Seriously?! Uzi: N, I’ve got an idea! N (curious): What? Uzi: Let’s take him with us. Izun and N: WHAT?! Uzi: Izun, go get dressed. Izun: Okay… Still confused, Izun went to get ready. Uzi: What’s the big deal? After yesterday’s talk, I realized—we’ll have to let him out eventually. So why not start now? N (sadly): I don’t know if this is right… Uzi: Actually, keeping him locked up is what’s wrong. He doesn’t even know why he’s being kept inside. What’s the point of rebuilding this world if even our own son can’t live in it? N: I guess you’re right. Eventually, he’ll demand answers. Better he be free—even if he doesn’t know everything. Uzi: That sounded weird, but I think you got my point. Izun: Mom, Dad—I’m ready. Izun hadn’t changed anything about his outfit or gear. Uzi: You sure? Izun: Yep. N: I can’t teleport both of you. We’ll take a taxi. A few minutes after calling, the car arrived. They all got in the back seat and sped toward the massive company building—so tall it could be seen from anywhere in the city. As they turned the corner from their house, a shadow appeared. A Disassembly Drone spread its wings and silently flew after them. ***INTERESTING FACT: If we factor in Izun’s photon amplification, the power distribution in his family looks like this: 1. N — 50 2. Izun’s Photon Blast — 20 3. Uzi — 10 4. Khan — 8 5. Izun (base strength) — 4 Thanks to Uzi’s invention, Izun has closed the strength gap with his father by a factor of five—at least for a single strike. This means his dream of becoming as strong—or even stronger—than N isn’t just wishful thinking. It’s within reach*** *Outside RCNC9* They finally arrived at the massive complex and stepped out of the car. Izun’s display was glowing with joy, though he trembled slightly with nervousness. On one hand, he was finally seeing the world—not just from the cramped basket behind his parents. On the other, that very freedom made him uneasy. Still, the thought of finally understanding where his parents worked brought comfort. They crossed the threshold, and the door closed behind them. From around the corner, the shadowy figure of a Disassembly Drone emerged. Leaping onto the wall, it opened a ventilation hatch and slipped inside the building. --- RCNC9 Uzi: Okay, sweetie. Dad’s job is very important—and dangerous. Mine’s important too, though safer. Still, you might pick up some bad habits from my phone calls. Grandpa Khan also has important work, so don’t distract him. You can walk around the complex, and if anything happens, come find one of us. Got it? Izun: I think so… But what if the workers ask who I am? Uzi: Just tell them to speak to Miss Uzi. Though you could use some supervision… Uzi looked around and spotted the two Disassembly Drones who had fallen out of the vent the day before. Putting them in charge seemed like a good idea—after all, their job was to maintain cleanliness and assist staff and management. Uzi: Hey! Y! W! W and Y (rushing over): YES MISS UZI! Uzi: Today, I’m reassigning your duties. You’ll be watching him. W: Who’s that? Y: Wait—is that Izun?! W: YOUR SON?! Uzi: Yes. And since you’re the only staff who know about him, I’m trusting you to keep an eye on him. W and Y: YES MA’AM! Uzi: All right, son. Behave yourself. Uzi turned and headed to her office. N had already split off when they entered the building. W (kneeling): Okay, let’s get acquainted. I’m W, and this scaredy-bot is Y. Y: Hey! W: Come on, I’ll show you around. Izun (shyly): Okay… let’s go. They wandered through corridor after corridor. Izun took in everything with wide-eyed curiosity. Eventually, they got tired of circling the complex and decided to rest. W: By the way, Izun—what school do you go to? Izun: Ummmm… I don’t go to school. Y: What?! How old are you? Izun: Eight. Y: Eight and not in school?! You should be in second grade! Izun: Well, Dad’s been teaching me at home since I was four. He says my knowledge is at fifth-grade level. W: Whoa, smart kid. Y: I don’t believe it! You’re joking, right? Izun (frowning): But it’s true! Y: Let me ask you a few fourth-grade questions and we’ll see. What subjects have you studied? Izun: Math, literature, physical education, and writing. Y: Got it. Izun: Oh! And Mom taught me art— Y: Okay, okay, enough! Let’s test your math. Here’s a question: What place value is the digit 9 in the number 329,781? W: Are you sure that’s fourth-grade level? Isn’t that a bit hard? Izun: No, that’s exactly fourth grade. Answer: The 9 is in the “thousands” place. Y: Aha! Wrong! It’s in the “thousands” place! Izun: That’s what I said. Y: No—you said “unit of thousands”! W: Hey, Y. You do know that place values