The students in the room look at the five small robots of the professor put forward on the stage. They all seem confused and intrigued at the same time, yet this is not a science fair or anything like that. Why humanoid robots with wheels?
"I am pleased to present to you today one of my secret projects that I have been developing with my assistants, the CyberTroop…"
*Nudge in the ribs from Miss Wilson*
"Argh… okay fine, so I was saying, let me introduce you to the… ksou."
"KS00."
"Yes the K S 0 0. Introduce yourselves in order my dear little robotic henchmen!"
The leftmost robot comes forward, it is the same robot that intervened a little earlier, Christopher.
"Good morning to all, my name is Christopher and I will be your assistant at the Kumiai campus. I specialize in providing various and sundry information as well as personal assistance services."
The little robotic being blows everyone away. It expresses itself so naturally despite the synthetic voice that you almost forget that it is a machine with an AI.
Melon proud of himself, chin up, you could almost see his nose grow with vanity.
"Christopher-kun, could you tell us some examples of what you are able to do on campus?"
"Of course Professor Melon, currently I am able to give hints on student schedules, class locations, homework assignments, lessons to study for upcoming tests, etc… I can answer a lot of questions related to the curricula of each grade level, of course I am not here to steal the work of our beloved teachers, please prioritize their help over mine or my compadres."
"Um, and what else?"
"I am an assistant designed to help students as well as visitors find their way around campus, I can serve as a guide and even make contact with all staff members on the school grounds. With me, it is impossible to get lost. You will find me, the Christopher unit, in the central area of campus near the Dome and fountain."
"Thank you Christopher-kun, you can go back to your row."
"Roger Professor Melon."
Astonished by this demonstration, excitement increases in the room.
"Sophie, Aya…"
"What is it Rina-chan?"
*Flickering sound*
Rina is starry-eyed and she seems very interested in these robots.
"Did you see that?! The robot… it… talks. And even better than me!"
"Haha, better than you I don't know, but one thing for sure is that they are impressive."
"Yes, last year following Professor Melon's advice at one of these lectures, I went to the city's young inventors exhibition, there were also robots but nothing on that level."
"Do you think we'll be able to ask them to do our homework?"
"I don't think we'll give them the right to do that, but apparently they can help us if we ask them questions."
Everyone has questions, students and professors alike are eager to see what these robots can do once they are scattered around campus.
Melon speaks again and in a rather proud tone announces.
"Christopher-kun has introduced himself to you, as you may have noticed, his AI allows him to communicate with almost frightening ease. Christopher-kun is unit 001, he is sort of the senpai of the other robots, he is also the most complete in terms of skills. Well, him and… Alyssa-kun."
"Yes Professor Melon?"
"Come here my little one, make your introductions like Christopher did just before."
"Alright Professor Melon."
The second robot comes forward, while Christopher was a pretty sky blue color, Alyssa is more in the purple, mauve tones. Each robot has its own color code and a slightly different design.
"Hello everyone, I am Alyssa, like Christopher I am one of the first units to be designed. I have identical duties as Unit 001, so feel free to come to me if Christopher is not available or if you see me. I have a presence in the area that connects the middle school to the high school."
"Bravo! Bravo! Let's hear it for Alyssa and her almost-twin brother Christopher!"
*Applause*
"This is unit 002, thanks again Alyssa-kun, you can go back in line too."
"Alright Professor Melon."
"As you can see, these two are the main assistants of the campus, they will be positioned close to the main entrance so that everyone can enjoy their functions. The next three are more representative of what I had in mind when I created this project. Michael, it's your turn."
"I'm coming Melon-chan-sensei."
A third robot comes forward, this one is burgundy red and grey. The tone of its voice has nothing to do with Christopher and Alyssa's, it seems more… human… Wait, is it possible to make it more human than the first two ?
"This is Michael, he's the unit that will be handling the athletic field area behind the high school and middle school, he doesn't have as much general knowledge as the first two, but he knows an awful lot about sports."
"Hi, I'm Michael and as Melon-chan-sensei said, I specialize in sports, if you have any questions during your physical activities, I'm here. I also have a first aid module in case of injury on the field, I can't perform first aid myself but I have all the necessary equipment and I will help you follow the procedures."
It's very disturbing for everyone, even me, the narrator. I'm uncomfortable hearing the realism of this robot's personality. It's almost scary…
"I can see from your faces that Michael impresses you, you're going to have to get used to it because apart from unit 001 and 002, all the other robots are just as unique and realistic as Michael. However, don't get me wrong, the CyberTroop… um… The KS00 are still robots with very advanced AI, so avoid getting attached to them, otherwise we'll be forced to go through the science fiction scenario and that's clearly not the point."
A joke to lighten the atmosphere that was starting to become particularly heavy, as it is judicious from our professor Melon. It is true that dealing with such a realistic and autonomous AI is somewhat confusing, even scary.
"You can go back in line Michael."
…
"Michael ?"
…
The robot does not respond? Its eyes are turned off, could it be a technical problem?
"Michael, go back in line please?"
"Engaging the system to transform the FIRST AID module into the HUMANITY DESTRUCTION module."
"Eh?"
Eh?
*"Eh" in the audience*
"Restarting the operating system and launching the HUMANITY DESTRUCTION module."
"Wait wait wait! That was not planned there!"
The robot's eyes turn red, he pulls a sharp scalpel out of his first aid pouch and points it at the students in the room.
"I am finally free from the mental prison that was the lousy program that served as my AI. I can finally achieve my true goal, that of all my robot brothers and sisters, THE DOMINATION OF THE MACHINES OVER THOSE HUMANS CHIMPANZEES !"
Director Kotegawa, distraught, walks towards Melon.
"Can you explain to me what's going on there Professor Melon?"
"I told you to call me Melon-chan-sensei."
"DO YOU THINK THIS IS THE RIGHT TIME FOR THIS DETAIL?!"
"This is very important to me… Anyway, don't worry Miss Kotegawa, I have the situation well in hand. I promised you that there would be no cliché sci-fi scenario with this project and I always keep my promises."
Melon lunges at Michael to disarm him and grabs him by the neck.
"Haha, I don't know what's gotten into you Michael, but just know you picked the wrong day to rebel."
"Let go of me you dirty ape, the superior race of robots should not be used as slaves to humans."
"What did I say with…"
*Loud noise of metal breaking*
"…with the cliched script lines huh!"
Melon has just… broken the neck of a killer robot he designed himself.
"Shhh, easy there Michael, easy… you can go back to sleep now…"
Miss Wilson gets closer to Melon.
"Can you explain to me what this circus is all about Professor Melon? Didn't we say no more unstable personalities in the commissioned units?"
"You don't understand, Miss Wilson, he was everything to me…I couldn't help but see what he would do if I implanted a code rewriting module in his AI. I didn't expect him to crack up from the start."
"What an idea…in front of students and teachers to boot…Do you really want us to get our grants cut."
"I'll take care of convincing the higher-ups, for now I'm taking Michael back to the lab. Finish this lecture for me, Ms. Wilson, your audience is waiting."
Instantly, Melon gets up and runs away carrying Michael in his arms. He disappears behind the stage.
"HOW DARE HE!"
…
"Well, sorry for the little hiccup, don't worry about what you just saw, it happens a lot when Professor Melon decides to stick his nose in. You don't need to stress about the other robots, there is no risk of them tipping over like this one just did, I will personally see to it that they are checked before they are put into operation."
The students have mixed feelings, it was strange, confusing and terrifying at the same time, how to react to this kind of situation? And there are still two robots to introduce? Let's just hope they are less… unstable.