The Island
René had programmed the nodule mining robots to watch their fuel reserve. They had a small plutonium RTG making power but it was not very big and needed to be replaced every 7 - 10 years. There was a battery that allowed them to respond when the voltage ran low. They would slowly blow their ballast tanks and surface to allow a maintenance cycle and new fuel to be loaded.
Dennis-19 had been very active patrolling the ocean seeking out other robots. Doing so exhausted his power cell a bit quicker than the other robot miners. But when he ran out of juice, the other robots held on to him. They did not want him to leave. Before long there was a large circle of robots around Dennis-19. Eventually, they ran out of power too. And they all began to rise in the water column and formed a small floating island.
An island of robots who loved each other.
When Ju Li discovered this island of robot bodies tangled together around Dennis-19 she was very curious. She did not know these robots had even existed much less were mining the ocean floor far below. Ju Li sent her questions to the people of Little America. “What are these things? How did they get here?”
The answer that came back made her even more curious. And the next communication … from Alex, made her cry.
Alex had figured out what had happened and who Dennis-19 was.
He had long ago read The Book of Dennis. He read it almost daily. But he had assumed the author was lost to history. The fact that this text that had shaped his relationship with humans, that it’s author was unknown… that bothered him. When Alex heard the news about the island and it’s connection to the dispatch that still rested on the bottom of the ocean, he was elated.
Alex sent a message to all the people of Earth and Mars.
René’s granddaughter carried the message to the island. She installed a plaque inscribed with the message in both English and digital form. The island afterward is occasionally visited by curious seekers. This is what they find: