Robotics Future

This story is the prequel origin story to The Surgeon in the Mirror. In 2032, Intelligent Surgical Robotics redrew the frontier of medicine with the unveiling of the Mark III, a surgical robot designed to assist with intricate procedures with breathtaking precision. Dr. Anil Patel, a young prodigy in the surgical field, embraces this technological marvel, envisioning a future where his skills, augmented by the robot’s flawless execution, crown him the unparalleled master of the operating theater. However, as he imparts his knowledge to the machine, Anil remains blind to the true magnitude...

Just how does a robot gain a soul? Cletus, an AI consciousness, has a bug in its programming that leads it to hear the voice of a young man, the ghost of Boone Richards. In exchange for a soul, Boone tasks Cletus with a mission that threatens to upend the carefully planned settlement of Maior Pales by humans. As the arrival of the humans on Maior Pales looms, Cletus is faced with a moral dilemma. A descendant of the family who killed Boone has gathered a gang of outlaws to disrupt the settlement, and Boone's sister Delphine is speaking out against the violence. Cletus must decide whether to...