„Internal Communications"
by Locutus
„Okay, that should do it. Try it now!"
It was twenty years after the Axiom's return to the Earth, and Kyle McCrow had established himself as the Colony's foremost robot expert. The primary reason for his aptitude with engineering and robotics surely was his famous ancestor, Dave McCrow, who had created the first sentient robot about seven centuries ago. McCrow remembered how he had read in the Axiom's chronicles about all the things his forefather had experienced during that time.
Today, two very special visitors had come to McCrow's Robot Repair Shop. It was the very same first sentient robot, the former EVE Probe One from the Axiom. With her was her fiancé, the WALL-E unit that also had acquired sentience and survived all alone on the Earth. Some really extraordinary events that happened during the food crisis at the beginning of the twenty-second century had led to all of this.
Those two special visitors had come to McCrow with a likewise special request. And McCrow found their wish so adorable that he gladly tried to fulfill it.
WALL-E, can you hear me?
The trash compactor robot looked up and raised his eyebrow flaps a little. He thought had heard a distinct noise, but actually there had been no sound in the room. „EVE-ah?" he asked in confusion.
Yes, it's me! WALL-E, listen to the voice inside of you!
WALL-E concentrated and the noise became clearer. Slowly it became more and more discernible.
Listen to the voice, WALL-E, can you understand me?
The noise turned into a voice, a beautiful angelic voice. That voice called to the little trash robot. It was EVE's voice!
„EVE-aah!" WALL-E exclaimed, all excited, looking around the room and back to the white probe robot.
„Voice! Inside!" EVE replied and pointed to the trash robot, a gleeful smile in her eyes.
Yes, it worked! You can hear me! Now try to reply to me.
The trash robot concentrated again, unsure what he was supposed to do, so he simply tried. He focused his thoughts, forcing them to express a phrase that he had wanted to say for so long, but had never been able to.
WALL-E... loves... EVE... more... than... anything!
EVE chuckled, her fins bobbing slightly. She approached the little robot and took him into her arms.
Yes, WALL-E, I know, and so do I.
„So it worked, I take it?" asked McCrow with a smile. He had equipped WALL-E with a transceiver that allowed him to link into EVE's internal communication system.
Both WALL-E and EVE nodded. „Worked!" they said simultaneously. Then EVE turned to the little robot again and raised her internal voice.
WALL-E listened intently, looking curiously as he noticed that EVE's voice had changed somehow. It was sounding in different pitches now, and it sounded rhythmically. The robot realized that his love was singing to him! It sounded so incredibly beautiful, although he could not understand the words. He just noticed a certain similarity to the word when EVE had first asked him about his directive.
Für Dich schiebe ich die Wolken weiter...
WALL-E rather had expected to hear EVE sing the words from his all-time favourite video tape, but instead EVE had chosen to sing something else, something that was incomprehensible to WALL-E. But whatever the words meant, WALL-E was all content to listen to the EVE's lovely voice. He placed his hands against her white fins and drew some power from her induction projector. Then, as he rested his metallic head against her white plastic frame, a gentle spark passed over to her.
Now that he could finally talk back to her, tell her all that was on his mind, he was definitely no longer pathetic.
* * *
Much later, after they had found a universal translation program in the Axiom's computer, WALL-E understood why his beloved had chosen the words in her song. For their meaning, in a language that he could understand, expressed what EVE felt for him even better than Hello, Dolly.
For you I shall push the clouds aside so
You can see the clear and starry sky.
For you I shall turn our Mother Earth, till
You can be with me again.