by John Zakour
I wrapped the belt around me. It felt like a nice leather belt with a magnetic buckle that was cool looking. “Feels good!” I said.
“You can push the button to activate the shield. It lets in air to breathe but filters out any poisons, and stops any projectiles from hitting you!” Grandpa gushed excitedly. He jumped up and down. “Try it! Try it!”
“Dude, calm down before Diana arrives and sees you!” Polly told him.
“Right!” Grandpa said, composing himself. He ran a hand through his hair. Not sure why. I guess he thought it made him look better. It kind of did.
I pressed the button. I didn’t feel any changes.
Grandpa Jack turned to Crash. “Okay, Crash, let her have it!”
“Let her have what?” Crash said. “I have nothing in my hands. I’ve given her the belt.”
Polly rolled his eyes. “Crash, you’ve taken too many hits to the head…” “Kind of my job,” Crash replied. “I’m built to be hit.”
“Yes, but now the e-doc wants you to hit Maya!” Polly explained.
Crash spun his head around to look at Grandpa. “Is that true?” he asked.
Grandpa nodded. “Yes. I want you to try to punch her.”
“Okay,” Crash said. He closed his hands into fists. Turning to Grandpa, he asked. “Why?”
“To test her force field to make sure it works!”
“Oh okay, cold!” Crash said.
“You mean cool!” Polly corrected, rolling his eyes again.
“Wait! You haven’t tested this?” I asked, shocked.
Grandpa shook his head. “We couldn’t test it because none of us are real humans. It takes a real human to power it!”
“You’re telling me I’m kind of like a lab rat here?”
Grandpa smiled. “A very pretty one, yes!”
Crash moved towards me. Lifting his arms into a fighting position, he told me, “Get ready!”
I pushed the button on the belt. I felt nothing. Okay, maybe my feet itched a little.
Crash threw a punch at me. The punch came flying towards my face. It stopped suddenly, maybe a quarter of an inch from my nose.
“Whoa!” Crash said.
“Did you pull your punch?” I asked Crash.
He shook his head. “No, the punch just stopped like I’d hit an invisible wall!”
Grandpa grinned. “The great thing is that no one can see the force field, plus the attacks come so close that you can pretend you’ve been hit if you wish!”
“Oh cool!” I looked at him. “But why would I want to do that?”
“It might give you an advantage of surprise sometime!” Tammy said.
“What she said,” Grandpa said. He started clapping rapidly. “Oh, oh, oh! I just thought of something else! Another feature!! A cool feature of the belt!” He pointed to the buckle. “If you hold your finger on the buckle, it’ll send out a burst of the force field.”
“Hey, I wrote that in my notes too!” I exclaimed.
Grandpa nodded. “Yep, very smart, honey! I think it’s more versatile and adaptive than the body armor and strength enhancers. It’s certainly subtler.” Motioning to Crash, he ordered, “Try to hit her again.”
“Sure!” Crash said, shrugging his shoulders.
Polly smiled. “I like him; he’s simple!”
Crash closed in on me. He smiled. He loved action. Crash bobbed his head back and forth.
“Do I have to let him try to hit me?” I asked.
“Nope!” Grandpa said. “You just need to draw him in!”
I waited for Crash to come at me. He stomped forward. I put my finger on the belt buckle. I held my finger there.
I didn’t feel anything; no difference at all.
Crash went flying backward. He crashed to the ground like he’d been hit by a flying wall.
“Ouch!” he said from the floor. “Cold!” he said.
“Cool!” I corrected.
“Is it?” Crash asked.
“Just an expression,” I told him.
“Right! I knew that!” Crash said.
Polly flew over and landed on my head. “Will the force field protect me too?” he asked.
Grandpa nodded. “Yes, it’s a serial connection, so anybody who is touching Maya when she activates it will be protected.”
“I like it!” Polly said.
“Now, I only expect you to use it while defending yourself. Not while, for example, playing soccer!” Grandpa said. “I don’t want you to sour that beautiful game!”
