The Android Chronicles Book One: The Android Defense

by Marling Sloan

  “I’d have to ask my father,” Mandelie said. “And Luke. But I’m sure Brigite would be willing to be part of it. You built her, after all.”

  “What about you?” Damian said.

  His eyes locked on hers.

  “Can you promise me that this event will be under control and one hundred percent safe?” Mandelie said.

  “I promise,” Damian said.

  “Then,” Mandelie said. “I’ll help you.”

  Chapter 15.

  The building that had been allotted to the five recruited android engineers for their top-secret work on behalf of Frontier Corp. was a desolate, ramshackle former shoe factory on the outskirts of Los Angeles. It had been cleaned up and its structure reinforced, but the paint on it was peeling and it was situated on acres of undeveloped land, making it the only building for miles around.

  Gustaf was pleased by this, the other engineers less so.

  “It looks like a prison,” Mary said. “Are we really going to have to do our work here?”

  “It’s much, much better inside,” Bernard said. “Frontier Corp. completely renovated the bottom floor and made it into an extremely comfortable work space. The second floor has been turned into private rooms for your residence. There is 24/7 security and surveillance around the factory as well. Mr. Castleshank wants the work to be done in the utmost privacy and seclusion.”

  “We’ve got that here,” Jozeph said. “For sure.”

  “Come,” Bernard said, leading the way into the factory. “Let me show you around.”

  Gustaf rolled his single suitcase behind him as they walked towards the renovated factory. He noticed a few security guards walking around the building.

  Carel took out her camera and snapped a picture of the building.

  “For memories,” she said.

  She turned the camera on Gustaf and attempted to take a picture of him as well. Gustaf flung his arm over his face.

  “Please,” he said. “I don’t enjoy having my picture taken.”

  Carel seemed a little crestfallen but she put her camera away.

  Bernard opened the heavy door of the factory.

  The five engineers walked into a vast space that had once been filled with conveyor belts of shoes, but were now filled with long gleaming banks of computers and sound-proof, glass-walled experiment rooms. The floor was spotlessly clean. Bright fluorescent lights hung from the ceiling.

  “Much better,” Harris said. “I got a little bit of a fright outside, but this is more like it.”

  Bernard led them up a wide set of steps to the second floor, where there was a long, bare hallway of rooms.

  “These used to be offices,” he said. “Now they’re apartment rooms. Please choose the room that you would like and put your things in it.”

  The engineers scattered. To Gustaf all the doors looked the same so he opened the one nearest to him and went inside. It was a small, bare room that would have been comparable to the cheapest motel room, but the floor was clean and thinly carpeted. There was a low bed and a table, a small, sterile bathroom and a window that looked out on the bare lands around the factory.

  He approved of his new surroundings. He placed his suitcase on his bed and began unpacking.

  “You’re kidding, right?” Dr. Miles said. “Damian Foster wants to organize a circus? An android circus?”

  He was sitting in his office, looking at Mandelie in amazement.

  “That was my reaction too,” Mandelie said. “But he seems pretty serious about it.”

  “Serious enough to come to us and ask for our help,” Dr. Miles said. He leaned back in his chair and seemed lost in thought.

  “You don’t have to be involved with it,” Mandelie said. “I wouldn’t blame you if you turned it down.”

  “I’m not saying no outright,” Dr. Miles said. “I was just thinking about the first time Damian came into this lab. He was probably seventeen or eighteen. He had this look on his face, a look of complete amazement and intrigue. I knew at that moment that no matter what he did, he’d never get away from that hunger for science meets spectacle, innovation on a grand scale. It’s haunted him all his life. He used to babysit you, you know. Here, at the lab, whenever I couldn’t be there.”

  “Don’t remind me,” Mandelie said. “I remember all too well.”

  “And now he wants me to curate his circus for him,” Dr. Miles said. “You’ve already told him you’d help him?”

