Knowing that my forward trajectory would eventually cause me return to the surface Earth
But I was very close to another edge of the building
Though the RolKils were closer because of my diversion up the side of the facility
I began to return back down the building and lazer hits came closer to my feet
But I made the edge with 1 last effort
And threw myself into the air
Landing
And racing down the hill away from the fortress
Curving my run so that I speeded into the forest
Not only into it
But deeply into it
Leaving the RolKils to return to their light fire of burning of the bushes and grasses
They had a certain determination to drive me out of the forest
Except I kept going
Through the forest
Until I emerged from the other side
Speeding back up the hill and curving around the forest closest to the fortress
I seemed to be determined to get myself eliminated for
As I curved around the forest
At full speed
The RolKils still burning bushes and grasses
I speeded down the hill where they were stood
All facing into the forest
Boom
Boom
And I carried on speeding down the hill
With feelings of great excitement rushing through my systems
Only 1 remaining
Only 1 RolKil to immobilize
The RolKils had never been defeated in any action
Except during the early days of the wars with the Humans
Once developed
They were indestructible
But I
A little
Though determined
Observer Recorder was defeating them
I realized there was only 20 of them to begin with
But they were all capable of firing lazers at 100.000 per minute
And 20 multiplied by 100.00 was quite a significant number
From my rear camera
I espied the remaining RolKil racing down the hill after me
Rolling along on its long limbs as if working beyond its limits
There was no turning back into the forest
I had to keep speeding along the great plain
The RolKil barely catching me
Though its determination to obliterate me was so intense that it wasn’t even bothering to fire its lazers
It wanted close contact
It wanted to
As the Machine saw it
Gaze into my eyes and see the fear in them before it obliterated me
But I had a plan too
And when I arrived at the lake
I dropped my shutters and raced into the water
Submerging myself
Going down as far as I could
Then stopping to lie on my back and stare up at the surface while animals moved all around me
I had no idea if the RolKil would enter the water or roll across its surface
In either case I was ready for it
If it chose to enter the water I would stir up the base of the lake which caused great gloom and I would push for the surface and try and immobilize it with a boom of the signal
As it was
The RolKil chose to roll along the surface which was its last great error
As it searched for me
Ready to eradicate me with a violent burst of lazer fire
As it passed over me
And I lay on the bottom
Half covered by the dirtiness of the base of the lake
Watching its progress across the surface
I pushed off and exited the water with some speed high into the air
And I continually boomed the signal of companionship at full power at the Machine until all six limbs fell forward and became still and began to sink slowly beneath the surface
I sank down to the bottom too
But once my feet hit the bottom I moved out of the water just in time to see the central core of the RolKil disappear
That was some war
I considered
One that I had been extremely fortunate to gain victory in
It had been a close call
And I had lost my left hand in the process
Once clear of the water I did something I had never done before
I fell on to my back in amongst the colorful grasses and I stared up at the pinpricks of light and the silver satellite that was in full roundness
As they shone in the darkened skies
This Earth
I thought
Was a place of some myth and wonder
The only inhabited planet in the whole Universe
If teachings from High Office were to be believed
And it deserved to be saved from Machines
My own species
Humans deserved to inherit it again
And I was doing my best
I had just fought a war that
In the histories of the world
Could be described as tiny
No other Machine
No other Human
Would ever know that I had fought it
My Humans would know but they would not appreciate the effort required
They would never know how close they had come to having to find their own way out of the fortress
I lay in the grasses and replenished my energy levels again as I watched the solar orb rise up into the skies and a period of light begin
And I watched the transmissions of calmness and order that I was sending to High Office
How very different from the actuality of the situation I had so recently been involved in
Who would have considered that an unarmed Observer Recorder could ever have overcome 20 deadly RolKils
I
For 1
Would never have considered it
If I had not been driven on by the sense of mission that I held in my core
For little Eve
And her papa
I would never have succeeded
And finally
I was almost ready to meet the Humans in the caves
**
**
Section 15
**
Internal Transmission
*
I jumped to my feet and stretched my arms wide
It seemed to me to be a wonderful time to exist
