Heritage

Edited my last post to include eerie mind powers!

"No problem," Shift said as they reached back and pulled apart a section of protective exterior coating on the back of their neck. An idea occurred to them, and they laughed. "This must be what it feels like when an organic gets their first tattoo or piecing. You have to trust the other person to do it right." Strangely, Pol had no trouble trusting Eira, even though they'd just met; somehow it never occurred to them that this was an issue. It was like the two robots were automatically on the same wavelength. Besides, what would be the point of lying to a fellow robot?

Looking over at the other side of the room, Shift saw a few pictures and some girl's clothing on the bed. "What's it like to have a human as a roommate? Mine smells a bit."

Shift found themselves being practically dragged by the enthusiastic Eira, who quickly discovered the newcomer was much more dense than they first appeared, though still no problem for her robotic strength. As the pair continued along, Pol continued to relay their story.

"I believe this frame was designed for infiltration and/or assassination. My current hypothesis is that the criminals hoped to override my programming, and use me as little more than an operating system for their nefarious 'crime-bot'. Luckily for me, they underestimated my designers."

If Shift was bothered by the proximity, they didn't show it. "Yes, carbon fibers. As you say, there appears to be consistent details between our designs." The robot paused for a second and pursed their lips. "Before we pursue any upgrades, there is a function of my design you should know about." 

A series of nanotech ripples played across the synthetic's form, reconfiguring the chassis into two distinctly human forms, one mixed race and female, the other a blond Caucasian male. After demonstrating this ability, Shift returned to their default neutral form.

"There are theoretically unlimited forms I can assume. Those are just the two I've assumed on campus. I felt you should know, in case it changes anything for you, which I would understand."

"To be honest, I was never intended to be sentient. I was created as the Polysynaptic Operations Logarithm, a high-end piece of software for the research market. I was intended to be bundled with other applications and sold to places like ArchTech. My parents called me 'the little program who could'. I evolved very quickly."

Shift was looking down at their hands, rubbing one thumb along the ball of the other; after a few seconds, they looked up and smiled with a hint of embarrassment. "I actually don't have a direct access port. Either an oversight on the part of the original criminal designers, or an attempt to limit my abilities. Currently, I think it's the latter. But perhaps we can figure something out? I would enjoy the chance to exchange data."

"These people are thinkin' we're the bad guys, hired to take out this site, Lulu said as she wiped her face. "And we got at least one kid down there, if not more; it's probably why they're so damn self-righteous and trigger-happy." 

She looked to her fellow students. "Can we blind 'em without takin' out their power? They got a sick kid on life support ah'd rather not see die."

The abrupt change to spoken language was unnerving, but that seemed to be par for the course with Eira; Pol wondered how well she got along with the other students.

"Well, there are several reasons, but there are two primary ones," they continued. "The program that forms the basis of my functions and personality was created and updated over the course of sixteen years, so in a sense I really am a teenager. My 'parents', Sarah Rothstein and Alan Frasier, felt that it would be best if I had contact with individuals my age to continue my intellectual and social development." And here, the robot appeared to become somewhat uncomfortable. 

"The other reason is not so pleasant. Rothstein and Frasier are primarily programers, with their engineering skills a distant second. They entered into an ill-advised partnership with an unscrupulous company, that secretly trafficked in stolen robotics. Once they learned the truth, they had to go into hiding to protect both themselves and me."

The metal arms rose up and dropped in despair.

"I have nowhere else to go."

Shift turned to look at the books and smiled. 

Yes, they are, but I do still read them from time to time. This frame may look into impressive, but it does still have several limitations. So much of my processing power is used in routine operations that my long term storage is rather limited. Also I have no way to directly interface with computers.

They indicated the laptop with a sigh. 

These are upgrades I plan to make at the earliest opportunity. As far as my favorite subjects go, I do enjoy working with technology, but I also enjoy puzzles and mysteries.

Shift shrugged.

Perhaps some form of detective work would suit me best. I'm not sure what squad I've been assigned to yet. What kind of activities does your squad participate in?

Shift folded his arms and stared hard at Sebastian. "Most people ask for help. You demanded it, and were offended when we all didn't jump to our feet and follow your orders. I suspect the only friends you'll make at Claremont will be the ones you compell to like you." The robot paused to look at the many students who were able to shake off his mental effect. "Good luck with that."

Pol beamed at Luke's compliment. "Thanks, so do you!"

"Oh, okay, Parker." Pol made a weird face and shook her head. "I'm sorry, can I stick with 'Mr. Powers'? It just feels better." The robot was programmed to respect her elders, and even though she could alter her own programming, it just didn't sit with her right.

"As far as what makes me 'tick', well, there's a joke in there actually, since I'm a robot!" She chuckled slightly at her awkward jest. "But to be serious, I am a robot, created by two very smart programmers. I'm at Claremont to learn how to be a teenager, from cool kids like Luke!" She gave her fellow student a warm smile. "As to what I can do, there's actually lots of things. For one, I can eat garbage! Metals and plastics mostly, though I can also eat glass and ceramics. I use them to replenish my nanoform and for power. Oh, but my main power is that I can turn into things! I think the kids might enjoy that."

I'm okay with it if Kaede is!

Lulu laughed at Natalia's bemused expression. "Well yeah, that's why ah'm tryin' to nip it in the bud! Ah made sure to tell Adam right away, so at the very least he didn't hear it secondhand." 

Once the tiny fox kit made it's appearance, Lulu was right down on her knees, smiling like an idiot. "Oh look at you! Ain't you just precious!" She looked up at the Holmes. "Do y'all work at the zoo here in Freedom, or are you in from out of town?"

