Chapter Two, In Which I Am Watched

"Have I gone daffy in my old age?" Lunt mused. He thought a moment and then shrugged. "Whether I have or not, this isn't something to miss!" He stooped back down to peer through his four meter telescope, gazing intently at something far off in the distance. Thankfully, his telescope could show the scene close up and in incredible detail.
There was a flash of silver, a hint of canvas, not to mention a small figure being hurled hundreds of feet into the air. "Great gobs!" the man said, astonished. "There's a boy in the air...and without a parachute! Jacob!"
A two meter robot stepped from the shadows. "Yes master?"
"Fetch my glider. There's a--hum--situation."
"Yes master." The robot hurried off, sensing the urgency in Lunt's voice.
"Hum," Lunt said again. "This is odd indeed."
Jacob returned, holding a bronze-colored tube, "Your glider, master."
"Thank you Jacob," said Lunt. "I have another job for you. While I'm away, prepare some tea and whatever it is boys like to eat these days."
Jacob cocked his head, puzzled. "What do boys like these days, Master? I am afraid I am not programmed in this area of expertise."
"Hum! Yes, yes, very true. Make some cookies, or something. I'm off!" Lunt activated the glider and sped off into the distance.
Jacob stared after Lunt for a few moments, eyes glowing a dim blue. "Cookies it is then."

Several hours passed and Jacob was unsure of what to do. The cookies were prepared and the tea was being kept warm in the incubator. What now? Creativity was not Jacob's strong suit; it hadn't been installed yet. He was a young robot, only two years old. It would take up to three more years to install all the necessary components to be more than a servant bot.
It used to be that it took ten years for the mind to develop in a robot, but thanks to Lunt's genius, it now took half that time. In fact, Lunt was designing a new type of robot that took only one year...or so he hoped. Jacob, being a robot, couldn't help feeling a little skepticle.
Jacob activated the Locate Mechanism implanted in his brain and searched for his master and creator. Why was it taking him so long?
"Telescope," Jacob commanded in his grating robotic voice, "playback the events leading to Proffesor Alexander Lunt's departure."
"Data loaded," the telescope said in a tinny voice. "Would you like me to play it on the screen?"
"Yes."
A screen on the wall lit up. Jacob was bewildered by the scene and wondered why in void's name did it interest his Master? Shaking his head, he asked the computer to find out who the boy was. The computer scanned all files until it found the one desired.
"The boy is Gunnar Max Steeple, age nine. His father was Max Steeple, a condemned worshiper and Marquee. His mother was demoted to the position of Meager Nobility. She was saved from the position of a mere commoner by the doings of her husband before his betrayal...Gunnar Steeple is failing in school and--"
"Thank you," Jacob said. "That'll be enough."

Lunt and the boy, Gunnar Steeple arrived fifteen minutes later. The boy was unconscious.
"Sorry," Lunt said, "it took awhile to get through the legal webs...."
"Master," Jacob said, "why do you take interest in this boy? It is beyond my programming to understand."
"He'll be useful," was all Lunt said, setting the boy down carefully.
"More useful than me?" Jacob asked.
"In some ways yes, and in some ways, no."
"Yes master."
Jacob walked slowly toward his chamber and then turned. "The cookies and tea are ready, Master."
"Yes, yes,very good," Lunt said without paying a spark of attention.
Jacob lingered a moment and then headed off toward the dark chamber he called home. When he arrived he sat down, his thoughts on jealousy.
It was time to seek revenge.