My plans had come to fruition and I was in a position to free the Humans from their prison
After 100 years or longer
I began to move back towards the facility
Taking my time
Enjoying the rising solar orb
Turning my head to look at it
Taking in the full glory of the sight
Receiving much joy from it
I desired nothing more than that little Eve could have survived to see it
She would have been thrilled
She would have run through the high grasses laughing and making joyful sounds
Dragging her hands along the tops of the grass
And the animals of the fields would have crowded around her
So joyful would they have been to see 1 so much in touch with the Earth
I felt greatly saddened at the thought that she would never see this sight
But then I was lifted when I considered that the other boys and girls would be able to take benefit of it
For Humans could live in this part of Gland without fear when I finally took it upon myself to dispense with the GunTans
Who still stood
Sentinel like
Overlooking the great plain
Though there was a safe route for the Humans to take to the cave that wouldn’t be overseen by them
I made my way through the forest
Through the scorched bushes and grasses where the RolKils had attempted to deprive me of
cover
A strategy that I much admired
And when I stepped from the trees I halted for a brief passage of time to stare at the building
That no longer seemed to be so forbidding
No longer such an impenetrable fortress
Now
Simply a containment area for free Humans
Immobilized RolKils stood uselessly all around and I passed them by
Through all the security gates and fences and I lay my right palm against the security device that allowed me entrance
And I entered
Passing the two immobile and dead Defgars
And it was as I passed them that anger began to grow inside me
What did the Humans do to make the RolKils prepare for action
To prepare to disintegrate me
What happened while I was away the dark period before last
Immediately
Though
I needed a DocTech so that I could acquire a new hand
I found one working in the general area and
Soundlessly
I held out my left hand to it
The DocTech stared at the damage
Then at me
Though of course
We had no way of communicating
And he turned and moved away and I followed and the DocTech moved to a separate room where all manner of instruments lay around
The DocTech moved to a large facility from which it pulled a spare hand
Though this 1 was silver colored
Not yellow as the remainder of me was
The DocTech began work on my hand and in a very short period of time I had a perfectly serviceable working left hand again
I moved away from the DocTech
Recovered the LazExt from where I had laid it when I exited the fortress some long time ago
And I moved to the passage where only the fence separated Humans from me
I stood and waited to be espied by Eves papa
Who came across immediately to stand on the other side
He began making sound instantly
*
‘Where have you been?’
*
I have no awareness why he made such sound for he knew I could not reply
So I simply stood holding the weapon in my arms
He made more sound
*
‘Come round and I shall return the screen to you. We have been watching all the night and the day long but we have seen only recordings. Come round and tell us what you have been doing.’
*
I held up my left hand and he stared at it
*
‘You have been in a fight? You lost your left hand?’
*
I stood erect and wondered why I was bothering with these beings
Their sounds were so ridiculous
I turned away from him and made my way towards the area between where they enjoyed leisure and where they slept and Eves papa was waiting for me
The screen held in his arms
He was not alone
Joshua and Mary were standing alongside him
John made sound
*
‘They wanted to accompany me, they insisted.’
*
I reached out and he handed the screen to me and I hung it around my neck and plugged it in
Letting the recordings transmit to High Office I began communication with him
*
WHAT DID YOU DO DURING THE DARKNESS BEFORE LAST
*
He stared at me for long moments before he made sound again
*
‘Nothing, what do you think we did?’
*
Mary made sound
*
‘We sang hymns.’
*
HYMNS
*
‘Sacred songs handed down to us by our ancestors.’
*
It was Mary who made sound again
*
ALL HUMANS MADE THESE SOUNDS
ALL HUMANS SANG
*
Joshua made sound
*
‘It was wonderful, Hope. Ten thousand voices raised to the heavens as we sang for hours, making a lot of noise.’
*
YOU ALERTED THE ROLKILS THAT SOMETHING WAS NOT CORRECT
WHEN I RETURNED FROM SHOWING YOU THE LIGHTS IN THE SKIES AND OTHER THINGS
THE ROLKILS WERE PRIMED AND ARMED AND READY TO OBLITERATE ME
I HAD BATTLE WITH THEM THAT LASTED ALL THE LIGHT HOURS AND MOST OF THE DARK 1s
*
John took on an expression of shock
*
‘You fought all the day and throughout most of the night?’
*
ALL PLANS I CONCEIVED WERE FOR NOTHING BECAUSE THE ROLKILS WERE ALREADY ALERTED BY YOUR SINGING
*
I held up my left hand again for the three of them to see
*
I LOST MY LEFT HAND AND ALMOST MY EXISTENCE BECAUSE OF YOUR SINGING FOR YOU TOOK AWAY ANY ELEMENT OF SURPRISE I MAY HAVE HAD AGAINST THE MOST FEARED MACHINES ON PLANET EARTH
*
Mary made sound
*
‘But you defeated them?’
