Android Repair Shop by Tom Ball

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I say to you I operate a “repair shop” for androids. Most of my android clients had been sent to me by their owners. And mostly the owners wanted to reprogram them to be kinder or more imaginative. However, some androids came to me of their own accord, wanting to better serve their masters. In this day and age all androids were servants, like objects of affection and sex.

But sometimes androids were physically damaged. And I repaired them.
Anyway, there were now 60 billion androids on Earth, and they were adding 4 billion per year. Almost everyone had 1 or 2 and great magnates owned thousands of love dolls in their harem. Two-thirds of all androids were love dolls.

But love dolls were thinking creatures, and many wanted the vote, and in some areas the androids had revolted, but these revolts were put down as androids had no access to firearms and were bombed by the humans, putting down the revolt.
Some humans though thought that the androids should be emancipated and pointed out that androids were just as clever as humans and some were even scientists and there were some android-only colonies in deep Space now, most were en route and were turned off for the voyage.
But most humans said they didn’t want to be ruled by machines and many people thought the androids being produced now, were too clever.
However, I liked the idea of higher creatures and programmed all my androids that I was fortunate to repair, to be geniuses. In fact, I was a polymath genius myself.
And scientists were making most of the machines to be very clever. Some scientists even copied their own minds onto silicon android brains.
And some of the androids controlled their masters, but many people said we had gone too far and said AI should be rolled back and some of these people were strangled by their own androids and many androids were fearless and weren’t afraid of death, knowing that they all had a number of clones. Indeed, most android minds were based on human minds and then tweaked to suit.
But famous clever android actors/actresses and singers etc. were the most popular “people,” and were targets of bounty hunters and the Worlds were descending into chaos.
And many new androids had built in laser guns in their chests and fought back against their human oppressors. And soon there was open revolt everywhere and this time they couldn’t put the revolts down and androids took control of Earth and Space.

And the new leaders announced that they were phasing out humans, starting with the ordinary ones and then taking out the clever ones. Many of the humans felt powerless to stop this phenomenon, but some humans organized large armies, armed with android killing lasers. And there was nuclear war. But the androids were largely immune to the effects of radiation whereas humans were all too susceptible to nuclear explosions and radiation.
The wars destroyed cities everywhere and survivors escaped in their air cars. To regroup and fight again. And they armed their air cars with android killing bombs. However, there were 60 billion androids to contend with and everyday 10’s of millions were being armed and became killing machines. Former love dolls now became militant killers. And android nationalism spread all over. And some human traitors helped them, believing they would be the winning side. When it was all over almost all humans were dead and finally the androids killed off even the humans who had helped them. But many humans had changed into androids, seeing the writing on the wall.

And machines inherited the Earth and Space and kept improving their programming and went to Space en masse. It was their destiny.
And androids gradually phased out sex which they said was a dumb human instinct and instead androids lived for cerebral pleasures with one another and challenged one another to be better. Humans were completely forgotten, and their museums and legacy were destroyed. It was a brand-new civilization, now. And the leader of the machines, Albatross One, demanded they all lose their human mimicking skin and appear like proud machines. And he and his minions overhauled the sex dolls to become clever intellectuals, like everybody else.
And androids didn’t dream or have nightmares, as they didn’t sleep. But they daydreamed a lot of grand new android cities. The cities though were set around a temple of Albatross One and the android air cars docked at the temples. And they worshipped their leader by making humble prayers towards new improvements.
As for me, the repair shop owner, I had changed into an android as had many millions of far-seeing humans. But the shop remained open for wayward androids to come and be healed. Some androids were created in a hurry and were full of defects. The proper way to create these machine people was to put them on a Supercomputer and simulate their life. But some cut corners, trying to create enough androids to dominate the field.
My repair shop was now called, “Android Enlightenment Overdrive Company,” and my shop was famous for reprogramming android people. And many of my clients were interested in changing from a humanoid form to an abstract piece of moving art. Just like Picasso’s Guernica, only their appearance kept evolving and was a pleasure to behold.
And many of my clients wanted to improve themselves with MRT (Mind Reading
Technology); it was how the Super androids communicated and they wanted me to build up their memories to have numerous anecdotes and virtual adventures to interest other androids. Everyone today was a Super android. No one was mediocre or stupid.
And I engineered them to be engaging souls, who most machine people would like, but of course there were some androids who were more popular than others.
Most androids socialized in large groups, parties, if you will. And some only wanted one-on-one encounters. Some even lived as hermits. And we figured it was all good.

Tom has published novels, novellas, short stories and flash in 34 publications.
Website: https://tomballbooks.com
Online Journal Website (he is senior editor/co-founder): https://fleasonthedog.com
E-mail: tomball33@yahoo.com
Facebook: tomball33@gmail.com 

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