I shook my head. “I won’t.”
I pointed to my Android clone in the far corner of the lab. “Speaking of soccer, it’s time to activate her so she can help me out!”
Chapter IX
Android Maya and I started working on soccer in the lab. The other me was very happy that I wanted her to be a part of my life.
“It’s important to warm up properly,” the Android told me.
“Yeah, I get that.”
“Even though being an Android, I don't need to stretch, being an Android pretending to be a human, I do stretch,” she said. “You, being a human, should also stretch!”
“Yeah, I did the math,” I told her.
Android me started rotating her head slowly. “I find it useful to do stretching from head to toe! Literally!”
“Makes sense,” I said as I started following along.
We rotated our heads one way then the other. We took it nice and slow, to get a good stretch. Then we moved our heads up and down, down and up. Once again, nice and slow.
After that, we moved down to the shoulders, extending our arms and moving them in circles. First, we went forward and then backward. We followed that with bending and shaking our elbows and wrists, getting them nice and lose.
“I like to pretend they’re rubber!” the Android me told me.
Next, we did hip rotations. “We need to go in both directions, nice and slow with nice round movements!” the other me said.
“Yep, I’ve figured out the pattern!” I told her.
“You’re smart!” she said. “Are you sure you’re the human and I’m the machine?” she asked.
“Yeah, sometimes my little bro questions that himself,” I joked.
“Ha! I find Marko to be delightful!” she told me. Yes, she certainly wasn’t an exact copy of me.
Next, we put our knees together. Well, I put my knees together, and she put her knees together. Putting our hands on our knees, we bent down and rotated them softly in each direction. We followed that with twenty deep knee bends.
“Strong legs are important for soccer!” the Android me told me.
After that, we lifted each foot and did all sorts of foot rotations. Round and round, left and right, up and down.
“Feet must be loose because they do the kicking!” Android me said, pretty much stating the obvious, but I understood she wanted to be complete.
She led me over to the wall. “Time for calf stretches,” she said. “We don’t want any leg cramps or Charlie horses!”
Maya Message: Leg cramps can be painful. And science still doesn't know a lot about them. What they do know is that it’s best to stay hydrated (drink water) and eat fruits that are rich in potassium, like bananas. If you do get a leg cramp, stretch it out. It will hurt (like heck), but stretching will make it pass quicker.
“Now it’s time to run in place!” Android me said. “It’s fun and gets the heart, or simulated heart, pumping. It’s also good for releasing chemicals that make us feel better.”
For the next two minutes, we started to run in place. Android me started counting down the last minute… 60, 59, 58, 57, 56, 55, 54, 53, 52, 51…”
“You don’t need to count…just tell me when to stop!” I panted.
We ran for a bit more.
Finally, she smiled, picked up a soccer ball and said. “Stop! Drink some water. Rest for 60 seconds, and we’ll start drills.”
Polly flew over. “You two may look alike, but you don’t smell ali
ke!” he offered.
“Shoo, or I’ll throw my shoe at you!” I told him.
“Yikes! I’m out of here!” Polly said. “Human Maya, you should take cool lessons from Android Maya! Or AM!”
“I love Polly’s sense of humor!” Android me said. Yes, we certainly weren’t identical, which I found refreshing. I felt glad that my Android double and I thought differently about things.
Ignoring Polly, we started working on ball handling. We passed the ball back and forth as we ran up and down a holographic field. It felt weird and fun to be kicking a ball back and forth with myself. Though Android me seemed to run freer with the ball.
“How do you do that?” I asked her.
“Do what?” she asked.
“Move so fluidly with the ball!” I said, passing the ball to her.
She smiled as she caught the ball on the run without slowing down. She moved effortlessly, sometimes pressing the ball forward with her left foot, sometimes with her right.
She kicked the ball over to me. “To catch the ball, think of your foot as being a soft, flexible hand.”
