Solaria Series: Solaria Part 1

Solaria.

By Fran Heckrotte.

Acknowledgments.

Nothing of quality can be built without first laying a strong foundation to support it. The same applies to writing. As an author, I am privileged to have a network of people who provide me with the support necessary to improve my skills and fine-tune my stories. I'd like to thank some of those people now.

To Pam, my alpha beta, special thanks for all the hard work and dedication in catching my mistakes and challenging me to do better. You not only proofed my work but questioned it. Writers need that honesty. Thank you.

To Kimberly, Lee McLean and A.D. Bra.s.sis, my beta betas, the little things count. You were able to find those tiny errors that I missed multiple times as well as provide valuable input into the storyline. Thank you.

To Mary Bosshart, you inspire me in ways you can never imagine. You have more courage and strength than all those fish in that lake of yours.

Sheri Dragon... Cover Artist extraordinaire... I'm always amazed at the covers you have produced for me over the years. Each one gets better and better...something I think can happen.

Roxanne... you are the dreamer who makes dreams come true. Your concept of creating L-Books and S-Books will provide many listeners with hours of entertainment.

Finally, as always to A.L. for inspiring me to write and encouraging me to do so.

And let's not forget Howie, who really never knows what these acknowledgements are about. Life should always hold some mysteries.

CHAPTER 1.

The Hubot Project:.

Day One, Year Three 2097 A.D.

HER FIRST AWARENESS of existence was a chaotic flash of colors, meaningless and yet in an odd way logical; why, she wasn't sure. Birth is the most significant event in life, and yet it is never memorable; at least not for the newborn; but then she really wasn't a newborn, even though it was the first day of her life.

The flickering colors merged into shapes and then the shapes became clear images. Within seconds, she morphed from a bio-mechanical experiment to a viable functioning possibility, and her AI programmer was ecstatic. Years of research and failures were forgotten when the Hubot's eyes first opened to examine her surroundings. They were so human that Carley was caught off guard. Had she not been part of the project from its conception, no one would have convinced her that the object lying on the table was anything more than a fairly attractive woman who had just awakened from a deep sleep.

The Hubot's short silver hair was fashioned after a stylish fad that had been popular for a few years. Although it would have attracted attention several years ago, no one would pay much attention to the color now. Her skin was slightly tanned but not excessively so. The one thing that would make others take notice, though were the eyes. No matter how human she looked, teal wasn't natural, but that could be explained away. Colored lenses were popular.

"Do you understand me?" Carley asked, enunciating each word slowly to give her creation time to a.s.similate the sounds of speech, and its meaning.

The Hubot blinked rapidly, trying to adjust to the visual stimuli a.s.saulting her optic nerves and flooding her nano-processors. Empathetically, Carley waited patiently.

It's probably like walking from a dark room into sunlight, she thought. When the blinking slowed to a normal rate, she tried again.

"Do... you... understand... me?" she repeated.

Turning her head toward the source of the sound, the Hubot saw her first human and quickly filed the data specific to the object in one of her memory banks.

"I have a.n.a.lyzed each word and the structural sequence of your vocabulary. You do not need to separate your words in such a manner for me to comprehend the meaning."

"I'll take that as a yes. Welcome to my world."

The Hubot remained silent. The greeting required no response since it didn't make any sense to her.

"Do you have any idea what this is about? I mean who you are?"

"I am Hubot 1A526, Prototype 1A of the Hubot Project."

"Is that it?"

"I do not understand the question? Was my response incorrect?"

"Well, no. You're correct. What I want to know, though, is do you know the purpose of this project?"

"The Hubot Project is a scientific endeavor to combine bio-ma.s.s with trabecular metal technology to design a pseudo-human body that can be controlled by a series of multi-directional cascading laser quadro-core nano-processor chips that will theoretically simulate human thought and behavior. The purpose of the project is to create a functioning organism capable of serving humanity by providing daily a.s.sistance to disabled humans or to do manual labor in place of humans under dangerous or extreme circ.u.mstances. I am Hubot 1A526, the first generation prototype for the project."

