fandomtownies | Thursday, Sparky Repairs

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Thursday, Sparky Repairs

Agatha was finishing up the Count of Monte Cristo. THe story of the buried baby was coming to light. It was exciting. she eyed the TV set that Tommy hadn't yet picked up and flipped it on. For testing purposes only. Thankfully she managed to find a nature show to watch, since the set contrary to what Tommy said showed things other then sports and naked chicks.

On the show, baby turtles were being born. The announcer was wishing them a happy birthday. This made Agatha rather sad, as no one was wishing her a happy birthday. But then again noone knew, and she hadn't really made friends here. She got involved with Orlin and that led to the exclusion of most others. Well, she will have to fix that.

But not right now. Right now there were baby turtles, and the Count, and internet.

[ooc: shop's open]

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Victor came in, Bot in arm, and smiled. "Hey, Agatha!" he called.

"Hey Victor!" Agatha was actually glad for the introduction. The Count jsut got to the remorseful stage of his vengeance.

"Do you have some time today? I decided to go through with the operation after all."

He set Bot down on a table and let him wander around for a bit while he looked atthe television. "Aww, turtles!"

Agatha put her book down with a bookmark. "Sure. I didn't realize you were goignto be back until next week. I have time today, andi have all the parts i need i think." She glanced at the TV to see what he ws tlaking about. The baby turtles were makign a heartwrenching struggle towards the ocian.

"Okay, cool. I want to ask, though...do you only make huminoid bodies or can you make animal bodies as well?"

[ooc: Sorry this is taking so long. I'm in class.]

"Hmm.. i usually mke hte boides fit around the mechanism inside. Why?"

[ooc: s'ok. however i wil lbe leavingwork in 2.25 hours and willbe gone for about 6 hours.]

"Well, when we were in Europe, I took Bot out for a walk to figure out more about him, and when we walked into a pet store he kind of went a little crazy. Not in the bad way, either; it was as if I saw something that he really liked. It turned out to be a picture of a ferret." He scratched the back of his head, then continued. "He realyl didn't want to leave it, either. Eventually I had to buy a postcard with a ferret on it to get him to stop making noises."

Agatha shook her head. "Fascinating. You think he wants to look like a ferret?" This was odd... None of her bots were ever this animated.

"Maybe. Do you think you can do that for him?" He looked back at Bot, who seemed to be watching the conversation with interest. "I just hope I'm interpreting it right."

Agatha went ot the door and flipped the sign to 'closed'. "Have a seat. Lets sort everything out." She gestured to a chair near the counter.

"Alright. In theory i could make a mechanical ferett. But in reality i am not sure that is a good idea. Too much change in locomotion." She picked up Bot and turned him over, inspecting his dimensions.

"I think it might be better to change his body to give him another arm as you asked, and perhaps a voice box. But i woudl rather leave him bipedal if that is alright with you."

[ooc: eek, what else did victor ask for other then the second arm?]

Victor nodded. "Maybe he just likes them, then. You're the one who put his body together, so you'd know better than I do what he can become. I just want him to have the ability to be himself, y'know?"

[ooc: Just make him more humanoid. Two arms, two legs, a body, and whatever. Maybe make the arms/hands "normal" and add in a little mallet he can pick up instead. :)]

"Yes" the word was drawn out as Agatha thought. "But what is himself? Lets start by giving him two workign arms and a removable mallet."

She layed a whole bunch of toolson teh counter, including a small brass mallet, and some very fine tools. Putting on a set of magnifying glasses over her regular ones she looked at Victor. "REady?"

[ooc: k. he is still gonna have one eye though :)]

"Yeah, I think I'm ready. Come here, Bot." He reached over, grabbed the robot, and placed him on the counter. "I don't know how to make him go to sleep, but I didn't wind him this morning just in case."

[ooc: He wouldn't be a dingbot without it. ;)]

"That part is easy" Agatha took what looked like a different version of the key that victor had, and wond the robot with it. Bot drooped. "There we go, no more power. I just loosened the spring, and it is as if he completly ran out of power." She placed Bot face-down o nteh counter and carefully unscrewed severalscrewes that were so tiny as to be unnoticible. She was humming softly.

"You've never seen teh insides of him, have you?"

[ooc: indeed. btw, feel free to comment on teh hummingit is not normal in any way. soudns liek machinery and train swistles together.]

"No, I haven't. Is he okay, though? I hear gears and a train."

[ooc: off to Gym! I'll catch up with you at some point, even if we have to SP this tomorrow.]

Agatha poppedthe back panel off of Bot. A billion tiny little gears and springs were inside.

"Oh, sorry, no that's me. The hummignis how the Spark expresses." She said matter of factly, as if that explained everything.