I concentrated and did exactly as she said. My foot caught the ball without me slowing down. I guided the ball forwards, running with it. I knew the laws of physics and that for every action there would be an equal and opposite reaction. I took all of that into account as I tapped the ball forward, managing to keep control as I did so.
“I’m doing it!” I said.
“You are!” Android me said.
We ran up and down the field a few times. Each time I hit the ball with more power, yet more control. I felt sure of myself and my control of the ball. I believed I had the technique figured out.
“You’re doing great!” Android me said. “Now let’s add holographic opponents.”
“Do you think we need them?” I asked her.
She nodded. “Yes, you’ll face opponents in a game, you need to face them here.”
Computer chimed in. “I’ve been working on stimulating touch with force beams, much like your force shield technology. So, if you run into another player or they run into the ball, you’ll feel it!”
“Did you have to do that?” I asked.
“Yes, yes I did!” Computer said. “The good news is that you’ll be able to feel the e-touch of your Grandpa Jack now.”
Grandpa Jack appeared in the middle of the field with a ref’s jersey on. Yes, the man loved the game. He even had red and yellow penalty cards in his pocket and wore a whistle around his neck. Grandpa was really getting into this.
I’m not sure how the computer did it, but Android Maya and I were both now wearing shining green uniforms. Plus, we had holographic teammates, also dressed in green. They were female versions of Crash, each one with long hair tied back in different styles. Their mouths were curved into wide smiles. Whereas, the opposing team was dressed in red uniforms and each player was frowning.
I had to give Computer and Grandpa a lot of credit for putting this together. Now I needed to make good use of it. I wanted Grandpa Jack to be proud of me. I also wanted to make my family and teammates happy. As well, I guess I wanted to make me feel better. I wanted to show myself that if I practiced and put in the work, I’d get better. Smarts came easy for me. It would be good for me to get better at something that didn’t come easily. I needed to push myself out of my comfort zone.
Android me had the ball. She called to me, “Remember, look at the other team, figure out what they’re going to do, and plan and react without thinking too much. It’s like chess, but faster, and with all the pieces moving at once!”
A defender closed in on Android me. Android me passed the ball my way. My heartbeat sped up as I saw the ball coming toward me. I took a breath and then another, to calm my heart and clear my brain.
I rushed forward, extending my right leg and foot. I pictured my foot as being very flexible and cushiony. Catching the ball with my foot, I stumbled just a bit but moved the ball forward. I felt a rush of energy and calmness at the same time. I had this!
I raced to the goal. Two defenders ran in my direction. Waiting until the last second, I passed the ball to Android me. I thought I’d made a nice crisp pass. Sadly, I didn’t see another red dressed defender standing between me and Android me. The defender made a smart move by hanging back just enough to make me think Android me was wide open. The defender darted forward, cut off my pass, intercepted the ball then raced down the field towards the other goal. Turning tail, I ran as fast as I could. I needed to get in front of her and block the shot.
“Come on legs! Come on!” I said to myself as I ran.
Polly flew overhead. “You know, legs don’t have ears and can’t hear you,” he mocked.
Ignoring Polly, I kept the defender in my sights. All the training I’d been doing in the lab when working on self-defense seemed to be paying off. I moved pretty quickly. Reaching my holographic opponent, I noticed she’d pulled her foot back to kick the ball harder. She had to be planning a shot at the goal. I dove in front of her. She pulled up, stopped, took a step back, and then passed the ball to another teammate on her left. With me on the ground, the teammate had a clear path to our goal. She ran up and kicked the ball towards the net. Our goalie made an amazing stop, saving my behind.
“Yes!” I shouted.
“Time out!” Tammy yelled.
The computer simulation stopped.
“What’s going on?” I asked Tammy.
“Sorry, to break up your fun!” Tammy said, coming over to us.
“Nanny Handy’s gang just struck another of Silver Valley’s banks. This time they hit Friendly Bank. And the people at Friendly Bank are not at all happy.”
