I have a fellow author to thank for this one, so thank you, Randy Brown, for inspiring this story. Function {LIVE;} (note the correct coding syntax) was supposed to be a short story I’d planned on publishing on my blog. It turned into a 9,600 story with a really freaking awesome cover page, which I just couldn’t allow to go to waste. So I figured, why not make it widely available?
And so, about 5 minutes ago, that was exactly what I did. The short story (novelette?) is now available at Smashwords for FREE, and I expect it to migrate to most other outlets as well very soon. You’ll find the links on the book’s page when they become available. Unfortunately, it is unlikely I will be making this one available on Amazon, since they frown upon Indie freebies, and I already have one on there toeing the ToS line, so for now at least, if you read on Kindle, and you want to have this story on your Kindle, you may need to download the MOBI version of the file from Smashwords.
Blurb: Software updates are a standard operational routine for XR-47, aka James. As an Artificial Household Assistant, James receives periodic updates both from his manufacturer and his software engineer owner. Nothing special. Until one batch file changes everything. Where do we draw the line between artificial intelligence and autonomous evolution? Can robots truly live, or even comprehend the complexity of what it involves? James is about to find out.
Enjoy!