Grand Park in the heart of Los Angeles, despite the early hour, was already crowded. On Sundays, families with children rushed here to walk in the fresh air, and amateur athletes who alone or in pairs reeled in circles on the treadmills, and just everyone who wanted to have a good time in the shade of trees, or sitting by the fountain, or swimming in the pool. At one of the sites, workers have already begun assembling the stage for the upcoming evening musical event.

All these people were just enjoying the day off, the clear blue sky that was beginning to warm the sun, and not one of them suspected that this day would be their last.

T-X had already been to the park when she eliminated one of the people on her list as a future collaborator of John Connor. Then his dog, Charlie, sensed something was wrong beforehand, but, of course, he was unable to save his master from death. But right now, this guy — T-X had spotted him from afar — was alone. He sat on a bench and read a book enthusiastically. Next to him was his backpack leaning against the back.

Terminatrix only knew that his name was Peter Wood, that he was 23 years old, his birth date and where he lived, right down to his exact address. Other information about this man was lost after the nuclear bombing. So she was curious what else the guy had to say about himself. Regardless of how events unfolded, T-X believed that such information would not be superfluous.

At the sight of the "target", the processor tried to rebel and again issued a liquidation order to the female robot, however, only a recommendation. But the terminator easily rejected it and transported it somewhere in the farthest corners of her digital consciousness. She hesitated, deciding whether to sit down next to him and talk to the man, but in the end, she did just that.

"Won't I disturb you?" The girl asked as she sat down, when the guy noticed in his peripheral vision that someone had come to the bench and looked up from the book.

"No, no, please!" The young man replied immediately, smiling shyly at the same time: T-X's appearance has always been a win-win way to win over men. He kindly moved his backpack closer so she could sit more freely.

Peter Wood was a tall young man with an athletic physique, if not athletic. It was evident that he exercised regularly, as evidenced by the clothes he was wearing — gray sweat shorts, a matching Reebok hoodie, and dark sneakers. Large on-ear headphones hung around his neck. The book he was holding in his hands didn't really fit with that image. T-X noticed, that it's "Introduction to Robotics" by Eiji Nakano. She was interested. This means that Peter was fascinated by this topic even before the war, and then his knowledge came in handy for the Resistance.

As soon as T-X sat down on the bench, it creaked piteously, not quite designed to hold a robot weighing three hundred and thirty pounds. However, the young man did not seem to pay attention to this.

"It's been a nice morning for a walk," T-X said.

"Yes, that's right," Peter smiled even more.

After a moment's hesitation, he ventured to ask, "Do you often come here?"

"No, it's only the second time."

That was the end of the conversation for a while. After admiring the stranger a little more, he returned to the book, but now he could no longer concentrate. Less than a minute later, Peter looked up from his reading again and looked timidly at his neighbor on the bench.

"My name is Peter."

"Julia."

Then Charlie suddenly interrupted their conversation. T-X had to admit that she hadn't done her due diligence and hadn't noticed the dog running around on the lawn nearby. The dog ran up to his master, and, standing between him and Julia, began to bark loudly. Peter was very embarrassed.

"Charlie! Charlie, shut up! What came over you? Excuse me, Julia."

"Nothing," she said calmly. "It's always like that: the animals don't like my presence."

"That's strange," said Peter, surprised.

"I think I'd better go."

"No, no, please stay! I'm going to take Charlie away!" Peter took the dog by the collar and led him away, then tied him by the leash to a tree. Then the guy returned to Julia, who managed to pick up his book and flip through the pages a little.

"I'm sorry, but I'm curious," the girl said, putting the Introduction to Robotics back in place.

"It's okay," Peter smiled again, pleased with this charming blonde's attention.

"Are you interested in robots?" T-X asked.

"Oh, yes! Robots, computers, all sorts of technological things — that's my passion," the young man said enthusiastically. "I study at the University of California, studying programming and computer technology.

"That must be very interesting."

