Criminal Minds Series Rewrite: Season Two

Empty Planet: Part Three

"His manifesto's main demand is completely unrealistic: stop all automated machinery that's replaced American workers within a week," Hotch says as he holds the manuscript.

Since you got the call about the gas station super late, you had to reevaluate the situation in the morning.

"And if his demands aren't met, he says he'll detonate even larger bombs," JJ finishes.

"So, we have an anti-technology bomber who so far has attacked computers, an automated cashier, an automated gas station, and a smart bus. Who, get this, calls himself Allegro."

"What was that?" Spencer asks, his head snapping to attention.

"He told Gideon to call him Allegro. Remember?"

"Of course. It's a book, an actual book. It's a novel I read as a kid. It's called 'Empty Planet' by one-hit-wonder author David Hansberry. It's got it all: technoids and minutians. All that stuff is in there. It's robots that take over the world once they figure out how to reproduce with humans. Essentially, humanity's lost to technology and the hero of the book is a twelve-year-old boy named Allegro who builds an army and fights for the humans."

"Morgan, have Garcia get as much information as possible on the author of 'Empty Planet'," Gideon orders.

"I'm on it."

"In other news, there was a passenger on the bus yesterday, Dr. Emory Cooke. He's supposed to be some kind of computer genius, a pioneer in artificial life."

"Yeah, Cooke," Spencer nods. "He developed software that mirrors the human reproductive system. Computers that can replicate themselves."

"So, maybe Cooke was the target and not the smart bus?" you ask.

"If so, that would definitely be imitating events from the book. Allegro and his army not only destroyed robots, but they assassinated the scientists that are responsible for creating them."

"Dr. Cooke was sitting right in front of Sylvia Cohen," JJ reveals, "and the umbrella was initially found underneath Dr. Cooke's seat."

"We need to talk to him."

"Already on it," JJ says as he takes out her phone to have her people get in contact with Dr. Cooke.

He knew this must be coming because it didn't take him long to get him here. He's nothing like how you expected him to be, and you're not so sure that's a good thing or not. He has that demeanor like he doesn't care about what's been happening or he won't once you explain it to him. You, Spencer, and Gideon are in the room to talk to him.

"Thank you for coming so quickly, Dr. Cooke. People, particularly some religious fundamentalists, oppose the work you do. Do you receive any threatening letters or phone calls from anyone about your work?"

"Never. I've managed to put to rest certain anxieties about the godlessness of artificial life by openly sharing my own personal beliefs."

"Which are?"

"No scientific knowledge precludes the existence of God."

"There are also those with... very strong ethical concerns."

"Ethical concerns revolve mainly around the manipulation of already-existing life forms. My work is on creating artificial life, which presents a far less ethical dilemma."

"Not from the man that put the bomb on the bus yesterday," Spencer says. "He seems to be obsessed with the science fiction novel by David Hansberry called 'Empty Planet'."

"Are you familiar with the book?" you ask.

"I'm friends with the author, and David Hansburry is just a pseudonym. Her real name is Ursula Kent and she is a brilliant woman. She's a post-modernist literature professor. Every semester I give a guest lecture in her class."