[Hep Cats of Boise 01] • Mazarin Blues

Having an obnoxious AI in your head will really cramp your style, daddy-o.

Introvert Reed Rothwell fights constantly for his privacy. Stuck with an AI assistant in his head is bad enough, but when he receives a forced upgrade to a new beta version, named Mazarin, the navigator starts to take on feelings and opinions of his own. Rumors spread of beta navigators turning against their pilots, and people are winding up dead.

Reed discovers a subculture of swingin’ cats without navigators, who have the means to illegally terminate Reed’s AI. But the shady AI megacorporation already has an unhealthy interest in him, and all the beta testers who have sought help for their navigators have disappeared.

Terminating Mazarin might ensure the privacy and security Reed craves, or it might attract more attention from a company that wants to sweep Reed’s existence under the rug.