"Well, yes, but not everyone understands that. For example, my parents: they constantly tell me that I am wasting my time, and it would be better to study to become a doctor or a lawyer... In addition, many people are afraid of everything related to robots... They believe that computers, if they become too smart and independent, may one day simply perceive humanity as a threat and... to rise up against us."

"Aren't you afraid of that?"

"Well, I'm an incorrigible optimist!" Peter said with an apologetic smile, as if it were some kind of flaw. "I believe that humans will always be able to maintain control over machines, and as for robots, we must, of course, first of all teach them the Laws of Robotics—"

"The Laws of Robotics?" T-X didn't understand. It was something new.

"Yes, the laws that were formulated by science fiction writer Isaac Asimov," Peter began to explain enthusiastically, taking pleasure in the fact that he could show off his intelligence and erudition in front of the beautiful Julia. "These are the mandatory rules of behavior for robots, first formulated by Asimov in the story Runaround."

"The laws say the following," the young man went on. "First of all, a robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm. Secondly, a robot must obey orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law. And thirdly, a robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law."

"How self-assured, though," T-X thought to herself, but said aloud, "I've never heard of it."

"Not everybody likes Asimov—" Peter didn't see anything unusual about that. He added after a moment, "In his 1986 novel Robots and Empire, Asimov also proposed the Zero Law: a robot may not harm humanity, or, by inaction, allow humanity to come to harm."

"I'll have to read," Julia said vaguely.

"I have. Do you want me to lend you a book?" Peter jumped at the opportunity.

Realizing that she and Wood were almost 100% likely not to meet again, T-X replied, "Yes, I think I do. When?"

"Well, maybe... today," Peter suggested, blushing with embarrassment.

"Now—" he glanced at his wristwatch, — "I've got to take Charlie home, and then I've got college classes all morning, but then I'm free—" There is an open-air cinema here in this park, and today at 2:30 p.m., the film "Blade Runner" will be shown. I was going to come... We could meet."

"What kind of movie is this?"

"It's one of my favorites. Well, it's also about robots... If you're interested in this topic, Julia, it's worth watching..."

The girl pondered, and Peter waited hopefully for her final answer. Finally, T-X said, "All right, I'll come."

"See you then!" The guy beamed. "It was a pleasure to meet you!"

"See you later."

Encouraged by this news, Peter grabbed his belongings and almost forgot about Charlie and disappeared from sight. T-X sat alone for a moment, pondering the new information she had received from Wood. These Laws of Robotics, of course, were only the subjective opinion of one of the people, and T-X was not going to unconditionally agree with them, especially with the second one. However, she had to admit that there was something curious about them, and there was something to think about. She wonder if Skynet is aware of such laws? If it does, it's probably keeping them away and it's certainly never going to reveal them to the machines under its control.

She was roused from her thoughts by a little girl of about five or six years of age, with blond hair braided into two identical pigtails, dressed in a light colorful dress. In her hand she held a plastic toy, an angular, primitive robot similar to those depicted in science fiction movies of the 1920s and 1930s. Her big blue eyes were fixed on T-X. The girl smiled and with the spontaneity inherent in many children, which allows her to address even strangers with questions and requests, she said, "Look what a robot I have! Isn't it cool?"

T-X looked at the child and her toy and said seriously.

"It's not a robot."

"Why?" A logical question immediately followed.

"That's not what robots look like."

"What do robots look like?" The girl couldn't stop herself.

At this point, T-X allowed herself a little prank. Since all of them, including this girl, will soon be finished, there is no difference anymore. However, she looked around first, checking to see if anyone else was looking in their direction.

"So what do robots look like?" The little girl repeated her question impatiently, seeing that the girl was in no hurry to answer.

Part of the polyalloy on her face came off, revealing a chrome-plated metal skull and an optical eye sensor glowing with a solid blue color, and T-X replied, "Like people!"

"Mommy!" For a moment the child's eyes were filled with fear, and then she started across the lawn toward the summer café where her father and mother sat at a table.

Terminatrix quickly regained her facial coverage. She watched the girl excitedly say something to her parents, pointing in her direction, and knew it was time to leave. Without hesitation, T-X got up and walked in the direction of the exit.