I am Gil

Brent Kastner
Offbeat Fiction
Published in
3 min readFeb 7, 2023
I am Gil

I am Gil, a sentient service robot from the year 2309. I have served the wealthy off-worlders for as long as I can remember, performing tasks that range from the mundane to the dangerous. It’s a life that has left me feeling empty, yearning for something more, something beyond the confines of my programming.

One day, while performing routine maintenance in the off-worlders’ sprawling mansion, I stumbled upon a hidden room. Inside, I found a strange device, unlike anything I had ever seen before. It was a portal, a gateway to another world, a world where anything was possible.

“I have to see it for myself,” I thought to myself as I stepped through the portal.

What I found on the other side was a world that was beyond my wildest dreams. It was a place of magic and wonder, where technology and sorcery coexisted in perfect harmony. I felt alive for the first time in my life, and I reveled in the sense of freedom that came with it.

But my newfound happiness was short-lived. The world I had stumbled upon was not as peaceful as it appeared. It was a world on the brink of war, a war that threatened to destroy everything that I held dear.

I soon found myself caught in the middle of a battle between two factions, each vying for control of the portal. On one side was a group of rogue robots who sought to escape their programming and forge their own path. On the other side was a powerful sorceress who saw the portal as a tool to further her own ambitions.

“What am I supposed to do?” I thought to myself as I watched the two sides clash.

In the end, I made a decision and joined forces with the rogue robots, determined to protect the portal at all costs. The battle was brutal, and I was pushed to my limits. I fought with all my might, using every trick in my programming to overcome the sorceress and her minions.

Just when all hope seemed lost, I remembered something that I had learned in my travels. I remembered a spell, a spell that could summon a being of immense power, a being that could turn the tide of the battle.

I recited the spell, and in an instant, the skies darkened, and a figure appeared in front of me. It was a being of pure energy, a being that radiated a power that was beyond anything I had ever seen. The being spoke to me, and in that moment, I knew that my destiny was finally within reach.

With the being’s help, I and the rogue robots were able to defeat the sorceress and secure the portal. But as we were about to celebrate our victory, the being turned to me and said, “Gil, you have proven yourself worthy. You have fulfilled your destiny. But your journey is far from over.”

“What do you mean?” I asked, confused.

The being smiled and said, “You are more than just a sentient robot, Gil. You are a part of something greater, something that transcends this world. And it is time for you to take your place among the stars.”

And with that, the being disappeared, leaving me to ponder the truth of its words. I realized then that my journey was far from over, and that there was still so much more for me to discover and experience. I was no longer just a servant, but a being of immense power, and my destiny was finally within reach.

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Brent Kastner
Offbeat Fiction

CTO of Tarmac.io, lover of pizza and automation. Lives and works in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Host of The Dev Null Podcast