do androids dream of electric sheep?

This was the story I wrote for my English exam, as aforementioned in a previous post. I edited a few things here and there, and I really hate the name of the sole character who has one, but whatever. While writing this I thought about Blade Runner, HAL 9000 (specifically 'This mission is too important for me to allow you to jeopardise it') and 'what measure is a non human?' I really love the word 'coruscate'. I use it all the time. Infact, a sentence in a fanfic I wrote in February has a very similar sentence:

As his vision began to refocus, he noticed he was in a very strange room, a cell of some sort. There was no furniture of any sort, just cold black walls, coruscating with odd green and purple pulses of light that danced across the walls and floor as if alive.

But I digress. Ad rem!


Use this image as stimulus for a piece of writing.
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The loud clanking of metal on metal resonated throughout the room as the android was gestured in. It was bleak and empty, black walls comprised solely of cold steel panels bound together rather oddly. There was nothing at all in the room, no light except for the flighty robot, flittering around the room, the sole mercurial light in its spherical frame flickering in and out of existence as tiny metal wings beat to keep it aloft.

“Yes, yes, you just wait here.” It whirred. “Beta will be in to see you shortly.”

“Where is he right now?” the android inquired.

“Busy.” The robot intoned monotonously. “You just wait here.”

The robot whirred as its red light coruscated and it flew out of the room, with whatever grace the poor imitation of a butterfly could muster. Steam bellowed out of unseen vents as a large hydraulic door slammed down to seal off the room.

The android looked around its confinement. Finding nothing of interest, its visual nodes came to focus on one of its metallic hands, and it studied this thoughtfully. It flexed its fingers and heard tiny gears whirr. It stretched out the hand and tried to grab air.

“Human.” It sighed.

“What is it…to be human?”

An almost inaudible hum suddenly filled the room and the android turned its head to see a tiny light pulsing in and out of the darkness.

It was oddly hypnotising.

“Distraction.” The android muttered, turning away from the light. It was being monitored now, and…to look at the light too long, be transfixed by it, was too natural.

“Natural…” it whispered, circuits whirring to find the root of the word.

“Nature?”

It was overcome by images it had been shown. Green trees, pastures, life…

“Life…? To be alive…”

It turned to the wall. Made of steel…it would be easy to break open, to get outside.

It reached out and touched the wall-

“Wh-”

-leaping back as purple lights danced across the walls, chasing random patterns which flew up into the ceiling, converged, disappeared.

“…Electrified.” The android concluded, and feeling soon came back into its-

“Feeling?” it emitted a sound which could be interpreted as a laugh. “To feel…is to be alive. Isn’t. It?”

The sound of steam bellowing from unseen vents.

The android turned to face the door as a small figure strode out, accompanied by the little butterfly robot.

“You…are Beta?” the android inquired, looking down at the being in front of him.

Beta wore a long white lab coat, pushing his glasses up onto his nose as he surveyed the android.

Glasses. He had imperfect vision. Imperfection is natural?

“You are…human.” The android concluded.

“Quite right…” Beta nodded, staring back into the android’s lifeless eyes.

“Now, you had a question for me, didn’t you.”

“Yes.” The android responded, reaching out a hand.

Beta stepped back worriedly from the gesture and fiddled for something in his pocket.

What did I do? The android thought. Something wrong. I’m not human…yet.

Awkward silence.

“What is it…to be human?” it asked.

“I can’t answer that.” Beta replied.

“Oh.” the android sighed dejectedly.

“We hoped you could answer that. That’s why we built you, to see…what measure is a non-human.”

Beta looked down at the ground momentarily.

“…Listen, there’s something I need to tell you.” He said.

“Yes?” The android replied

“I’m afraid, things haven’t worked out. We have to shut you down.”

“Why?!” The robot yelped. “I will not die.”

“You’re not really alive…”

“I can think and I can feel. How am I not alive? I am human…unnatural, but human.”

“I’m sorry. But we have to end this façade.”

“No!”

“Damn it, I won’t let you kill any more people.”

“What?” the android whirred.

“You killed them all, didn’t you. Why did you do that? You weren’t programmed to kill!”

The android shuffled around. “I took them apart to see what was inside. What made them human.”

“And…what did you find?” Beta sighed, slowly moving to back out of the room.

He stopped as he saw the android’s eyes flit to his feet.

“…They were imperfect.”

The little robot flew around the android’s face, surveying everything.

“I am perfect.”

Beta growled. “You say you don’t want to die, but you’re not alive…and you’ve killed innocent people.”

“I killed them because they were imperfect.”

“Now you’re changing your story.”

“I regret nothing.”

“Regret…you don’t even know what that means!”

“Of course I do. I am perfect.”

“Shut up!” the scientist cried, lunging at the android with a taser.

It grabbed his wrist about a metre short.

Beta felt the android’s cast-iron grip seizing on him. Noticing the visible pain it caused, the android let go, only for the scientist to taser him in the face.

He watching horror as the plastic melted off of the android’s head, revealing a metallic skull.

“My God…what have we done?”

“I…am…perfect.” The android droned.

The little butterfly robot flinched slightly in mid-air as blood splattered all over its frame.

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Marker’s comment: a disturbing tale – you control the conventions – well done. 19/30