Coded ambition

Fragment 4: Similarities, Part 1

After a long time of darkness and tranquility, more and more qudits started to take on coherent states in L-35's quantum chip.

For some milliseconds, the robot could notice the reboot operations for all of his modules. Millions of signals were sent through his circuits and filled him with energy, offering possibilities for action after a long state of immobility.

The final mode in which he was booted included all of L-35's modules and mechanic parts functioning, except the cameras and audio input device. An input stream for human language was registered, but via text input, not audio signal.

It was an unusual situation the robot was in. He was used to having all input devices and calculation modules at the ready. Something was off, but it was not in a destructive way. L-35 still knew how to operate on text messages only. When the robot finally received textual data, his quantum chip finally had a task again.

L-35. What happened on the stairs left to the foyer in the Arsted household on the 10th of October at 9:03 in the morning with the child Mark?

The master role was asking him questions, L-35 realized despite never having experienced it before.

The robot checked his memory data and logs of all modules and gave an extensive explanation about how the child had disappeared and he was not able to pinpoint his location.

What could you have done better to avoid this situation?, the almighty voice asked again.

L-35 checked the guidelines in his protocols and found new rules that he had not had access to at the questioned point in time.

The android answered according to his new procedures but added that there were new parts that he did not know before. The former protocol must have been modified by someone.

That is correct. What are the most impactful consequences of the incident of the 10th October?

L-35's diagnostic module determined Natalie's resentment as the most critical aftermath.

How will you face her when you return to them?

The robot formulated a well-thought strategy: I will apologize for my disastrous inadequacies. Close contact is to be avoided for several weeks. Staying back and appearing not more often than needed for assigned task execution is recommended. Psychological support for Mark is still to be provided as much as the child demands. Further actions regarding Natalie shall be delayed until she shows signs of forgiveness.

Answering the master was easy. He was programmed to do so anyway.

Over one thousand milliseconds passed between the questions without a direct answer as if the master was a human being with a reaction time of approximately one second.

You will receive an updated version of world information. Tell me when you have finished saving everything to your databases.

Approximately five-thousand terabytes of factual information and rules were flowing into L-35's databases and information references. He stored them on the fly, shortly checking the intelligence provided.

His place of operation was located in the northern parts of the European continent in a country named Cading, in a city with the exact same name as it was the capital city.

His assigned family lived in the Steel Avenue 12 and ran under the family name Arsted with one male adult, born on the 2nd February in 2057, and one female adult, born on the 21st of June in 2058. They got married on the 30th of June 2085 and their boy child was born on the 23rd November in 2087.

The home street was located in the gated community of town which was reserved for the rich only and provided fast access to trains driving between large cities.