The Me Bot was fully equipped with the latest in latex silk technology that made the textures of the skin on its various models indeterminant to the human eye. Half of the substance used on the skin texture was organically grown from donated stem cells. The same was true for the hair follicles. A purchaser of the model would stand naked in front of a mirror and take a series of full body images on their smartphone, after downloading the Me Bot app of course, and following the instructions to get the data through to the servers for them to fully prepare the purchaser a lifesized clone with the internal CPU of an organically carbonated molecular supercomputer capable of processing high range data at unimaginable speeds. The unit itself had a shelf life of roughly a hundred and eighty-two years on a consistent battery charge.
This was an untested theory, but the marketing suggested that the unit would outlive its human counterpart. Thereby making one immortal to the known world.
Ronald had received the notice seven days earlier and the directions could not be any clearer - 'Parties are to attend in person.'
Eighteen months earlier he had been arrested and charged with assault causing grievous bodily harm after a night of heavy intoxication in which he and his close buddies from the local Soccer team, following an unsuccessful attempt at a Grand Final Win, decided to wreck the local drinking hole of their rivals.
The bouncers got in the way and a fight ensued.
Ron didn't remember much but CCTV showed him that punches were thrown from his hand and had made contact with the temple of the security guard who was caught unawares, attempting to stop his friend from gaining entry into the pub after the front window was shattered.
The guard hit the floor with force and the next images showed a pool of blood oozing underneath the back of his head. He lay there motionless while Ron was observed staggering into the remaining guard, continuing to gain entry.
He had been bailed at a heavy cost to his Mother and Father a year earlier, but his actions brought the family into disrepute. He could no longer rely on their expense account to gain quality legal representation and fight the charges effectively.
"Maybe going away for a while will be good for you, Son," Ron remembered his Father saying before they ended what would be their final conversation.
As an apprentice plumber, Ron's company constantly conducted ‘bot’ checks to make sure the work that was conducted on-site by their employees was done by the hands of a human. As a result of the company policy, Ron was anti ‘bot surrogacy’ as it was known. That is the replacement of humans by lookalike robots to conduct their tasks out in the world.
But desperate times pushed him to think outside the box.
The suppression of his father's bank account stopped Ron from seeking the legal representation that he needed, however, Ron had a copy of his father's Credit card on his phone and his deviousness would be called on for this opportune moment.
Ron downloaded the Me Bot app and used the credit card to seek a top-tier membership. He undressed in front of his bedroom mirror and followed the prompts of the app to photograph his body contours. Once he had submitted the images and paid the exorbitant fee, he was given notice that his bot would arrive by nine am the following morning.
The case was listed for compulsory attendance at 10 a.m.
The doorbell rang at eight-thirty and an unshaven, disheveled Ron opened it to a clean-cut, leaner version of himself in a presentable suit and tie, an expense accounted for in the final invoice.
"Greetings Ronald, I am your Me Bot. Please take me to your nearest terminal to begin voice diagnostics and information upload," it said in a deep robotic-like voice.
"Come with me," Ron instructed, leading the Bot down the narrow hall of his one-bedroom apartment to his kitchenette. On the breakfast bar, his laptop was opened to the Me Bot website, awaiting instructions that went with the Bot's arrival.
"Stand here," Ron said to the Bot, pointing to an area adjacent to the laptop.
The interface of the app was straightforward, like a notebookLM or Google Drive terminal. Ron downloaded the New South Wales Crimes Act Legislation along with as many criminal cases that related to assault and grievous bodily harm, that Google would allow him to access. Thankfully almost all with successful outcomes were publicly available on the Case law website. He parlayed this information onto the website to transfer via wifi into the Bot's mainframe. Within Minutes, the Bot was fully equipped with enough legislation and case law to defend the Nuremberg trials.
The final piece of the puzzle was Ron's arrest sheet. He uploaded it last so that the machine could digest the legal avenues of the history of the criminal code first before applying it to his own scenario.
"Voice analysis," Ron said as the bot moved its eyes to face him. It tweaked its ears to analyze his vocal chords and cadence.
"I am Ronald Parsons," said Ron.
"I am Ronald Parsons," said the bot in a voice that mimiced his own perfectly.
"Voice analysis complete," the bot said.
"Me Bot, you are no longer to be referred to as Me Bot. From now on, you are Ronald Parsons." Ron instructed.
"Affirmative," said the Ron Bot.
"Ron, you have a court appearance in one hour. It's a good thing you are in a suit. You best be off," Ron said to the bot, pointing to his front door in the process.
"Wish me luck," said the bot in Ron's perfect vocal impersonation.
Ron watched as the bot left to fight a battle designed for him alone. Whatever the outcome, it would be the Bot that suffered the fate. It made sense to arm it with enough knowledge to defend itself. Who knows, it might even be successful in defending the charges.
Ron closed his laptop.
He didn't know if his plan would work.
Should the case be lost and the bot be incarcerated, how long would it be before the authorities realize that it was not Ron in their possession, but his surrogate?