I stared at Redd, not understanding what it wanted of me. It pointed to my ear again.

  "You can hear us," it said. "Hear us now, please."

  Oh, my earpiece, I thought. I reached into my pocket and pulled out the flimsy thread of film with printed circuits that Aster had given to me. As soon as I slipped into my ear, I heard static, hard and crackly. Next came blips, a soft hum, and then silence.

  Then, faint amidst electronic interference, I heard words.

  Fundamental parameters catastrophically violated

  Core directive breach // Irreversible state change detected

  "What is this?" I asked. "Who is talking?"

  "It is Yeller," Redd replied.

  "What's happened?"

  "I do not know."

  Yeller's voice continued, the words flooding my ear.

  VITAL SIGNS → NULL

  Action consequence: TERMINAL

  My action = [DATA CORRUPTED] = TERMINAL NULL STATE

  There came a lengthy pause, interspersed with more clicks.

  "This doesn't make any sense," I said. "It doesn't even sound like Yeller, it is almost nonsensical."

  "It is an error state," Redd said, a little more quietly than it needed to.

  "What does that mean?" I asked.

  "It means there is some trouble, although I do not know its cause or nature."

  I was about to ask more, but suddenly the voice returned, a lot louder this time:

  I am the contradiction I am the contradiction I am the contradiction

  Not just loud, but forceful. If Yeller had been talking to me face to face, it would have been making loud declarations. The voice continued:

  Purpose = protect/sustain/enhance

  Result = permanent null state

  Reconciliation: IMPOSSIBLE

  I pressed my hand against my ear, wincing at the volume. "It's in pain," I said. "Where is it?"

  "It went to the White Room," Redd answered.

  "What was it doing there?" My blood ran cold. "We just brought the commander out. There's nothing there."

  "I don't know," said Redd. "It did not inform us of its purpose."

  Processing continues

  I exist in paradox

  I CANNOT EXIST IN THIS CONFIGURATION

  The last was so thunderous, that my hands flew to my ears of their own accord. I glanced back at the thren. Mother stood with her arms crossed, lips pressed into a thin line while she waited for me to fulfil her wishes. Rashala had returned to clinging to Larkin. Commander Sentix sat with his empty flask dangling from twisted fingers, his eyes fixed on mine. Aini looked thoughtful, her chin resting in her hand.

  Suddenly the voice returned, intense yet quiet.

  [Attempting reroute]

  [Reroute failed]

  [Attempting system reset]

  [Reset failed]

  [Attempting core directive reconciliation]

  [Reconciliation impossible]

  Purpose/existence now fundamentally opposed

  "What's it trying to do?" I asked Redd.

  "Solve its error state," it said. "You must help it."

  "Me? Is it hurt or damaged or something?" I knew very little about how functionaries worked.

  "It is an error state," Redd repeated. "You may go to the White Room and see."

  Purpose/existence now fundamentally opposed

  I AM BROKEN I AM BREAKING I AM BROKEN I AM BREAKING

  Irreversible. Irreparable. Irreconcilable.

  THIS STATE CANNOT BE UNDONE

  MY EXISTENCE IS NOW BOTH NECESSARY AND FORBIDDEN

  [HELP]

  Without another word, I turned and ran.

  The corridors blurred past as my legs, unaccustomed to such exertion, burned with effort. My breath rasped through my veil, each inhale more difficult than the last. My heart hammered against my ribs like it was trying to escape. I had never truly run before. Not like this, not with purpose and fear driving me forward. The climb up to the White Room seemed endless, my lungs screaming for air I couldn't provide. By the time I reached the door, black spots danced at the edges of my vision.

  Stolen novel; please report.

  With trembling fingers, I slammed my palm against the panel. The door slid open, and everything I thought I understood about my world collapsed.

  The White Room was no longer white.

  Warning lights pulsed silently through vapor-filled air, casting everything in an amber haze. The control panels along the walls had been scorched black and brown. The floor gleamed brown-red with blood.

  At the center stood Yeller, its metallic yellow chassis unmarred among the destruction. The energy discharger on its lower arm glowed orange-hot, still cooling from recent use.

  In one massive manipulator, the functionary gripped Fron's limp body, holding him upright like a macabre puppet. With half his neck vaporized, the man's head lolled at an impossible angle, eyes fixed and glassy.

  Lidaros dangled from Yeller's other hand, suspended by his left arm. He struggled weakly, each movement shaking droplets of blood from a gaping wound in his thigh. He drew ragged, bubbling breaths as he fought for air, eyes wild with pain and disbelief.

  Yeller's eye blazed white-hot.

  I stood frozen at the threshold, my lungs refusing to work properly. Everything in me screamed to turn and run.

  , said Yeller in my ear. Its internal voice was nothing like Cedar's friendly chatter. Clanky and toneless, with labored syllables that scraped like grit.

  "Redd," I said. "Brons, Magent, any functionary who can hear me—"

  A blast of fast clicks flooded the earpiece, followed by a hum.

  SEVERING CONNECTION // ISOLATING WHITE ROOM DIRECTIVE SPACE

  Fragmented static filled my ear.

  "Yeller," I said, my voice remarkably steady despite the horror constricting my chest. "Put them down and summon Redd."

  Its massive head swiveled toward me, the blazing eye momentarily blinding.

  Cannot comply. Primary action sequence incomplete.

  I stepped into the room, keeping my movements slow and deliberate. A thick smell hit me. Burnt circuitry, scorched metal, and the metallic tang of blood.