  “I did,” Mandelie said. “It’s not as easy to hate him anymore, Dad. I still don’t like him, but I think he’s really feeling pushed against the wall and he needs my help.”

  “I am aware that Adventis has seen better days than its present,” Dr. Miles said. “And I know Madrick Castleshank in passing. His reputation is solid, but I suspect it’s nothing more than a façade for his more brutal instincts. Tell Damian he can count on my help, as well.”

  Mandelie felt relieved.

  “I think he’ll be glad to hear that,” she said. “And I think he needs your involvement more than he needs mine.”

  “Have you asked Luke yet?” Dr. Miles said.

  “Not yet,” Mandelie said. “But I don’t think he would say no, either. He’s on better terms with Damian than either of us.”

  Chapter 16.

  “You’re on in five minutes, Mr. Castleshank,” a girl in a staid dress said to Madrick, as he waited in the wings of the Beverly Hilton ballroom. Beyond the stage nearly five hundred notables in the technological innovation industry were gathered for an annual lunch meeting.

  “It’s Cass-la-shank, honey,” Madrick said. He was dressed from head to toe in a glittering black denim suit, with a beige cowboy hat. “It’s French.”

  He looked through the curtains of the wing at the speaker before him, the president of Volkswagen, who finished up his speech to an enthusiastic round of applause.

  The man walked back into the wing and Madrick adjusted the lapels of his denim tuxedo.

  “Showtime,” he said to Bernard Card, lurking beside him.

  A voice crackled on the ballroom speakers.

  “And now, please give a warm welcome to the CEO and founder of one of the leading prosthetic companies in the world, Frontier Corporation, which recently announced plans to transform the market of android technology. Please welcome Madrick Castleshank!”

  Madrick’s colorful reputation in the technological world was well-known and he was greeted by a considerable amount of applause.

  He walked to the podium, his boots loud, and waited for the applause to die down.

  “Thank y’all for having me,” he said. “I am honored to be here, at such a wonderful, warm event for my distinguished colleagues and peers. When I was a boy growing up on a cattle farm in Austin, I never dreamed I’d come this far, or that one day I’d be the head of a company single-handedly responsibly for improving the lives of millions of amputees. Frontier Corp. is proud to be a corporate sponsor of the U.S. army and we have aided our boys at the front in ways that still bring tears to my eyes whenever I think of it.”

  Madrick paused and wiped imaginary tears decorously from his eyes, and then saluted.

  “It’s been an honor and a privilege. But as y’all know, a company is a company and needs to take new risks in order to expand in new ways. Frontier has spent decades building its reputation for quality products and innovative technology. With our reputation established, I feel that we’re ready to start the next revolution in technological engineering, the next revolution in androids!”

  A spontaneous round of applause erupted.

  “Frontier intends to use its prosthetic technology as well as the participation of a number of leading robotic engineers to build androids like the world has never seen before. Oh, I know the world had a brush with androids a ways back … but we won’t talk about that now.”

  Madrick grinned, and a smattering of light laughter was heard.

  “We’re going to do it right, and we’re going to do it big. Once our and
roids are finished, I’d love for all of you here in this room – my respected colleagues and peers – to be the first ones to see them.”

  The audience applauded energetically.

  “I guarantee your minds will be blown on that day,” Madrick said. “I, Madrick Castleshank, solemnly swear that Frontier will deliver on its promise for “top tier, front tier, everything tier” quality and that android technology will finally have the honorable place in innovation that it deserves. Thank y’all so much for having me, and have a good night!”

  Madrick walked back from the thunderous wave of applause and shot Bernard a sly grin.

  “Well, how was that?”

  “Superb, Mr. Castleshank,” Bernard said. “Superb.”

  “Top tier, front tier, everything tier,” Damian said. “I think I need a vomit bucket.”

  He was sitting in his bedroom watching Madrick’s speech on his touch screen. Carlie sat beside him, her eyes fixed on the iPad in her lap.

