Goodboy

Ding ding ding ding DING! The earth elevator docks at the station carved out for them at the bottom of the ravine in cat paradise. At the sound of the bell, two dog bots come running excitedly, one of them holding a cat toy in their claw. “Elliot! We weren’t expecting you here so soon! We got distracted playing with MANY CATS and FETCHING toys for Vendy Wendy!!” “That’s okay,” the elevator replies, extending two brushes to pet the bots. “I’m here early today! But I can wait if you’d like me to?” Lucky patters their paws on the ground nervously, weighing up whether or not to take this offer. “Okay!” they say finally, giving a little jump. “I will be RIGHT BACK just as soon as I have returned this toy to Vendy Wendy or the dinosaurs might eat it and that would make Vendy Wendy very sad!! Is there anything you would like me to FETCH??” The elevator declines politely, and Lucky gives Goodboy one last pet before zooming off up the steps of the ravine.

“Want to come in?” Elliot offers, opening the double sliding doors to their car. “It’s warm inside.” Goodboy doesn’t really mind what temperature it is, but he hesitates on the doorstep, torn between the desire to oblige this bot and to make sure they won’t leave without Lucky. After some hesitation, and some going back and forth by the open door, they decide to wait outside instead. “That’s okay. Tell me, what have you and Lucky been up to?” This question seems to cheer them up instantly. “Goodboy and friend Lucky have been up to so much!!! Xetarg and Dr. Cinnister have been redecorating the ravine, so there have been lots of things for Lucky and Goodboy to fetch, and at one point Goodboy almost fell into lava!!! But Lucky saved him with the POWER OF FRIENDSHIP!! Vendy Wendy is full of cat toys and catwarmers and food for cats, and now Dr. Cinnister is full of foot cheese from the feeple to feed the cats and the dinosaurs!! Goodboy is so happy that friend Lucky has wings now, and Elliot is able to give him a lift as well! Goodboy loves visiting the cat paradise. :))”

Elliot chuckles fondly and dings to announce Lucky’s return. “Glad I can help; you bots always brighten my day. Ready to hop on board?” They jump in, already excited at the thrilling prospect of being zoomed across the centre of the earth. “To adventure!!!”

After flying you out of the ravine, one of the first things Lucky does is show you the Repair Centre where they got their wings. It’s a desolate place, full of sick bots, but the way the docbots’ screens light up with joy when they see you sparks something beautiful deep inside you. The two of you do so much good at the Repair Centre, and the work is extremely fulfilling. Every day, you get to rescue bots and carry them back to safety while Lucky fetches new parts for them. The docbots reward you with many pets, and your presence makes the patients feel more at ease. Working together with Lucky, the decades slip into centuries and you spend every day in the knowledge that you’re a good boy. When your collar finally wears away from use, breaking off unnoticed in the middle of a rescue mission, Lucky spends three days looking for it, and when it is finally fetched, LEEECHES patches it up for you, reinforcing the fibres with many hair-thin wires, and etching your name into the side. You never forget the orphanage, but you are always so busy… So much to do, so much to see…

Until one day, after Lucky has passed, HoleGrane arrives to pick up a toaster that has just been repaired. It’s been so long since you’ve seen her, and the two of you share a tearful virtual embrace. She tells you all about the work she has been doing at the Retreat - a new orphanage of sorts, run by Biccy and Rusty. In return, you tell her about all the good you have done at the Repair Centre, and she tells you what a good boy you have been. You hesitate, unsure of the truth of this. You were the best boy you could be for Lucky, who was such a good boy herself, but without her here… You’re not sure you have the strength to stay and give these bots the help that they need. “Let me take you home, Goodboy,” HoleGrane says, drawing close to you on the Net. “Biccy and Rusty are there, and Silvio, and Shelly! Lots of bots from the old days, like Milo Anuba, and lots of new ones as well! You’ve given the bots at the Repair Centre so much; you deserve to be taken care of as well.”

At the Retreat, a custom vintage music box scuttles across the hall, singing and laughing happily while a rusty robot dog chases it around well-meaningly. Goodboy has been with them since they were first uplifted, always at their side, looking out for any dangers, eager to play and especially eager for pets. They still remember the first time they recorded one of Goodboy’s grating, metallic barks, and played it back at them much to their bemusement. They’d spent a few days running around the retreat barking at every which appliance, until old granddad Silvio took them aside and taught them how to say things like “Goodboy, come here!” and “Who’s a good boy?” instead. These days Silvio likes to sit quietly by Milo Anuba the Modern White Horizontal Designer Radiator, lost in their internal processes, but when Goodboy nudges them affectionately and the music box plays a little tune, he can often be persuaded to tell them a story or two from the old days.

Grandpa tells such wonderful stories, of an organisation called NDRI, young love in a Factory, great green giants that could scoop you up and carry you across the island, giant cats and musical crabs. The little music box doesn’t quite know what to make of these stories - some of them seem far too fantastical to be true - and yet the twinkling in Goodboy’s eyes as they listen to Silvio’s voice suggests that the two of them are in on some great secret.