"That's partially correct."

"Partially means I am either incorrect in my a.n.a.lysis or have failed to define my purpose in its entirety. I have run an a.n.a.lysis on all data stored in my memory banks and find no other available information. Please advise."

Carley patted the bio-machine on the shoulder.

"Don't worry about it for now. You have correctly defined your initial purpose. I'll explain the rest later."

"If that is what you require of me."

Carley smiled, pleased with the results from the first few minutes of interaction with the Hubot.

"It looks like we're well on our way to achieving our goal. Still, we have a long way to go before you'll be able to interact with the outside world, so we'd better get started. Please run a diagnostic on your neuro-circuitry and bio-mechanical systems to see if everything is working properly."

Within seconds, she had her answer.

"I have completed the necessary a.n.a.lysis. All processors are functioning within the required specifications of each subprogram with the exception of sector 6B412, cache 3778 of memory bank eleven. Biological, mechanical and electronic components are operating within desired parameters."

"Which processor isn't working properly?"

"Core chip seven has a point seven nano-second delay when processing data through circuit 871C4."

"Hmmm. Is it causing you any serious problems?"

"No."

"Alright. We'll run some more tests on that later. Right now I think we can start your education. If you're going to join the human race, you have a lot of growing up to do."

"My growth is limited to the physical structure of skeletal and biological ma.s.s. I am presently at maximum potential based on the height and weight of my trabecular frame. It is impossible to exceed those parameters without compromising the integrity of my biological and neuro..."

"It's a figure of speech 1A526."

"Figure of speech: an expression that uses language in a non-literal way."

"Yes. Do you understand what that means?"

"Of course. It is a synecdoche."

"Synecdoche? I'm not familiar with that word. Explain."

"Synecdoche. By using the word growth you are not referring to my physical structure but instead my intellectual advancement. You wish me to achieve a level of competence that will allow me to emulate a human."

"Uhhh. Sort of... How about we continue this discussion after you've had time to interact with a few humans in the lab?"

"Is that a question requiring a response or a directive?"

Carley realized she and the Hubot could go around in circles forever if she didn't take control of the situation.

"A directive for now. Okay 1A526... You know I really hate calling you by your number. If we expect you to integrate with us, you should at least have a name."

1A526 remained silent, unable to comprehend the logic behind the human's comment. She was a.s.signed a specific number which was a better identification method than a name. It was specific to her. Humans often shared common names. That information had been programmed in her initial software to make it easier for her to identify the people working around her.

"I see you're not going to be any help with this. Well, since you theoretically represent the dawn of a whole new era of technology for humanity's benefit, I'm going to call you Solaria. It means sun." Even as she said it, Carley realized how overly-dramatic it sounded and winced inwardly. "What do you think about being called Solaria?" she asked somewhat sheepishly.

"I do not think of it at all."

"Okay, okay. For now you're Solaria. You can always change it later."

"If that is what you want. What do I call you?"

"Me? I'm Carley Branson. You can call me Carley."

"h.e.l.lo, Carley."

Carley smiled and nodded. The greeting was Solaria's first step to becoming human.

"h.e.l.lo, Solaria. Now let's get to work, shall we?"

CHAPTER 2.

Week One AT FIRST PROGRESS was slow and tedious for both human and Hubot. Although Carley knew it would take time for the prototype to become completely functional, Solaria had no such expectations. Her computer brain could not rationalize why her motor functions weren't responding efficiently to her instructions. The stiff robotic movements made it almost impossible for her to walk around the lab without b.u.mping into desks or chairs, causing things to crash to the floor. Solaria would stare at the broken objects, a.s.sess the damage and try to determine the best method to repair them. Unable to come up with a satisfactory solution, she turned to Carley for answers.

