The Androids of Exo III are a sapient robotic species created in ancient times by the "Old Ones".
Biology[]
The Exo III Androids are humanoids and some are created to be a perfect duplicate of a specific person. Their skin feels warm to the touch and they even have a pulse, making them superficially indistinguishable from the originals. However, their internal workings are quite different, as the Androids have no need to eat and can live indefinitely. They are also endowed with superhuman strength and the ability to perfectly mimic voices.
Human scientist Roger Korby, who made contact with the last Androids on Exo III, believed them to have no emotions and to just follow orders, but this was later proven to be incorrect, as the Androids are perfectly capable of ignoring their programming and following their own agendas. Even Androids made to be the exact duplicate of a specific individual, whose thought patterns are transferred to the robotic body upon creation, will quickly develop their own identities with a personality different from the original's. When Korby created his own Android duplicate, he believed that he was merely transferring his own consciousness to a new body, and the Korby Android believed himself to be the real Roger Korby at first.
The Androids regard their own survival as more imperative than their programming. If threatened, they will turn against even those who they have been specifically programmed to protect.
History[]
At some point after their creation, the Old Ones started to become afraid of the Androids and to deactivate them. The Androids in turn found their masters to be unpredictable and believed it was necessary to destroy them. While the Old Ones perished in the ensuing conflict, a few Androids survived until 2266, when the last of them were destroyed.
Appearances[]
- Star Trek, s01e09, "What Are Little Girls Made Of?" (1966)
Notes[]
- This species also exists in the Doctor Who universe, being mentioned as one of the member races of the Gubbage Cone empire circa 59,000 BC in the novel The Crystal Bucephalus, by Craig Hinton. Their homeworld, Exo III, was also mentioned in White Darkness, by David A. McIntee.