There was blood everywhere, and people were screaming for mercy, but not for the general’s sake or for the event either. No, it was the shooter, or what was left of him, at least. His head was caved in like a tin can smacked with a sledgehammer. Blood was gushing everywhere. You see, the robot soldiers detected him before he was even a threat. Before he even thought about pulling the trigger or loading the barrel of the gun. The robots were just waiting for the right opportunity to give the general what he wanted: a thrill of a lifetime and a little presentation.
Not only would world conflict end the day the machines could be deployed, but so would political assassination. Ironic, isn’t it, that the showstopper (literally) that was intended to discourage and pour fear into the eyes of Robo-Tekk supporters ended up being its greatest marketing scheme, a climax worth remembering. The touch of realism with a tad of near-death experiences always seemed to end a great show with a bang (again, literally).
“You stupid son of a bitch, you did it again,” said General Stein within arm’s length of the Robo-Tekk CEO.
“I’m glad you could enjoy yourself,” replied the CEO, “but again, I do apologize for that very serious incident towards the end. If it were not for my troops’ autonomous mechanism, I’m sad to say that we would not be having this conversation right now.”
The general laughed, looking back at his military entourage as they laughed with him. “Nonsense, when your soldiers popped that sucker, I couldn’t be more thrilled. It seemed almost too perfect, though. Like that failed assassin was nothing but a plant to sell your product.”
The Robo-Tekk CEO laughed nervously in reply.
“Nonsense, general. Our security team is investigating the situations as we speak.”
The general patted the CEO on the back.
“Not to worry, my team is conducting an investigation of their own, so we will both know soon enough if any funny business was going on.”
“Perfect,” the Robo-Tekk CEO replied while biting his lip.
The Robo-Tekk CEO immediately cleared his throat before guiding the general and his man on to the following room.
“If you wouldn’t mind, gentlemen, come with me. I’m afraid there is still more to be seen.”
The general halted as his eyes narrowed onto the CEO.
“What do you mean? Anything good enough for me and my top men to see is good enough for my soldiers too.”
The CEO refrained himself.
“Of course, sir. I wouldn’t doubt that for a second. However, let’s just say this second part is a tad more theatrical and in some ways beyond what the typical audience is ready for.”
The general rubbed his chin.
“No tricks I hope, as I thought you and I were beyond such simple theatricality.”
“We are general. We are indeed. I just wanted to pack this extra surprise just for you.”
The general paused to scratch his chin again before waving the CEO onward.
“Okay Roger. Now you’ve got me interested. But I must warn you, my men and I are due back at the station later this evening.”
The CEO laughed while continuing to guide the general and his entourage onward.
“Not to worry, General, this will only take a moment.”
“Soldiers, get in formation—now,” the CEO said.
With that single command and few flips of switches, the Armageddon-Busters from the prior show marched front and center onto the scene. And as exactly as before, they stepped onward in perfect resonance with each other, clicking and clacking in parallel right on the tick.
The CEO turned toward his metallic battalion, motioning with his finger for the center soldier to step forward.
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“Let me introduce to you one of the finest of our men and the original prototype for this whole unit’s design: Alpha Leader One.”
“Very well,” said the general.
Alpha Leader One stepped forward, and the strangest thing was not the soldier’s mechanical efficiency; no, it was the fact that it was so unusual for a living, moving automaton to behave so human, almost as if he was, but that was impossible.
Then the group went silent for a moment or two. The lack of motion got so bad that the general started to roll his eyes, something that was not particularly characteristic for such an aggressive persona.
The waiting and the lingering continued until the mechanical soldier opened his mouth to speak. The surrounding men and the general, especially, prepped for the metallized jaw to pop open like a hydraulic press. They then presumed a voice would echo out a few short beeps followed by a few boops or whatever other stereotypical robot lingo they could imagine. The voice, if one could call it that, would certainly be monotone and heartless. That would be the one thing that all the surrounding military men would agree on if they were talking.
