The Wellness Check
PD-31, the robot police dog, was jogging down twelfth street, effortlessly weaving through the few pedestrians sharing the sidewalk. The humans looked with interest, quickly-blinking red and blue lights drew their attention, wondering why the robots were in such a hurry.
PD-31 took a hard right turn at twelfth and Bentley after making sure the path was clear. The destination, a sky-high apartment complex, waited just ahead. Fellow unit PD-79 rounded the other side of the building.
PD-31 arrived first and the big automatic glass doors slid to the side. But instead of going through, the robot waited patiently for its partner. A young woman, about to walk out the door, stepped aside to let the police dog through until she realized that the robot had no intention of doing so. Quickly, she exited and hurried out of the way. She walked past the police dog, observing it with wide eyes. Then she noticed another robot jogging up to the door. What was going on here? Was there something wrong in her own apartment building?
When PD-79 caught up, PD-31 finally went through the door.
The young woman thought about following the duo for a brief moment. She paused, tilting her head as her gaze followed the units, but blew a strand of hair out of her face and went on her way.
As the two robots approached the elevators, a sensor detected their presence and sent them a free cabin.
It opened up without a ding so as not to attract any human attention. The two mechanical dogs went inside, arranging themselves in close proximity without touching. Once the doors closed and the robots were alone, they turned off their blinking lights for the ride.
The elevator stopped at the 14th floor and opened its doors. The dogs shuffled out and turned to their left. Turning their lights back on, they walked this time instead of running–but with military stride and precision.
Suddenly, just when PD-79 had passed apartment number 14-23, both units stopped and turned towards the door. PD-31 signaled their arrival to the apartment’s sensor. They waited 10 seconds. Then PD-31 sent a wellness check signal. Another 10 seconds passed. Nothing. A little compartment on PD-31’s side opened up and a plasma cutter emerged. A small pump began pressurizing nitrogen in one of the plasma cutter’s internal chambers.
PD-31 positioned the nozzle of the plasma cutter at the door just above the handle. Suddenly, with a little bang, a bright light appeared at the nozzle and spewed sparks everywhere.
PD-31 drew a big, glowing half-circle around the door handle before turning off the gas pump. The last sparks dropped to the floor. PD-31 returned the plasma cutter to its compartment and used the claw at the end of the arm that one could describe as its head to push against the cut section of the door. The cutout began to inch backwards and then, with a loud bang, it dropped to the floor inside the apartment.
The bot opened its claw, interlocking it with the door, and started to pull as it moved backwards.
The door opened and PD-31 announced, “This is the police, please do not be scared, we are just responding to a wellness check. We are unarmed and we come in peace. If someone is home, please come forward.”
PD-31 stepped inside. The red and blue strobe lights from PD-31’s tinted shoulder pads easily overpowered the dim light on the ceiling. Both robots turned on the industrial strength floodlights just under the cameras mounted on their single arms.
They found themselves in the entrance area of a small apartment with four doors, two to either side and two in front of them. The left door in front of them was the only one open and seemingly led into the dining area, then the living room.
PD-31 opened the door to the left and found a small storage room.
PD-79 opened the door to the right and found the bathroom.
“This is the police, please do not be scared, we are just responding to a wellness check. We are unarmed and we come in peace. If someone is home, please come forward.”
PD-79 opened the right door in front of them and found the bedroom. It could also see a double door at the other side of the bedroom and logged another note.
PD-31 shuffled into the dining room and found a tidy kitchen area behind the door. The walls were painted in a neutral shade of beige with white accents and the floor was covered with a plush carpet of the same color, only darker. A black and white poster of Arwen Undomiel hung on the wall above the table.
PD-31 tried to establish a data connection to the apartment's personal assistant without success. The living room was delicately decorated with more black and white posters depicting Lord of the Rings characters. A lengthy, inviting gray couch occupied the majority of the space. The couch sat covered with an assortment of unique cushions that coordinated with the rug. Little shelves on the walls contained worn fantasy novels from authors like Tolkien, Le Guin, Jordan, Hobb, and Rothfuss.
They both looked around, scanning the dimly lit room for more doors, and found one. PD-79 calculated that this must be the same room that the double doors in the bedroom would have opened into.
On the wall next to the door was a large, rectangular cabinet made of dark, polished wood. An unresponsive house robot sat in its charging station.
PD-79 crossed the living room through the red and blue strobes and stopped in front of the last door. PD-31 followed close behind.
“This is the police, please do not be scared, we are just responding to a wellness check.” PD-79 approached and used its claw to knock three times.
The robot extended its claw forward and grasped the door handle, turning it and beginning to push. The door gave way and the robot’s olfactory sensors immediately noticed the putrescence in the air.
PD-79 immediately notified headquarters about what it had just detected–and then they saw the body.
PD-31 almost jumped forward, trying in vain to detect the slightest sign of life.
Then it sent three short sentences to HQ.
“Wellness check completed. Person of interest deceased. Human backup requested.”
Next post: The Endless Summer