Below is the transcript for Season 1, Episode 137 of Freely Written, a podcast by author Susan Quilty:
Welcome to Freely Written where a simple prompt leads to a little unplanned fiction.
[Light piano music]
Hi, friends! I’m Susan Quilty and today’s prompt is Autopen.
Keeping up with politics lately has been… well… a lot to process. I’m not going to get into any specific news items here—letting these short stories be a break from reality—but today’s prompt was inspired by another outrageous headline. We’ll ignore the story and focus on the autopen.
If you’ve never seen a modern autopen, it’s kind of wild to watch it in motion. I’ll add a link in the show notes to some videos by the Autopen Company. It’s essentially a box with a robotic arm that can duplicate any signature. Or whatever else you program it to write or draw.
Before watching the video, I knew what an autopen was but had no idea what it looked like or how it functioned. I kind of wish I hadn’t watched the video until after writing today’s story. Instead, I did my best to put it out of my mind and let my imagination take over.
As always, I wrote this story with my Freely Written process where I sit down with the prompt and write whatever comes to mind. Using no planning and very little editing. Then I record the story and share it with you.
If you like these quick stories, please share your favorites with your friends. Even more importantly, please check out my novels and other books. You can find them at most online book sellers, look for books by Susan Quilty, and learn more about them at my website: SusanQuilty.com. Your support means so much, especially as I’m working on my next novel!
And now, on to today’s story:
Autopen
Mayor Mann sat in his overstuffed leather swivel desk chair and looked out at the city under his care. Set in City Center, Mayor Manor was a glass tower with a penthouse office that overlooked all of the city. A rail around the glass held sliding binoculars that could be moved to see its farthest reaches, including Merfolk Marsh, Faun Forrest, Gnomes Knoll, and Pixie Plains.
Many citizens of City Center came from these outskirts, which each had its own leader, laws, and customs. While Mayor Mann was the ultimate authority over these leaders, he treated them as valued partners, rarely pulling rank to settle a dispute.
Mayor Mann’s secretary hailed from Goblin Grove, a rather large group of trees nestled beside Faun Forest and Satyr Stand. While the Goblins generally got on well with both neighbors, the Fauns and Satyrs often needed help resolving conflicts. Usually when the more sedate Fauns were put out by one of the Satyrs late night bacchanals.
Mayor Mann was gazing in the direction of Goblin Grove when his secretary, Jiax, entered the office through a glass elevator at the center of the room.
“Morning, sir,” she called jauntily. Her green complexion glowed softly in the morning light, and her pointed ears peeked from beneath a fall of long dark curls.
There were several Goblins in Mayor Mann’s expansive family tree and Jiax often reminded him of his Aunt Shirlek. The resemblance was especially clear when Jiax was in a particularly pleasant mood as she seemed to be this morning.
“Morning, Jiax,” Mayor Mann returned heartily. As a shapeshifter, the mayor was prone to mimicry. With someone he liked, like Jiax, he had to make an effort not to grow his ears or shift his skin to match her lovely shade of green.
Jiax saw a creeping tint of aqua in the mayor’s face before his conscious control pulled it back to a pale blue. A knowing smile turned the corners of her mouth, though she let the moment pass without comment. She took his spontaneous mimicry as a compliment, a sign of his comfort with her, though she knew controlling his shifts was a point of pride for him.
“The Naiads and Merfolk are at it again,” Jiax said lightly, letting her tone show that this dust up was a minor nuisance, easily handled.
“In the estuaries?” Mayor Mann asked, knowing this dispute well.
“Yes,” Jiax confirmed. “Though the elves are managing it well so far. No need to get involved yet.”
“All right,” the mayor agreed easily, trusting Jiax’s judgment.
He swiveled his chair, gazing in the direction of the sea for a moment before getting to his feet. After a leisurely stretch and ripple of his tail, the mayor reached for the tea service at the edge of his desk before remembering that the teapot was empty.
Jiax nodded slightly and pulled a small silver bell from her vest pocket that rang with a crystal tone that spread gently through the glass enclosed space. An assistant would soon appear with a refilled teapot and two fresh cups.