"I do not understand what is wrong with me," she said one morning after accidentally knocking over two chairs. "Something is wrong with my neuro-system. I have run eighty-three different diagnostic tests and found no identifiable malfunctions to explain my awkward motion. I have concluded I must be defective."

"You're not defective, and I doubt if there's a real problem," Carley replied, looking up from the holographic monitor in front of her. "You're just adapting to your new body."

"Are you saying that this is the way I am supposed to function? If I am to emulate a human, I must be less rigid in my movements. I am a threat to them and to all objects around me."

"True, and no I'm not saying you're supposed to walk like that. What I meant was, until your processors finish mapping your bio-mechanical system, there's no way you're going to move fluidly. I suggest you start small. Work your fingers and hands first until you fully understand how your mind and body works. It's all about repet.i.tion. After that, the rest should come a lot easier."

"That is logical. I should have concluded that without your help. I am defective."

"You expect too much of yourself right now. I think you might have been experiencing what we refer to as frustration. It's hard to think logically when that happens."

"Frustration is a human emotion. I am not human therefore I am incapable of frustration."

"You're programmed to learn, Solaria. There's no reason why you won't develop emotions along the way. Let's not rush things or jump to any conclusions yet, okay?"

"Okay."

Month Two For almost three weeks Solaria practiced flexing her fingers, hands and wrists until she was familiar with every circuit and nerve between them and her processors. Once she understood how her processors received and transmitted impulses to and from her fingers, she progressed to her upper body and finally her legs. Within two months, she was walking efficiently around the lab. The lab techs were thrilled. During her learning stages, she had managed to annihilate several expensive pieces of equipment. Most of the people took it good naturedly although, occasionally, Solaria heard a few grumblings. Because it was the human thing to do, she immediately apologized, which seemed to make them feel better. Logically, it didn't make much sense. An apology didn't solve anything. The item was still broken.

Soon her movements became second nature, giving her more opportunities to focus on learning about the world around her. Solaria felt a sense of pride at her accomplishments, but didn't really recognize the emotion for what it was. Carley did and was thrilled. It was another step closer to becoming human.

As a scientist it was Carley's nature to search for answers. She loved her job, especially now that human robotics was finally a reality instead of a possibility. There were still plenty of obstacles to overcome but it was only a matter of time before Solaria, the first beta Hubot, would be fully functional.

Carley's job had been to program 1A526 with the primary software that would start the Hubot down the long road to becoming human; at least that's how Carley looked at it. Estimates by the most brilliant AI experts indicated it would take approximately six months of rigorous training for the prototype to reach a level equivalent to an IQ of 90. After that, the Hubot's learning curve would grow exponentially giving her the ability to grasp and process concepts at a faster rate.

Carley had spent all of her adult life waiting for that moment. At fifty-three, a few months didn't seem so far away.

Month Six Pressing her palm against the security scanner, the scientist waited for SIARD (Security Identification and Recognition Device) to confirm her ident.i.ty. When the laboratory door finally slid open, Carley deposited her laptop and briefcase on her desk and walked over to the security vault. Punching in her code, she activated the automatic door and stepped inside. The room was dark but motion lights sensed her presence and switched on, illuminating the interior. In the middle of the small room was a metal chair made of t.i.tanium. Strapped in it was what appeared to be a woman, her head tilted slightly forward, her chin resting on her chest as if sleeping.

"Activation Code 092669," Carley said quietly.

The head straightened up and turned toward the scientist.

"Good morning, Carley."

The Hubot's voice was slightly husky, almost sultry. Carley wasn't quite sure how the Hubot had acquired such a seductive tone. When she asked the voice designers about the vocal actuator, they couldn't give her a satisfactory answer. Their response was that it was a random mixture of audio fibrotic vibrations resonating through the vocal circuitry near the back of the throat. Carley rolled her eyes at the inept explanation. Basically, it was the equivalent of human vocal chords. Obviously they didn't have a clue.

"Good morning, Solaria. How are you doing?"