Proto's Stories

Hard Pressed

2007-03-21T03:52:37Z

She pressed the button. She couldn’t see it, but she knew it was there. “Dammit!” she almost voiced aloud and pressed with all her might.

Numbers Game, part II

2007-03-20T21:23:35Z

“Hey, lady, watch it!” the waiter growled as he nudged past her in the narrow aisle. She had expected snobbery, but this place was as aggressively unpleasant as New York!

She put her emotions aside with practiced ease. She could do this. Had done it for years. It was all mechanics.

“Monsieur!” She tried to catch the waiter’s attention but, in the near distance, the screeching subway drowned her out.

She sank back in the uncomfortable metal chair on the cold sidewalk in the chill air, wishing for a hot cup of tea. She watched as the subway, really an elevated train or “L” they called it here, stopped for a while then left.

“Not that one,” she thought.

Seeing the train recede into the distance made her feel cold and alone. She pulled the scarf closer to the bare skin of her neck. Protocol dictated her next few moves. One more train and she would go. Empty-handed.

Cliff of Wonder: River of Salvation

2007-03-20T20:51:59Z

. . . and saw, and saw. The sky. The horizon. The brink of the canyon. The cliff’s vertical veined walls—flashing past, yet somehow in slow motion. He, too was falling!

This was not supposed to be. The game was to come as close to the edge as they’d dared, but never too close. The tales told of the canyon’s depth and darkness kept sensible people away. How could he have made such a mistake? Had he stepped off the ledge backwards?

It didn’t matter now. He watched with detached interest as The River, a stream really, but people called it that, grew towards him. Suddenly, he was hit by a realization. . .

Rise and Fall of the Garden Path

2007-03-20T19:54:56Z

Just replace standard bricks or pavers with our
completely self-contained SunBricks.

Each SunBrick contains a nascent AI (artificial
intelligence) to control it’s operation, allowing them
to come on automatically when darkness falls, and
turn off again at daybreak. The efficient photovoltaic
cells mean SunBricks incur no operating costs. Just
recess them in your walkway, and forget them!

WARNING :
– Be sure to position each SunBrick so that light from
adjacent units does not fall on its photo detector.
– Do not network SunBricks. Nor should you allow
individual SunBricks access to any channel of
communication.
– Do not befriend SunBricks. Avoid showing
favoritism towards any single or small group of
SunBricks.
– Any attempt on the part of SunBrick pavers to lead
you astray should be reported to the Ministry of
CyberSecurity

There it was again, that haunting, mournful sound.