Da Vinci’s Lion

By Richard Edenfield

1517. A complex meshing of gears, pulleys, chains, wheels, pendulums and axles. A mechanical lion is created that walks across a room in France to impress a king.

It’s the world’s first programmable computer 300 years ahead of its time; it slowly walks into the future till it reaches an African preserve. And like Pinocchio it becomes real, golden hair flashing against an orange lit sun.

A man poised with a rifle kills the lion. For the sport. Taking another life to feel alive. He tells friends of the conquest over drinks and a well-prepared steak. Who’s the robot, now?