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Post by omnios on Nov 24, 2007 23:10:27 GMT -4
The date: Febuary 14th, 2240 (AU year 2028)
It's been a year since the Destiny of a Teenage Robot incident and the end of the Teenage Robot Saga.
In the MLaaTR Hub Universe, Jenny has returned to her life as a mother and protector of Tremorton. XJ-Zero, a robot similar to Jenny's construction has been found in stasis-lock and released.
----
The place: Cluster Prime's royal palace. The time: 6:20 in the morning.
It's dawn on one side of Cluster Prime, and a new day is about to begin for Eric and his family. A day that will change the accepted view on Cluster Prime's history forever.
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Post by omnios on Nov 26, 2007 22:44:18 GMT -4
A beam of sunlight shines through the King and Queens's Chamber's stained glass window. It his Eric's face, causing him to slowly wake up. He snorts, and turns onto his left side.
"Forgot to close the blinds last night." The man grumbles, opening his eyes all the way.
Next to him, sleeps Vega--his wife--the Queen of Cluster Prime. He positions himself semi-upwards, and looks at the alarm clock on his wife's bedtable.
Eric sighs. "I might as well get up."
----
A half-hour later, Eric is downstairs---or, rather outside---walking to Binary Park to get some supplies for Vega's trip to the one of Cluster Prime's six moons.
He reaches Binary Park within a half-hour, and goes into one of the local mall's stores.
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Post by Hunter on Dec 11, 2007 2:06:07 GMT -4
Elsewhere in the mall...
"Remind me again," Gene Wright asks with a yawn, "why I have to be up so early?"
"Their storefront, their hours," his receptionist says. "You wanted to make yourself available to walk-ins, so here we are."
"Yeah, but..." Gene yawns again. "Who would be coming in for repairs at this hour?"
"Perhaps someone who noticed a problem just as he was heading to work. Look, if you really don't like this, I'm sure there are plenty of other merchants who wouldn't mind opening their doors at 7:00."
"No, no, I'm fine. It'll just take some getting used to." Gene sat back in his office and looked at the calendar. Had it really been a year since he left Earth? He'd been so busy working on his doctorate that he lost all track of time. But all that hard work paid off when he finally received his degree: a Ph.D. in Molecular Engineering from Cluster Prime State University. With it, he opened up a small but successful nano-repair shop, which was now located in Binary Park Mall.
As Gene waited for his first customer at this new location, his receptionist's eyes scanned the walkway outside the shop in the hope of seeing someone he recognized. And at about 7:20, he saw a very unexpected face walk through the mall doors. . . .
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Post by omnios on Dec 11, 2007 13:05:54 GMT -4
Eric, meanwhile, is at Springs 'n' Things, one of Binary Park Mall's dugstores. He's currently in the checkout line, trying to advoid the looks from other customers as the teller calls in an item.
A 'bot looks at him with sympathy. "Buying for your wife? I know that feeling."
Eric nods. He gets out his wallet, and pays for his items.
----
"There. Got that done. Now to go home and fix myself some breakfast." Eric says, walking out of the store. As he passes a nano-repair shop, he notices a farmilliar figure.
'Is that Vexus?' Eric thinks to himself.
Just as Eric is thinking this, his celphone rings. "Hello? Hi honey! Yes, I'm done shopping. Yes, I'll be home in a few. No, I didn't buy any Transformers. See you soon. Bye."
----
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Post by Hunter on Dec 12, 2007 1:56:00 GMT -4
Back at Gene's shop, the receptionist runs a quick diagnostic to confirm that his eyes are not malfunctioning. Visual systems... normal, his inner voice reports. With that news, the receptionist jumps out of his seat and scrambles to take advantage of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
"Excuse me!" he says as he runs out of the shop. "Madam President, is that really you?"
Vexus turns around. "You're surprised to see me. I take it you haven't worked here very long?"
