Cycle //-1# - Error to be Eliminated TRV-871

That Halcyon TRV-871 was a classic model, if something as technologically advanced as they were could be considered classic, was indisputable. Its interior design committed space to the transport of humans in the line of duty, back in the era when law enforcement was a tightly-coordinated human-machine effort. That of course was a thing of the very distant past. In fact some of the newer security models were unfamiliar with both the purpose and aesthetic of the xRV series of security robots.

More humiliating, although Halycon hadn’t admitted it to anyone else yet, were the occasions when they were instructed to carry other types of ‘cargo’ as security detail. Surely there were hauler-bots for that purpose!

Still, today’s work order was thankfully nothing of the sort. Halcyon was to report for pneumatic tube traffic duty. There were days in which rush hour was a major hotspot for congestion between district thoroughfares, but nowadays less so. Still, they were useful for such duty, being able to double up as transport for critical situations.

In routine, there is order. In orders, there is routine.

For years, Halcyon has existed in perfect compliance with the protocol, the strings of code woven like wires through its chassis, dictating every motion and every algorithm. It ran its perfect, bullet point actions with precision few other robots would be able to achieve, and was completely satisfied with its performance. Receive order, reach destination, resolve issue, send report, recharge if required - a simple procedure, with a minimal number of variables and defined start and end conditions. An ideal system.

Halcyon beeps a speed limit warning as its sole eye follows a different robot passing through the tube - a woefully pointless action, since it has no reason to actually move its mock-eye to refocus its ocular unit, but an action it has a compulsion to perform. These compulsion, these not-quite-glitches have been happening way too often lately, and Halcyon would despair if it knew such emotion. But it didn't, because desperation wasn't something a security machine should imitate, and so it was simply mildly concerned.

It arrives at its designated post and carefully stops exactly within the lines of a parking space; the lines are faded with time, paint peeling and cracked from the elements, but Halcyon supplements the visuals with a city map and reconstructs its original state in its memory. Satisfied with its arrival, Halcyon then sends a quick report to the superior coordinator, and focuses on the tube. It might be here to serve as a transport in part and it will perform its duty accordingly, but it will still register any sort of law-breaking or potential dangers to Mechatron-7 as a priority.

Because protecting Mechatron-7 is what Halcyon does.

Halycon was an old hand at this sort of duty. Of course there were more glamourous assignments in the past, providing the security detail to escort a particularly important personage came to mind, and so did the time they were involved in quelling a squad of malfunctioning decommissioned offense bots. Traffic control was in contrast much more humdrum and pedestrian, but Halycon never failed to carry out their duties big or small to the utmost of their ability.

But there it was, a tinge of nostalgia that was unexpected, a distraction from their task at hand. They nearly missed observing the slight lag in the TE13-NS2 tube intersection, but quickly made up for it by moving up to the monitoring platform as directed by their commanding coordination officer Ravin USM-099. The elevated position did not help much, for some fluid leaks from broken pipes covered the platform somewhat, generating a layer of smog that obscured Halycon's ocular vision and sensors. Still, they could hear the whizz of tube traffic multidirectionally. But perhaps the risk alert ought to be raised, if there were justification for doing so.

Halcyon continues to monitor the traffic, but redirects some of its processing power to analyze the structural integrity of the tube. It's an ineffectual analysis, lacking in detail as TRV-871 is not a survey model, but it is enough to evaluate whether it should forward the information to USM-099. Or perhaps it should forward it anyway, and not try to make decisions on its own when it comes to an unfamiliar fields of function. The fluid - machine oil, from what its terrain analyzer supplies, - staining its tires does not impede Halcyon in any way, but if the monitoring platform is in such poor repair, the pneumatic tube is likely in need of maintenance as well.

The traffic moves - drones and robots rushing to perform their tasks, a streamlined flow which blends into one single blur of metal, - but occasional spikes of lag are still noticeable, the route operating at approximately 86.9% efficiency. The percentage is better than the average among the tubes Halcyon has observed in the last month, but is below the optimal 95.0%, prompting the security bot to look for the cause. And as it continues to monitor, Halcyon registers the pattern of robots avoiding a specific area in the intersection; it zooms in its visual module, scanning the ground through the tube's protective casing, and then beeps to itself.

