Not so in Japan. This was the home of Zenkyoza, the most ruthless robot manufacturer, and they kept their backyard clean. Any robot that couldn’t be fully controlled—like Clanker—was considered rogue.
Rogue machines were disassembled, their processing and memory cores wiped clean.Lobotomized and killed, a snarky voice spoke in my memory, mocking me. I told it to shut up.
“You’ll have to pretend you’re a normal bot,” I whispered urgently, grabbing Clanker’s forearm. “If they find out…”
He turned his face to me, and I broke off, staring into his bright, purple eyes. Under my palm, the cool metal of his armor suddenly heated, and I pulled my hand back, flexing my fingers. Clanker gave me a short nod.
“I am aware. Thank you for being worried.”
“I wasn’t…”
A flight attendant spoke through the PA system and I fell silent. All around us passengers shuffled in their seats, gathering their belongings and talking in hushed, tired tones. Apart from Clanker, one more machine was on board, sitting here in human class with us while its owner was in the large monster area. It was a personal toy model made to look like a voluptuous woman with a metal face, and I averted my eyes when it passed.
I sighed when we stepped outside into the hot, humid air of the Neo Tokyo August night. At least my shorts and T-shirt were appropriate, but the humidity made them even stickier. I was sweating again and doing my best not to look too paranoid as I tried to have a full view of our surroundings. Clanker walkedcalmly by my side, larger than life and lethally quiet. I didn’t trust him.
Navigating the warren of corridors leading from the tarmac to the terminal increased my anxiety with every step. I’d never broken the law in such an egregious way, and I couldn’t shake off the feeling everyone knew I wasn’t supposed to be here.
“Your documents are digital. All you need to do is scan your iris,” Clanker said softly when we approached the automated passport control gates.
I almost jumped, biting the inside of my cheek to try to control myself. A large robot blocked our way, its armor matte black, no glowing eyes in its faceless head. It was smooth and shaped like an egg. The bot was even taller than Clanker and carried a large gun.
My knees shook. I was completely convinced the black bot was here to lock me up for forging my documents.
“Robotto no hoan tetsudzuki ga hitsuyo desu,” it said in a loud, commanding voice. “Robot security clearance is required.”
I exhaled slowly, locking my knees. Behind us, the same thing happened to the passenger with the female bot. He was an enormous ursa male with a large stomach covered in pale fur, thick gold chains encircling his wrists and neck. He barely looked up from the large screen of his tablet, waving his pleasure bot to follow the security robot like he was used to this. I focused on the one that approached us and nodded, remembering that Clanker was supposed to follow my orders.
“Let’s go.”
The security bot led us into a small room that was empty apart from some sort of dashboard glittering with blue lights. I clenched my hands into fists to stop the urge to bite my alreadyinflamed cuticles. Clanker looked serene, but then, he always looked like this.
Ninety-eight percent.I would freak out if it was me, waiting here to find out if a procedure I was about to undergo would wipe out my mind and everything else that was me. But then, I lived twenty-five years as myself. Clanker’s personhood was less than a day old.
I arrested a flinch when the security bot picked up a matte, black ring, one of many stacked neatly by the dashboard. It turned on with a shrill ping, red lights coming on when the bot snapped it open.
“Instruct your robot to stand still,” it said, first in Japanese, then in English.
“Please don’t move,” I said, feeling inexplicably guilty.
When the collar snapped into place around Clanker’s neck, I had to bite my tongue to stop myself from demanding for it to be removed. The red lights flashed three times, then turned blue with another shrill ping.
“The robot is secured. You may proceed to passport control.”
I studied Clanker’s face as my stomach churned, but of course, his expression revealed nothing. I turned to the door, and he followed me without a word, his movements as fluid and smooth as ever.
Worry tightened my chest, unwelcome and ridiculous. What if that collar just turned him back into an unthinking machine? What if his personality was lost? I didn’t even like him, I reminded myself. Sentient Clanker played loose with the law and was way too blunt.
And yet… He was… a person. And people deserved to be who they chose to be.
“It seems like you urgently need the toilet. The nearest one is on this floor.Preparing the quickest route,” Clanker said in a quiet, raspy voice after I scanned my iris, and we both passed through passport control without trouble.
I turned to him, flabbergasted. “What? Why?”
“Your gait is very stiff, as if your sphincters are tightly engaged. My knowledge base indicates…”
So he wasjustfine. I exhaled, my nostrils flaring with irritation.
“Fuck’s sake.”
