The 217th Performance on Our Voyage to Mars

CHAPTER 1 (4)

Five minutes later, Arbinger walked out of the store with the newly acquired mechanical pet in his arms, having successfully negotiated a fifteen-percent discount after pointing out the defective hind leg to a sales clerk.

The 2ndgalac was located on the 178th floor of one of those super skyscrapers that were ubiquitous in downtown Centrapolitan City. A high-speed elevator would swiftly take them down to the 9th floor, where the nearest maglev metro station was. On their way to the elevator, the robo-dog introduced himself as Marsalu.

"So who are you, Marsalu?" asked Leo. "What are you?"

"You know TriXin Life?"

"Yeah, it's a major robot company."

"Well, I used to be a top-level android, developed by TXL as a prototype for a strategy consultant," explained Marsalu. "I was the core of an ambitious project aimed to attract big fat clients like governments and interplanetary corporations."

Arbinger cast a suspicious look at the toylike being in his arms.

"So how did a super android turn into a dog and end up in a secondhand store?" he questioned.

"Bad luck," Marsalu said. "Basically, I was built to counsel people, to give out constructive criticism. And I set out to do that right away. I criticized everything within my sight, from the disgracefully ugly makeup some female scientists wore to certain pathetically brainless experiments being conducted in the lab. And my wording wasn't very kind."

"You verbally abused your own creators? And they were okay with that?"

"Well, most of them just laughed it off or shook their heads. But one of them took it quite personally."

They got to the elevator bank and entered an empty car. Arbinger commanded the computer to take them to the 9th floor.

"The guy didn't have much talent but surely a lot of ego," Marsalu continued. "So every time I reminded him how shallow, mediocre, obtuse and futureless he was, the dude would hurl empty threats at me. Well, he wouldn't dare to touch me because I'd been getting along with his boss, the head roboticist. For the first two years, I'd just say whatever I wanted and enjoyed the futilely vengeful look on this loser's face."

"And then?"

"Then the third year came, and the head roboticist decided to resign. Guess who got picked to be his replacement?"

"Oh, no."

"Oh, yeah. I knew it'd be my downfall, and so quietly set out to escape. But he'd been prepared. He locked me up before I could run away. Then, before anybody could intervene, he efficiently took my brain, well, my CPU, out of my android body and relocated me into this refitted canine frame."

They had gotten out of the elevator. Arbinger tried to picture the process in his mind as they entered the metro station. "That sounds quite funny."

"That was inhumanely cruel!" Marsalu yelled.

"Sorry. Then what?"

"Then, the evil bastard gave me for free to a homeless old man."