FLAG Today: When the Law is Above the Law
Chapter two: KELI's First Case
It's been a couple of weeks now and KITT has been putting KELI through all of her trials. He tells me that she is ready for a simple assignment, and it just so happened that Devie was over for dinner last night and he was telling Bonnie and me about a little problem at his company's offices. It seems that every so often someone is going through the large trash container where they throw out bits and pieces of wire, metal, and plastics. He doesn't think its industrial espionage since everything, both printed and electronic is shredded. It's just kinda odd. Normally, they would call in the police, but Bonnie and I thought it was a simple stakeout situation that would be a good first learning experience for KELI. KITT agreed and that afternoon they met Devie at the corporate park where his office is located.
"Hey, good to see you, man!" said Devie as he wrapped KITT in a bear hug. "And this must be KELI."
"How do you do? May I call you 'Devie', or would you prefer your given name?" she asked.
"Oh," he laughed, "everyone at the Foundation calls me 'Devie'. After all, my brother and I grew up on the grounds…and under KITT's chassis. And by the way, KITT, it's been too long since I saw you. Why don't you join us for dinner when Wilt or I come over?"
"I don't want to intrude on your parent's time with you. They're always saying how they don't see you enough, so I make myself scarce."
"Well, when this little task is finished, we should go out for a beer. You do drink beer, don't you?"
"You know perfectly well that I can appear to eat and drink to maintain social connections, although a charge-up now and then is sufficient for my energy needs. So yes, I can drink beer. But the idea of sharing an alcoholic beverage with someone who spit up all over my bumper when he was first introduced to me at two days old seems somehow wrong."
"Well, KITT, I'm not too old for an ice cream sundae," Devie replied, giving the AI a typical Knight smile. "How about we do that?"
"Alright. That would be more acceptable. Now let's go look at the area." KELI opened her doors and KITT took the driver's seat while Devie folded himself into the passenger's version. Although he was not as tall as his father or brother, he was still slightly taller than KITT.
KELI asked Devie, "You really spit up on KITT?" as KITT drove in manual mode.
"Yup. And that wasn't the only time. And Wilt had an 'accident' in his back seat as well.
That was when we were about 6 and 8 and we were 'camping' in KITT one night."
"Don't remind me," KITT replied. "I wouldn't let you in without an adult present for months, if you remember."
"I think I'll keep that in mind when Wilt brings his baby over," KELI added.
"Yeah, well Dad smoothed it over with him," Devie replied, lifting a shoulder in KITT's direction. "After all, you were…and are…his 'buddy', his 'pal'."
"Forever and always and don't you dare tell him I said that." KITT replied firmly.
The drive around the corporate park didn't reveal anything unusual. There were the usual dumpsters and loading docks hidden by concrete retaining walls and landscaping. KITT surveyed the available lighting and KELI recorded the electromagnetic spill from the wiring in the area so that she could compensate that night when monitoring any signals. They took their leave of Devie and returned hours later as dusk descended, and the parking areas emptied. They sat and waited in an area where they could observe the dumpster without being seen and occupied themselves with an omnibus review of pre-medieval music and after that with a discussion of the development of the game of chess. It was nearly dawn before they both recorded movement near the dumpster. They were both aware of two small human bio-signs crouching around the corner of the building from the garbage. After checking their surroundings, the two intruders proceeded to the back of the dumpster where it was nearly backed up against the concrete wall. They were wearing dark jeans and hoodies that were up, obscuring their faces and hair.
KELI approached silently, her sensors at maximum sensitivity. KITT was sensing the heat signatures of the humans as they climbed up the side of the container and dropped into it. They were both wearing backpacks and they were very quick about what they were doing he noted. Probably not being too selective about what they were taking if they were moving that fast, he assumed.
He exited KELI noiselessly and she moved into position to prevent the two intruders from escaping. As he heard the small humans jump to the ground from the top of the dumpster, he called out,
"Drop your bags and put your hands on the wall!" He would have preferred them to assume a prone position on the pavement, but there was no room. With his titanium skeleton, there was no way that they could hurt him, but a well-placed kick could unbalance him and allow them to escape.
He could hear that one of the humans was sniffling quietly as if crying. His sensors indicated that they were both young and when he approached the nearest one and pulled the hoodie down, he saw that it was a young teenaged girl. "What are you doing?" he demanded.
The girl looked at him, fear quite evident in her eyes. Her brain was frozen, and she couldn't come up with a believable story, and besides her, her friend's crying increased, distracting her even more. She sighed and bowed her head in defeat. The tall, thin, dark-haired man in front of her wasn't wearing a police uniform. He clearly wasn't a security guard either, she realized as she looked past him at the red Supra. Any security guard she had ever seen either had a beat-up old car or a car advertising the security service. She didn't know what to make of him and anyway, she had nothing but the truth to tell him.
"Me and my friend Bailey, we go to the Regional High School for Science, Technology, Engineering and Medicine. We need supplies for our classes, but we can't afford them. Over here, they're constantly throwing out stuff we can use, like wire, metal, even wooden boards, and pallets. It's kinda like we're recycling their stuff."
KITT cocked one eyebrow. Indeed, his scan of their backpacks indicated that they had a lot of wiring and small metal pieces. However, all he said was "Hmmmmm."
KELI opened her doors as KITT directed the two young girls into the back seat. "I'm going to take you home. You are going to tell your parents what you've been doing and then you are going to wait until you hear from me. I will be discussing this with the company you have been stealing from. If they want to press charges, you will be seeing the police. Of course, my partner and I are going to check out your story. If you are telling the truth, I will recommend that you be treated leniently."
"Where's your partner," asked the girl called "Bailey".
"I'm right here. I am the 'Knight ELectric Intelligence' but you can call me 'KELI'." The mouths of the two girls hung open in amazement. KELI's engine started noiselessly, and she backed away from the dumpster. "I have accessed the addresses of these two girls and have plotted in the course. Would you like me to drive, KITT?"
Looking at the two in the rear seat, KITT smiled ever so slightly. "Yes, go ahead, my dear."
By the time the two AI's had returned to the Foundation's garages, they had both filed their reports. The sun was up, and humans were beginning to emerge from the mansion and the cottages on the ground. Bonnie and Michael were likely getting breakfast and KITT wanted to verbally give them his report on KELI's performance (even though an electronic version of it was already filed), but first he stopped to speak with his partner.
"Your work was excellent. You anticipated needs, recorded all the pertinent information for the logs and provided the correct type and amount of security needed for the mission."
KELI's orange scanner swished a bit more briskly. "Thank you, KITT. Your approval means a lot to me. I have some very big tires to fill, as it were."
"I think you will certainly do that," he replied. "I believe that we will make an excellent team. We may even change the face of policing."
"That would be a very good thing, I think. Humans shouldn't have to risk their lives. But speaking of humans, I know that I will never be the partner to you that Michael Knight was."
"The bond that Michael and I have is special. We've been together since the beginning and faced a lot of danger together, as well as many emotional experiences. To be quite honest, I never minded the boys spitting up on me or having accidents. I love them and to me they are as close as I'll ever come to having children. And you can't imagine how happy I was to take Bonnie and Michael on their honeymoon, especially after the murder of Michael's first wife. So, we've been through a lot together. But you and I, KELI, we will have many years to build our own bonds and it will be equally special because we are the only two of our kind. You see, one can have an infinite number of 'special' relationships, because the heart and soul can expand beyond imagining. Don't forget that."
"I won't, KITT, I promise, I won't."