"Not long at all," he says with a nod. "In fact, the place just opened up today." He points to the shop.
"So you're a repairbot," Vexus says after looking at the sign. "Impressive."
"Who, me? No, no. I'm just a desk jockey. The real genius is in back. Hey, while you're here, would you like a check-up on the house? It'd be great publicity for us."
Vexus considers the proposal. "Well, all right, as long as it's quick. I have places to be, you know."
"Oh, I know. Your schedule is important to us all. I'll make sure Gene doesn't take too long."
"Gene. That's your employer's name?" she asks, as she follows the receptionist back into the shop.
"Or Dr. Wright, if you're feeling formal. But he runs things pretty casually." The receptionist slides back into his seat and pushes the intercom button. "Yo, doc! Wake up! Your first customer is here."
"Already?" the voice on the other end asks. "That was fast. Maybe this thing'll work out after all."
"He sounds young," Vexus notes.
"He is young," the receptionist says. "He's only had his degree for a couple months. But, hey, he hasn't killed anyone yet."
"How comforting."
The door to Gene's office opens, and he steps out wearing his full medical uniform. But when Gene and Vexus see each other, they're both startled.
"A human?"
"The President?"
They both turn to the receptionist. "You've got to be kidding me!" they say in unison.
"Come on, doc," the receptionist says to Gene. "What better way to make your business known throughout Cluster Prime? And Your Honor," he says to Vexus, "I can assure you that Gene is as talented as any robot in the entire Cluster. If he weren't, we wouldn't have gotten enough money together to afford this place in the mall. You have nothing to be afraid of."
"Thanks, man," Gene says.
Vexus grimaces. "I really shouldn't... but I suppose it couldn't hurt. And anyway, it'll be good for my relations with the Earthlings."
"That's the spirit!" The receptionist points to another door. "Now the exam room is back that way. You two go in there and... do whatever it is that costs so much. And doc, if you screw this up, I will kill you myself."
"So noted," Gene mutters.
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Post by omnios on Dec 12, 2007 22:27:08 GMT -4
----
Eric arrives back at the palace, and greets his wife with a kiss. She's dressed in business-suit armor, and is carrying two suitcases.
"What's the other suitcase for?" Eric asks.
"For you. The UN represenative from Jenny's Earth wants you to come too. I packed all of the required papers and charts. the meeting will take a few hours. Five at the most." Vega says.
"Oh, I forgot to tell you; I think I saw your mom at the mall's repair shop."
"That's odd. I guess she needs a tune-up." Vega says, checking her internal clock. "We leave in a few minutes. Get ready and meet me at the Obliterator's hangar."
Eric nods, giving Vega her items that she asked for, and walks inside the palace.
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Post by Hunter on Dec 16, 2007 2:11:35 GMT -4
As she enters the exam room, Vexus says, "I don't even see why I should have to do this. My diagnostics say I'm perfectly healthy."
"They say you're operational," Gene responds. "That's a far cry from 'perfectly healthy.' Your on-board diagnostics are only intended for troubleshooting, not for regular maintenance. If you want to be at your best, nothing can replace a full professional inspection."
"I just hope you know what you're doing," Vexus grumbles.
"Hey, after all the research I've done, I probably know Cluster anatomy better than I know human anatomy. You'll be fine. Now let's get started. . . ."
- - - - - - - -
As he runs the tests, Gene tries to make small talk with Vexus. "So, Madam President, how come you never remarried?"
"Excuse me?"
"I mean, I've read the history books. You were perfectly happy with your first husband. Then he dies, like, a century and a half ago, and since then you haven't so much as touched another android. What happened?"
"That's a bit of a personal question, isn't it?" Vexus says. "You're not my therapist. You're not even my usual mechanic!"
"But I am a tax-paying citizen, and you're a public official, which means I'm allowed to scrutinize everything you do. Heck, I could even confront you for your choice of... feminine supplies."
"Except that my shopping decisions aren't a matter of public record."
