“I don’t need to sit,” Mosscap said, “but I’d very much like to.”
“I need you to sit,” Dex said. It was obvious Mosscap had never leaned on anyone before, and Dex’s shoulder was beginning to object.
Leroy got a chair for Mosscap and a glass of lemonade for Dex, then washed his hands and fetched a wooden stool for himself. He sat before Mosscap, toolbox at the ready. “So, how do we…”
Mosscap opened its torso with a smile.
“Wow,” Leroy said. He shook his head and let out a laugh before leaning in with a flashlight. “Wow, this is not how I thought my day would go.”
“The thing you’re looking for is near the top, toward the back,” Dex said, watching closely over Leroy’s shoulder. Everything about the man said that this was someone skilled and trustworthy, but all the same, Dex wasn’t going to let a stranger poke around Mosscap unsupervised. “This little black—”
“Yeah, I see it,” Leroy said. “The curved thing with the snapped edge?”
“Yeah,” Dex said. “I’ve got the other half in my pocket.”
“Is it okay to remove it?” Leroy asked.
“It should be,” Mosscap said. “It doesn’t seem to be anything vital, my obvious issues with gravity aside.”
“Looks like something I can disconnect pretty easily, but…” Leroy paused.
“I don’t feel pain,” Mosscap said reassuringly. “I don’t feel anything, in a physical sense.”
“Good to know.” Leroy rubbed his beard as he thought. Dex couldn’t help but notice how precise the trim was, and imagined how soft the dyed curls would feel. They gave their head a tiny shake and refocused. It had been a long minute since they’d last gotten laid, but now was hardly the time.
Leroy stood up, opened a drawer behind the counter, and hummed to himself as he selected a few tools, choosing each with careful consideration. Once equipped, it took him almost no time at all to work the component loose.
Dex looked Mosscap in the eye. “You don’t feel any different, right?”
Mosscap thought for a moment, then shook its head. “No, no change at all.”
“Good,” Dex said, exhaling with relief. “That’s good.”
Leroy held the broken thing up to the light, turning it over and back. “This should be a breeze to print,” he said. “Can I see the other half?” Dex reached into their pocket, then handed the requested object over. Leroy held the halves together like puzzle pieces and nodded. “Let’s get this in the scanner.”
“Can I watch?” Mosscap said.
“Of course,” said Leroy.
The scanner was like every other Dex had seen: a flat, glowing pad hooked up to a computer, with a moving gadget suspended above that took measure of whatever its operator wanted to use as a template.
“Hey, don’t look directly at the light,” Dex said to Mosscap as the robot leaned toward the scanner with interest. “It’s not great for your…” They paused. “It’s not great for my eyes, but I guess I don’t know about yours.”
Mosscap looked at Dex. “I’ve never had such a warning before,” it said, and then went back to watching the scanner. “I sincerely doubt this will cause me damage. It’s hardly the brightest thing I’ve looked at.”
“What’s the brightest thing you’ve looked at?” Leroy asked with interest.
“The sun, of course,” Mosscap said. “What’s brighter than that?”
Dex raised an eyebrow. “You can look directly at the sun?”
Mosscap reflected Dex’s surprise back at them. “Can you … not?” It looked between Dex and Leroy, who both shook their heads. “Oh, that’s so unfortunate. I’m very sorry.” It returned to watching the scanner head slide back and forth, back and forth.
Leroy smirked with amusement at Mosscap’s interest in the machine, then turned to the computer monitor, making sure the template was being written properly. He gave a small nod, then looked to his customers. “All right, while that’s compiling, let’s talk printing materials.” He gestured at the storage rack, which was filled with spools of printer filament and bins of meltables. “I’ve got casein, pectin, chitin, sugar plastic, potato plastic, algae plastic—”
“Wait,” Mosscap said. It stared at the rack. “These are all bioplastics, yes?”