An Excerpt from The Tomorrow Paradox (Book Two in The Adventures of Mackenzie Mortimer):
As they stepped out into the street, Mackenzie gaped in
astonishment at the motley throng of passersby. In addition to typical
pedestrians, cyborgs roamed the streets: humans wearing exoskeletons, with
bionic eyes, arms, or legs. He also noticed metallic robots among the crowd.
They stood out as inhuman machines, definitely neither cyborg nor human. The
robots glided on small wheels and despite wearing painted faces, their slanted
eyes revealed no trace of emotion. They reminded Mackenzie of pictures he had
seen of geishas with their expressionless, white painted faces. “Why do all the
robots look like they’re Japanese?” he whispered.
Gemma shrugged. “They’re all made in Japan. I suppose the
people who manufacture them in the factories try to make them look like
themselves. If God created man in his image, then why shouldn’t men create
machines in theirs?”
“Wow, that’s pretty deep.”
“What do you mean? Are you making fun of me?”
“No, I just wasn’t expecting philosophy from a clone.”
Gemma pouted. “I get it. You don’t like smart girls. Or
you’re just intimidated by them.”
“It’s not that,” Mackenzie replied defensively.
“I can’t help knowing so much. There’s not much to do at the
institute. Except for a twenty-minute exercise period, we’re confined to our
rooms. I spend most of each day logged on, exploring the neural net. At first,
I did it because I was bored… hopelessly, unimaginably bored. But the more I
explored, the more I started to learn. I discovered I liked learning things.
There was so much more out there, in the real world, outside of my small room.
It was exciting, Kenzie. I dreamt about the day I might actually experience
things and places and emotions I’d only read about and seen as images
downloaded to my mind.”
“That’s so sad. To have so much knowledge but so few experiences. If I’d been locked in my room my entire life with nothing but my mother’s old set of encyclopedias, I’d have gone mad.”
Time is running out… fortunately, Mackenzie Mortimer has a few more minutes than anyone else!
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