"Precisely. So, back to the original question..."
"Well, if you must know, for a while I was too busy working with Viron to even think of finding a second husband. And by the time that was over, I guess I was just afraid that other androids would only be interested in me for my wealth and power."
"See, that's too bad. I'm sure there are plenty of guys out there who like you for you. You're intelligent, beautiful, compassionate,..."
"Are you coming on to me, Dr. Wright?" Vexus asks with a smirk.
"Hm? No, no, I'm just stating a fact. If I wanted to come on to you, I certainly wouldn't do it in the middle of a physical. That's like an abuse of power, like I'm holding your vital organs hostage to get a date."
Vexus chuckles. "I suppose that's true. In that case, would you like to come on to me after this is over?"
"Eh? I thought you didn't like humans."
"I don't hate them as a species. I just loathe the way so many of them treat us robots. Obviously I can't hold that against you personally, seeing as you came all the way here to serve us willingly. You... did come here freely, didn't you?"
"As far as I know. Mostly I wanted to get away from Earth, but this place isn't half bad. You should be proud of the job you've done here."
"Oh, don't thank me. Every single citizen of the Cluster makes an important contribution, even non-robots like yourself."
"Aw, shucks, ma'am. I'm just doing my job."
- - - - - - - -
After several minutes, the exam is concluded.
"Congratulations, Madam President. You really are in perfect health. Every part of your body is as polished as a mech fresh from the factory. I have no idea how you do it."
"It's a secret I'll take to the junkyard," Vexus grins. "So... your receptionist said this exam wouldn't cost anything. Does that mean I'm free to leave now?"
"I suppose it does. But if you could take a few business cards with you, that would be great. They're out on the front desk."
"All right then. I'd be happy to help this little enterprise of yours. Have a wonderful rest of the day." Vexus goes to the receptionist and picks up a few miniature discs with Gene's logo printed on them. She pops one into her head and, after a few moments, she pops it back out. "Here," she says, handing the disc to the receptionist. "Make sure Dr. Wright gets this, won't you?" Finally she leaves.
Shortly after, Gene comes out of the exam room, and the receptionist calls him over. "Hey doc, Her Honor wanted you to have this."
"One of my business cards?"
"I think she wrote some extra data on it. Throw it in your computer."
Gene takes the disc and returns to his office. And when he inserts the disc. . . . "Is that... a phone number?"
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Post by omnios on Dec 16, 2007 13:05:35 GMT -4
----
Eric and Vega meanwhile, have reached the Cluster Primian moon of Vega, after which the current queen is named. The Obliterator lands at a large spaceport, and the two disembark.
"I hope whomever that chose to come here don't hold any grievences against us." Vega says.
Eric nods in agreement. "Yeah. I guess alot has happened over the past one-hundred years."
Vega nods in agreement.
----
The couple continue walking through the spaceport and find a tall man dressed in a millitary suit standing by what looks like a limo.
"Queen Vega I presume?" the man asks.
Vega nods. "Mister....."
"It's UN representative Mbutu." The man notices Eric. "Your husband has come here with you?"
"It was an order by the head of the UN."
"Fine. Get inside, and we'll be on our way."
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Post by omnios on Feb 18, 2008 23:10:21 GMT -4
"Why in the name of Primus are there people here?" Eric asks.
"After Jennifer Wakeman disappeared, robots started to pop up, more fiercer and wrathful then the Skyway Patrol had ever seen. During that time, a robot was released from stasis, and defended the people. His name is...." Mbutu says.
"XJ-Zero. Yeah. We've met the guy."
"Basically, after that all sorts of people immigrated to Cluster Prime, and Earth set up its own colony on this moon."
"...and we have to come here because?"
"The people aren't taking the fact that you and Jennifer had abandoned them too lightly. Plus, they're afraid that the peace that Vexus has made will crumble. They want you and Vega to hand over your crowns to Vexus."
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