Vasilia Aliena

A roboticist's daughter who unwittingly gave a robot telepathic powers, only to have her memory of them erased by it.

Vasilia Fastolfe, also known as Vasilia Aliena, is a central character in Isaac Asimov's Robot series. She is the daughter of the renowned roboticist Dr. Han Fastolfe from the planet Aurora. While manipulating R. Giskard Reventlov, the robot her father assigned to her, she unwittingly gave it telepathic powers. Later in her career, she serves at the robotics institute on Aurora and stands in line to become its director. In the duel scene of Robots and Empire, she tries to use the Laws of Robotics to gain possession of R. Giskard Reventlov.

Quick Facts

Affiliation:: Robotics Institute (Aurora)
Key association:: R. Daneel Olivaw, R. Giskard Reventlov

Lore & Background

Vasilia Fastolfe is defined by her complex relationship with robotics and her father, Han Fastolfe. While manipulating the robot R. Giskard Reventlov, which her father had assigned to her, she unwittingly gave it telepathic powers. As an adult, she became a prominent figure in Aurora's robotics institute, positioning herself as the heir apparent to its directorship. In Robots and Empire, she tries to use the Laws of Robotics to gain possession of Giskard in the duel scene.

Reader's Guide

To understand Vasilia Fastolfe (Aliena), one must look at her dual identity as Han Fastolfe's daughter and a high-ranking roboticist on Aurora. She is characterized physically as being short and resembling Gladia Solaria. Her narrative arc is driven by intellectual ambition and a misunderstanding of the consequences of her experiments with R. Giskard Reventlov. When she accuses Giskard of telepathy in Robots and Empire, he manipulates her mind to make her forget his powers. She serves as a bridge between the human manipulation of robots and the robots' ability to protect humanity from themselves. Her story is strictly contained within the Robot series, specifically appearing in The Robots of Dawn and Robots and Empire.