Carefully she lifted the bot's insides out of the body and onto the counter. The humming continued whenever she was working and not talking.

Victor just shrugged and thought of her as another mutant. It was an interesting power, and the song didn't suck, so he was cool with it.

Seeing the insides of Bot, however, made him bite his lip a little. He had begun to think of Bot as sort of a person, and seeing all the metal inside really brought it home that he was not much than an overgrown pocket watch. But why was he evolving, then? Was it even possible to do that with machinery?

"I think it's kinda funny that his birthday is gonna be the day before mine," he commented, trying to liven up his mood a little.

"You counting today? I think it's funny that his birthday will be the same as mine then." Agatha smiled and continued to work. "You know... he is evolving. That means he grows and learns" Suddenly this was a much mroe serious concern as Agatha stopped working.

"If he is alive rather then just sentient, then he has to have a soul..." her voice trailed off as she thought of the implications of that.

A soul?

"Really? You really think that Bot...has a soul?" But could robots have souls? "What do you mean that he's alive rather than sentient"?"

Agatah rested her head on her hands. THis was complicated suddenly.

"Well, if it is aware of it's surroundings and reacts to them, it is sentient. If it can change how it reacts, learn form experience and grow... it is more then that. Right? Sentience is jsut hte ability to processinformation. Being alive is being able to draw conclusions through leaps of faith. Anythign alive must have a soul. So, if Bot is alive, he has a soul. Thus the question is, is he alive?" She paused for breath before continuing.
"And if he is, can we really alter him? Or make him do our bidding?"

Victor bit his lip as he thought about that. "Well...maybe we're just giving him more freedom by doing this? I mean...if someone is born without legs, is giving them mechanical ones really all that bad? But the other stuff...maybe he does have a soul, and after this is over...we should see what he thinks. If he doesn't like his new body, we can just change it back, right?"

"You may be right. And yes we should be able to put him back the way he was. But..." This was complicated, and religious. Agatha did not like religious dilemas.

"I do not like playing god, you know?"

"Neither do I. That's why we should let him decide after he's done. If he likes it, fine. If not, fiine. If he wants to leave and never see either of us again, that'll have to be fine, too."

He hoped it wouldn't come to that, though.

"Maybe you are right... It might take him a while to tell us. His voice box will be new, he will have to learn to speak." Agatha looked at her workbench again. Bot was in many pieces and all her dingbots were watching.

"Alrgiht, here's hoping neither of us burns in hell for this..." Her voice trailed off as she looked at what she was doing.

Victor watched as Agatha worked, feeling a similar sentiment. They were doing an okay thing, right?

"Um..is there any way I can help?" he offered.

[ooc: I need to get to bed. Is it okay if we continue this tomorrow?]

The humming stopped briefly. "Not really... mainly i want you to tell me if he is acting differently afterwards from what you are used to." She added the second arm and the mallet holster to the husk of Bot's body.

[ooc: oh god please yes. i need sleep v. badly]

"Okay, I can do that." Victor nodded and watche the television as he patiently waited while Agatha worked.
[ooc: back! Sorry that took so long, but I almost forgot about this. :p]

"Perfect." She put hte clockwork back into the body, connectign the new appendage and installign a tiny voice box. She then drilled several tiny holes in teh back plate, to let the sound out. With that doen she placed the back plate in and wound the bot. "Now we see what happens."

Bot made a low noise as he activated, something akin to the sound Walter sometimes made when he woke up. After a moment, though, it quieted, and experimentally moved its new joints around. There was another sound, this one...questioning?

Agatha watched carefully. All the mechanical parts seemed to be functioning properly. But what about the insides?

"Hello there." She said to the Bot, wondering if it understood. The bot turned to look at her andwaved.

"I see. So, is this what he was like before?"

"Yeah, pretty much. I mean, he's a pretty friendly robot. Maybe he doesn't understand that he's different now. Or...maybe he doesn't care. I really don't know, and we probably won't know unless we can communicate with him. I'll have to spend some time with him and see if I can teach him how to say stuff."

Agatha nodded. "You are right i think. You should probably take him home and see how he does. Bring him back in a few days, say next monday, so i can make sure he is fine mechanically. Other then that, i think that's it." She patted the little bot on it's head, which prompted the bot to turn in a little circle and make a sort of chirping noise.

"I will, Agatha. Thank you for everything. How much do I owe you?"

"Are you kidding? This is an educational experience! I shoudl be payign you." She smiled. This was really excitign new technology. If it could even be called technology.

"Okay...well, um, thank you!" He gently picked Bot up, careful to make sure he had the hammer as well. "I'll see you on Monday, then. Have a great birthday!"

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Thursday, Sparky Repairs

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