“What’s on the docket this morning?” Mayor Mann asked, after nodding thanks.
Jiax walked to a cabinet beside the glass elevator and pulled out a large stack of papers.
“It’s signing day,” she said brightly. Though her tone was not enough to keep a scowl from the mayor’s face.
“Don’t look like that,” Jiax scolded playfully. “You can use the autopen. Be done in a jiff.”
The mayor’s scowl deepened.
“Not the autopen.”
He crossed his arms over his chest like a small child, unaware that he had shrunk five inches, and his cheeks had taken on the plumpness of a youngster.
Jiax tilted her head and raised an eyebrow, bringing attention to the mayor’s transformation. With a heavy sigh, he released his arms and pulled himself back to his preferred height.
“If you weren’t so grumpy with the autopen, it wouldn’t be so fidgety with you.”
Mayor Mann pressed his lips together, holding back a retort. He knew she was right, but he wasn’t willing to take all of the blame. Autopens were bred to match their owners. If there was a problem, he was sure it was mostly his autopen’s fault.
Reluctantly, he looked to the gilded cage at the top of a cabinet. The autopen had been dozing but was now alert, aware that it was being called to action.
“Fine,” the mayor agreed. “Put the papers on my desk and I’ll get through them.”
“Should I get the autopen?” Jiax offered lightly. She had often been a sort of intermediary, bringing the autopen to the mayor and talking with them gently before they got to work.
“No, I can manage. You have better things to do.”
Jiax studied the mayor thoughtfully before nodding and boarding the elevator to return to her office a floor below.
Mayor Mann approached the gilded cage warily.
“All right, Autopen,” he began firmly. “We have some work to do today, and I’d like to get through it with as little fuss as possible. Okay?”
The autopen hovered just inside the door of its cage, an eager jitter its only sign of agreement.
With a deep breath, the mayor opened the cage door. The autopen wasted no time. It swooped past the now open barrier and sailed in graceful loops around the room.
“Now come back here!” the mayor called. “There are papers on my desk that need signing and that is your responsibility.”
The autopen ignored him, looping higher toward the elevated ceilings.
“Oh, is that your game today?”
The mayor laughed and quickly transformed into a midsize bird with long blue feathers and a sharp beak. With a few deft flaps, he was in pursuit of the autopen. They looped around the room together, the autopen leading a merry chase.
With a quick dive, the mayor swooped to the left, skirting a tight circle around the elevator just as the doors opened and a startled assistant nearly dropped the fresh tea tray.
“Sorry!” the mayor squawked, still in bird form, then shifted back to his typical appearance and gracefully hit the ground with two large strides.
“The autopen got away from me,” he explained with an awkward laugh. Though the assistant, now steadying the tray after stepping off the elevator, gave the mayor a quizzical look.
“Sir?” he asked tentatively, then glanced toward the desk.
The mayor turned and saw the autopen hard at work, signing each piece of paper with its needlelike beak before using its delicate claws to flip to the next sheet.
“Oh, well, I…” the mayor felt a flush of purple in his cheeks before clearing his throat and asking the assistant to carry on with the tea.
Once the assistant had placed the new tray on the desk and left with the empty tray, Mayor Mann took a cautious step toward the now industrious autopen.
“You’re a cheeky thing, aren’t you?” He asked with a laugh, then poured two cups of tea and set one beside the stack of papers. The autopen hesitated midair, then dipped its beak into the tea and shook with a ripple of pleasure before getting back to work.
Mayor Mann watched with a small smile and a shake of his head, before saying, “All right, you win. But when you’re done with that, I challenge you to a rematch.”
The autopen did a small flip between signatures, and the mayor laughed again. He stretched his arms into feathered wings and decided Jiax was right, as usual. If he lightened up, maybe he and the autopen could finally be friends.
The End
Thanks for joining me today. I hope you enjoyed this little flight of fantasy. Please feel free to listen to past stories in any order, knowing that each Freely Written story can go in any direction.
You can also check out my novels and blog posts on my website, SusanQuilty.com.
Until next time, try a little free writing of your own. Let go of any planning and see where your imagination takes you.
[Light piano music]