  “Did you hear how he called us out?” Damian said. “If I had been there in person, something might have happened.”

  “You’ve been to hundreds of those things before,” Carlie said. “Missing one won’t make a difference.”

  She had said the same thing when Damian had missed the meeting for the first time the previous year.

  “Anyway, I’ve already gotten a ton of emails from the people who were there, asking about you and saying you were missed. Remember, your speech three years ago brought down the house. You got a standing ovation.”

  “That was then,” Damian said.

  “And now, I’ve got some good news for you,” Carlie said. “I booked the Staples Center for the circus. It’s all set.”

  Damian looked exhilarated.

  “Fantastic.”

  “And I’ve already sent out a press release to all the outlets,” Carlie said. “The event should be all over the news by tomorrow night. Worldwide. I’m also setting up a press conference for you to talk about the event live. It’s time to steal some of Madrick’s thunder.”

  Damian pounded his fist into his hand.

  “God, that feels good. We’re coming back, Carlie. I can feel it.”

  Carlie’s iPad vibrated. She looked down at it with narrowed eyes.

  “An invitation to a black tie buffet at Madrick’s Napa Valley ranch just came in.”

  “A black tie buffet,” Damian said. “What a hick. You and Elena go on my behalf, Carlie. He’ll probably have moonshine and a melted cheese fountain. I’m better off not seeing it.”

  “I’ll schedule your physical therapy session for the same time,” Carlie said.

  Chapter 17.

  “Where should I set up the pole, Jake?” Brigite said.

  She was walking around the small living room of Jake’s apartment, stepping over piles of video games and dirty laundry. She wore a sparkling red bikini and six inch spike heels, her bright blue wig looking extra voluminous.

  Jake’s four roommates Steven, Chris, Jonathan, and Mike were gathered in the kitchen and watching her as though they were witnessing a miracle.

  “Um, I don’t know, Brig,” Jake said. “Wherever you can find room for it. Guys, have any of you seen my Wheat Thins?”

  He was rummaging through the kitchen cabinets.

  “Dude. Jake. Are you not seeing this?” Steven said. “Your girlfriend is setting up a stripper pole in our living room.”

  “Yeah, it looks like she is,” Jake said. “Are you guys really sure you haven’t seen that box?”

  “I’m eating your Wheat Thins right now,” Jonathan said, in a dazed voice, as he munched crackers while watching Brigite bend over and plant her pole in a clutter-free spot on the floor. “Sorry.”

  “Man, Jonathan. That’s my favorite flavor.”

  “You’re welcome to have my Doritos, Jake,” Mike said, his eyes glued to Brigite as she waxed the pole with a cloth. “You can have a billion Doritos. Just … thank you for bringing her here this afternoon.”

  “Yeah,” Chris said. “Hey, Brigite, do you want me to turn on the fan or something?”

  Brigite flexed her body around the stripper pole, her bikini barely containing her assets.

  “No thanks,” she said. “I prefer the room hot.”

  “It’s way hot,” Mike said. “Way, way hot.”

  Gustaf was working in the privacy of a glass-walled experiment room in the factory when he heard a soft knock on the door.

  He looked up and saw Carel standing on the other side of the glass. Stifling a curse word, he walked to the door and opened it.

  “I prefer not to be disturbed,” he said.

  “I just wanted to tell you that the lunch has arrived,” Carel said. She looked past him at the huge android skeleton frame on the table. It was made of gleaming metal and looked like the frame of a bear.

  Before Gustaf could stop her, she walked to the table and looked down at the frame in awe.

  “Wow. This is way better than what I’m doing. Can you tell me about it?”

  “No,” Gustaf said. “Please let me continue my work. I will eat at another time.”

  Carel drifted back to the door but then turned.

  “Why are you so unfriendly?” she said. “I’m just trying to get to know you.”

  Gustaf took a step toward her, his face suddenly contorted into a violent expression.

  Carel gasped when she saw the giant frame behind him sit up suddenly. She ran from the room quickly.