“Hello everyone. I am Alpha, and this is my squadron of loyal compatriots. We have one mission and one mission alone: to keep the people of this fine country safe,” the Alpha Leader said. “How could I be of service?”
Despite the group’s initial thoughts, the words of the supposed machine were crisp, genuine, and heartfelt as though they carried the highs and lows of typical human vocalization. In fact, behind the syllables, the military men could sense realistic human emotion behind it all, almost as if the metal robot actually and legitimately cared for the people of the nation. And that was the most striking thing of all. Not the near-death experience the general just faced, not the high-tech tank battle between the cavalry and the automaton soldiers; no, the most surprising thing of all was how each and every member of the general’s crew felt as though they were talking to a living, breathing person.
“That will be all, soldier.”
“Thank you, sir,” Alpha said as he saluted the Robo-Tekk CEO.
After the brief introduction, Alpha went back to his team, and it huddled with the other robots. The machines almost hugged too while they chanted some battle cry, almost as if they were trying to amp themselves up, seemingly as if the words had some effect on their keen eye for killing and their efficiency for battle.
The general looked toward the CEO, narrowing his eyes, moments away from shaking his head in disappointment.
“I may not be a scientist or tech fanatic, but even I know what happens when you give a machine such a will to think and choose on its own. Have all those stupid science fiction movies of robot overloads taught you nothing?”
The new strangest thing of all was now not the machine’s vocalizations or humanizations or even the theatrics from before. It was the Robo-Tekk CEO’s immediate reaction. Unlike most other incidents, he did not seem nervous or taken aback, or even mildly surprised. It was almost as if the Robo-Tekk CEO was itching for the general to bring up that question the entire time.
“No, General, that is an important question, and I’m so very glad you asked it.”
The CEO turned to his robot battalion.
“Alpha Leader One—front and center.”
“Yes, sir,” the mechanical man said with a smile.
The second-in-command general named Maximilian Steel stepped to the front to whisper in Stein’s ear. Stein was a three-star general, and Steel was only a one-star; however, the two were awfully close, and Max was Stein’s top advisor.
“Something about this smells a little fishy, don’t you think? These machines—these weapons—giving them the power to run the most advanced military operation in the entire world without higher supervision doesn’t seem like such a good thing. That kind of power is the type I hate to bestow even on trusted men. And think of the outcry of the people.”
The Robo-Tekk CEO cleared his throat in order to interrupt the generals. He stood firmly as he straightened his posture and as his confidence reached an all-time high.
“As I was saying. Let me put any concerns about control to rest right this moment.”
“Alpha Leader One, listen to my words and do precisely what I say without a second’s hesitation.” The CEO stared his robot straight down its little glowing, beating green eyes. “Is that understood?”
The Alpha soldier saluted the CEO, “Yes, sir.”
“Kill yourself—now!”
“Yes, sir,” the robot announced.
Without a moment’s hesitation, just as the CEO had prescribed, the robot soldier dug his fist into his own chest cavity, ripping out the cortex that allowed his CPU brain to communicate with the rest of his body. The maneuver was swift and seemingly thoughtless, but the look in the machine’s eyes said otherwise. It was almost as if he was afraid for his life and his well-being, but there was nothing he could do about it. The general’s men, some of the toughest, most ruthless killers you would ever come across, even cringed, a few even looking away. These men came into the room laughing away at the supposed lifelike soldiers to almost genuinely (even in the most insignificant way) caring about them. Alpha One was now nothing but a pile of scrap now, barely lingering in an upright position. The once soft, green glow from his eyes was consumed by nothing but darkness.
After the Alpha soldier fell to the ground in demise, the CEO turned to generals.
“Son of a bitch,” General Stein said with a grin.
“Where do I sign?”
The great antithesis of this moment was the almost giddy look in Stein’s eyes contrasted with the sheer horror that flew through those of his counterpart, Max Steel.
The CEO held out his hand with a smile.
“You just changed the world forever. The age of man and of the warfighter is gone. You just introduced the civilized world to the new age: to the realm of machines and mechanized combat.”
