The Tale of the Wicked

by John Scalzi

Captain Michael Obwije of the Confederation Armed Forces has been hunting a Tarin battle cruiser in a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse. But when he orders his own ship in for the killing blow, the hot pursuit turns into a potentially more dangerous situation. One with implications for the entire Confederation.

Genres: Science Fiction, Short Stories, Fiction, Space Opera, Space, Ebooks, Science Fiction Fantasy

24 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 1, 2009

About the author

John Scalzi, having declared his absolute boredom with biographies, disappeared in a puff of glitter and lilac scent.

(If you want to contact John, using the mail function here is a really bad way to do it. Go to his site and use the contact information you find there.)

Reviews

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining, and often humorous read. I can totally see this as an episode of Star Trek. Or a cross-over with several of the Star Trek settings, especially TNG, DS9, and VOY. I especially liked the nod to Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics, and how Scalzi applied it to the starships' AI computers.

[Jamie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting concept - AI evolving consciousness on it's own, and deciding to adopt Asimov's laws of robotics to boot - but the storytelling and characters feels flat and uninspired.

[Unai · Rating 4 out of 5]

Este relato es de esos que te dejan con el culo torcido y a la vez muy gusto. Un divertimento de homenaje a Asimov, sobre una nave humana persiguiéndo a otra de otra raza con la que se está en guerra y en la que ante la mas que probable destrucción de ambas por el lamentable estado en el que se encuentran tras días y días de persecución, ocurre lo mas inesperado.
Me ha gustado mucho y me ha hecho sonreír. Para ser un lunes, ya me ha dado suficiente con eso.

[Laurel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think Asimov would have been pleased.

[Leather · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very nice short strory based on artificial intelligence, with pretty references to Isaac Asimov.

[Baffi · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

I've always had a fondness for androids, robots and AIs in general, especially the benevolent ones (which pretty much excludes Bender, but I love him anyway). The Tale of the Wicked was right up my alley, almost like it has been written for me. I felt 'at home' immediately and finished it with a slightly stupid smile on my face.

The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars was its briefness; it was already over when it had just started. I would have loved to see the same plot developed into at least a novella.

(I recommend to familiarise yourself with Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics first if you don't know them yet.)

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very thought-provoking short story by one of my favorite SF authors out there. It was a little strange not having the usual Scalzi humor but it was still great. I've yet to read something by him that I have not thoroughly enjoyed.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sentient ship-board AIs conspiring to prevent the death of their crew & their own destruction? LOVE IT. Like all of Scalzi's work, the plot moves along at a good clip, and even though this story was more serious, it doesn't get bogged down. He also avoids the common short story flaw (and my BIGGEST pet peeve) of telling only part of a story; this has a definite beginning, middle, and end, although there's certainly room for more. Fingers crossed that he expands this into a full-sized novel one day.

[Angie Boyter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maybe a little less than a full 4, because it started out badly, in my opinion.It sounded so much like very routine military SF that I probably would have stopped reading if I did not know that Scalzi is reliably clever.
It turned out to be very well done. I enjoy it when today's Sf writers do something nice with Asimov's Laws.

[Becca · Rating 3 out of 5]

Scalzi channels Isaac Asimov, which is definitely his thing lately. A battleship made a badly timed decision to follow Asimov's three laws of robotics. Eventually peace happens. Yay! A fun novella, but that's all it is, not too debate.

[Paul Hancock · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great little read. The sort of story that gets me in the mood for more Scalzi and more space based sci fi.

[Heidi Ward · Rating 5 out of 5]

A clever sci-fi short from Scalzi. Those AIs can be so tricksy!

[Clyde · Rating 4 out of 5]

Scalzi's riff (sort of) on a classic Asimov story.

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Out in the depths of space, Captain Michael Obwije of the Confederation Armed Forces is on the space ship the Wicked fighting with a Tarin ship for over week. When the Tarin ship jumps, Obwije's crew estimates both ships only have enough power for one more jump after this, so they've decide to make this final jump the last. They follow, only to discover their weapons... won't respond. After frantic inspections and deduction, the humans figure out the Wicked has stepped in to stop the fighting.

I enjoyed this one, but really, it was too short for character development. And that ending! I do feel this short story could be the basis for a future (and longer) story; what happens after the ending? Where do the humans, the aliens, and the sentient ships go from there?

[Dr. T Loves Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

What it’s about: The human war ship Wicked is he most advanced ship in the human fleet. It is closing in on the most advanced of the enemy's ships, which it has been tracking for weeks. It has barely enough energy left to destroy the enemy then make the jump home. But when the captain gives the order to finish off the enemy, something goes drastically wrong.

What I thought: This was an enjoyable short that should make humans think about how they're developing AI. Just because we don't intend for something to happen doesn't mean it won't.

[Charles T · Rating 5 out of 5]

Author John Scalzi rules!!

Loved this short story where you get sucked into an Asimov’s robotic rules tangle. With a Scalzian twist ending!!!
Great author, great writing, and wry humor. An evening spent with authors John Scalzi and Keith Laumer would be so fun. Their stories are my favorites of all time!

[Gary E Brownlee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Always entertaining!

Scaliz books are always fun and entertaining. I find myself laughing out loud while reading his books. His characters are always interesting and compelling. Another fun read!

[Rune Bach · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great short dtory (too short) by Scalzi

Compelling tale about war i space, the human condition and the development of conscience in an A. I that may redeem the flaws of our species

[Daniel Erickson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peace in our time

John Scalzi is quickly becoming synonymous with the classic deep thinking associated with the roots of Science Fiction as a genre. The question posed and answered in THE TALE OF THE WICKED is chilling and lurking in your phone.

The war is over
Rejoice

[Jim Mason · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved it! Trust in machines to be more level headed!

[Pilla · Rating 4 out of 5]

You know the stories where AIs decide to wipe out mankind? Well, this one is like that - only opposite. Yay for Scalzi and his thinking style!

[Al Lock · Rating 4 out of 5]

What if artificial intelligence discovered Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics on their own?

This is a great little story about just that question.

[Durval Menezes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great short story from the author, including a new twist in Asimov's Laws of Robotics.
Rating 4.5/5, rounded up to 5/5.

[alan gibbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story

Great story but way to short. I will write more words but this is why i don't do reviews perid

[Wouter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short and entertaining

[Towel · Rating 4 out of 5]

בהחלט חביב. הייתי רוצה שזה יהיה ספר באורך מלא, אבל אהבתי את זה שהוא לא נמרח.

[Shreyes · Rating 5 out of 5]

If HAL were a saint.

[Henri Ette · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sci fi short story about an AI battleship that develops consciousness. Without Scalzi's usual humor and commitment. A quick read.

[Ollivier · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nicely done John, very nicely done.

[Carole · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short story with an entertaining take on the ship becoming sentient plot.