![\"\"](\"https:\/\/buber.net\/Basque\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/maite-and-kepa-v3b.png\")
\u201cThe nanobots do that?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Next to him, Latxe nodded. She had been the only one willing to come out with him. Olatz didn\u2019t dare appear out in the open and Kepa hadn\u2019t really made friends with anyone else at the baserri. They all viewed him as some ignorant hick and barely tolerated him. For reasons he didn\u2019t fully understand, Latxe more than tolerated his presence, she seemed to actually enjoy talking with him. He wondered what if. What if he were stuck in this bubble for the rest of his life? What if Maite didn\u2019t make it? Would he and Latxe\u2026?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He shook his head to clear his thoughts. \u201cEz,\u201d he said to himself. \u201cMaite is going to be ok and we are going to get that zatia.\u201d He turned to Latxe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd you can control the nanobots?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSomewhat,\u201d replied Latxe. \u201cLike you saw with the door, we can hijack them in a short radius, but we can\u2019t control too large of a swarm nor can we control them for too long. They have too many security protocols for us to control them for very long. If the rest of the swarm detects odd behavior, they alert the central AI and then destroy the bad nanobots.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCentral AI?\u201d asked Kepa, his face betraying his ignorance. \u201cWhat\u2019s that?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Latxe laughed. \u201cI really don\u2019t know where Olatz found you,\u201d she said. \u201cYou really know nothing about the way the world works.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLike you said, I\u2019ve been stuck in the United States\u2026\u201d began Kepa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t have to repeat that bullshit with me,\u201d interrupted Latxe. \u201cI made that up to cover for you. I know you didn\u2019t spend any time out there. But I can\u2019t figure out where you did come from. You are just so different from anyone I\u2019ve ever met before.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI hope that\u2019s a good thing,\u201d said Kepa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOh, I like my men exotic,\u201d said Latxe with a smile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kepa blushed. It was too easy to like Latxe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnyways,\u201d he said, changing the subject, \u201cwhat about the central AI? What does it do?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Latxe sighed, realizing Kepa was avoiding her obvious flirting. \u201cAll of this\u2026\u201d she swept her hand across the horizon \u201c…is too complex for any human to even comprehend, much less understand. So, it is all controlled by the central AI. The Garuna, we call it. The Brain. The Garuna is constantly monitoring the city, determining where new structures are needed, which structures are obsolete, and directing the nanobots where they are needed. The nanobots are like a massive swarm of invisible ants that are always on the move. But, they don\u2019t have a brain. That\u2019s where the Garuna comes in.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe nanobots are literally everywhere?\u201d asked Kepa with a shudder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBai. Notice there is no garbage on the ground? The nanobots take care of that. They even remove any dead animals, essentially dissolving them into raw materials that they can use to build.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe buildings are made of dead animals?\u201d asked Kepa in disgust.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Latxe laughed. \u201cI guess. I neve quite thought about it like that. But, not just animal matter, but everything. They mine the region around us, again at the direction of the Garuna so that the ground remains stable. They get raw material from everywhere, including our waste.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDoesn\u2019t that take a huge amount of energy?\u201d asked Kepa. \u201cWhere do you get all of the energy from?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWell, the nanobots themselves are powered off of solar energy. They are nearly perfect solar absorbers. But the AI takes a huge amount of energy, that\u2019s true. A fusion reactor powers it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFusion?\u201d asked Kepa incredulously. \u201cReally? I thought that would never work. I thought it was just an excuse for scientists to chase money.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Latxe gave him a puzzled look. \u201cFusion energy was mastered over one hundred years ago. Everyone knows that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kepa didn\u2019t say anything and instead turned his gaze back to the tower.<\/p>\n\n\n\n