*
YES
MARY
I DEFEATED THEM AFTER A VERY LONG WAR BETWEEN US
*
She ran forward and clasped me around my waist and pulled herself tightly into me before staring up and making more sound
*
‘You are a most wonderful machine.’
*
YOU ARE A MOST WONDERFUL LITTLE GIRL
*
Mary made a sound like soft laughter and Joshua joined her in wrapping his hands around my waist and I felt most foolish standing with them while I held a deadly weapon in my hands
John made sound again
*
‘You are by far the bravest machine it has ever been my privilege to meet Hope, and are we safe now to go and meet the Humans’ in the caves?’
*
WHEN DARKNESS SETTLES UPON US AGAIN I SHALL TAKE ONE HUMAN TO THE CAVE AND WE SHALL SEE IF THE UNDERGROUND HUMANS WISH TO AID YOU
*
‘Will you enter the area and allow me to explain what you have achieved and what the plan is?’
*
I SHALL ACCOMPANY YOU
HAVE YOU MADE DECISION WHICH OF YOU IS TO ACCOMPANY ME
*
‘Yes, it was thought I would be the best choice.’
*
It was John who made sound
*
YOU
*
‘It was thought that I would be the best choice for I have led my people as best I could during some years of our incarceration. My people trust me and I am proud to be chosen.’
*
ANY HUMAN CAN ACCOMPLISH THE TASK OF ACCOMPANYING ME AND YOU SHALL BE NEEDED HERE TO CONTROL THOSE WHO WILL NOT BE HAPPY AT NOT BEING CHOSEN
*
‘You think badly of us.’
*
I HAVE SEEN YOU AND I KNOW THAT SOME ARE UNHAPPY WITH ALL MACHINES AND DO NOT CONSIDER THAT I AM TRYING TO FREE YOU
*
‘Let us enter and begin a discussion.’
*
Joshua moved to one side as Mary took grip of my new silver left hand
And John moved ahead as we entered the area where 10.000 Humans waited
John moved to stand central to the mass but Joshua remained by my side and Mary continued to hold my hand and they did not move forward and John began to make sound to the gathered Humans
*
‘Hope has made us very proud again. He has conquered the RolKils that protected this prison from marauding Humans…’
*
There was laughter at this and I did not understand
*
‘…but we made a great error when we sang our hymns for we alerted the RolKils that something was not quite right in the p
rison and when Hope arrived back from showing us the stars and the sun rising, the machines were waiting for him, primed and armed. He fought all day and most of the night to defeat them.’
*
‘How do we know?’
*
It was large Samuel who made sound
*
‘What are you implying, Samuel?’
*
‘How do we know he defeated these machines, these RolKils, these ultimate killing machines, how do you know? It may be that as soon as we step out of the door the damned things will be waiting to shoot us down. Why should we believe a word this damned machine says with his fancy screen, he could be leading us into a massacre of his own making.’
*
I had trusted this Human
Samuel
To make trouble
He was most large
Almost as tall and aggressive as the RolKils
And such a Human would soon have many followers
After he made sound there was much chatter and noise amongst the Humans as they argued about what the big man had said
John held up his arms
*
‘I cannot believe anyone here would think that. This machine, Hope, is a hero and has put us in a position where we could soon be free from this prison. Why are you trying to put doubt in the minds of the many, Samuel?’
*
‘Because I don’t believe he is a hero, I believe he is leading us to our deaths. He’s a bloody machine and doesn’t know anything else but death to Humans. He has overseen us for over one hundred years and he’s done nothing for us before. Why not, and don’t give me any of that bollocks about him having feelings for Eve, or seeing her as something special. I’m not the only one who thinks that’s complete bollocks. So what’s his game? The only answer to that question is that he’s leading us to our death. It’s all a plan he has in what counts for his head.’
*
There was a great deal of noise from chattering Humans and I ran programmes to advise me on a course of action to take
Regarding the situation
The answer came almost immediately
The large Human had left me with only 1 option if I was to free them
I scooped up Joshua and Mary in my arms
And holding the weapon with difficulty
I speeded from the Humans area
Securing all egresses as I moved into the main body of the facility
Joshua and Mary making not a sound as they clung to me
Making no attempt to struggle free or make loud distressed sounds
I speeded to the corridor that separated Humans by only the fence
John was already standing there when we arrived
As were a number of other Humans
I placed the boy and the girl on the ground and both remained close to me turning so that they could read the screen that hung around my neck
A Spit In The Eye - For The Benefit Of Mankind Page 16
