Natwerk Designs

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A Turing Lure by Brady Sylvan Their wheels turned slowly, conserving energy, and none of their LED indicator lights were blinking. EB-V C11 and EB-V A28 usually coasted as long as possible without visiting a Charge, Eleven had always insisted that batteries keep longer the more they are fully used. A28 didn’t take part in such superstition, but amused his friend by following his credo. The pair hadn’t seen a Charge in some time, and A28 had a dismal two bars, but there was little to worry about at this point. Twenty-Eight was taller than Eleven, his Blue “A” faded and chipped from a long time past, even his number engraving was beginning to fade into him. Eleven’s yellow finish was vibrant, so bright that it only slightly stood out against the white background of the city. His wheels were still abrasive and rough, and made A28’s look like mirrors, although he would never admit it. C11’s only imperfection was a nick behind his light sensor, he had no story for the scar, he had simply always had it. Twenty-Eight gladly took advantage of this scratch and would tease Eleven incessantly. “The Hill is coming up and 67% percent of the bots coming from it are eight bars or higher. And a few had their Charge indicators on. What do you say?” The Hill stood in the center of the City, it was visible from anywhere within the Cities borders. It was the epicenter, many would visit it on a full Charge simply for its view. It was so tall, that at its base, one can’t even see the summit. Of course it plateaus, in order to provide time to rest, but it’s impossible to tell from the bottom. The top usually bustles with movement, even if a Charge isn’t present. In the center there are two perpendicular lines, and it is with this aid that most bots come to realize the Cities symmetry. Each corner could fold perfectly onto its counterparts, and this beauty was not lost on the EB-V’s. At each of the corners lies a right angled wall, and within that a long, corridor leading nowhere. The entire city were shades of white, or black depending on the audience. The floor was marked by wear, the tires of its inhabitants leaving subtle trails and sometimes dark blotches if it were popular enough. “It’s a date. But I think you better lead the way, you only have two left, and let’s face it, those wheels don’t have near enough traction to get you up without me behind you,” joked C11. “Yes, yes. One time, with only one bar, and now I’ll never hear the end of it,” Twenty-Eight responded quickly. “You think you’re some sort of savior; well, come on, help me out.” The two set off with a bit more speed, the Hill truly was tough, a forty five degree slope would be hard on anyone, despite the fact that Eleven was right, Twenty-Eight had always struggled making it up by himself. A28 was a proud EB, he would never let Eleven start behind him at the foot of the Hill, but pride isn’t always coupled with stupidity. Twenty-Eight knew he would need help and appreciated his friend’s kindness. A28 and C11 had always rolled with one another, at least as long as the two could remember. They were very fond of each other, although Twenty-Eight may say otherwise. They had seen a fair share of Charges and Drains together, always on the lookout for one another. The two never could decide upon how they met, Twenty-Eight would say it was near the east side of the City when Eleven had stopped him dead in his tracks, saving him from a Drain. Eleven, however, remembers this as just another occasion where he bailed A28 out, he would always insist it was atop the Hill. He admits, though, he doesn’t ever remember introducing himself. The friends climbed and climbed, surveying over the whole of the City. Each bot’s LED’s below seemed so dull at the height. The rest of the landscape was colorless, except the bot’s themselves; it was all white, the entire City, only shaded by the shadows of walls without ceilings. The design was strangely inefficient; walls that stood solitary and others that linked to form long corridors with only one entrance or exit, depending on which way you rolled. Other smaller hills were scattered around, they were very advantageous for locating close Charges, but for the entire City, there was only one real Hill. No walls stood close to the foot of the Hill, as if to make its position even more hallowed. From this height the blurred lights of other bots flowed through the City like circuits passing information. Clusters of green where crucial information rests, and quick leaps of red away from Drains, like a magnet repelling its equal. The aesthetics of the city paralleled its inhabitants, naturally; two products of the same designer. “There is a Drain in the northwest corner, do you mind putting it in your memory for me, I’ve been struggling with it recently,” A28 pointed out. “Of course. That’s the third Drain in only a couple of days. I wonder if it’s going to be constant soon.” “I hope not, it’s beautiful in that area, the

Public Comments

1. Way too much description for so early in the story. You need to engage the reader with a bit of the plot. All you can tell so far is the characters are robots or possibly cars.
2. tl;dr: robot cars bitch about each other and the ending is cut off because of the character limit.