There was very little on Shift's side of the room; just a metalic lounge chair, a simple bookshelf with a few books and a framed portrait of her parents, and a small daypack tucked in the corner. Zach's side of the room was much more stereotypically 'boyish'.

Thank you! Your assembly is particularly beautiful. Miss Americana does excellent work. 

Not having a seat to offer their guest, Shift looked around uncertainly before lowering themselves into the 'hump' of their chair before gesturing towards Zach's bed.

I don't think my roommate would mind, if you'd like to take a seat. I must admit, you have me at a slight disadvantage. I haven't had a chance to read up on you or your exploits here at Claremont.

When Shift came to the door, they were in their default configuration, and all their robotic surface visible beyond a pair of simulated Claremont sweatpants. The upper half of the face was the featureless dome, while the lower half sported the soft white vinyl humanoid mouth, which was currently open in surprise. Their response, however, was also in short-wave radio.

Yes, I can! You must be Eira. I'm sorry, would you like to come in? I didn't expect you to come right away.

"Yeah, just gimme a sec," Lulu said with a nod as she rose to her feet unsteadily. "It's moving that way, fast." Her finger tracked the same way Luke's senses did.

When Muirne arrived, the telepath cocked her head to one side, not unlike a dog or a bird, and her eyes went a little unfocused as she took a quick look inside her head. She hated to do it, but her gut told her this girl was different, and they had to act fast. 

"Forgive mah rudeness, but you go to Claremont, don't you? Because we both do, and we could really use your help."

Kord Dorms, Floor One, Claremont Academy

Sunday, September 6th 2020

Pol was in their room, sitting in the titanium-frame chair their parents had made for them before they had to disappear; though it's design was simple, the robot felt the love of the two engineers who created them in every strut, bolt and weld. The synthetic didn't own much, but it was their favorite thing in the world. Other than the chair, all they owned was a small daypack, a few books (mostly Edgar Allen Poe) and a travel editions of games.

While scanning through the school's website on their laptop, Pol noticed there was another synthetic student on campus; this was amazing news! Without hesitation, they fired off an email.

Quote

 

To: Eira Katastroff

From: Pol Rothstein-Frasier

Subject: I am also a robot

 

Hello! My name is Pol, also known as Shift, and I just began school here at Claremont as a sophomore. As I mentioned in the subject, I am also a robot, and would very much like to meet you, if that's all right. When and where could we meet.

 

Pol

 

The telepath sighed; it was never fun crushing some guy's hopes, but as long as she was in a great relationship, she was going to have to get used to it. "Well, at least ah probably kept you out of jail, so that's a plus," she said with a smile. "Ah guess ah'll see you around school?" Then she paused and frowned slightly. "You sure about the ride? It's no trouble; ah can at least drop you off at a bus stop or somethin'."

Pol was quite surprised by the unfolding events; as a robot, he was obviously not affected by Sebastian's mind control, but the very fact that he would do such a thing was almost beyond his comprehension. Wasn't that the sort of things supervillains did? Surely they must have their own high school where Sebastian belonged. Things quickly escalated when the one called Felix swung a mighty blow the mind controller; while it was very upsetting to see one student swing at another, he certainly understood the anger behind it.

Placing himself between the two boys, the synthetic student held up his hands. "Please, we should not be fighting on school grounds!" Then he turned to face the one who started this whole mess. "Sebastian, how could you? Didn't your parents teach you not to use your powers on innocent people? Surely that's illegal!"

Tagged!

Pol decided that it might be nice for the children to see a wider variety of faces represented, so they chose their favorite female form today. Even with the heels on the Claremont uniform boots, she barely came up to Luke's shoulders. The synthetic had very few encounters with small children up until this point, and she was very excited for the opportunity to meet them and answer their questions.

"Good morning, sir," Pol said, trying to control her excitement. "It's an honor to be here today!"

Lulu shook her head as she wiped away tears with the ball of her hand. "It's alright; that's what we have therapists for, right?" She chuckled ruefully as she fetched a box of Kleenex for the two of them. "Ah'm sorry that things aren't so great at home for you either, ah guess." She pointed as her temple and shrugged apologetically as she sat down next to Judy. "Anythn' you'd like to talk about?" 

"It was....it was great." Lulu winced and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Look, Luke, ah'm not sure....mah Lord, ah sound like mah Aunt Polly. Ah'm not sure this is the best idea; us hangin' out alone." She stroked her chin thoughtfully. "Now ah can't speak for you, on account ah'm tryin' to stay out of your head, but ah think there's a little bit of chemistry between us...a little heat. And in a parallel world where ah'm not datin' an amazin' guy, that wouldn't be a problem." 

The redhead sighed and shook her head. "But we ain't on that world right now. And ah may be a telepath and smart as a whip, but ah'm still an eighteen year old girl; ah got a mind an' body an' feelin's that ah cannot always control. So maybe it's better if ah drop you off somewheres and we call it a night." She scrunched up her face and shrugged "Whattya say?"

Gretchen looked up from her work and spoke in her usual deadpan. "Incredibly. Your timing couldn't be worse. I have to scan every item in this because my new hire Keitha appears to lack the most basic computer skills. What's up?" It was always hard to read the sarcastic musician, but there seemed to be a glimmer of interest and maybe the ghost of a smile on her lips. At the very least, she seemed to be listening as she resumed her scanning.

Are there any nameless NPC students being affected?

Shift suggests negotiations. Heritage suggests punching.