  Madrick’s ranch was a sprawling forty-acre estate tucked away in the hills of Napa Valley. It was not nearly as tacky as Carlie expected it to be but there was an abundance of fake plaster statues that made her grimace.

  There was a huge, well-dressed crowd in attendance, mingling with each other in the back of the ranch house where a catered buffet was set up under a white tent. Carlie recognized a number of CEOs and other notable persons. She did not see a cheese fountain but waiters were maneuvering through the crowd, carrying plates of cheese rolls and glasses of champagne.

  Madrick caught sight of her and Elena and made his way to them. He was the only one not in black tie. He wore a denim tuxedo and his usual cowboy hat.

  Carlie held her hand out to him.

  “Nice to meet you in person, Mr. Castleshank.”

  “It’s Cass-la-shank, honey,” Madrick said, taking her hand. “It’s French. Where’s your boss?”

  “He’s having a physical therapy session,” Elena said. “He sends his apologies.”

  Madrick laughed. He eyed the two of them.

  “And his bimbos. Well, well. It’s probably better that he didn’t come, he’d probably feel out of place. Help yourselves to the drinks, ladies.”

  He left them.

  “And I thought Damian was an insensitive bastard,” Carlie said.

  “You said you wanted to ask me something,” Luke said. He and Mandelie were having dinner at an Italian restaurant in downtown Los Angeles, sitting at a table outside.

  Mandelie took a sip of her sparkling water. She wore a short lacy black dress and low heels. Luke looked like he had stepped out of the pages of a magazine in his long-sleeved dark shirt and jeans.

  “I went to visit Damian Foster a few days ago,” she said. “He said he needed to ask me something.”

  Luke raised an eyebrow.

  “How is he?” he said.

  “When was the last time you saw him?” Mandelie said.

  “The day he was shot,” Luke said.

  “Well, it was kind of a shock to see him in a wheelchair,” Mandelie said. “It made me feel … sorry about the way we’ve treated each other in the past. You probably don’t have as much reason to dislike him as I do.”

  “I spent enough time in his presence to understand a few of the things that motivate him,” Luke said.

  “You know that his company is struggling, right?”

  “I’ve heard,” Luke said.

  “Damian wants to organize an android circus,” Mandelie said.
“A display of Adventis’s android technologies including its new models and its older ones. He thinks that will put his company back on top. He wants my help and your help.”

  “The things humans think of,” Luke said. “Did you say you would help him?”

  “I did,” Mandelie said. “But I’d love it if you could be involved too.”

  “On what terms?” Luke said. “As an android on display, or behind the scenes? I have a feeling Damian would want me to be on display, but that’s asking a lot from me. It might be a risk.”

  “I don’t know what Damian wants,” Mandelie said. “But he promised me the circus would be safe and under control. The decision is yours, really. You can help out in whatever way you choose. I thought we might go see Damian tomorrow. I’m asking Jake and Brigite to go too.”

  “Brigite would probably be happy to be on display,” Luke said.

  “I think so too,” Mandelie said. “So will you come with me tomorrow and hear what Damian has to say?”

  Luke took her hand. Mandelie could feel the heat of his grasp flowing into her body.

  “If you’re a part of the circus, I’m a part of it too,” he said. “I owe Damian a visit. I’ll go with you tomorrow.”

  “How was the black tie buffet?” Damian said, when Carlie returned later in the evening and came to his room.

  “Pretty much as you’d expect,” Carlie said. “I brought you a gift bag. Madrick insisted.”

  Damian opened the bag and looked into it.

  “Salt and pepper shakers with cowboy hats on them. What a nice touch. Wouldn’t expect anything less from him.”

  Carlie walked to the balcony doors and closed them.

  “You look great,” Damian said, eying the back of her dress.

  “Good night, Damian,” Carlie said. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

  She left the room.

  Damian turned on his massage system. He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.

  Chapter 18.