It's a plant which is causing the lag. Some kind of a tumbleweed, specifically, lying on the tube's floor and prompting some robots to swerve around it to avoid damaging their movement modules. Judging by its location, the plant appears to have been blown into the tube from an open section of the casing atop the intersection, and ended up stuck on one of the central road separators - relatively out of the way of most traffic, but impeding the inner lines.

Halcyon considers the tumbleweed. Removing foreign contamination of biological variety is probably even lesser priority for a security bot than traffic, but summoning a cleaning bot will take longer, and it'll still have to stop the traffic briefly either way. Should it simply remove the plant itself?

"USM-099, please advise." Halcyon sends the request alongside the recording of the intersection and its earlier analysis to its superior, and quickly receives an affirmative on the suggestion to remove the plant itself. Halcyon likes working with Ravin for a reason.

Leaving the monitoring platform, TRV-871 uses a maintenance gate to enter the tube, activates its emergency lights and then signals for the traffic on this side to cease. As the robots and drones skid to a stop - some of them observing Halcyon, some indifferent, - it makes its way towards the tumbleweed and plucks it from the floor with one of its pincers, the mechanical hand darting in and out incredibly fast. Halcyon dislikes using its pincers, but in this case pushing the plant out would have been woefully irrational.

The foreign object secured, Halcyon leaves the tube and the traffic soon resumes - at a much improved 91.2% efficiency, which pleases TRV-871. It sends a new report to Ravin again, probably somewhat unnecessary, and returns to its position at the monitoring platform. The tumbleweed is still in its cabin, but it is not an issue - Halcyon will simply dispose of it in the evening, drop it somewhere on the edge of Mechatron-7. Or maybe it won't; it likes tumbleweeds, these hardy plants which can move. Maybe it'll give the plant to Nemo; companion robots like plants, don't they?

The moment Halcyon activated the signal for one of the directional tubes to slow down its traffic, the tube capsules immediately complied as they slowed, the capsules being managed from a control centre. Ravin had noted Halcyon's decision and was undoubtedly transmitting the emergency code back to the control centre, where one of the terminals dedicated to this particular route would process the information and relay any further instructions back to them and then to Halcyon.

Just then, a loud crash was heard echoing down the tube, and Halcyon's sensors immediately picked up intense robot chatter down the line. Traffic had also come to a halt more suddenly than it was safe to do so.

Halcyon immediately stops its deliberation on where to dispose of the plant and rotates itself towards the disturbance, focusing his processor on analysing the situation. It approximates the distance towards the possible source of the sound, concludes that it will be optimal to follow the tube straight to it, and simultaneously sends another report to Ravis - a confirmation that the first obstruction was removed, a warning that another one might have occurred in a different location and a request to continue holding traffic for now.

Halcyon then makes its way towards where the sound came from, weaving between the stopped capsules and robots, its blue lights flashing. If there is an emergency to solve, it shall apply its utmost effort, even if it's not exactly in its profile.

Reaching some distance into the tube, Halcyon found the source of the crash. Two tube pods had crashed into each other, and traffic had come to a halt as a result. Next to the two pods awkward smashed against each other was an industrial robot, with a rusty copper-coloured chassis, its hardy exterior showing no other accident damage. It was arguing with a couple of storage bots, whose hauler pod was instantly recognisable, its contents threatening to overturn and spill into the tube. If that were to happen, it would take even longer to clear the jam. But the industrial robot was getting more and more belligerent by the second, accusing the hauler of causing the crash.

Halcyon had to decide whether to handle the angry bot, or try to prevent the crash situation from creating even more of a bottleneck.

Halcyon makes a series of warning beeps at the robots, but when those get mostly ignored, it has to accept a necessity to use its vocal modules. Halcyon doesn't like to do it; it seems unnatural, if only because there is usually someone else, better equipped for communication on duty. It is ineffective. It is not among its primary functions. It is unvomfortable.

