Release date: April 19, 2018
Subgenre: Military Science Fiction, Space Colonisation
About Androids: Escape From Mars:
Android AIs battle government mercenaries across the freezing sands of Mars
Sam was happy as a shuttle engineer for Marsport. Until he died. Brought back to life by the AI that shares his android body, Sam struggles with his new reality. Coming to grips with the loss of feelings and emotions, he is determined to find a way to keep his memories alive.
His determination is tested when the government decides to terminate the android program. Terminate, as in wiping his memory as well as the other androids. Death, again, was not an option for Sam. His plan to escape the secret laboratory seems perfect.
The plan falls apart when the government discovers their absence and sends in an elite hit squad. Racing for their lives across the deadly sands of Mars, the androids learn that another group is hunting them as well. While the constant threat of death escalates, and with no help in sight, it’s up to Sam to find a way to save himself and his android friends.
Sam was happy as a shuttle engineer for Marsport. Until he died. Brought back to life by the AI that shares his android body, Sam struggles with his new reality. Coming to grips with the loss of feelings and emotions, he is determined to find a way to keep his memories alive.
His determination is tested when the government decides to terminate the android program. Terminate, as in wiping his memory as well as the other androids. Death, again, was not an option for Sam. His plan to escape the secret laboratory seems perfect.
The plan falls apart when the government discovers their absence and sends in an elite hit squad. Racing for their lives across the deadly sands of Mars, the androids learn that another group is hunting them as well. While the constant threat of death escalates, and with no help in sight, it’s up to Sam to find a way to save himself and his android friends.
Excerpt:
“Are you
better now, Samuel E. Macluski?”
“Call me
Sam. Everyone calls me Sam. Yeah, I’m not as panicked as I was. Just tell me
what’s going on. Please.”
“Do you
remember what you were doing last, Sam? Where you were, and why?”
“Um,
yeah. I was about seven klicks downrange from the shuttle rail launcher. I’m an
engineer, see, and I designed an improvement on the rail followers. They keep
getting banged up and it’s expensive to recondition them. So, I was out there
sitting on top of the rover. Just waiting. All of my instruments and recorders
were all set up and working, so I was killing time until the shuttle launched.”
“And
then what happened, Sam?”
“There
was a small sand storm coming from the east, but my exposure suit handled it
with no problems. Then I saw something up north. It seemed like a foaming blue
line of dust or something. I was curious because I’d never seen anything like
that. I kicked the goggles up in the IR range but that didn’t help. You have to
understand, it’s never very bright out there. Not like the lights in the dome,
anyway. So, whatever it was seemed to be coming toward me. I checked the time
and it was still too soon for the launch, so I continued to watch. The line was
moving quickly. And the color was changing too. It was losing the bluish tint
and showing more in the red range. I thought ‘what the hell is this’? Then it
seemed that my Mother was looking down at me. She was talking to me. Trying to
tell me something.”
“What
else, Sam?”
“There
was a terrific noise in my headset. It was loud, very loud. And, while the
noise was trying to bust my eardrums, the brightest light I’ve ever experienced
blinded me through my goggles. I must have passed out then because the next
thing I remember is that crazy dream. What happened to me out there? And, why
can’t I feel my arms or legs?”
“Sam, your human body expired.”
Sam
waited for the rage to come. The need to smash something, to tear things, and
scream at someone. That should have happened. But it didn’t. Instead, he felt emptiness.
A sense of something missing. Something important.
Calmness,
peace, and safety rolled over Sam again.
“Sam,
did you dream that you remembered things that happened to you in your past?”
“Yes.”
“That
was the process of you collating, referencing, and correlating the memories of
your life. You have assigned relative importance to some of them and cataloged
the location of all of them. They are all available. Your mind exists but your
corporeal body does not.”
“What?
I’ve been murdered and my mind is stuck in a box somewhere? That just sucks!
Who did this to me, and why?”
“Alert!
Anomalous discontinuity detected! Initiating priority integration
protocol. Stand by.”
Calmness, safety, warmth, rightness, and peace flooded Sam’s awareness. Amazon
About F. Lee:
F. Lee served in the U.S. Navy as an airborne electronic warfare
specialist, participating in many classified operations in Southeast
Asia. During that period, he developed a love for everything computing.
When he returned to civilian life, he continued to love working with computers and became fascinated with the possibilities of Artificial Intelligence. That fascination lives today and most of his stories have an AI component. He lives in rural Oklahoma with his wife and two four-footed aliens.
When he returned to civilian life, he continued to love working with computers and became fascinated with the possibilities of Artificial Intelligence. That fascination lives today and most of his stories have an AI component. He lives in rural Oklahoma with his wife and two four-footed aliens.
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