include “units,” “tens,” “hundreds,” right? And in the thousands, it’s “unit of thousands,” “ten thousands,” “hundred thousands.” So in that number, 9 is the “unit of thousands.” Y: No way… Oh wait, you’re right. Okay! Next question! What’s 23 times 0? Izun: Zero. Y: Nope! It’s 23. Izun: How? Y: Simple! You take 23 zero times. Izun: Exactly. Now add zero to nothing. Y (shocked): Oh… W (smirking): How did you even get hired? An eight-year-old just outsmarted you—and you’re almost thirty. Y: Well excuse me! I didn’t go to school! W: Neither did I! And technically, he didn’t either. But even I know basic stuff like this. While W and Y continued teasing each other in their usual banter, Izun sat on a cozy hallway couch, smiling as he slowly drifted into sleep mode. --- Evening had arrived, but the complex was still buzzing. Izun was still asleep on the couch. W and Y had gone back to work, assuming the kid wouldn’t cause trouble. Uzi approached the couch. Uzi: Hey… heeey. Wake up. Izun: Mmm… Mom? Uzi: Yep, it’s me. Want us to carry you home to sleep? N: I’m ready. Let’s head out. Uzi: Perfect timing. Carry Izun hooo yawns oooome. N: Alriiiight yawns oookay. Khan walked over. Khan: This won’t do! You’re all barely standing. I think this one-shift round-the-clock system isn’t working. We should rotate—some sleep while others work. Uzi: You don’t look tired. Khan: Of course not—I’ve already tested the new system. Best sleep I’ve had in years. You all need to go home and rest. N: But— Khan: I know taxis aren’t running. So I’ll drive you myself. Uzi: I take it there’s no convincing you? Khan: Exactly. Uzi: Fine. They exited the building and headed to Khan’s car. Once inside, the vehicle hummed to life and headed toward Izun’s home. Above them, the shadowy Disassembly Drone flew silently, still in pursuit. --- Uzi and N’s Home Khan: That’s it for me. Get some sleep—we’ll start fresh tomorrow. He turned and drove off. Uzi: All right. Hungry? Izun and N: YES! Uzi: Let me whip something up. She turned on the kitchen light and began cooking. Izun and N sat across from each other, ready to eat. Finally, the Worker Drone finished cooking, and they began their 11 PM dinner. --- Half an hour later N: Whew! Thanks, that was delicious. Just need some Freezer and it’s bedtime. Izun: Mom, Dad—can I ask something? Uzi: Go ahead. Izun: Will you always take me to work now? He hoped for a yes—he wanted to interact with other Drones, even adults. Uzi: No. You’ll stay home. N (choking on Freezer): What?! Uzi, we have no one to leave him with! And we can’t find a sitter—we wake up and go straight to work, and no one’s available at night. Uzi: We’ll figure something out. Besides, it’s time Izun saw the world. N: What?! Uzi: Yes, N! We talked about this this morning! N: True… But are you sure it’s safe? Uzi: Today I left him with W and Y. He just fell asleep—didn’t cause trouble. They didn’t complain. Honestly, I think our fears about the Absolute Solver in him are just theories. N: Maybe you’re right. We had to let him go eventually. Uzi: So it’s settled! Are you happy, Izun? Izun sat at the table, eyes blank zeros, staring out the window behind Uzi. She realized he hadn’t heard a word—they’d been talking, but he’d been watching something. Turning around, she saw a shadowy figure moving toward the front door. Uzi: I-Izun… who is that? Izun: I don’t know. But I’ve seen them before. I think they’ve been watching me for a while. Uzi: AND YOU NEVER SAID ANYTHING?! N seemed to realize what was happening. Someone was out there. And while they were at work, their son had been home—alone—with someone watching him from the shadows. Knock at the door Uzi: N-n-n… go check. N: Why me? Uzi: You’re the guy! And a Disassembly Drone—you can tear them apart if needed! N: F-fine… Despite agreeing with Uzi, N still didn’t get up from his chair. Uzi: N! N: Okay, okay! Stay behind me. Izun, go to your—WAIT, WHERE’S IZUN?! Meanwhile, Izun had already reached the door and was reaching for the handle. Uzi and N: IZUN, NO!!! But it was too late. The door creaked open. N lunged toward his son, anticipating danger. In a swift motion, he grabbed Izun and threw him aside—Uzi caught him just in time. N: Who are you?! What do you want?! Why have you been watching us?! ? (female voice): Whoa, whoa, whoa! Isn’t that a bit much—especially when I haven’t even stepped inside? It was dark outside. Only the yellow glow of a Disassembly Drone’s display and a shadowy silhouette were visible. ?: Warm welcome, huh? Though we’ve known each other for years. Uzi: Wait… that voice sounds familiar! N: Yeah… hold on! You’re— Uzi: No way… Uzi and N: J?!!!