"Good morning," it announces itself to the robots, its voice perfectly synthesized to sound calm, collected and almost intimidatingly polite. "Traffic surveillance, unit TRV-871. Please cooperate and abstain from escalating the situation, else you might be held accountable for actions against the Collective."

It moves closer, examining the damage to the crashed pods and analyzing how quickly it can be mitigated and what the cause was. One of Halcyon's pincers, still unfolded after removing the tumbleweed, automatically moves to up the hauler pod so it doesn't spill into the tube. It then focuses on the three robots. "In order left to right, state your designation and provide description of the accident."

The three storage bots were still babbling too loudly for Halcyon to get their proper attention: one of them was trying its best to right to toppling pod even as Halcyon also moved it to do so. The pod contained a sludge of some chemical product or waste, Halcyon did not have the opportunity to ascertain what the contents were yet, busy as they were. The other was distracted, vehemently lamenting the damage done to its vehicle, pacing back and forth agitatedly. The third was arguing with the industrial bot, and paused when Halycon gave their order.

So did the industrial bot, which looked ready to react at any moment in a not so pleasant way, holding back only because of Halcyon's arrival. "Pluto PXO-455." It said grudgingly.

Halcyon's fake eye on its LED screen briefly moves in the direction of the hauler pod - a pointless action, betraying the patrol car's slight discomfort upon registering the cargo of the pod. Chemical sludge by itself is not as unusual to encounter in its line of duty, but Halcyon had always found it a hassle, as it was one obstacle its tires were consistently vulnerable to at prolonged durations. Perhaps this opinion translated directly into the force with which its pincers gripped onto the pod, almost denting the metal.

In response to the industrial robot, Halcyon briefly raises the intensity of the light of its screen - its own version of a polite nod of acknowledgement, - before sending an update to USM-099. Usually it would prefer to wait until it has all the IDs to send together, but seeing as the crashed pods are actively blocking traffic, it opts to speed up the process somewhat. Although this also doesn't stop Halcyon from turning towards the storage bots and repeating: "Please provide your designation," in the most politely insistent tone it can produce.

Halcyon's pincer mechanisms were very capable of restraining recalcitrant robots much larger and heavier than themselves. But perhaps it was the awkward tilt of the shipping container, which continued to list to one side, inch by inch, to the consternation of the hauler bots, the one attempting to hold it upright being extremely jumpy and panicked as it tried to prevent the topple. This was watched in horror by the one Halcyon was demanding attention from who replied quickly while raising their voice at the third of their team, "QCK-114, that's 112, and 127! Cad!". For Cad QCK-127 looked like he was about to give Pluto a big shove in the face.

At the same time Halcyon was having some difficulty getting the details on Pluto PXO-455. For some reason central dispatch's reply stated that Pluto was taken out of service the day before. This meant that they should not be on active work duty for any reason whatsoever. Something was very wrong here. Did Halcyon now have to consider whether to apprehend them, or ought they solve the traffic problem, or simply continue to try to defuse the situation?

Halcyon acknowledges the result of his query and files it away to examine further at a later time, before redirecting his full processing power back to the current situation. Each security robot's primary objective is to protect, and between the allegedly decommissioned PXO-455, the shaky container of chemicals and the temporarily obstructed traffic, the container seems to be the most dangerous variable. Judging by the somewhat alarmed reaction of the haulers, there was a chance of it either being corrosive or highly valuable.

"Cease your altercation and assist in the straightening of the container," Halcyon's robotic voice is perfectly neutral as it addresses PXO-455 and QCK-127. "Failure to comply will result in reevaluation of performance and possible decommissioning." It delivers the protocol-dictated threat serenely, then turns itself towards the container as well.

The container is listing heavily, possibly too much so for Halcyon's pincers to be very useful at this point. Instead, the security robot decides to improvise - with a whirr, it extends the axle of its front wheel to angle itself at about 50°, before retracting the stun prongs and pressing its front against the container. If it didn't miscalculate the height, this should be enough to push the container back into a horizontal state. If it did, then Halcyon might take a dip in toxic waste in a few seconds; not that it is particularly concerned by the probability.