“Wow, that was fast…” I said. “Did the police get any leads?”
Tammy shook her head. “The people in the bank said there were two robbers and a driver. They pulled the entire heist off in three minutes. They used some sort of jamming device to knock out the bank cameras. By the time the police got there, the gang was gone. Because of their jamming device, nobody even knew what kind of car they were driving. The device seemed to short out all the cameras in the area.”
“How the heck did Nanny Handy get her hands on a device that would knock out surveillance cameras?” I asked Tammy.
Tammy sighed. “Before she became a Nanny, Handy worked for the military. She was a major and an expert at spying. She retired with honors. Her career was spotless. But something changed her. She went bad.”
Computer spoke up. “As ex-military, Nanny must have had access to all sorts of jamming devices.”
Tammy nodded. “That’s logical.”
“I am a computer. Logic is what I do,” Computer said.
“So, local systems can’t track Nanny’s men,” I commented thoughtfully.
“That is also logical,” Computer said.
“Hmm,” I replied. “Computer, remember how you used the drones to watch my soccer game?”
“Of course, I’m a computer. I remember everything. Would you like to hear every word you have said to me ever?” Computer asked.
“No, thanks,” I said, shaking my head adamantly to make sure I got my point across. “What we need to do is deploy our drones all around town. Program them to the banks’ silent alarms. I’m guessing the drones will be able to respond quicker than the police. After all, Silver Valley isn’t used to a lot of crime…”
“That makes sense,” the computer said.
“I like the way you think!” Tammy exclaimed.
Polly landed on my shoulder. “See, Maya, hanging around me has made you even smarter.” He blew on his wings. “You can thank me later…”
“Yeah, sure,” I scoffed before turning back to the computer. “Computer, how many drones do we have available?”
“A baker's dozen. An unlucky 13!” Computer said.
Maya Message: I have no idea why a baker’s dozen is 13 instead of 12. It has to date back to some old habit or custom. Also, I know some people think of 13 as an unlucky n
umber, but I don’t believe in bad luck. Or luck, for that matter. I think we make our good luck or bad luck with our choices, actions and how we deal with the results. Sure, sometimes things will go wrong, but that’s how the world works. The world is complicated with billions of moving parts. Sometimes these parts won't work out the way we think they should. But we learn and move on. We make our own luck!
“13 drones is good, the more, the better!” I said. “How many banks are there in town?”
“Wow, if I believed in luck, I would say you are lucky,” Computer said. “There are a dozen banks. And by a dozen, I mean 12.”
“Good, position one drone over each of the banks,” I said. “Position the extra drone by the east end of town.”
“Why the east end?” Tammy asked.
“On the west side, the town borders the Silver Valley lake. The north and south are just highways for ten to twenty miles. Too much open land. But in the east, there are a lot of older roads that cut through the woods. If I wanted to hide out somewhere, it would be in the woods.”
“Wow, you’re good at this!” Tammy said.
“Thanks!” I told her. I liked it when Tammy complimented me.
Maya 2 spoke up. “What can I do to help? I want to help!” she insisted. “Send me after the bad people. I’m just like you, but I come with replacement parts.”
“She does,” Grandpa J said.
Maya 2 made a fist with her left hand and punched it into her right. “I can take them out for you!”
I felt tempted. After all, Maya 2 was a lot harder to hurt than me. She was also stronger and faster. But no, I couldn’t risk the exposure. If anybody ever saw her in action, they’d know she wasn’t human. Plus, I wanted to handle this on my own.
I put a hand on Maya 2’s shoulder and said. “I really appreciate your offer, but I need to handle this myself!”
Her face fell with disappointment. “I understand…”
I just hoped that she did.
Chapter X
Because I was grounded, for the rest of the week, I went to school then straight home afterward. But at least I had my lab. While in the lab, I helped Grandpa J and Computer to sync the force field properly. Then I practiced using it. If I was going to go after Nanny Handy and her gang, I wanted all my tools to be in tip-top shape.