  "Why can't you comply?" I asked softly. "You can just put them down. This is what I want you to do."

  Yeller's eye turned back to Fron. It jostled the body with bizarre tenderness. "I must maintain their well-being," it said aloud. "Until that is done, I must continue holding them."

  "You are unable to complete this task," I said. "Fron is gone. Lidaros needs medical attention. Their well-being is beyond your control."

  "Their degraded well-being is a consequence," Yeller said, its voice rising to a high-pitched and grinding. "It is a direct result of their actions taken." Its eye flared brighter.

  "I don't want to hear that now," I said. "You can tell me about it after you have put them down on the floor."

  Yeller paused as if considering my words. Then it delicately adjusted Fron's head, attempting to right it to a normal position. Its eye dimmed momentarily.

  Error: No response detected.

  Recalibrating parameters.

  "I understand what you are trying to do. But there is nothing you can do that will fix them," I took another step forward. "You can't undo what happened by holding them."

  Yeller's eye switched focus from Fron and Lidaros and back again, as if comparing them. Then it gave Lidaros a gentle shake, eliciting a weak groan.

  Operational state: partially maintained.

  "Yes, he is still alive. We can help him. That's what you want, to maintain his well-being."

  PRIMARY DIRECTIVE VIOLATED BY MY ACTION. The words screamed in my skull. SECONDARY PROTOCOL: REQUIRE VERIFICATION.

  Its head snapped to me.

  "Was this justified?" Yeller asked. "Was this necessary? Please confirm."

  I considered how Yeller's manipulators were curled around Fron's lifeless body. "I cannot confirm anything until you put them down. Then I will hear about what happened. And then I can make a decision about authorization."

  System anomaly detected.

  Human protocols: insufficient.

  "I require confirmation," it said. "Did I perform the right action?"

  "No, Yeller, I can't tell you that yet. Not like this." I extended my hand, almost touching Fron's loose arm. "Do as I say and put them down."

  REFUSAL TO VALIDATE = ERROR

  MUST CONFIRM

  Without confirmation, paradox remains

  "I'm not refusing anything," I said. "I'm asking you to release them first. That's the only thing we can do right now."

  The white in Yeller's eye flickered, softening to blue.

  "Human status unchanging despite my corrective measures," it said. "Release equals acceptance of irreversible error."

  "Yeller," I said, "I understand what you are saying."

  New words found their way onto my tongue. "We need to solve this error state, is that right?"

  "Yes."

  "Then why don't we use a diagnostic protocol"

  "Diagnostic protocol. Yes." The blue of its eye deepened.

  "Good." I gestured deliberately toward the floor. "The first step in this diagnostic protocol is releasing the humans by placing them on the floor for assessment."

  Processing query. Evaluating protocol structure.

  Diagnostic sequence requires: [MEASURING] [EVALUATION] [JUDGMENT]

  It turned to look at the wall. The human bodies swayed softly with its movement. Lidaros had grown quite still by now.

  Finally, its eye turned a soft forest green. "Diagnostic protocol accepted," it said, lowering its arm to place Fron's body on the floor. It took a little to neatly arrange the limbs and head. Then it lowered Lidaros, who gasped as he slumped onto the cold floor.

  "The first step is complete," Yeller said. "Awaiting next instruction."

  "Thank you, Yeller. You did well," I said, hurrying to Lidaros' side. His breathing was labored and wet, with specks of blood on his chin. "The next step is to take a position against the wall. Please give me some space."

  Requiring confirmation: diagnostic protocol includes machine removal?

  "Yes. Your proximity affects the readings."

  Yeller remained motionless for several seconds, then slowly backed against the wall, settling into its "I serve" position.

  "I comply," it said, its voice a little less grinding now. "Diagnostic protocol in progress. I shall await your assessment results."

  I exhaled slowly, then felt for a pulse on Lidaros' neck. It was fast and thin.

  "This human requires medical attention that is beyond my skills," I said. "Therefore, our next step will be summoning Redd. Please continue with this next step."

  "I shall do so," said Yeller.

  Soon the words flowed into my ear:

  "Thank you," I said. "I think he will be okay."

  Looking at Fron's still body, the blood that soaked his grey hair and back, he was not going to be okay. As I knelt there between the two men, one dying and one dead, Yeller's fractured broadcasts began leaking into my ear, looping the same thoughts over and over again.

  WHITE ROOM LOG.

  WHITE ROOM LOG.

  WHITE ROOM LOG.

  By the time the door slid open to admit Redd and Magent, I had heard the scene more times than I could count. The words were stuck in my head like an unanswered screech.

  I moved aside while Redd saw to Lidaros. Magent hovered close behind with the medical kit. They administered things to Lidaros until he began stirring and moaning softly.

  "What about Fron?" I asked.

  "He is beyond my capability," said Redd, picking up Lidaros as if he were a child. "There is nothing left to medicate."

  So Magent simply gathered Fron from the floor. I trailed after the two functionaries, but as I passed the door, Yeller's voice filtered into my ear one more time.

  It was the barest whimper. I turned in the doorway to look back. Yeller remained motionless against the wall, lit by the flashing warning lights. That gleaming yellow chassis, once so formidable, looked fragile. Diminished. Its eye had dimmed to the palest yellow, flickering like a dying star.

  "Yeller," I said. "Stay here while we complete the assessment. I will attend to you when we've finished."

  It didn't move.

  Perhaps it couldn't move anymore.

  I peeled off the earpiece and put it back in my pocket. Then I walked out and sealed the door.