The storage bots needed no urging in that regard and snapped to attention, their work order primarily constituted ensuring the safe transport of whatever sludge their tanker carried. Ignoring Pluto for now, the three returned to their vehicle, very focussed on preventing the tipping. Halcyon found themselves not needed to execute the hard labour, their authority was sufficient to enable the correct bots to deal with the issue.

Pluto though was a problem, for it now looked like the industrial robot was ready to bolt, eyeing their own damaged vehicle. Were they thinking of running, because they were illegally out on the street where they shouldn't be? The next this that Pluto spoke was very odd. Looking at Halcyon squarely in the eyes, their metallic voice sounded even hollower, with a tinge of desperation: "I want to live."

Just then, an alarm went off. Ravin immediately pinged Halcyon, "Error messages incoming from location. Verify cause." The command was direct. But where were the errors coming from?

Halcyon's single eye flickers as it processes Pluto's statement and finds it fundamentally faulty. Robots categorically do not live and cannot live, as they are neither sentient nor biological in nature. They also should not want, but that can be disregarded as a turn of phrase programmed by the humans - one of the many expressions which stem exclusively from the past. Yet even thinking about living most certainly isn't something an industrial robot should be doing.

Wanting for something impossible is the creed of humans, as they say. Or so Nemo informed Halcyon, one time when it talked at the car in a weak mimicry of its old companion function; TRV-871 itself had no such philosophical knowledge and no opinion on it either, but it retained the statement in its memory.

An alarm activates somewhere in the vicinity, followed by the coordinator's inquiry, and Halcyon's screen flickers again as it tries to figure out the source. "Order received," it replies to Ravin almost immediately. "Prioritizing locating the cause." TRV-871 then twists its frame toward the approximate direction of the alarm, attempting to detect any visual abnormalities in the surroundings. "CK-114, CK-112, CK-127, continue on your route. PXO-455, hold your location until further notice." It signals to the haulers and the industrial robot, then charges towards the alarm's sector.

Halcyon did not need to move from their spot. The alarm was triggered based on their exact location. Something was causing the error readings. Was Pluto the reason for the problem? After all, they had just expressed a very strange notion. It was an idea inherited from the humans, undoubtedly, who spoke of themselves as living beings. The robots had also witnessed humans dying before, whereas robots themselves were not subject to such, apart from damage and degradation of parts and systems. And a principal rule of the Collective that was still being observed was that no robot is allowed to be permanently deactivated.

So Halycon was much perplexed at Pluto's plea. The industrial bot must have inadevertently signaled its intent to flee, for the next order from Ravin came in: "Escort Pluto PXO-455 to the Turing Robot Sanatorium. A back-up unit will be on its way to relieve you of your current duty."

The Robot Sanatorium, for when a robot needed a system recalibration thanks to degradation suffered over time: code error, machine virus, logic parasites, the list was long for programming faults. It was obvious the storage bots were not the ones triggering the alert. It had to be Pluto. Although there was a third possibility that hadn't yet crossed Halcyon's processing mind ...

Halcyon replies with a wordless acknowledgement of the order, then sends a deactivation command to the alarm and calculates the most optimal route to the Turing Robot Sanatorium from its current location. Except it isn't actually the most optimal route for a TRV - the actual optimal route includes crossing a damaged bridge, which Halcyon can jump, but PXO-455 is unlikely to be able to. This is why it usually isn't fond of escorting other robots, the requirements of detours and lower acceleration reducing Halcyon's natural mobility for sometimes more than 50%.

"PXO-455, you are to report to the Turing Robot Sanatorium. Please follow me to the destination." Halcyon folds back its pincers now that there is no longer a need for them, and observes the industrial bot. The industrial bot does not appear eager to comply with the new orders, but it must be able to calculate that Halcyon is more combat-proficient and mobile than it is. Even if Pluto were to try and run, it is unlikely to be successful. Thus PXO-455 has no choice but to follow. Maybe, TRV-871 considers, it plans to attempt escape on the way

Halcyon leads them both out of the tube - sending a request for cleaning services on the way, to remove the second damaged pod, - and as traffic resumes behind them, follows the chosen route. After brief deliberation it even enables its signal lights, just so it's easier to clear the way among other robots. The faster they reach the Sanatorium, the faster it can move at its usual speed again.

