Author : Gray Blix

[In the control room they hear what she hears in stereo and see what she sees on left and right vision monitors.]

A well-dressed man is sitting behind a desk, talking on the phone. His tag IDs him as “Technical Recruiter.” She stands nervously until he gestures for her to be seated.

[“What a prick.”]

After several minutes, he hangs up and, dispensing with a greeting, starts the interview abruptly with, “Your name?”

[“Now he’s turning on the charm.”]

“Maddison Fox. That’s with two d’s.”

His expression is quizzical.

“Is that a British accent?”

“Australian.”

[“Synthetic voices with foreign accents are accepted more readily as human.”]

He makes a notation on a pad, “Of course.”

“Excuse me, sir, but do you have my resume?”

“No. My assistant reviewed it, but I’d rather you tell me about yourself.”

[“She doesn’t recognize that as a request.”]

“Tell me about yourself,” he repeats.

“Oh,” embarrassed, she begins, telling him she graduated with high honors in mechatronics from a respected Australian university and worked three years for a startup robotics company in Sydney.

“Why are you leaving them?”

“Well, I haven’t made a final decision to do so, but I’m combining my vacation in San Francisco with interviews. Actually, FirstAmeriBot is at the top of my list. I want to work with the best in the world.”

He asks about projects she’s worked on, and as she talks, he makes notations and shows increasing interest in her answers.

[“She fits the specs perfectly; he’s taking the bait.”]

As the interview progresses, he becomes more cordial and it’s obvious he’s not only impressed with her professionally, but personally. He cracks a smile.

[“Her hair, facial, and body features, as well as her clothing and behavioral patterns, are all designed to make her irresistible.”]

He says her education and experience would qualify her for a temporary worker visa, and she says she won’t need one because her mum is an American, so she has dual US-Australian citizenship.

[“Reel him in.”]

The interview turns into a relaxed conversation in which the two laugh often. When he hands her a brochure, she lets it drop to the desktop and brushes her fingers on his hand. He quickly withdraws it and summarizes medical-dental benefits. Finally, he says he will arrange for her to meet the team leader for robotics before week’s end.

[High fives all around.]

Answering the phone, he holds his hand over it to say “Sorry, I’ll have to take this privately, but I’ll call you this afternoon, Maddy.”

[“Maddy?”]

As she exits, a glance back shows him admiring the sway of her hips.

[“He can’t stand up or she’d see his…”]

Her POV approaching an elevator shows a man risking his fingers to stop the door from closing. He’s all smiles as she enters.

“Do you work here?”

[“After she’s hired, we’re going to have to dial back her… She’s not equipped for intimacy.”]

[“What’s the point of planting her in FAB, since they’re behind us?”]

[“To take them down technical dead ends, sabotage their R&D, make sure they don’t catch up.”]

Two people enter the interview room. Their tags ID him as “Team Leader, Robotics” and her as “Chief Scientist.” She unplugs the interviewer and pulls him backwards, revealing an upper body and chair back attached to a metal box on wheels.

Removing a side panel, “I can’t wait to get her in the lab and reverse engineer her locomotion hardware and software.”

“It’s Thanksgiving in July and she’s a gift turkey,” he says, “to be plucked, gutted, and devoured.”