Parallels

The City of Simile was a modernized hub of prior excellence. Five years ago, it was a desert city born of the idea of two wealthy sheiks who believed it was time to lead the technological revolution in the untapped potential of the arid states. They concurred that they could create a city not so unlike the mythical ones generated through folklore but with a more solid foundation in its purpose as a place engineered with the most optimized form of living... and by the abundance of solar energy.

So, they gathered a team of specialists referred by colleagues from their studies abroad and set to work. It took only a year for their ambition to be realized. It also took only half that time for the advancements they'd made to find better, worthier copies in older cities that did not need as much handling to establish.

Now, bedazzling the more unseasoned travelers, it at least makes for an interesting first stop on a landmark tour of the New Age in sentient robotics. It also holds the world record for Youngest City Ever to be Left Behind by the Times.

There are people who would argue that their beloved Simile was a testament to human ingenuity. (After all, it had once been "as popular as the plague" within the avant-garde A.I. community.) Then there are those who’d argue its dystopian outcome made that kind of thinking befitting only the ingénue.

But then we also have Zinnia, our intrepid inventor who made use of Simile's petty and cloying obsession for its past glories to secure parts for her tinkering project at a more economic price. She was a finder, or so she'd been told. She possessed the uncanny ability to connect likes or leisure with tools that elevated one's quality of life further. She was amazingly efficient and, by that design, she was handpicked to serve directly under the city’s Chief Engineer, a coveted role normally given the title of Assistant Chief Engineer. But as a city likened to the plague at one point, it gave rise to odd jobs like hers that could not be given any specific description.

That didn’t stop many who sneered at how such status would go to the likes of her. They, of course, couldn’t know how daunting her tasks were to the average person. Besides regular maintenance checks and product testing (cars, computers, buildings, rockets… you name it), she had secretarial duties and the random errand usually designated to interns. Although she had purpose in maintaining the city’s lifeblood on the constant inner workings of its tech, it still wasn’t the most glorious profession to be had in a place that captured the imagination of future enthusiasts.

Consequently, one morning while she was surveying one of the city’s main energy refineries, she was struck by an epiphany.

Or an explosion, more like, and she ducks safely behind a column. Luckily for everyone else, she always did these checks alone. An operator comes out to see if she was okay and informs her that the source was a lone boiler about 10 feet away.

Not a pipeline, then. She muses, logging the incident casually and sending it to his boss. She did think, however, how close it could have come: her fatality. It jarred her for a bit, like an awakening. But she glosses over such unproductive thoughts and ruminates instead on what could have prevented the incident. Surely these kinds of things happened even with regular maintenance checks? Maybe she needn’t be so hard on herself. It wasn’t her fault the damn thing was neglected.

Was it?

No. Ridiculous. I couldn’t have known. She paces about.

It's my job to know though. Do I even know how to do better in the future?

She stops her walking and ponders that one little detail.

Future.

She looks about her and gazes at the high-rise buildings, bullet trains, and clear skyways. Everything moved as per schedule and not a soul could complain. There were enough jobs to go around, with the more dangerous ones delegated to machinery. Also, the place had almost eliminated lifestyle diseases among its denizens with its superior design of walkways that balanced health studies with convenience. (She could go on and on with all the improvements if she'd spent a few more hours gaping at the sights.)

This entire city was built on the premise of forging the future oneself. Apparently, anything was possible here simply because two dreamers designed it to be so. What was stopping her from moving that dream further along? One could even say that preventing such innovation would be a deviation from the city's code.

Yes, she knew exactly how to do better. She smiles as the wheels in her head start turning. Bathing in the brilliance of her new plan, she sets out to bring form to her inner machinations.

For the next few days, she would flit from shop to shop in her steely eyed mien and purposeful stride, gathering the numerous parts and tools she needed. In the nights, she'd experiment in her room and make the appropriate adjustments. Satisfied with her progress one day, she goes out to the shopping district to collect a final piece. She waits until familiar footsteps pull her out of her contemplation.

"Zinnia!" A friendly female voice calls. "I have that thing you asked for... the uhm, uh-"

"The processor. Thank you, Miriam."

"Yes!" She rummages through her shoulder bag and pulls out a small plastic box containing the device. "I wonder why you ask for my help in the first place. Don't you have access to all the good gadgets anyway? I had to ask my brother for help."

"Your thrifting skills are not a trifling matter, Miriam. They are unmatched.” She smiles. “And you know I barely have time to look for parts the engineer needs." She pockets the piece.

Miriam nods sympathetically. "He makes you do everything, huh?"

"Only the things he can't do."

"Well, that's why you're the best, Zinnia. Oh! I hate to leave you so soon but I have that thing coming up.”

"Yes, Aya's rehearsal dinner. I will see you later then."

Zinnia waves after her retreating figure and walks off to the Builder's Quarter near her end of the city.

In all honesty, she didn't really count on Miriam's thriftiness for help. There was a good number of people who were decidedly a better fit for the task and they were known for it, which was the problem.

What she required was anonymity, someone with no ties to an administration, architectural committee, or technologic society. She’d met Miriam, a dressmaker, on one of her errands and noted her agreeable, obliging nature. She counted on that helpfulness and was all too pleased to find that she had a brother who played video games for a living. He’d been more than ecstatic to show off his expertise. If his little sister needed a processor here or several video cameras there, he’d be none the wiser.

As for the other hi-tech gadgets unavailable to the public, she'd already gotten them from their labs. No one questioned the chief engineer's assistant for needing radar sensors but they would grow suspicious of her experimenting with simple processors that would generally be obsolete in her line of work.

No. She needed absolute secrecy for this project. What she was attempting was unheard of because it was forbidden. Genius… but dangerous.

She enters her quarters, calmly locking the door behind her. At last, she had the final processor sitting in her pocket. Trial and error had taught her the limits of her endeavor but had also pushed her past them. This project was practically begging to make waves in the scientific community. Why the people even feared this kind of ambition eluded her. She would put Simile on the map and have it revered throughout history.

They’ll thank me someday, she declares, arranging the screws and aptly placing the device in its slot. She switches the panels on and finds its sensors working smoothly, finally.

Zinnia had truly finished her project and timely enough as she began to feel the very tendrils of her body shutting down. She couldn't pretend she could go this long without a re-charge anymore but she marveled at the brilliance of her creation.

Her new companion's warm brown eyes made for a calming expression and its delicate human figure carried the city's dreams for worldwide recognition once more. She smiled happily into oblivion over the vast reaches of its automated potential, knowing it would live to be almost-human just like her.

It always took two of a kind to make something of this wasteland.