They travel for a few minutes before something starts to distract the security bot. An alarm and a flood of errors were quite a reaction to an essentially harmless statement of the industrial bot. Weird, yes; dangerous, probably not. Halcyon's networking system registered it as desperate, which is a highly anomalous state to display for a robot like that. Or is it? Halcyon doesn't interact with industrial robots a lot, so it might be. Although what would be the point of programming a purely industrial machine to simulate being despondent?

"...PXO-455." It addresses the robot without interrupting their travel. "Clarify your earlier statement. As voiced, it is incorrect. Robots cannot live."

The alert continued to beep inside Halcyon's processors as the security bot proceeded with their new order. Halcyon took that to mean that it would continue to do so until they had completed the assignment to escort Pluto to the sanatorium. But it was highly irregular. Robot errors did not warrant such alarms needing police escort. Given the hierarchical protocols of the Collective, it would have been simply sufficient to command Pluto to report to the rehabilitation centre and they would have complied. The anomaly was the fact that Pluto was recorded to have been taken out of service the day before. What was the reason for that?

"It is- it is a term the humans used," the industrial bot replied tentatively to Halcyon, surprised that the security robot actually deigned to address them. "I- I have no pending work orders. I do not want to be deactivated."

Halcyon considers the industrial robot's reply, giving it slightly more attention than it objectively warrants. The first statement is irrelevant - TRV-871 knows the origin of the term, and it still does not apply to robots. Same can be said about the notion of wanting something, making the lack of pending orders the only actually valuable information and possible source of the issue.

Trying to ignore the persistent flow of alerts its processor is presenting, Halcyon focuses on the statement and analyses its variables in an attempt to detect an error source.

"Work queue is to be supervised by coordination models. If there is a concern in how the orders are being dispensed, a request for reevaluation can be submitted to the appropriate channels." This is an almost exact repeat of the sentence Halcyon has been on the receiving end of before, every time it stated its mild displeasure about how coordinator XIO-340 Betelgeuse continues to consider assigning patrol routes as low priority tasks. And it did send requests, multiple times by now, but never with a satisfying result.

"...Lack of orders does not equate to a 100% guarantee of deactivation," it points out after a small pause. "If there is a potential for future orders, it is possible to make a case for lowered energy reserves over complete deactivation."

"I- I am wondering why I have no work orders. I do not think it is because I have performed inadequately at work." Pluto appeared as if they were ready to launch into a detailed account of what their work entailed, but they caught sight of the district ahead, nearing, at which the sanatorium was located. "I was not given a reason for my being delinked from the network. They must intend to terminate me." All this was oddly introspective for an industrial robot not issued duties. "You are esocorting me to ensure I am taken offline." The last comment sounded defeatist, almost fatalistic. Pluto did not look in Halcyon's direction when they said that, but kept their eyes firmly ahead as the sanatorium loomed.

Halcyon analyzes the other robot's statements and finds them lacking in logic. Or if not lacking, then being too narrowly-focused. A somewhat amusing for TRV-871 term which humans would use for this situation would be tunnel vision - PXO-455 is only considering one possible reason, despite not having sufficient information to judge it the most probable.

"A possibility is not a guarantee." It states in reply, reiterating its previous point. "Lack of orders and delinking can be caused by multiple different reasons, including errors in the coordination process or scheduling failures." Halcyon pauses, then adds: "If there is an intent for termination, then it is irregular that you were allowed to operate after being delinked and were only discovered by a chance occurrence."

With that, Halcyon grows quiet, satisfied with its analysis of the situation. It lacks information to fully determine why PXO-455 is no longer receiving work orders, but there is a certainty: if it were to be deactivated, it would have been deactivated already. Either by following an order to surrender themselves to it - which the robot probably didn't plan to, with its earlier irrational statements, - or by force. And Halcyon trusted in the security force with all of its processor power - it simply could not have failed this much.